OM-D?

<p>I came across this:<br>

<a href="http://megapiksel.wordpress.com/2012/01/21/olympus-har-noe-spennende-pa-gang/">http://megapiksel.wordpress.com/2012/01/21/olympus-har-noe-spennende-pa-gang/</a> <br>

It sais that Olympus lately has had som ads in a.o. the British Amateur Photographer which suggests that a new digital OM is to be launched, and rumors say that Olympus registered the brand OM-D in january.<br>

The rumors also say that it will be weather sealed, weigh 373 g, 16 Mp sensor optimized for High Dynamic Range, FAST AF, 3D tracking, in body stabilizer and ISO from 200 to 25 600, in body 1, 44 mill resolution WF with and a 3 inch 610 000 pix OLED screen.<br>

It is expected to be launched 8th of February.<br>

If something is too good to be true, it usually is'nt. But it could mean a prolonged production of the current variety of Olympus lenses. <br>

I can't help hoping.</p>

<p>Don't be fooled by the OM name. It is a micro 4/3 camera, so it is no new market for them. Just a model above the E-P3, for the myriad users that wanted a built-in viewfinder body like the NEX-7 and X-PRO1 have.</p>

<p>I agree with Ariel; it's a m43 body.<br>

Some zealots have recently (and longingly) tried to argue that the new camera will be a full-frame digital recreation of the beloved OM-System. But where is the evidence that Olympus would try to release something of the sort? What lenses would they use on the camera? Olympus doesn't have any lenses that cover the image circle of a FF sensor. There is ZERO chance that will happen. And O also won't introduce an OM-styled body to use the 4/3 lenses. There's no market for such a beast. The 4/3 system is pretty much at an end for new, innovative products. <br>

So the new OM-D body will almost certainly be a high-end m43 camera. It all makes sense. Capitalize on the recent success of the m43 system. The Pen bodies have been selling like hotcakes. The Fuji X Pro 1 was the darling of CES...albeit at $1600 plus lens costs. Fuji is going after the Leica wannabes who don't have $10-15k to drop on a body and two lenses. It will be a good camera, but I predict it to be another in the line of niche, high quality Fuji cameras like the XPan or Zeiss Ikon ZM from Cosina. High quality, small production.<br>

Hopefully the OM-D, or whatever it'll be called, will really produce a pro-level body at a modest $1100 price that will grab the m43 market by the horns and run with it. I want the fast AF and in-body EVF for my uses....my E-P1 is a great camera and takes great photos....but holding that body out at arms length as my only option is really getting old.<br>

Skip </p>

<p>The kit lens is going to be the new micro 12-50, so there's no chance, at all, this is going to be anything other than a micro four-thirds camera. Pretty silly speculation as far as I am concerned.</p>

<p>The rumors website is also saying now, the camera is not going to be called OM-D. That's the name of the new series of bodies instead of "Pen". If that's the case, we know not yet what the initial body is going to be named.</p>

<p>Also according to the rumors site, around 1,100 Euros for the combined body+12-50 kit lens, so somewhere between $1,000 and $1,100 for the body only may be close to right.</p>

<p>It is definite that Olympus has filed for "OM-D" as a trademark. It's USPTO application #85507702, dated 3 January 2012. There's a leaked photo (Google "OM-D") that shows a black body with retro-styled geared knobs on top, but you can only see part of the right-hand top of the camera, so it's hard to be sure of anything beyond that.</p>

<p>Mike Johnston at The Online Photographer predicts that the OM-D will be full-frame, but I have to agree with Skip: there's no reason to think that Olympus would move in that direction when their Micro Four Thirds line is doing pretty well for them. They'd have to introduce an entirely new line of lenses. It's not impossible, but it seems highly improbable. I'm expecting a Micro Four Thirds camera that relates to the classic OM SLRs no more than the Digital PENs relates to the classic PEN FT: it will look vaguely similar but won't have the same frame format and won't have any backward compatibility with OM lenses or accessories (though of course you'll be able to mount OM lenses via an adapter, just as you can with any other Micro Four Thirds camera). There's no guarantee it will have a built-in EVF, but it makes sense that it would, as a way to differentiate the OM-D from the Digital PEN line. Beyond that, I think the "rumors" sites are just posting their own daydreams.</p>

<p>This could be very cool.</p>

<p>I'm interested in the "fastest AF in the world," ahem, again:)</p>

<p>4/3 yes, full frame? A full frame sensor would require a whole new lens line, 4/3 lenses simply don't have the image circle to cover it. John</p>

<p>Technically aside, if the coming oly is FF...would it cost only ~1000 euros? Come on, guys...</p>

<p>The article never mentioned full frame, but 3/4. The 16 Mp 3/4 sensor is to my knowledge in some Panasonic cameras. I am concerned about the exellent range of Olympus lenses made obsolete by the m4/3.</p>

