Today’s contestants: the lovely and talented Sony 16mm f/2.8 and Olympus 17mm f/2.8 pancake lenses.
Since everyone seemed to enjoy looking inside an NEX mirrorless camera, I decided to take more pictures while doing today’s disassembly.
Optically I expected both lenses to be fairly simple: the Sony has 5 single elements, the Olympus 6 elements in 4 groups, and both have the diaphragm about in the center of the lens elements. They seem very similar as we start opening up the backs: both have 3 screws holding in a light baffle / protection cap, and 4 screws holding on the lens mount, just like most other lenses.
The Olympus (left) and Sony lenses with backs removed.
There are a couple of minor differences: the Olympus only uses 1 small screw to hold its electronic connector to the mount, while the Sony uses two. It’s at this point that we found the first (and apparently only) optical adjustments. The Olympus uses washer type shims, while the Sony uses some 90 degree shims (black and white things in the picture) to space the lens-to-lensmount interface.
Removing the PC boards is more of the same, again Sony uses 3 screws (I have no idea why, no one else does) to hold the board in place, while the Olympus goes with the more common single screw.
Olympus Disassembly
At this point, disassembly of the two lenses gets a bit different. It’s obvious in the above picture that the Olympus has several screws holding the optical assembly in the case. Take those out and slip the case off . . .
Then turn it over, pop off the plastic front makeup ring, remove the couple of screws revealed under the makeup ring . . .
. . . . and the rest of the front rings come off, leaving the core of the lens completely uncovered.
Largely disassembled Olympus pancake (rear view). Note the focusing motor at bottom and geared teeth engaging from manual focusing ring. Smaller motor at 11 O’clock is the aperture control motor.
Two screws remove the focusing motor. The aperture control motor slips out and its flex disconnects, and now the optical elements are separated from most of the lens. The Olympus design places the optical elements in the center of a 3-armed plastic piece that connects the lens ring. Olympus optical elements and array, with aperture motor removed. You can recognize the purple ring and see the 5 bladed aperture, but that’s about all that lets you know this was the Oly.
The entire optical assembly slides back and forth on three arms within the outer ring for focusing. With a prime lens this small there’s no need for a separate focusing element.
The plastic mount for the lens core had a couple of lensmaker’s marks on it. I had hoped, as is often the case, they would be associated with adjusting shims or collars, but I certainly couldn’t find any. Whether the marks are some directions for orienting this assembly, somebody’s signature, or random graffiti I don’t know. Maybe one of you can tell me?
Sony Disassembly
Sony disassembly was initially less obvious. After the PC board was removed I had expected the front plastic makeup ring to pop off, like most do, but it wasn’t budging. Re-examination didn’t reveal any other way in so I tried popping the front makeup ring a little harder. This sort of worked, although it ruined the makeup ring. It turns out Sony holds it down with a ton of glue, rather than plastic pop-tabs like most lenses. Oh, well, next time I’ll know to use glue remover. But once the ring was removed the barrel pieces slip right off the lens.
Here’s the front of the Sony pancake lens with most of barrel removed. Torn up makeup ring and glue residue on plastic around the lens demonstrate this was obviously my first time opening one of these.
The lens core lifts out of the bottom case and has three screws begging to be removed . . .
. . . which lets us remove the inner optical core from the surrounding support.
Once past the front makeup ring, the Sony disassembly was quick and easy.
Having removed all the lens parts except the optics, the two lenses look rather different: the Sony has a small, self contained optical assembly while the Olympus assembly is mounted to three arms that slide up and down through an outer ring.
Olympus (left) and Sony (right) optical cores.
The optical groups of both lenses, however, can be separated into front and rear components by removing a couple of screws. With the Sony lens removing the screws visible in the photo above allows the diaphragm assembly comes out as a separate piece (left side of each image below), sandwiched between the front (upper image) and rear (lower image) glass elements of the lens.
The diaphragm unit of the Sony lens, with the front (upper) and rear (lower) optical components.
With the Olympus, removing the screws allows most of the optics to detach in a group, with only one element remaining in the center of the plastic arms.
