Panasonic 12-35mm f/2.8 Micro Four Thirds lens announced, already receiving flying colors reviews

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  • May 21, 2012 at 4:35 am

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Panasonic Lumix G X VARIO 12-35mm f/2.8 lens

We first saw the Panasonic 12-35mm f/2.8 Micro Four Thirds lens at CES this year, but back then it was still a concept. Today Panasonic has officially announced the new lens which should begin shipping in late July, though the US release date seems to fall sometime in August.

This is the first fast constant aperture zoom lens for the Micro Four Thirds mirrorless camera system, so this is big news for fans of the system. The Lumix G X Vario 12-35mm f/2.8 lens belongs to the Panasonic’s premium X lens series and with an equivalent 24-70mm focal length on a full-frame camera it covers a nice range from wide to short telefocus.
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The Olympus OM-D E-M5 is here: first impressions

FeaturedThe Lab

  • May 2, 2012 at 3:41 pm

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Olympus OM-D E-M5 digital camera right front

We finally have the Olympus OM-D E-M5 with us, and anyone not familiar with this small Micro Four Thirds wonder camera can check out our entire coverage here. Note that we’ve opted for the $1,099 kit with the 14-42mm lens and we’ll be taking the camera through its paces over the coming weeks.

As we like to spend some time with a gadget before we review it, I thought it would be wise to bring you some first impressions of this mirrorless interchangeable lens camera after a few days of use.

There’s a lot to like with this camera, Olympus has thrown everything but the kitchen sink into it, and it’s a serious contender against even much bigger DSLRs. Still there are a couple of niggles, but read on for our first impressions.
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Panasonic confirmed 12-35mm f/2.8 MFT constant aperture zoom lens coming in June

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  • April 10, 2012 at 4:38 am

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Panasonic 12-35mm f/2.8mm and 35-100mm f/2.8 X-series Micro Four Thirds lenses

Micro Four Thirds camera users are spoiled for choice when it comes to lenses compared to other mirrorless system cameras. However, there is a big gap for bright quality zoom lenses. Panasonic had shown off a pair of large aperture ‘concept lenses’ at CES this year, the 12-35mm f/2.8mm and 35-100mm f/2.8 X-series lenses.

Unfortunately there was no indication on when the two lenses would be hitting the market or on pricing. Well it now seems that this information has slipped from the mouth of a Panasonic representative interviewed by Amateur Photographer. The information that was posted and later removed from the UK magazine’s website stated that the, new 12-35mm f/2.8 lens is expected out at the end of June, priced £1,000.
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PSA: Olympus OM-D E-M5 shipping date delayed until April 23 in the UK

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  • April 2, 2012 at 3:01 pm

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Olympus OM-D E-M5 wet - water drops dripping off

The Olympus OM-D E-M5 is already shipping in Asia and we’ve seen the first unboxing photos here. We had high hopes that the rest of the world would be receiving their new Micro Four Thirds wonders soon as Amazon UK had been listing the E-M5’s shipping date as April 1st.

Well, April 1st is now history and Amazon UK has been sending emails to early pre-orderers letting them know that the new shipping date is now April 23rd — unfortunately that’s no April Fool’s. We’ve received the below email from Amazon:
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Panasonic Lumix GF5 Micro Four Thirds camera leaked

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  • March 18, 2012 at 4:31 am

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Panasonic GF5 leaked image

An image of a new model in Panasonic’s entry-level GF series of Micro Four Thirds (MFT) mirrorless cameras has just emerged. Skipping number four, which is an unlucky number in Asia, the Panasonic GF5 looks very much like its predecessor the GF3, but with a more substantial rubber grip. In the image you can see it together with the Lumix G X VARIO PZ 14-42mm collapsible zoom lens.
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Gadget lust: five new official videos on the Olympus OM-D E-M5

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  • February 22, 2012 at 3:54 pm

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Olympus E-M5 Micro Four Thirds digital camera front

Olympus Australia has posted five new videos covering every facet of the new Olympus OM-D E-M5 Micro Four Thirds mirrorless camera. The demo videos cover the 5-axis in-body image stabilization, the camera’s superfast autofocus with 3D object tracking, 9 frames per second burst shooting and the new electronic viewfinder.

We’ve especially noted how much Olympus has improved on the software for the camera. There are three different styles of information overlay in the EVF and some innovative creative controls, like an adjustable highlight and shadow curve. The latest info point to an early-April shipping date for the camera, which can be pre-ordered now in the US here and here, UK here and Germany here.
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Olympus OM-D E-M5 weather-sealed Micro Four Thirds camera announced for $999.99 (specs, pictures, video)

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  • February 8, 2012 at 5:22 pm

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Olympus OM-D E-M5 MFT digital camera - silver - front side

After weeks of speculation, the new Olympus E-M5 Micro Four Thirds (MFT) digital camera has been announced today as part of the company’s new OM-D line. If you’ve been following our coverage so far, then you’re pretty much already briefed on what you can expect from the new Olympus E-M5.

