Panasonic LUMIX G H-HS043K 43mm
The f/1.7 aperture and POWER O.I.S. stabilization enable sharp, low-light portraits at a 42.5mm focal length (85mm equivalent), all in a featherlight 130g build. The included accessory bundle—with a UV filter, flex shade, and lens wrap—adds immediate protection and versatility rare among compact primes. This lens suits Micro Four Thirds street and portrait photographers who need a discreet, stabilized prime with smooth bokeh for candid people shots.
Snapshot
The 30-Second Version
The Panasonic 42.5mm f/1.7 is a tiny portrait powerhouse with stunning bokeh and solid stabilization. Its f/1.7 aperture is one of the best you'll find for the system, making it a killer value around $400. Skip it if you need a versatile zoom or do a lot of landscape work.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Incredibly light and compact at 130g, you'll never leave it at home. 95th
- The f/1.7 aperture creates gorgeous, best-in-class bokeh. 93th
- Built-in POWER O.I.S. is a lifesaver for handheld video and low-light stills. 91th
- Autofocus is fast, silent, and reliable for both photo and video. 88th
Cons
- Optical sharpness is just average, especially away from the center.
- Not weather sealed, so be careful in rain or dust.
- Minimum focus distance of 31cm limits close-up detail shots.
- Pretty useless for landscapes, it's a one-trick portrait pony.
What owners think
The Word on the Street
Hoe de mening van eigenaren in de loop van de tijd veranderde
ExclusiefOp basis van wanneer klanten hun reviews daadwerkelijk schreven - zo zie je of de eerste lof standhield.
- Q2 2021100/100
All four reviews in Q2 2021 praise the lens for its image quality, low-light performance, bokeh, and value, with enthusiastic wording across different cameras.
- Excellent image quality and value for the price.
- Great low-light performance.
- Nice bokeh and lightweight design.
- Works well with different camera bodies (G95, BMPCC 4K).
- Q1 202183/100
Buyers praise this lens as excellent value, sharp wide open, fast to focus, and well-suited for video and low light.
- Excellent value for the price, often called unbeatable.
- Sharp wide open and fast focusing.
- Works great with BMPCC 4K and for video.
- Compact and lightweight design.
- Q4 202087/100
Buyers praised the lens as great value, fast, and sharp, though some noted image quality falls short of a higher-end Leica model.
- Great value and best price; buyers satisfied with cost-to-quality ratio.
- Fast and sharp lens, ideal for outdoor shoots.
- Good but compared unfavorably to Leica 25mm for color and detail.
- Solid design, lightweight, and focuses closer than similar lenses.
- Q3 202090/100
Buyers praise this lens for portraits, sharpness, and value. It's a versatile prime that stays on the camera, with fast autofocus and smooth manual focus.
- Excellent for portraits, sharp colors, and great value for the price.
- Lightweight, compact, and stays on the camera; good build with metal mount.
- Focus by wire is smooth but some find it basic; decoration ring and hood are cumbersome.
- Included UV filter degrades image quality; lens hood is too large.
- Q2 202088/100
Buyers praise this lens for its sharpness, image quality, and value, especially as an upgrade from kit lenses. One beginner noted limited versatility.
- Excellent sharpness and image quality for the price, especially on BMPCC 4K and Olympus cameras.
- Great value for beginners upgrading from kit lenses; low-light performance and bokeh praised.
- One beginner found the lens not very versatile, recommending a more flexible option for newcomers.
- Autofocus on Olympus E-M10 Mark II is very slow for video shooting according to one user.
- Q1 2020100/100
Buyers praised the lens for low-light performance, sharp portraits, and compact size, with all reviews giving 5 stars.
- Excellent low-light performance with crisp images
- Sharp, high-quality portraits and glamour shots
- Compact and portable, always in the bag
- Great value for the price
- Q4 201988/100
Buyers praised this lens as a compact, high-quality prime for Micro Four Thirds, ideal for portraits and everyday carry. Some found it decent but not outstanding.
- Excellent optics and compact size, often carried as a walk-around lens.
- Great upgrade from kit lens, works well with small M43 bodies.
- Some users see it as decent but not exceptional for the price.
- Award-winning lens, praised by reviewers for portrait photography.
- Q3 201973/100
Buyers praised sharpness, low-light performance, and value, but noted autofocus noise and slow focus compared to Olympus lenses.