I had expected to see a shim or adjustment here, but there wasn’t one. Nor was there one in the Sony. So as best I can determine, both of these pancake lenses have no real optical adjustments other than shims at the lens mount. But then, pancakes aren’t generally expected to be razor sharp lenses.
The remaining optical section of the Olympus (left side in above image) separates neatly in two halves at the aperture. Unlike the Sony, the aperture unit isn’t self contained, but rather sits on top of the rearward group. This allowed for a nice demonstration of how aperture blades are set up (in case you haven’t seen it before). The right side image below shows the two rings of the aperture mechanism, with mounting posts on both the outer and inner rings. The aperture blades (one is sitting above the lens in the right illustration) mount to the outside post at the hole in one end, and the slot fits over the post on the inner ring. As the inner ring is turned in relation to the outer ring, the post moves along the slots, closing or opening the aperture.
The Final Images
Of course, I have to post the images of the disassembled lenses, first the Olympus and then the Sony:
Completely disassembled Olympus 17mm f/2.8 m4/3 pancake lens.
Completely disassembled Sony 16mm f/2.8 E-mount pancake.
These are the smallest and simplest lenses I’ve ever taken apart. The front element of a 70-200 f/2.8 lens is larger and heavier than either of these. The small size of the glass elements is really shocking: even the rear element of, say, a 50mm f/1.4 lens contains more glass than all the elements in either of these. Despite the fact it has to cover a larger sensor, the elements in the Sony lens aren’t obviously larger than those in the Olympus.
The simplicity of the design shows why these lenses rarely break. And since optical adjustment isn’t an option, apparently, there won’t be a lot of reason for me to do this again. Which is too bad, really. It’s a nice, straightforward disassembly, with a simple internal design.
And before someone asks: yes, I can put them back together. [gizmodo]
Dr. Roger Cicala is the founder of Lensrentals.com. Since the company has long since outgrown his ability to manage it, he is now the Director of Research and Quality Assurance for Lensrentals, meaning he spends all day taking photography things apart and figuring out how they work.
3,641 comments
acompanhantes rj says:
January 25, 2013 at 3:26 pm (UTC -4)
acompanhantes rj…
http://www.moranguinhosrj.com.br/...
gosankolaw.com says:
January 25, 2013 at 5:57 pm (UTC -4)
gosankolaw.com…
[...]below youll find the link to some web sites that we assume you’ll want to visit[...]…
noise cancelling headphones reviews says:
January 26, 2013 at 12:54 am (UTC -4)
The Absent Game…
Amongst me and my husband we’ve owned much more MP3 players over the years than I can count, which includes Sansas, iRivers, iPods (classic & touch), the Ibiza Rhapsody, etc. But, the last few a long time I’ve settled down to one line of gamers….
zoloft brain damage says:
January 26, 2013 at 1:11 am (UTC -4)
zoloft brain damage…
[...]Every when in a when we opt for blogs that we study. Listed beneath would be the most up-to-date sites that we opt for [...]…
holdem bot profiles says:
January 26, 2013 at 5:39 am (UTC -4)
holdem bot profiles…
[...]Wonderful story, reckoned we could combine several unrelated data, nevertheless really worth taking a search, whoa did one study about Mid East has got much more problerms also [...]…
free ipad says:
January 26, 2013 at 11:32 am (UTC -4)
free ipad…
[...]Sites of interest we’ve a link to[...]…
Free iPad says:
January 26, 2013 at 1:07 pm (UTC -4)
Free iPad…
Very efficiently written story. It will be beneficial to anyone who usess it, as well as myself. Keep doing what you are doing – i will definitely read more posts….
