Micro Four-Thirds

Press Release:

Panasonic is pleased to announce the development of the world's first twin digital interchangeable lens. The revolutionary new accessory will make high quality 3D shooting possible with an interchangeable lens system camera for the very first time. As 3D content becomes increasingly popular across a variety of platforms, Panasonic plans to release this new lens for sale before the end of the year to deliver the joy and excitement of 3D shooting to interchangeable lens system camera users.

Having already taken the lead in 3D technology, Panasonic has had great success with the launch of their 3D-capable VIERA televisions and 3D Blu-rayTM Disc Players. The 3D market is predicted to steadily grow over the coming years, as explained by industry analysts, Screen Digest: “As consumers slowly replace the main TV set in their house, and as the price of 3D TVs continue to fall, Screen Digest expects that 3D TVs will be in around a quarter of households in major developed markets by the end of 2014. “

The introduction of the 3D lens aims to respond to demands of consumers who want to enjoy 3D shooting for themselves whilst also expanding Panasonic’s range of 3D products. The lens will allow users to capture images in 3D which can then be viewed back using 3D-capable VIERA televisions in the comfort of their own home.

The Online Photographer has an interesting column today about the Raw vs. Jpeg quality at 6400 ASA using the Olympus PEN EP-1. Here's the lead to the story and you can click through to read the entire article: 

I've just hit upon something rather cool and somewhat unexpected. Some of you will recall a column of mine from a year or so back called "JPEG...Seriously?" Well, I've found a reason for photographing JPEGs with my Olympus Pen E-P1. I can use them to get much, much better results at ISO 6400 than I could pull out of a RAW file using every trick I know.

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By Andrew Alexander, SLRgear Review, June 11, 2010

Announced in November 2009, the Olympus 14-150mm ƒ/4-5.6 ED M.Zuiko Digital is the all-in-one ''vacation lens'' for the PEN digital camera. Because of the small size of the four-thirds camera sensor, the lens has an effective field of view of 28-300mm. 

The lens is designed specifically for the micro-four-thirds camera format. It isn't a "constant"lens, in that as you increase the focal length, the largest aperture rating increases. The following table reflects the changes:

These figures just correspond to the focal lengths marked on the lens; in actual usage, the widest aperture adjusts quite precisely in conjunction with the focal length setting. As you zoom in and out at the widest aperture, you can see the aperture changing in one-tenth increments.

A lens hood is available separately, the LH-61C Lens Hood. The lens takes 58mm filters and will be available shortly for around $700.

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Press Release: The World’s Smallest and Lightest* Digital Interchangeable Fisheye Lens

Panasonic is pleased to announce a new interchangeable lens LUMIX G FISHEYE 8mm / F3.5 (35 mm camera equivalent: 16 mm) for the New-Generation System Cameras LUMIX G Micro System. The new LUMIX G FISHEYE 8mm / F3.5 offers a diagonal angle of view of 180-degree, bringing a distinctive perspective and unique deformation effect. It gives not only photos but also movies an extraordinary view to add an impressive scene to the story even for TV contents, films and web movies.

Comprising ten lenses in nine groups, the new lens system features an outstanding compactness, taking advantage of the Micro Four Thirds system standard to achieve dramatic downsizing to the world’s smallest and lightest size*. The adoption of an ED lens achieves a stable descriptive performance from close-up to infinity minimising chromatic aberration and distortion. The closest focusing distance is as short as 0.1m, however, the LUMIX G FISHEYE 8mm / F3.5 incorporates inner focus system which enables a long working distance and users do not have to come closer to the subject even for the close-up shots.

The new LUMIX G FISHEYE 8mm / F3.5 lens allows use of the high-speed and accurate contrast Auto Focus system when mounted on the LUMIX G Micro System cameras, for more comfortable and enjoyable shooting. Seven blades give the aperture a rounded shape that produces an attractively smooth effect in out-of-focus areas when shooting at larger aperture settings. Also, a sheet filter such as a gelatin filter can be inserted in the rear of the unit for free filter expression.

