Panasonic 35mm f/1.8, 100mm f/2, and more lenses patented

Panasonic may be on the verge of releasing three new lenses with fixed focal lengths in the near future, as a patent describing no less than five lenses has just been uncovered.

Although patenting a product does not guarantee its commercial availability, it usually tells us in which direction a company is moving. This is also true for digital camera and lens manufacturers and we have seen a lot of lenses and cameras becoming available after having their patents leaked.

The latest company to have some of its patents leaked on the web is Panasonic. Curious eyes have discovered an application filed at the US Patent and Trademark Office in November 2012, which includes a quintet of lenses.

Panasonic’s patent has been approved recently – on April 8, 2014 to be more exact. Among the optics, we can find a Panasonic 35mm f/1.8 lens, as well as 65mm f/1.8 and 100mm f/2 models.

Leica DG Nocticron 42.5mm f/1.2 is one of the five lenses patented by Panasonic in November 2012. It offers a 35mm equivalent of 85mm when mounted on Micro Four Thirds cameras.

Two of the five new patented Panasonic lenses are already available

First of all, we should mention that a couple of the products listed in the patent are already available on the market. We are referring to the Leica DG Summilux 25mm f/1.4 and the Leica DG Nocticron 42.5mm f/1.2.

The former can be purchased at Amazon for a price around $600 and provides a 35mm equivalent of 50mm, while the latter is significantly more expensive with a price tag of around $1,600 and a 35mm equivalent of 85mm.

Both of them are available for all Micro Four Thirds mirrorless cameras and have received positive reviews from the aforementioned retailer’s customers.

Panasonic 35mm f/1.8, 65mm f/1.8, and 100mm f/2 lenses mentioned in the same patent

The remaining three optics are nowhere to be seen and the rumor mill appears to have heard very few things about them. The patent describes a 34mm f/1.8 model, which will be marketed as a Panasonic 35mm f/1.8 lens.

When mounted onto an MFT camera, it will offer a 35mm equivalent of 70mm. Furthermore, a 64mm f/1.8 model is also mentioned and will be converted to a Panasonic 65mm f/1.8 optic with a 35mm equivalent of 130mm.

The third, and possibly the most exciting model of them all, is a Panasonic 100mm f/2 lens with a 35mm equivalent of 200mm. This would be an excellent telephoto lens that could be used in low-light environments thanks to its bright aperture.

Out of this quintet, only the Leica DG Nocticron 42.5mm f/1.2 has had its aperture changed from the original design. It is brighter, standing at f/1.2, when compared to the patented design of f/1.4. However, it is unlikely that the remaining three lenses will have their apertures altered in any way, but take this with a pinch of salt and wait for more information before drawing a conclusion.