Introduction

I stumbled upon a thread on the Pocket 4K Facebook user group about a new-ish cine lens from a Chinese manufacturer named Meike. After seeing several positive reviews of their stills lenses, I decided to grab a copy and put it through its paces.

Currently, Meike’s only cinema lens is a compact prime 25mm T2.2 with a native, all-manual, M/43 mount. These specs, combined with its form factor, are very similar to the popular, but effectively unavailable, Veydra 25mm prime. This similarity has caused a lot of speculation that Meike’s lens is a cheap rip-off of Veydra’s design. I can’t confirm or deny this, but I can say that if you can somehow find a new Veydra, it will cost you about $1,200. The Meike is readily available for $340.

Available to buy, and inexpensive, are both great…but only if the lens performs. I’ve done a few tests, and in a few cases compared it to another cheap-ish 25mm lens, the Panasonic Lumix 25mm f1.7.*