<p>There is absolutely zero advantage that a 4/3 mirrorless camera would have. 4/3 and m4/3 use the same sensor, with the difference being the register distance because of the 4/3's mirror box. If the "OM-D" were a 4/3-mount camera, it would still need to have the 38.58mm register distance, so there would be a large empty cavity between the lens and the sensor. This means that you have the size penalty of 4/3, but you also have the autofocus incompatibility of m4/3 cameras (the reason that 4/3 lenses don't autofocus well on m4/3 cameras is because Olympus mirrorless cameras use contrast detect autofocus, but the 4/3 SLR lenses are optimized for phase detect). An OM-D would be COMPLETELY unreasonable to produce as a 4/3 mount. It would be no different than just using an E-P3 with the 4/3 lens adapter. It can't be anything other than m4/3. Its only saving grace is that Olympus FINALLY listened to the market and is putting a viewfinder built in to the body. First to the party, last to the store shelves though. It will stem the number of people leaving m4/3 for the NEX7 and Fuji mirrorless, but it's too late to get the jump on their competitors. Olympus' 4/3 lenses are already obsolete. The only way to make them work again is if Olympus is able to develop an on-sensor phase detect autofocus such as the Nikon 1 system has.</p>

<p>On the other hand, is there something wrong with, say, the E5? I wouldn't mind using the 14-35mm f2 as my only lens, if I had 4k to blow...</p>

<p>If I had $4K to blow and wanted a midrange zoom option, I'd choose the D700 or 5DII with 24-70mm lens all day long. The Olympus E-5 +14-35mm weighs 892+900g. The D700 + 24-70mm is 995g + 900g = 1,800 g. You also get the more useful 24mm as opposed to the Olympus' effective 28mm. The Olympus is f/2.0, but the full frame cameras have much improved high ISO capability so there isn't an exposure advantage with the E-5, and even at f/2.0, you aren't getting superthin depths of field between 14-35mm compared to the full frame cameras between 24-70mm. The 35-100 f/2.0 is also more expensive, heavier, and larger than the Canon 70-200 f/2.8 IS II, for example. So, what is the incentive of the E-5 setup over a fullframe setup if the 4/3 costs as much or more, if you have all of the disadvantages and zero of the advantages? Anddd, that's why 4/3 is dead. Except for moderate and super telephoto, the numbers just don't pan out.</p>

<p>I have never handled or seen the Oly. I already have the d700 and handled the 5d2 enough times:)</p>

 

<p>It'd be interesting if, some day, a company would take a gamble and release a true "classic" in DSLR form. Olympus hasn't the guts, nor have any other others. How 'bout a real OM-D? Or a Canon AE-1 D?</p>

<p>Patrick, I think that's what we are all waiting for.</p>

<p>I'm not. I'm quite satisfied with the directions cameras have taken.</p>

<p>As for the OM-D, my guess is that there is phase AF on it. The reason I am guessing, is that the AF is supposed to be better, have better tracking, and have 3D tracking. If that's the case, the only thing I can think of to get it there is Phase.</p>

<p>Oh, and weather sealed + somewhat classicly styled sounds great to me. May make an appearance in my gear collection if all holds to be true.</p>

<p>Olympus seems to have changed marketing strategy over the years. Their high-end consumer camera may very well be the OM-D series using the latest 16mp m4/3 sensor. Their prosumer marketing share has dwindled against the major competitors, Nikon and Canon.</p>

<p>The suppositions offered in this forum about the "OM-D" still does not offer me any warm fuzzies, as the OM sensors are still lacking when it comes to resolution, low-light elimination of digital noise, and relatively low ISO offerings.</p>

<p>Since transitioning over to a DSLR system that provides higher ISO, better resolution, greater pixel count, larger sensor, and quality images under low light conditions, I have basically retired the E-3 and the E-30. My wedding couple clients are important to me, and since making the leap of faith, my images shine with higher overall quality.</p>

<p>Well we already have two 4/3 mounts, so I don't expect a third. A higher end micro four thirds camera that professionals would go for is not out of the question. If the company can pull a rabbit out of the hat and get a combination of phase auto focus and contrast auto focus out of it that would satisfy some of the defectors in waiting. I expect that it will have an interesting viewfinder ( either a hybrid one or a really high resolution eye level electronic finder). To get an excitement factor going it has to have the hand feel of the classic OM camera in a size that is closer to PEN than E-3 or E-5. The best part is the fact that we have <strong>any new buzz</strong> coming from this erstwhile troubled company. It has to shine to really share luminance with what Fuji is putting out. Professionals are already beginning to add lighter gear to their heavy artillery- or plan to. And that goes for pros who are dipping into the video part of the game. Amateurs are willing to spend for something that looks classy and a company that still knows how to make great optics.<br>

Are my expectations<em> too high </em>one asks...., well, now would Joe the Plumber ever give us wrong dope? :-)</p>

<p>The specs are pretty detailed, and reasonable, so might well be true. 373g for body weight makes it impossible to be anything bigger than a m4/3 Pen with a built in EVF. I need a second m4/3 body and am happy to wait for this one. I will be in Tokyo in mid-Feb. I hope it is available then. Better change some more yen...</p>

<p>The latest:<br>

<a href="http://www.43rumors.com/unbelievable-new-olympus-om-video-quality-is-better-than-on-the-gh2/#comments">http://www.43rumors.com/unbelievable-new-olympus-om-video-quality-is-better-than-on-the-gh2/#comments</a></p>

 

A Sony-Olympus alliance is under

discussion. Sony is probably good for

some things (sensors) but I'm tired of

them dumbing things down for the

"soccer mom" (figuratively, I personally

like soccer moms), when we really

need serious camera equipment like

Oly could do with the OM-D. God save

us from the company with a good

reputation which hasn't been lived up

to for at least a decade, maybe two

decades.