The Olympus 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 lens provides a focal length of 140-600mm in 35mm camera terms (due to the E-System’s 2x crop factor), yet it only weighs 620g. The new Olympus 70-300mm also doubles up as a macro lens, offering a maximum magnification of 0.5x (equivalent to 1x). The Olympus 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 will be available from late October 2007, price to be announced.

CameraLabs have just reviewed the ultra-wideangle Olympus Zuiko Digital ED7-14mm F4.0 lens, including new samples and results using the latest bodies and a brand new video tour.

“Below are the results from the 7-14mm ZUIKO DIGITAL lens, and even before comparing them against anything else, the wide end of the zoom clearly shows a massive field being captured. This provides wonderfully creative opportunities, whether capturing enormous landscapes or exploiting the 10cm closest focusing distance to get right up to your subject. When zoomed-out, you can enjoy enormous depths of field even with relatively wide-open apertures, and the coverage is also handy when you simply can’t step back any further.”

Website: CameraLabs - Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 7-14mm F4.0 Lens Review

SLRgear have reviewed the Tamron 18-250mm F/3.5-6.3 Di-II LD Aspherical (IF) Macro lens.

“Sharpness was the area where we observed the most dramatic improvement over its 18-200mm predecessor. It shows noticeable corner softness across its focal length range when shot wide open, but center sharpness is always surprisingly good, vastly better than that of the 18-200mm.”

Website: SLRgear - Tamron 18-250mm Lens Review

CameraLabs have just reviewed the Leica D Vario-Elmarit 14-50mm/F2.8-3.5 ASPH lens, which incorporates Panasonic’s MEGA O.I.S (optical image stabilization) system and an aperture ring in addition to the focus ring and zoom ring.

“As for the optical quality, the Leica zoom is certainly very good, especially when zoomed-in, but it’s by no means way ahead of the latest Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 14-42mm kit lens; indeed our results illustrate how good the new ED 14-42mm kit lens really is.”

Website: CameraLabs - Leica 14-50mm Lens Review

Shutterbug have reviewed the Tamron 18-250mm F/3.5-6.3 Di-II LD Aspherical (IF) Macro lens.

“Tamron set out to design a compact power zoom that would not skimp on quality or range and for the most part have succeeded in delivering both. There’s no question that a 13.9x tele is a remarkable feat, albeit at the price of an f/6.3 maximum aperture at the tele end. Were this a lens for a film camera this max aperture might eliminate it from consideration, but with digital it can be compensated for by simply raising ISO to a reasonably high speed.”

Website: Shutterbug - Tamron 18-250mm Lens Review

SLRGear have have reviewed the new Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM lens, which offers up to 4 stops of image stabilisation with 2 modes and a compact, lightweight body.

“It usually goes without saying that a zoom lens won’t come close to matching the performance of a good prime (non-zoom) lens at any given focal length. But is that always the case? When we tested the non-IS version of this lens, we were mightily impressed with its image quality across the board. The new IS (Image Stabilized) version of it is at least as good, prompting senior tech Jim Tanner to look into just how it did stack up against excellent primes at various focal lengths.”

Website: SLRGear - Canon 70-200mm f/4L IS Lens Review

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CameraLabs have reviewed the Pentax 40mm (pictured) and 70mm prime lenses.

“There’s no denying the Pentax DA 40mm and 70mm Limited lenses are pretty special. Their incredibly compact design is pretty much unique to Pentax and unlike anything offered by other DSLR manufacturers. The DA 40mm f2.8 Limited is particularly impressive in this regard, measuring just 15mm thick. Indeed when viewed from the side you really have to give it a double-take and verify the photographer isn’t trying to take a shot using a hefty body cap.”

Website: CameraLabs - Pentax 40mm and 70mm Lens Review

The-Digital-Picture have the first online review of the new Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L lens.

“If you are shooting wide landscapes with narrow apertures, the Canon EF 17-40mm f/4 L USM Lens will save you a lot of money as both lenses are sharp corner-to-corner at f/11. If you are shooting at wider apertures on a full frame body, the Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8 L II USM Lens will definitely be worth the upgrade. If you want the best of these lenses, the Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8 L II USM Lens is it.”

Website: The-Digital-Picture - Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L Lens Review

CameraLabs have taken a look at the various Nikon kit lenses, including the new Nikon AF-S DX VR Zoom-Nikkor 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED lens. Useful info for would-be Nikon owners.

“Since many owners end up using their first lens for some time, or even the entire lifespan of their camera body, it’s clearly important to choose the right one from the start. In this group test we’ll examine the four most popular lenses bought with Nikon DSLRs, whether the official kit models, or popularly bundled alternatives. All are DX models which means they’ll work with any Nikon DSLR, from the entry-level D40 to the professional D2X. They’re also all AF-S models which means they’ll auto-focus when fitted on the latest D40 and D40x bodies.”

Website: CameraLabs - Nikon Kit Lens Roundup

The-Digital-Picture have just reviewed the Sigma 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG OS lens.

