Meike 28mm f/2.8 Review

Meike 28mm f/2.8 Handling and Features

The lens comes nicely packaged in a glossy, printed box, and also includes a soft pouch and a cleaning cloth. It is very tiny, weighing in at a minuscule 102g. The version reviewed is for MFT cameras and it makes a very compact piece of kit when fitted to the Panasonic Lumix G6. This could easily fit into a large jacket pocket and could be a useful combination for street photographers.

The lens provided for review is the MFT version, giving a 56mm “35mm format equivalent”, or a long standard lens. This may suit some photographers, as there is a precedent for long standard lenses, usually 58mm, going back to the early days of the SLR. Various APS-C mounts are offered, including Sony E, Canon, Nikon 1, Olympus (Micro Four Thirds) and Fuji X. In this case, the equivalent focal length is around 42mm, a wide standard. This falls more exactly into the concept of the pancake lens, typified by the 1980s Pentax ME Super with its 40mm f/2.8 lens. Whichever mount is chosen, there are no electronic contacts but the quality of finish is superb. The MFT version bayonets smoothly and precisely into the camera mount.

There is a push on metal lens cap that fits well, although as with all these caps with very narrow grip area, it could very easily be lost. The filter thread is an economical 49mm. The focusing ring extends the lens, the closest distance being 0.25m (0.8 feet), which is about the norm for conventional 28mm designs. Maximum magnification is 0.11x. Distances are marked and can be viewed in a cutout area on the lens barrel, similar to the design of Pentax screw thread lenses from the 1960s. A very clear and useful depth of field scale is provided. The smoothness of the helical focusing thread is commendable but after only a small amount of use, there is a tendency to develop an unevenness in its action. This does not make it any less accurate but does spoil the otherwise excellent feel of the focusing action.

Nanotechnology multi-coating is applied to the 6 elements in 5 group construction. The diaphragm blades are curved to improve the bokeh. The aperture ring is very close to the body of the camera, which does make it slightly fiddly to use. It has no click stops, so it is necessary to look closely to set the required value. The run of apertures indicated is slightly non-standard, going straight from f/8 to f/16 and missing out f/11. This seems to be something in common with a few of these lenses from Meike and others, although in this case, the progression is not as odd as some.

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