Luminous Landscape (“LL”) posted the new Panasonic GF2 hands-on: “Whatever the [shoplink 17361]GF2[/shoplink] may be (and I’ll tell you in a moment what ecological niche I think it is intended to occupy) it is not a linear successor to the [shoplink 14828]GF1[/shoplink].” and “Which brings us to the question of how does the GF2 handle and how does it compare to the GF1? Frankly, for myself (and yes, I own a GF1) the GF2 is a disappointment. I like cameras with manual controls.” but “Panasonic has shown that a small camera can have a usable interface, even when it might not appeal to photographers like me that prefer traditional tactile controls.”

P.S.: LL should ask Panasonic why Japan will have the GF in Stock on December 3 and the rest of the world by end of January. And where is the GH2? Should we start to learn japanese just to buy those nice [shoplink 17664 ebay]japanese GH2 cameras you can find on eBay[/shoplink]? :)

We have two new reviews at DC.watch (Japanese with google English translation) and Akihabaranews (in English).

For Akihabara the GH2 is an “impressive upgrade!” and “the [shoplink 14826]GH1[/shoplink] was and still is an incredible All-purpose Camera that kicked some serious ass to other big names including Canon or Nikon. The [shoplink 16254]GH2[/shoplink]  just proved to us how far ahead Panasonic is in this field. As a GH1 owner I must admit that I struggled to get used to the GH2 new button layouts but the improvement made on this camera are really worth the hassle.”

DC.watch wrote a less emotional but more detailed review with many Image samples you can download.

P.S.: Still no news about the GH2 availability in Europe and US.

First I have to say that I just received my Voigtländer Nokton 25mm f/0.95 and I had that nice WOW feeling when I opened the box. It’s extremely well built lens and I love to play with the smooth focus ring and I already love that nice “tic” sound when changing the aperture ring. The first thing I noticed is that you have to make a 1 and 1/2 turns to move from a close focus distance (17cm) to infinite focus. I will try the lens this weekend and compare it with the other wide open king, my Noktor 50mm f/0.95. For the record: I bought that lens from [shoplink 15659]Foto Mundus on eBay[/shoplink].

There are two new reviews:

Peter Lueck reviewed the Voigtländer Nokton 25mm lens. Also ThePublicEye published a short test. And a few image samples can be found at dpreview forum.

Photographyblog just published their veeery long Panasonic GF2 review (6 pages!). “Cheaper than the GF1 was on launch, the new DMC-GF2 takes Panasonic’s compact system cameras in a new direction, aiming to appeal to a wider base of users who are looking for DSLR-like results from a simpler and more compact design. While it’s certainly not a logical upgrade for current GF1 owners, the GF2 deserves to make a big leap forward both for Panasonic and for the Compact System Camera market as a whole.”
Photographyblog gives a very positive rating for the GF2 but the GF1 is still a very tempting camera and very cheap now ($599 at Amazon)

P.S.: Amazon just changed the status of the new Panasonic lenses from “usually ships in 1-2 months” to “temporarily out of stock“. This usually means that they started to ship the first preordered lenses :)
– Panasonic Lumix 14mm f/2.5 (Click here to check status on Amazon)
– Panasonic Lumix 100-300mm f/4.0-5.6 (Click here to check status on Amazon)

The polish website Optyczne (Impossible for me to spell it!) published the Panasonic 14mm lens review. Thanks to the magic help of the google translation tool I can post you the lens pro and cons list:

Advantages:
• robust and exceptionally compact design,
• very good image quality at the center of the frame,
• well corrected chromatic aberration
• decent image quality in bright light,
• negligible astigmatism.

Disadvantages:
• monstrous distortion,
• a lot of vignetting,
• image quality at the edge of the frame could be improved.

But we also have a native english review at m43photo.blogspot.com! Conclusion? “This is a very capable, fast focusing, sharp and compact lens. What’s not to like?”

Ok, I like that lens but we europeans (and you americans too) have to wait a few weeks before to have the lens in Stock. Click on those direct links to check price and avilability:
Amazon US, Adorama, BHphoto, Amazon Deutschland,Amazon Japan.

You can’t wait that much? Get the lens from japanese eBay resellers. They have all three new Panasonic lenses in Stock (but don’t forget taht you have to pay import taxes!):
[shoplink 17556 ebay]Panasonic 14mm f/2.5 eBay acutions[/shoplink] [shoplink 17618 ebay]Panasonic 100-300mm f/4.0-5.6 eBay acutions[/shoplink] [shoplink 17620 ebay]Panasonic 3D 12.5mm f/12 eBay acutions[/shoplink]

According to the very reputable german website Fotomagazin.de the [shoplink 17163]Olympus E-5[/shoplink] is the third best DSLR camera ever tested! It’s only behind the much more expensive Canon EOS 1D Mark IV and Nikon D3s cameras. Impressive what Olympus did with the same [shoplink 14832]PEN[/shoplink] sensor. Can’t wait to see what they will do with the next generation Panasonic (or Kodak?) sensor. You can download their original image samples here : zip (59MB).

Reminder: The Olympus E-5 is finally in Stock at Amazon (Click here).

Letsgodigital reviewed the new [shoplink 17361]Panasonic GH2[/shoplink]: “Panasonic is creating a point of reference with the GH2 with which the competition can measure itself. Panasonic’s years of video experience are clearly visible and is very effectively integrated into an existing concept. Photo and video stand effortlessly together at a high level in the Panasonic Lumix GH2, and can live up to the competition.”

Hybridcams.fr interviewed Jean-Baptiste Lefournier, the director of “Lumix On The Road / GH2 From Paris to California” (Once clicked on the link scroll to see the english translation). Jean says about the GH2 that: “The incredible speed of the autofocus will remain the no. 1 innovation of the GH2, then its new range of ISO 160 to ISO 12 800, then the touch interface even though I think it is for users not necessarily  pro (but for the Q Menu touch which is very convenient). The software processing of the video image seems better (no more banding issues on the skies).”

We also found some full size GH2 iso shots at Dpreview forum and a Panasonic GH2 vs Panasonic GF1 on Flickr via Sunnyeva.

Check price and availability clicking on these Panasonic GH2 direct shop links:
Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, Amazon UK, Amazon France, Amazon Deutschland and [shoplink 17664 ebay]eBay[/shoplink].