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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Sigma introduces new fast prime lenses for Micro Four Thirds and Sony NEX cameras

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  • January 10, 2012 at 10:41 am

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Sigma Digital Neo 30mm F2.8 EX DN and 19mm F2.8 EX DN lenses

Sigma has just announced the launch of a new line of lenses titled Digital Neo (DN). The DN lenses mark Sigma’s foray into the world of compact system cameras. Sigma is getting into the game with two fast primes, for the Micro Four Thirds (MFT) and Sony’s NEX camera E-mount systems.

The two lenses are the 19mm F2.8 EX DN and the 30mm F2.8 EX DN. Both lenses have a new linear autofocus (AF) motor for quiet operation, making them suitable for both stills and video.
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Olympus weather-sealed mirrorless camera with integrated viewfinder pegged for February release

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  • January 3, 2012 at 9:56 am

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Mockup of Olympus mirrorless camera with integrated viewfinder

Olympus is rumored to skip any new major product announcements at CES this January and instead announce its new mirrorless interchangeable lens camera (MILC) camera in early February. 43rumors is claiming that a trusted source has indicated that Olympus will announce a new MILC in the week of 6-11th of February. The new camera will be weather-sealed and have an integrated viewfinder, both of which will be a first for Olympus digital mirrorless cameras.

The new camera could also sport a new sensor, which would make the complete package even more appealing. Things have been heating up to a melting point in the MILC space, with Panasonic finally releasing a worthy GF1 successor, the GX1, Sony has come out with the 24-megapixel NEX-7 with OLED viewfinder and Fujifilm has promised us an X-series interchangeable lens camera for CES following in the bloodline of the very successful X100. We’ve also speculated that we might see the Panasonic GH3 at CES next week as well.
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Panasonic GH3 (GH2 successor) could be announced at CES in January 2012

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  • January 1, 2012 at 6:48 am

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Panasonic GH3 rumor

We have to foreword our report by saying that it’s mere speculation based on information we’ve received. What we’ve been hearing from a couple of European retail sources, is that the current Panasonic GH2 has come to an end-of-life (EOL) and brick-and-mortar stock has dried up in anticipation of a successor.

The Panasonic GH2 Micro Four Thirds (MFT) mirrorless interchangeable lens camera (MILC) was announced in September 2010 at Photokina in Germany. It’s Panasonic’s higher-end MFT shooter with a 16.05-megapixel sensor, built-in EVF, advanced manual controls, articulated touchscreen and amazing video capabilities. In fact it has become an incredible creative tool for aspiring videographers. We’ve covered how the GH2 has been hacked into recording video at an insane 176Mbps and 12,800 ISO.

Though there were hopes for one, there was no successor to the GH2 in 2011; Panasonic debunked any rumors in September. However, the company also indicated, through the mouth of Ichiro Kitao, the head of Panasonic’s camera division, that the GH line had become their flagship and that they would certainly be looking for a 2012 refresh.
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Panasonic GH2 MFT camera now hacked for video up to ISO 12,800 (video)

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  • November 10, 2011 at 9:53 am

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GF2 ISO 12,800 video

We’ve already covered how the Panasonic GH2 had been unlocked, using a custom firmware, and could now record video at an amazing 176Mbps. The latest version of the hack now removes the ISO 3,200 limit when recording video, so that you can push the camera to record up to ISO 12,800. Now, one would think that video at such high ISO would be rife with noise and completely unusable.

Well, it turns out that, although noise is there, it’s not as bad, and the hack allows the GH2 to become an amazing low-light shooter. This is especially true when shooting video in B&W where the noise just looks like film grain. It’s pretty mind-blowing that you can shoot such video with a sub-$1000 digital camera. You can find details on how to apply the firmware in by following this link.

Two videos showing off the GH2’s high-ISO low-light B&W video capabilities await for you after the break.
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Panasonic Lumix GX1 Micro Four Thirds camera and LVF2 EVF announced: new 16MP sensor, December release date (specs, pictures, video)

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  • November 7, 2011 at 5:20 am

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Panasonic Lumix GX1 MFT digital camera silver

The Panasonic Lumix GX1 Micro Four Thirds (MFT) mirrorless interchangeable lens camera (MILC) has been officially announced. We first saw the true successor of the venerable GF1 in October, while yesterday we managed to catch a good look of the high-end compact GX1 in Panasonic’s presentation video. Specifications are exactly as we had initially reported.

The Lumix GX1 has a 16-megapixel Live MOS sensor, the same that can be found in the Panasonic G3. This would mean more detail but less high ISO noise than the 12-megapixel sensor found in the GF3 (and of course the much older GF1). On the back ,you’ll find a 3-inch 460k dot touchscreen LCD; similar to other Panasonic offerings, you can touch-focus using the screen. You can also control the Lumix X Power Zoom lenses with the touchscreen. The camera uses contrast autofocus, with Panasonic claiming its as fast as 0.09 seconds. The GX1 can shoot up to ISO 12,800 and supports 1080p video in MP4 (20Mbps) and 1080i60 in AVCHD (17Mbps). We’re glad to see that it includes a stereo microphone and an accessory shoe which can host an electronic viewfinder or external flash.

Together with the camera, Panasonic announced the DMW-LVF2, a new 1,440k dot, 90 degree tilting, electronic viewfinder (EVF). The LVF2 offers more than seven times the effective pixels of the older LVF1 (with 202k dots). Unfortunately the LVF2 will not be compatible with any of the current GF-line cameras, (GF3, GF2, GF1); the LVF2 has a different set of connector which are essential in order to support the higher data transfer rate necessary for its higher resolution.

The GX1 is housed in an aluminium body, similar to the GF1, has metal buttons and a substantial textured handgrip. In terms of controls you have a typical Panasonic arrangement with two physical customizable function buttons, a mode dial, while it’s only missing the drive mode selector from the GF1. Though, remember, you can control aspects of the camera using the touchscreen as well, if you so choose. Panasonic has, for the first time, included a horizontal and vertical angle level gauge which will be displayed both in portrait and vertical use.
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Panasonic Lumix GX1 Micro Four Thirds camera teased in official videos

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  • November 6, 2011 at 3:29 am

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Panasonic Lumix GX1 MFT camera in hand

Panasonic has just released a number of teaser videos for its upcoming GF1 successor, the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GX1 Micro Four Thirds digital camera. We first broke the news of the GX1 in October and the company’s, now official promotional video, confirms our initial specifications.

The Panasonic GX1 will have a 16-megapixel sensor, probably the same as the Panasonic G3, and a new Venus engine. It will offer a super fast 0.09 second contrast auto-focus. The main screen is a 3-inch LCD with a 460k pixel resolution, and as we guessed, it will be a touchscreen for touch autofocus, similar to other recent Panasonic offerings.

There will be a new external electronic viewfinder (EVF) with 1,440k dots (against a paltry 202k of the original LVF1) and it will be offered in silver and black. While we weren’t too excited when we first saw the all black boxy design of the GX1, it looks way sexier in the official video with the silver metal body and oversized black handgrip.

In the video, which you’ll find after the break, the GX1 is paired with the new X series lens, the collapsible power zoom LUMIX G X VARIO PZ 14-42mm. There is also another video after the break showing a movie shot using the GX1 with a new miniature / time lapse effect, similar to the Panasonic LX5‘s miniature effect.
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