First off, Olympus considered the E-M5 too good for the existing PEN series, so it has created the new OM-D line, borrowing a bit of nostalgia from its original 35mm film OM system. The OM-D line still belongs to the Micro Four Thirds system of digital mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras (MILCs), and a large part of the appeal of the E-M5 is the large selection of MFT lenses.
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Full image of the Olympus OM-D E-M5, Amazon Japan listing points to March 30th release date

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  • February 4, 2012 at 3:17 pm

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Olympus OM-D E-M5 front with optional battery grip

So we finally have full images of the Olympus OM-D E-M5 Micro Four Thirds (MFT) camera. You can enjoy the camera in its entire front and back glory, together with a detachable grip and optional battery grip. Each of the grips comes its unique shutter button.

One can see the articulated rear 3-inch OLED display, integrated EVF and the large bulge at the top, which we would guess hosts a pop-up flash. Olympus is truly pushing the pro camera theme with the detachable grip, which gives the camera an SLR-style format. Panasonic has the G and GH MFT series cameras with SLR-style grips while Olympus is only producing rangefinder-style bodies.
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Leaked Olympus OM-D E-M5 brochure shows us the pro-level MFT camera in all its black beauty

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  • February 3, 2012 at 12:04 pm

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Olympus OM-D leaked brochure

It’s been a teaser campaign alright. We first caught wind of the rumored Olympus OM-D mirrorless interchangeable lens camera (MILC) when the company registered it as a trademark with the US Patent and Office at the beginning of the year together with the start of the “OH MY GOODNESS!” campaign.

Ever since, we’ve been getting little, tiny, bite-sized pieces of information, such as the first rumored specs and the first leaked pictures. It’s been a long road however, up to rumored February 8th announcement for the CP+ 2012 camera show in Yokohama, Japan.
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Olympus claims title of best-selling mirrorless camera manufacturer for 2011 in Japan

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  • January 26, 2012 at 6:17 am

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Olympus new PEN cameras: E-P3, E-PL3 and E-PM1

Embattled Olympus didn’t have such a bad year after all. The Japanese camera manufacturer has just claimed top position for the mirrorless camera category in the 2012 BCN Award.

The BCN Ranking pulls in point-of-sale data from a number of major Japanese electronic stores, including online stores like Amazon Japan, and once a year hands-out awards based on the number of actual sales. Olympus has moved ahead of both Sony and Panasonic, capturing more than a third of the market with sales numbering 36.6% of total. Panasonic has the number two spot with 29.3% of sales.
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First leaked image of the Olympus OM-D E-M5 MFT camera

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  • January 20, 2012 at 6:45 pm

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Olympus OM-D leaked image - right side

Though not much of image, we’ll get what we can for now. We’ve been slowly getting more information on the latest compact Micro Four Thirds camera from Olympus, the OM-D. We know it will probably be announced around the 8th of February, we’ve confirmed the Olympus OM-D name from the company’s trademark fillings, and we got our first specs.

The leaked image above comes form 43rumors and shows the shutter button combined with a dial, an extra dial to its left, a function button and a dedicated video button at the top of the camera. The camera should be all black, and there is also a slightly oddly shaped OM logo as well. Not much more for now, but we hope we can update you soon with more images and info.
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Panasonic GX1 Micro Four Thirds camera and 100-300mm lens getting firmware updates for improved performance

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  • January 19, 2012 at 6:32 pm

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Panasonic Lumix GX1 MFT camera black and silver side-by-side

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX1 will soon be getting a firmware update that is said to improve the camera’s functionality. The GX1 is Panasonic new flagship compact Micro Four Thirds (MFT) digital camera and the proud successor of the venerable GF1.

As a reminder, the Panasonic GX1 mirrorless interchangeable lens camera (MILC) has a 16-megapixel Live MOS sensor, similar to the one in the Panasonic G3 and a 3-inch 460k dot touchscreen LCD with touch-focus. The GX1 uses contrast autofocus, claiming to be as fast as 0.09 seconds. It’s all nicely contained in a compact aluminium body. You might want to check out our comparison of the GX1 against other flagship compact MILCs.
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First rumored specs for the Olympus OM-D E-M5 camera: Micro Four Thirds, EVF and weather sealed body

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  • January 17, 2012 at 5:06 pm

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Olympus OM-2 camera

We finally had a name for Olympus’s latest compact interchangeable lens camera this week. The Olympus OM-D was confirmed after the Japanese camera maker registered the trademark with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Olympus has also began an ‘Om My Goodness’ teaser campaign. However, we are still mostly in the dark as to what we can expect from the new OM-series digital camera.

A Japanese website, Digicame-info, is now claiming to have received reliable information on some specs for the Olympus OM-D. The camera will be a mirrorless Micro Four Thirds (MFT) system camera with key differentiating factors to Olympus’s PEN MFT cameras being the built-in EVF and weather sealed body:
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