Olympus shares fall as CEO sacked

Olympus Corporation shares have dropped for the second day after Michael Woodford, the company's first non-Japanese chief executive officer was fired.

BBC

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Olympus Pen EP-3: a micro four thirds camera everyone will want?

I have always been a big fan of the Olympus Pen digital... from the very first retro EP-1 camera to the EP-2.

It's a great travel camera and has given me good service, producing some punchy pictures without adding weight to the suitcase when travelling light. And it feels like a proper camera (almost, dare I say, like a film camera).

Now Olympus is to launch the EP-3 (pictured). And first reports suggest that it will be better than ever.

Wired.com is certainly raving about it: CLICK HERE FOR REPORT


OLYMPUS PEN WEBSITE

CLICK HERE FOR MY ORIGINAL THOUGHTS ON THE FIRST PEN: the EP-1 and how to fit numerous lenses, including Leica M, Olympus OM1 and four thirds glass.

Finally, here are recent pictures I took in Snowdonia, Wales, and Rome, Italy, using a Pen EP-2 - they are now on Alamy.

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Ancient Rome - UKpix video

The Olympus Pen E-P2 is now my camera of choice when travelling light. It is bigger than a compact but much smaller than the digital SLRs I have and the high-quality RAW output is good enough for submissions to the Alamy picture agency.

Pictures of Rome using the Pen: UKpix.com Rome

Video on the Pen is exceptionally good, too, as this short movie of the ruins of Ancient Rome shows.

The electronic viewfinder is a must-have accessory.

Great travel camera: the Olympus Pen E-P2 with 17mm pancake,
14-42mm zoom and electronic viewfinder

When I reviewed the Pen E-P1 at its launch, I said the lack of viewfinder was a problem and preferred to carry the Panasonic G1. The E-P2 changed all that - and you can slot on many different lenses using adapters, even Leica lenses, turning it into a much cheaper Leica M (we are talking thousands of pounds here!). It has a lower pixel count (12.1mp compared with 18mp) and not the same quality you would expect from a Leica M9, but it gives the M8 a run for its money.

Picture examples are available on the review page of the E-P1, which is essentially the same camera as the E-P2 but without the electronic viewfinder, of course.


Olympus UK Pen site


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Nostalgia: Chevrolet Impala

I love going through pictures I have taken over the years and comparing the different cameras used. It is always interesting to see how the technology has improved. And, of course, I keep asking myself if an upgrade to the latest  equipment is really necessary. Take this picture of an old Chevvy for example. It was taken two years ago with a Leica Digilux 3 - only 7.5m pixels, a bit clunky, but still great results. Full pic

Then, the name Leica starts me hankering for the days of film and the M series... Leica M3

And what about that o-so-practical classic, the Olympus OM1. Yes, I've used them all! Below is a picture I took in Bergen, Norway, about 17 years ago, using an OM1, with the standard 50mm Zuiko lens and Kodak negative film.  Norway pictures

Florence pictures

http://www.ukpix.com/florence_italy_pictures.html



Ponte Vecchio

Olympus Pen E-P1 picture examples

Picture examples of the Olympus Pen E-P1
digital camera are now available at UKpix.com.

It is a gallery of photos,
in black and white, of Brighton.




Olympus Pen with a Voigtlander 15mm screw lens (30mm, 35mm equiv) mounted using a Novoflex Leica M to Micro Four Thirds adapter and a screw to M mount adapter.

Gallery

Camera News updates - September

Pentax launches K-x DSLR

An entry level digital SLR has been announced by Pentax. It features a 12.4 MP CMOS sensor, 11-point autofocus, live view and HD video. Available in October.

Pentax link

Firmware updates for
Panasonic G1 and GH1

Updates to the firmware for G1 and GH1 Panasonic cameras have been posted.

Firmware v1.2 for Lumix DMC-GH1

Firmware v1.4 for Lumix DMC-G1

Firmware update for
Panasonic 45-200mm lens

Updates for the Panasonic 45-200mm Lumix G Vario micro four thirds lens has been posted. Version 1.1 improves autofocus and image stabilisation.

Panasonic update

Adobe Lightroom 2.5 and
Camera Raw 5.5 released

Final versions of the updates are now available. Raw support includes the following cameras: Nikon D300S, Nikon D3000, Panasonic DMC-GF1, Olympus E-P1

Lightroom v2.5 (Windows)
Lightroom v2.5 (Mac)

Camera Raw v5.5 (Windows)
Camera Raw v5.5 (Mac)

Firmware updates for Olympus E-P1

Olympus has released a firmware update for the E-P1, digital Pen, Micro Four Thirds camera. There are also updates for the Zuiko Digital ED 14-42mm and 17mm pancake lenses.
Updates can be downloaded via the Olympus Master/Studio software.

New Canon lens from Carl Zeiss

CZ has launched an 18mm F3.5 for Canon mount cameras.

Preview at Dpreview.com

September 9, 2009

Leica reveals M9 and X1

The new M9, a full-frame M-mount rangefinder (24 x 36mm) with an 18 megapixel sensor has been finally unveiled by Leica. At last, the CCD sensor developed by Kodak means that Leica M-mount lenses maintain their original field of view.

Leica M9 link

The new X1 (pictured) is a compact camera with a large 12MP CMOS sensor with ISO range of 100 to 3200

Leica X1 link

Leica factory tour from Dpreview

Dpreview, the superb camera website, went on a Leica factory tour.

See their report

Olympus Digital Pen E-P1

Review at UKpix.com

Oh, hasn't Olympus got them all talking! The new digital Pen has commanded numerous comments across the web and in magazines. Some people love it, some hate it (mainly because they think it is an innovation too far). Some have even attacked Olympus for innovation and then told them to carry on being innovative!

If you want size, weight, pixel counts, facts and figures, they are all over the web. I want to concentrate on quirks, tips and, some might think crazy, linkups that are possible. Hey, I love crazy experiments with different lenses and vewfinders and I love quirky cameras...

Read the full review: review of Digital Pen