- Sharp images with good contrast and color, even at f/1.7.
- Autofocus is fast in good light but noisy and can struggle in low light.
- Excellent value for the price, especially for portraits and indoor use.
- Build feels plasticky and less robust than Olympus alternatives.
- Q1 201995/100
Buyers praise this lens as versatile, sharp, and excellent for low light. It is considered great value, compact, and ideal for travel and events.
- Versatile and sharp lens, excellent for low light and various conditions.
- Great value for the price, often recommended as a must-have.
- Compact and lightweight, ideal for travel and everyday carry.
- Fast and quiet autofocus, suitable for video and live events.
- Q4 201882/100
Buyers praised the lens for its sharpness, bokeh, and value. Some noted autofocus issues and poor video stabilization.
- Sharpness and bokeh quality are highly praised.
- Excellent value for the price, considered a bargain.
- Autofocus is unreliable; manual focus recommended.
- Poor video stabilization, especially on a stabilizer.
- Q3 2018100/100
Buyers rave about this lens's fast autofocus, excellent low-light performance, sharpness, and bokeh, calling it an essential micro 4/3 lens.
- Fast autofocus speed praised across multiple reviews.
- Excellent low-light performance due to f/1.7 aperture.
- Great bokeh and image sharpness noted.
- Highly recommended as a first micro 4/3 lens.
- Q2 2018100/100
Buyers praised the lens for its sharpness, fast focus, and clear image quality at a good price.
- Sharp image quality at maximum aperture
- Fast and accurate autofocus performance
- Good value for the price
- Compact and well-made design
- Q1 201887/100
Buyers praised the lens for its sharpness, compact size, and value, though some noted plastic build and focus noise.
- Great value for a fast prime lens, especially on sale.
- Sharp image quality with good bokeh and low-light performance.
- Compact and lightweight, ideal for travel and portraits.
- Focus-by-wire operation and audible clicking noise during autofocus.
- Q3 201783/100
Reviewers praise the value, low-light performance, and sharpness-for-price, though one notes softness compared to higher-end lenses.
- Great value for the price, especially on sale.
- Compact and lightweight design appreciated.
- Sharpness good for price but not top-tier; soft vs. premium lenses.
- Good low-light and portrait lens with pleasing bokeh.
Gebaseerd op 100 gedateerde klantreviews, gegroepeerd per kalenderkwartaal. Analyse per periode is in het Engels.
The proof
Performance
This lens punches way above its weight class for bokeh and low light. The f/1.7 aperture is a standout, sitting in the 95th percentile for its type, so you get that soft, blurred background that makes portraits pop. Autofocus is snappy and quiet thanks to the stepping motor, and the built-in stabilization is a real help for handheld video or dimly lit shots. The weak spot is sharpness across the frame. Optical quality is middle of the pack, so don't expect corner-to-corner perfection for detailed landscape work. It's a portrait specialist, not an all-rounder.
Specifications
Full Specifications
Optics
| Type | prime |
| Focal Length Min | 42 |
| Focal Length Max | 42 |
| Elements | 10 |
| Groups | 8 |
| Aspherical Elements | 1 |
Aperture
| Max Aperture | f/1.7 |
| Min Aperture | 1.7 |
| Constant | Yes |
| Diaphragm Blades | 7 |
Build
| Mount | Micro Four Thirds |
| Format | micro-four-thirds |
| Weight | 0.1 kg / 0.3 lbs |
| Filter Thread | 37 |
AF & Stabilization
| AF Type | stepping motor |
| Stabilization | Yes |
Focus
| Min Focus Distance | 310 |
| Max Magnification | 0.20x |
vs Competition
Stacked against the competition, this Panasonic is a specialist while most rivals are generalists. The Sigma 16-300mm and Tamron 18-300mm are superzooms that cover a massive range but can't touch the f/1.7 aperture for subject isolation. The Nikon Z 28-400mm is even more versatile but much slower and bigger. If you need one lens for everything, those zooms make more sense. But if your priority is flattering portraits with a dreamy background, this little prime smokes them all. It's a trade-off between flexibility and pure image character.