psychic attack says:
January 26, 2013 at 6:34 pm (UTC -4)
Looking around…
I like to browse around the internet, often I will just go to Digg and follow thru…
Salt Lake City, UT says:
January 26, 2013 at 7:21 pm (UTC -4)
Salt Lake City, UT…
[...]Sites of interest we have a link to[...]…
Machu Picchu Tours says:
January 26, 2013 at 7:29 pm (UTC -4)
Machu Picchu Tours…
[...]one of our visitors not too long ago encouraged the following website[...]…
Greg Massaro says:
January 26, 2013 at 7:53 pm (UTC -4)
actually intriguing write-up…
Hello in truth there, I discovered your individual website by means of Search google whilst searching for that related subject, your individual website emerged upwards, this type associated together along along with appears great. I’ve kept this insid…
Endocet says:
January 26, 2013 at 11:02 pm (UTC -4)
Digg…
While checking out DIGG today I found this…
SEO Kansas says:
January 27, 2013 at 2:24 am (UTC -4)
Tumblr article…
I saw a writer talking about this on Tumblr and it linked to…
Video Marketing says:
January 27, 2013 at 3:14 am (UTC -4)
Wikia…
Wika linked to this place…
Atlanta seo company offering local seo says:
January 27, 2013 at 5:54 am (UTC -4)
Atlanta SEO Company…
[...]The information mentioned within the report are some of the most beneficial readily available [...]…
ephedrine products says:
January 27, 2013 at 5:58 am (UTC -4)
ephedrine products…
[...]always a massive fan of linking to bloggers that I really like but really don’t get quite a bit of link love from[...]…
Zalando Gutschein says:
January 27, 2013 at 7:49 am (UTC -4)
Zalando Gutschein…
[...]we like to honor several other net internet sites around the internet, even if they aren?t linked to us, by linking to them. Underneath are some webpages really worth checking out[...]…
motorcycle accident says:
January 27, 2013 at 8:38 am (UTC -4)
motorcycle accident…
[...]here are some hyperlinks to web-sites that we link to due to the fact we believe they may be really worth visiting[...]…
atlanta seo company & services says:
January 27, 2013 at 8:42 am (UTC -4)
Affordable SEO Services…
Get the web site more exposure in addition to brings by means of employing a new professional SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMISATION firm….
diet pills says:
January 27, 2013 at 10:03 am (UTC -4)
diet pills…
Im not that much of a online reader to be honest but your sites really nice, keep it up! I’ll go ahead and bookmark your site to come back in the future. Many thanks…
6000 Profile Backlinks says:
January 27, 2013 at 10:19 am (UTC -4)
6000 Profile Backlinks…
[...]check beneath, are some entirely unrelated web sites to ours, nonetheless, they’re most trustworthy sources that we use[...]…
cheap vacation spots says:
January 27, 2013 at 1:25 pm (UTC -4)
cheap vacation spots…
[...]just beneath, are quite a few entirely not connected internet sites to ours, nevertheless, they are surely worth going over[...]…
beat maker software says:
January 27, 2013 at 2:18 pm (UTC -4)
beat maker software…
[...]although web sites we backlink to beneath are considerably not connected to ours, we feel they are essentially worth a go via, so have a look[...]…
porn hd says:
January 27, 2013 at 3:48 pm (UTC -4)
mainly useful…
F*ckin’ striking products one more. I’m extremely in a situation to discover this articles. Thank you a good deal and also soon we’re looking towards consult by having an very personal. Would you should please tumble personally any kind of mail?…
Wedding Reception Hall sullivan il says:
January 27, 2013 at 5:07 pm (UTC -4)
Wedding Reception Hall sullivan il…
[...]we came across a cool web site that you could take pleasure in. Take a search in the event you want[...]…
same day Air Duct Cleaning Tampa says:
January 27, 2013 at 5:27 pm (UTC -4)
Duct Cleaning…
[...]The details mentioned within the report are a few of the most effective offered [...]…
hostgator 1 cent coupon says:
January 27, 2013 at 6:51 pm (UTC -4)
Best Things for the Year…
[...]I examined this genuinely excellent article today.[...]…
friends says:
January 27, 2013 at 7:51 pm (UTC -4)
friends…
[...]check beneath, are some completely unrelated sites to ours, nevertheless, they’re most trustworthy sources that we use[...]…
Recommended Site says:
January 27, 2013 at 8:51 pm (UTC -4)
Recommended Site…
[...]Here are several of the sites we recommend for our visitors[...]…
motorcycle accident says:
January 27, 2013 at 10:47 pm (UTC -4)
motorcycle accident…