“Fortunately, OS (Optical Stabilization) comes to the aid of handholding this large, heavy lens. The Sigma 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG OS Lens user manual advertises 2-stops of increased handholdability when using OS - and this is close to what I am seeing. I can handhold this lens on a full-frame body at 400mm without OS and seem to hit an acceptable sharpness wall at 1/125 with OS active. This is a very valuable feature to me - It makes this lens much more useful to me. “

Website: The-Digital-Picture - Sigma 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6 EX DG OS Lens Review

PMA 2007: The Sigma APO 200-500mm F2.8 EX DG is the world’s first Ultra-Telephoto zoom Lens that offers a fast aperture of f2.8 at 500mm focal length. Shooting distance and focal length can be viewed on the lens’ LCD panel. A supplied 2x teleconverter turns the Sigma 200-500mm into a 400-1000mm F5.6 lens. Further details, pricing and availability are still to be announced.

PMA 2007: The Sigma 18-200mm F3.5-6.3 DC OS is the second Sigma lens to feature an Optical Stabiliser to compensate for camera shake. Two sensors inside the Sigma 18-200mm lens detect vertical and horizontal movement of the camera and move the optical image stabilizing lens group. The Sigma 18-200mm F3.5-6.3 DC OS will cost £439.99, launch date to be announced.

PMA 2007: The Tokina 16-50mm f/2.8 lens was the single new lens on offer at Tokina’s US distributor booth, and it isn’t actually that new, being first announced in mid-2006. Still, that didn’t stop the US distributors from promoting it as a new product. This is a digital lens for APS-C size sensors only. The 16-50mm f/2.8 has the usual solid Tokina build quality, feeling well-balanced on the Nikon D80 body. Price and availabilty of the Tokina 16-50mm f/2.8 Lens are both to be confirmed.

PMA 2007: Panasonic were prominently showcasing 2 new Four Thirds lenses on their booth, in addition to the raft of new digital compacts that were announced in January. Made for Panasonic by Leica, first up is the new Leica 25mm (LEICA D SUMMILUX 25mm/F1.4 ASPH) which is due to ship by April for £749.99 in the UK. Next is the Leica 14-150mm (LEICA D VARIO-ELMAR 14-150mm/F3.5-5.6 ASPH./ MEGA O.I.S.) which is the equivalent of 28-300mm on a 35mm camera. Panasonic and Leica have only started the development of this lens, with an early prototype displayed behind glass. The new lens is also the first Leica D lens to incorporate Extra Silent Motor (XSM) technology.

PMA 2007: As well as the 645 Digital, Pentax had three prototype Star lenses under glass at PMA. These are the 60-250mm f/4, 300mm f/4 and 200mm f/2.8 models. No release dates or pricing are available yet, but “sometime in 2007” (one of the buzz phrases of the show) is probably safe to assume.

PMA 2007: Tamron have a couple of exciting new lenses,the 70-200MM F/2.8 DI LD (IF) MACRO and the 28-300MM F/3.5-6.3 XR DI VC LD ASPHERICAL (IF) MACRO with vibration compensation. Unfortunately they were both displayed under glass, which meant that I couldn’t actually try them out. Both lenses are suitable for APS-C and full-frame sensors.

PMA 2007: Sigma were showcasing the new 200-500mm lens on their stand, which is the world’s first Ultra-Telephoto zoom lens that offers a fast aperture of f/2.8 throughout its focal length. The 200-500mm lens is massive, both in terms of weight and size, dwarfing the new SD14 DSLR camera that it was attached to and requiring two people to carry it! A dedicated tele converter can be used so that the lens becomes a large aperture 400-1000mm F5.6 telephoto. No details on pricing or availability have been released yet.

PMA 2007: The second new lens from Sigma is the 18-200mm F3.5-6.3 DC OS. As the OS acronymn suggests, it has Sigma’s own unique OS (Optical Stabiliser) function. This function uses two sensors inside the lens to detect vertical and horizontal movement of the camera and works by moving an optical image stabilizing lens group, to effectively compensate for camera shake. The Sigma 18-200mm OS lens will cost £439.99 in the UK, availability to be announced.

PMA 2007: Two of the three lenses that Pentax first announced at Photokina last year have now made it to full production status. The smc PENTAX-DA* 16-50mm F2.8ED AL[IF] and smc PENTAX-DA* 50-135mm F2.8ED were both on the Pentax stand at this afternoon’s Sneak Peek event at PMA 2007, mounted on a K10D DSLR. These lenses are designed for use with PENTAX K- and *istD series of digital SLR cameras. They are positioned as premium, high-end ‘star’ (*) lenses, which will deliver exceptional performance and optimal image quality. They both feature the PENTAX KAF2 mount, which incorporates additional electrical contacts to drive a built-in supersonic motor used in auto focusing.

PMA 2007: Panasonic and Leica are developing a new Leica D large-diameter telephoto zoom lens designed specifically for digital SLR cameras. The LEICA D VARIO-ELMAR 14-150mm/ F3.5-5.6 ASPH./ MEGA O.I.S. lens offers a focal range of 28-300mm in 35mm terms and complies with the Four Thirds System. The Leica 14-150mm lens is the first to incorporate Extra Silent Motor (XSM) technology, which assures quick, quiet, accurate auto focusing control. No firm date has been set for the release of the new lens.