The inclusion of stepping motor makes the focusing action smooth and silent for use in both photo and movie recording. The lens also features a highly reliable metal mount, and uses multi-coated lens elements that minimise ghosts and flare to further enhance its optical performance. The optimally designed lens hood enables use even under strong sunlight.

Panasonic Lumix G Vario 7-14mm F4 ASPH review by Andy Westlake, May 2010

The Lumix G Vario 7-14mm F4 ASPH was the third lens Panasonic announced for its fledgling Micro Four Thirds system, back in March 2009. It certainly created a significant buzz on release, with the company taking advantage of the short back focus of the mirrorless mount to deliver a lens whose compact size belies its dramatically wide 114º angle of view and constant F4 maximum aperture. The 7-14mm is far and away the smallest zoom currently available to offer such a wide angle of view; compared to the Olympus equivalent for Four Thirds DSLRs its dimensions are shrunk by at least 20% each way, and it's just 40% of the weight.

Like all other zooms this wide, the 7-14mm F4 features a distinctive design, with a bulbous front element and an integrated hood to protect that large expanse of glass against stray light. The compact barrel houses no fewer than 16 pieces of glass, arranged into 12 groups, and including two aspherical and 4 extra-low dispersion glass elements to combat aberrations. However a side-effect of that large dome of glass at the front is that there's no facility to attach filters to the lens.

The 7-14mm is small and impressively spec'ed, but this does come at an eye-watering price: its $1000 tag is significantly higher than any APS-C wide zoom, and not so far off the Nikon 14-24mm F2.8, which not only covers a full frame sensor but is also a stop faster. It's also a lot more than Olympus's Micro Four Thirds wideangle - the tiny M Zuiko Digital 9-18mm F4-5.6 - which we praised for its combination of decent optics and remarkable compactness. So what extra does the Panasonic offer that might tempt you to spend all that money?

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Ian Burley over at Micro four-thirds.com has run an interesting comparison between the original Olympus 9-18mm lens and the recently introduced 9-18. You can have a look at the photos and download them for closer comparison on the micro four-thirds page here.

Here's an excellent article from DP Review about lens distortion in smaller compact cameras and the micro four-thirds system. 

In-camera distortion correction Can software ever take the place of optical excellence? 
Richard Butler looks at the trend towards cameras correcting lens distortion
and what it means for photographers.

What's more important, the final image or how it's achieved? Over the past year or so, we've encountered an increasing number of cameras with lenses that capture significantly distorted images which are then corrected using in-camera software. It's a process that has divided the forums, with some arguing passionately that it's cheating and that the lenses aren't really as good as they appear, while others maintain that it's the final results that matter, rather than how they're achieved.

In the film era, distortion correction had to be designed into the imaging lens, and this was (and remains) true for digital SLRs too (the need for the captured image to match what the photographer saw through the viewfinder limits what the camera can do to the shot once taken).

The advent of live view digital cameras (fixed and interchangeable lens) not only allows software correction of distortion (something impossible in an analog camera), but crucially also lets you see the result of whatever distortion corrections are being applied at the point of shooting, so the preview image matches the captured image.

There's no reason to believe this is a particularly new approach for camera makers (it would help explain the sudden trend for including 28mm equivalent wide-angle zooms in compact cameras), but its appearance in enthusiast cameras such as the Panasonic DMC-LX3, which output RAW data, means it has become potentially visible to the end user.

With the arrival of Micro Four Thirds, we now have an interchangeable lens system with many lenses that require software correction of distortion. So what are the manufacturers playing at? Why are they releasing lenses with distortion, what effect does it have, and should dpreview review the distorted or the corrected output? We spoke to a series of leading camera and lens makers, as well as the creators of leading RAW converters to find out just what's going on.