[...]one of our guests just lately recommended the following website[...]…
Los Angeles Times Subscription says:
January 27, 2013 at 11:19 pm (UTC -4)
Digg…
While checking out DIGG yesterday I noticed this…
Artisan chocolate says:
January 28, 2013 at 2:49 am (UTC -4)
Artisan chocolate…
[...]below youll obtain the link to some web sites that we assume you should visit[...]…
Clone Script says:
January 28, 2013 at 3:57 am (UTC -4)
Digg…
While checking out DIGG today I noticed this…
birch gold invest money says:
January 28, 2013 at 4:58 am (UTC -4)
Websites worth visiting…
[...]here are some links to sites that we link to because we think they are worth visiting[...]……
hostgator coupon code says:
January 28, 2013 at 11:24 am (UTC -4)
these sites are worth browsing……
[...]one of our visitors a little bit ago recommended the next website[...]…
Walking Dead Season 3 says:
January 28, 2013 at 12:32 pm (UTC -4)
Walking Dead Season 3…
[...]Every once in a although we pick out blogs that we read. Listed beneath are the most recent websites that we select [...]…
rumah dijual says:
January 28, 2013 at 12:58 pm (UTC -4)
rumah dijual…
[...]very few web sites that occur to be detailed below, from our point of view are undoubtedly nicely worth checking out[...]…
california payday loan says:
January 28, 2013 at 1:44 pm (UTC -4)
Jackson…
Helpful info. Lucky me I found your site unintentionally, and I’m shocked why this coincidence did not happened in advance! I bookmarked it….
china teapot says:
January 28, 2013 at 4:26 pm (UTC -4)
china teapot…
Hi there, I found your web site via Google while looking for a related topic, your web site came up, it looks good. I’ve bookmarked it in my google bookmarks….
diverticulitis cure says:
January 28, 2013 at 4:31 pm (UTC -4)
diverticulitis cure…
[...]The info talked about within the post are several of the most beneficial obtainable [...]…
party decorations says:
January 28, 2013 at 5:15 pm (UTC -4)
on it often, maybe you should consider…
using paid traffic. also, if you get a lot of sales from the clickbank product you’re promoting, it may be a good idea also to invest in some paid advertising.but if you’re just getting so-so commissions from your adsense income and…
business accounting information says:
January 28, 2013 at 5:50 pm (UTC -4)
a good university to pursue their dream…
courses in graduation and post-graduation.but, in most of these cases students fail to score good marks in their higher primary and senior secondary education, therefore, they always end up taking admission in low profile universities, colleges or othe…
gsdjkfhgksdgnsldkfg says:
January 28, 2013 at 7:05 pm (UTC -4)
Title…
[...]we came across a cool web page that you just might enjoy. Take a appear should you want[...]…
Converting regular website to mobile website says:
January 28, 2013 at 8:39 pm (UTC -4)
Converting regular website to mobile website…
[...]although websites we backlink to beneath are considerably not connected to ours, we feel they are in fact really worth a go as a result of, so have a look[...]…
diet solution program review says:
January 28, 2013 at 8:41 pm (UTC -4)
diet solution program review…
[...]just beneath, are various entirely not related web-sites to ours, on the other hand, they are surely worth going over[...]…
personal training vaughan says:
January 28, 2013 at 9:35 pm (UTC -4)
personal training vaughan…
[...]just beneath, are quite a few completely not related internet sites to ours, on the other hand, they are certainly worth going over[...]…
us tax shield scam says:
January 29, 2013 at 12:22 am (UTC -4)
Recommeneded websites…
[...]Here are some of the sites we recommend for our visitors[...]……
Zalando Gutschein Februar says:
January 29, 2013 at 2:10 am (UTC -4)
Zalando Gutschein Februar…
[...]one of our visitors recently proposed the following website[...]…
hostgator coupon code says:
January 29, 2013 at 3:23 am (UTC -4)
Best Points I would like to share ……
[...]please check out the webpages we all abide by, like this just one, as it presents each of our picks through the web[...]…
drunk driving Orlando attorneys says:
January 29, 2013 at 3:42 am (UTC -4)
in the content of your posts. how…
to put your keywords properly is the most important challenge of search engine optimization. the more keywords the better but google punishes spam keywords.3. add imagesit is always recommended to insert pictures to every post on your blog. pictures co…
« Previous 1 ... 44 45 46 47 48 ... 73 Next »