43 Rumors

“too” expensive, not “to”.

It’s way to expensive. The only user who will pay these prices are Canon and Nikon keen amateurs and they are unlikely to change to MFT. Panasonic seem to be developing MFT as an elite product for a wealthy user group. I suppose they could be aiming at stealing Leica’s clothes but they have a long way to go to make the Lumix brand as valuable as Leica. I’m beginning to wish I’d gone with Canon or Nikon where I would have had a vast lens choice and a broad selection of bodies. The only thing that keeps me with Panasonic and the GH1 is the articulating screen and full-time live view. I’d change in a flash if ether Canon or Nikon offered that.

Its a young system, and as I think the price for this lens is not too far over the top (i expected 750) it is the wrong price point/lens to get people intrested to your still new system. cheaper lens that let someone buy a set at once is the best way to get people locked into your mount as more lens take more time to sell, makeing it harder for someone to jump ship, but as it stands now a GF1 and a 20mm are the only needed lens and not that hard to sell used.

@Chuck, Chris & Redkite: the goal of the system is to reduce the size, NOT the price. Anyone thinks those lenses are too expensive should shut up and walk away. Do you truly think Panasonic will reduce the price if people like you keep moaning? Look at the retail price of the Nikkor fisheye, or the closest Olympus ZD fisheye. Not too far away from the $800 mark. You think the 20mm is a bargain, then look at Olympus 25mm 2.8 pancake. People buy a lot of the Lumix pancake although the price is twice that of the ZD, i.e really steep. If you want a better comparison, look at Nikkor DX 35 1.8 and you will see what a bargain is. On a low end Nikon that lens gives better sharpness, shallower DOF at a much cheaper price than the Lumix pancake. If people still want to buy those lenses, Panasonic can still set the price the way they want.

All the lenses in the micro43 line-up are well and smartly priced. You think you can get a 28-280 VIDEO super zoom for less than $800? NO WAY. Or a pocketable 18mm wideangle? WAKE UP. Even the most expensive Lumix, the 7-14mm, is still WAY cheaper than ANY 14mm equivalent wide lens from ANY system. Go figure.

Don’t think m4/3 is just rich man’s toys. They’re great tools that are capable of creating great photos. Moaning for price is as silly as a child moaning for candy. Keep trying, but you won’t likely get it. If you want it but can’t afford it, find another job, do something that makes enough money to buy the lens. Sitting around moaning on online forums won’t grant you that lens, ever.

Darren.

too much money for a lens which does not have general use

Regarding aiming it at an “elite” group of camera enthusiasts, maybe if it said “Leica” on it; Lumix, no way.

Olympus’ business model is beginning to look better IMOP: E-PL1 with kit zoom for $550, 14-150mm for $600, etc.

On the other hand, I am not that surprised of their pricing.

Whoever use a fisheye lens is a enthusiast who want more variety in their photography, rather then professional, and currently, whoever are into M43 are people who are willing to pay a premium for their size.

So if you were panasonic, how would you charge a enthusiast who are willing to pay a premium for their size, with no real competition in the market………..the premium is really only about 30% compared to fish eyes of other systems.

re fta
nope not filthy rich or work for Panasonic, but did invest in the Panasonic L10 nearly 3 years ago which got great reviews went it came out except for value (apparenly the Leica lens it came with was over priced but got excellent reviews especially when compared to the kit zooms you usually get with Nikon and Canon).
1. the reason I included Leica in the debate is because the Leica 25mm f1.4 is thought ti be expensive (I paid £750) but as you can read on dpreview.com “it’s regarded by photographers as best in it’s class. I know this 8mm is a Lumix but I was making a general point, compare it in price to the Olympus 8mm (which I own) which is priced at a very similar £699 – £729.
2. the meaning of value is not whether it’s cheaper or faster otherwise I would of used those words, Olympus glass tends to be a little more expensive than Canikon but gets better reviews for sharpness and build, again ALLPansonic Glass gets excellent reviews except for price just like the highly regarded GH1 (which I own), what you actually get is alot of bang for your hard earned bucks…
3. I don’t buy glass or cameras with the resale market in mind, I buy them because I need them and to use them as much as possible, but what I can gather from ebay, flickr and various four thirds sites people don’t have a problem re-selling their lenses or cameras…
4 I’ve never heard a GH1 owner say their camera wasn’t good value actually quite the opposite…
5. Looking at sales figures m43 is doing quite a good job in establishing it self although Pansonic could do a better job at marketing but I’m sure this will happen, Olympus is excelling in this department.
6. There are a lot of professional videographers using the GH1 for their jobs all the time and I think you’ll find that if you have a look on the micro four thirds forums on dpreview they are a lot of professional Canon and Nikon users purchasing micro four thirds cameras whereas before before they might have purchased the Canon G11 Recommended price when it came out:• $499• €589• £569