| Spec | Panasonic LUMIX G H-HS043K 43mm | Canon RF RF28-70mm F2.8 IS STM Macro | Sigma Contemporary 16-300mm f/3.5-6.7 DC OS | Tamron Di III-A 18-300mm f/3.5-6.3 Di III-A VC VXD | Nikon NIKKOR AF-S DX NIKKOR 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR | Meike 23mm F1.4 Ultra Wide Angle APS-C Frame Auto Focus Fixed Prime Portrait Lenses |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Focal Length | 42mm | 28-70mm | 16-300mm | 18-300mm | 16-85mm | 23mm |
| Max Aperture | f/1.7 | 2.8 | f/3.5 | f/3.5 | f/3.5 | f/1.4 |
| Mount | Micro Four Thirds | Canon RF | Sony E | Fuji X | Nikon F | Sony E |
| Stabilization | true | true | true | true | true | true |
| Weather Sealed | false | true | true | false | false | false |
| Weight (g) | 130 | 495 | 615 | 92 | 59 | 298 |
| AF Type | stepping motor | STM | HLA | VXD linear motor | AF-S | STM |
| Lens Type | prime | zoom | zoom | zoom | zoom | prime |
| Compare | Compare | Compare | Compare | Compare |
| Product | Af | Bokeh | Build | Macro | Optical | Aperture | Versatility | Social Proof | Stabilization |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panasonic LUMIX G H-HS043K 43mm | 86 | 92.7 | 91.1 | 30.2 | 42.1 | 95 | 34 | 88.1 | 80.7 |
| Canon RF RF28-70mm F2.8 IS STM Macro Compare | 86 | 88.2 | 67 | 77.7 | 84.5 | 86 | 77.4 | 52.9 | 98.2 |
| Sigma Contemporary 16-300mm f/3.5-6.7 DC OS Compare | 55.1 | 86.6 | 57.6 | 86.7 | 98.9 | 79.9 | 99.6 | 78.1 | 99 |
| Tamron Di III-A 18-300mm f/3.5-6.3 Di III-A VC VXD Compare | 98.2 | 78 | 96.2 | 88.6 | 73.5 | 79.9 | 99.2 | 83.2 | 80.7 |
| Nikon NIKKOR AF-S DX NIKKOR 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR Compare | 55.1 | 78 | 98.5 | 59.9 | 64.2 | 79.9 | 94.2 | 88.1 | 92.3 |
| Meike 23mm F1.4 Ultra Wide Angle APS-C Frame Auto Focus Fixed Prime Portrait Lenses Compare | 86 | 94.7 | 70.8 | 98.4 | 74.9 | 96.8 | 34 | 33.4 | 80.7 |
Price
Value & Pricing
The price on this lens is all over the map, with a wild spread from $398 to over $83,000 across vendors. Obviously, ignore the crazy outlier and look for it around the $400 mark. At that price, it's a solid deal for a stabilized, fast portrait prime. You're getting top-tier bokeh and reliable autofocus for less than many comparable options. Just make sure you're buying from a legit retailer and not some algorithm-gone-haywire listing.
Read more
Overview
The Panasonic 42.5mm f/1.7 is basically the lens you grab when you want that classic portrait look without selling a kidney. It gives you an 85mm equivalent field of view on Micro Four Thirds, which is the sweet spot for flattering faces and creamy backgrounds. And at 130 grams, it's so light you'll forget it's on your camera.
Common Questions
Q: Does this lens work for video?
Yes, the fast and silent autofocus combined with POWER O.I.S. stabilization makes it a solid choice for handheld video, especially on a compact gimbal.
Q: Is it weather sealed?
No, this lens has no weather sealing, so you'll want to protect it from rain, dust, and splashes.
Q: How close can I focus?
The minimum focus distance is 31cm, which is fine for headshots but won't let you get true macro-style close-ups.
Who Should Skip This
If you need a single lens to cover everything from wide landscapes to distant wildlife, look elsewhere. This prime is a portrait specialist with mediocre optical sharpness across the frame, so landscape and architecture shooters will be disappointed. Also, if you shoot in rough weather often, the lack of sealing is a dealbreaker.
Verdict
This lens is for the portrait shooter who values a light kit and beautiful bokeh above all else. It's perfect for capturing people, pets, and detail shots where you want the subject to stand out from a soft background. Video shooters on a gimbal will also love the tiny size and stabilization. If you're building a compact Micro Four Thirds kit for travel and people photography, this is a no-brainer.