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Reviewed by Dave Etchells, Shawn Barnett, Zig Weidelich, and Mike Tomkins , Imaging Resource

Panasonic's update to the first Micro Four Thirds digital camera is the Lumix DMC-G2, a close approximation of the G1, but with a few key changes that mostly improve the function of the original while maintaining the $799.95 price point.

Most of the Panasonic G2's basic specs remain the same, including the 12.1-megapixel sensor, the 3-inch LCD with 460,000 dots of resolution, and the electronic viewfinder's 1,440,000-pixel resolution is also maintained, as are the shape and size. Panasonic added a new processor to the G2, though, the Venus Engine HD II, which is expected to improve both videos and still images. Maximum ISO sensitivity notches up one stop, from 3,200 to 6,400.

New is the touch screen, which is integrated into a few basic functions, like focus point selection. It's a surprisingly useful feature in the Panasonic G2, which we'll explore in more detail in the User Report below.

The Panasonic G2 ships with a different lens than its predecessor, the 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6. It's a 3x zoom rather than the 14-45mm 3.2x zoom on the G1. The new lens lacks an O.I.S. switch, but it still has optical image stabilization built in; only now it's controlled from the Panasonic G2's menu.

Other changes on the Panasonic G2 include a new location for the Control dial: it goes from the front grip to the rear thumbgrip area. And a dedicated Movie button now appears on the G2's top deck, right behind the Shutter release button. Movie mode is limited to 720p, not rising to the 1080i level of the GH1, so there's still room for another model should Panasonic see fit, but the Panasonic G2 does include a new stereo Mic jack.

The Panasonic G2 ships from late May 2010, with a suggested retail price of US$799.95 including the kit lens.

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DP Review has just posted a quick review of the recently released Olympus PEN E-P2. 

Olympus E-P2 Quick Review April 2010, Richard Butler
Review based on a production E-P2 with firmware 1.1

This is the second of our new 'Quick Reviews.' We will be using this format for cameras that are operationally similar and identical in terms of output to models we've already reviewed. We test to confirm the image quality is identical (noise tests and shots of our 'compared to' studio scene at all ISOs), then concentrate the review on the differences between the two cameras. To learn everything about the camera you are interested in we recommend reading not only the Quick Review but also the full review of the sister camera - in this case the Olympus E-P1.

Panasonic releases new firmwares for the DMC-GF1, GH1 and G1 of Lumix G Micro System to enhance the potential of the cameras and compatibility.

Firmware ver.1.2 for DMC-GF1

• Improved operation menu for image stabilizer ([OFF] will be added under [STABILIZER] only when LUMIX G VARIO 14-42 mm / F3.5-5.6 ASPH. / MEGA O.I.S. (H-FS014042) is attached)
• Improved AF performance with lenses of other manufacturer

Firmware ver.1.3 for DMC-GH1

• Improved operation menu for image stabilizer ([OFF] will be added under [STABILIZER] only when LUMIX G VARIO 14-42 mm / F3.5-5.6 ASPH. / MEGA O.I.S. (H-FS014042) is attached)
• Availability of AF performance in FHD (full HD) movie recording mode with Four Thirds lenses that are compatible with contrast AF
• Improved AF performance in movie recording with LEICA DG MACRO-ELMARIT 45mm / F2.8 ASPH. / MEGA O.I.S. (H-ES045) Improved modulation accuracy of flash
• Improved AF performance with lenses of other manufacturer

Firmware ver.1.5 for DMC-G1

• Improved operation menu for image stabilizer ([OFF] will be added under [STABILIZER] only when LUMIX G VARIO 14-42 mm / F3.5-5.6 ASPH. / MEGA O.I.S. (H-FS014042) is attached)
• Improved modulation accuracy of flash Improved AF performance with lenses of other manufacturer

The new firmware will be available worldwide at GMT: 8:00 the 10th of May, 2010 at http://panasonic.jp/support/global/cs/dsc/.