**** here’s the deal I am a professional wedding photographer who does exclusively use micro four thirds (GH1) at weddings***
but also use my Panasonic L10′s too

micro four thirds in Europe is at a little premium here but you gets what you pay for pound for pound…

I actually don’t have a reason to purchase the Lumix 8mm because I own the Olympus 8mm and micro four thirds adaptor so I can use across all my four thirds cameras

http://www.flickr.com/photos/youdidntdidyou/4276679741/

Of course we’re all going to say that it’s too expensive! LOL We would love it if the price was half that, but that’s dreamin’.

i would rather rephrase the whole question to:
has (micro) four thirds become too expensive?

from what i recall the “goal” of four thirds wasnt just to be asmaller, more lightweight but also cheaper! alternative to regular DSLRs.

even as i acknowledge paying a premium on pana products for having Leica written to them i find many lenses and the second generation of G bodys highly overpriced.

gh1 is still about 1.3k euro at amazon
g2 about 700
g1 still round about 600 ..

for about the some price of the gh1 (kit, as we dont sell the body standalone) amazon offers the canon d7 body.
(similar with other bodies and brands)

in my eyes 1.3k euro is a price where i take the hobby and product i buy a as cheap but as a longer lasting investment.

now think for yourself

thats the problem for me. micro differs from regular cams in terms of size in a posivite way but in terms of price in a negative

There is an alternative, the Peleng 8mm fisheye. I have used it to create VR ‘photos’. I might get the Panasonic fisheye one day.

I currently own a GF-1 and a Canon film camera with several lenses from both system, and I’d like to offer my view on the topic of pricing here.

For me, the reason I switched to the Pana GF-1 is that it offered a different form factor to traditional DSLR with a useful live view feature, yet offered controls like a DSLR (the dials/buttons/exposure compensation options etc). On top of that, the light weight of the body+lenses is the most attractive feature of this system. For this reason, I’d be happy to buy from them even if it is a little overpriced. If you’re looking for higher quality/lower price, there are always other options and brands, but that just doesn’t suit me.

Of course I would not be tempted to buy this fisheye lens for this price, but this lens do deserves to be there in the line-up as a choice for m43 people who would want a fisheye lens without using a mount, i.e. with the least weight/volume.

For now, the challenge for m43 is from the NEX system, which is priced lower. However, I doubt if there could be any serious price cut to m43, considering the system has to be sustainable & profitable to the manufacturer.

There is also the Samyang/Bower/Rokinon/Opteka 8mm Fisheye that sells for $300. it is not as wide as the Peleng 8mm but it produces a sharper image on the corners with no vignetting. Used with a $20 adapter for Micro 4/3 u get a nice fisheye image at half the price. Here is a sample video of the Samyang 8mm fisheye on the GF1 – http://www.vimeo.com/9133178

This lens is rediculously overpriced!! I have been watching this for a long time in anticipation, how can they warrant charging the same price as far superior lenses by Canon & Nikon. Wake up Panasonic, if you dont get your customers now then you will loose out on them once the 4/3 market heats up. Look at the poll and realise you are ruining your system!!! I’mholding out for a more sensibly priced compact system.