A variable power zoom lens of four groups of lens pieces respectively exerting positive, negative, positive, and positive refractivities varies the power from the wide-angle end to the telephoto end as a result of the 1st and 2nd lens groups being separated more, the 2nd and 3rd lens groups, and the 3rd and 4th lens groups, coming closer to each other. The 3rd lens group has a leading set of lens pieces closer to the object side having a positive refractivity as a whole and the trailing set of lens pieces have negative refractivity as a whole, and the trailing set alone are moved to be orthogonal to the optical axis to compensate for defocus in the imaging plane. The 2nd lens group is displaced closer to objects for focusing.