a little bit of everything…(and small 20mm price drop at Amazon)

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Video on top: pre and post firmware v1.5 update showing the difference that the IBIS (In Body Image Stabilization) makes when using adapted, third party lenses in video mode on the Olympus OM-D E-M5. By Tyson Robichaud.

There is a small price drop on the Panaosnic 20mm pancake at Amazon (Click here).

More MFT news:
ePhotozine posted their 2 months E-M5 review.
The Panasonic mini cameras at Focus Numerique (Translation here).
Olympus 75mm f/1.8 – Assessment and Conclusion at Soundimagesplus.
Dynamikumfang E-M5 – on Field (Pen And Tell).
Panasonic G5 review at Gizmodo and Soundimagesplus.
Introduction to LOMO OCT 19 cinema lenses on the GH2 and FS100 (EosHD).
Eric: “Decided to follow someone’s advice on the forums and create a Google Doc version of the lens spreadsheets I sent you last month. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Av6A1MA87MyldDhtbEdOQkZiSVFZcXI3WEVNTTE1enc“
Sterling: “Just wanted to give you a heads up that we’ve published our annual Best Underwater Compact Camera roundup, and it features several Olympus cameras as our top picks, including the weatherproof Tough TG-1, the PEN series, and the OM-D E-M5! http://www.backscatter.com/learn/article/article.php?ID=57“.

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Panasonic announces the new firmware update for the two f/2.8 zooms.

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Panasonic announced an upcoming firmware update for the 12-35mm and 35-100mm X lenses. The firmware will be released in mid December and enhance the AF (auto focus) performance with the sensor drive at 240 fps for use with DMC-GH3.

Source: http://panasonic.net/avc/lumix/pressrelease/h_hs12035_h_hs35100_firmware/

P.S.: The new 35-100mm lens is in Stock at Technikdirekt (Click here). In US the lens will be in Stock next week via Panacam at Amazon (Click here) and November 15th at BHphoto (Click here).

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New Panasonic GH3 and 35-100mm X lens hands-on. E-PM2 in Stock at Amazon and Cameta!

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The E-PM2 is for the first time in Stock (via third party reseller) at Amazon (Click here).

UPDATE: Also Cameta (Click here) has a lot of E-PM2 kits in Stock! They sell them also on Amazon (Click here) and on [shoplink 34495 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink] -> found via Slidoo.

ThePhoBlographer posted the GH3 first impression review: “I feel that Panasonic here has a chance to put a real clamp on Canon’s waning grasp on the video community. This camera has some promising features. ”

Sgoldswoblog is among the first to have received the new 35-100mm X lens: “Contrast and colour seem excellent and the sharpness improves as you stop down. I was very happy with it. CA, which is an issue with the 12-35mm, didn’t seem to be apparent to the same degree as the 12-35mm”

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Panasonic and Olympus Preorder Links with specs and price:
Special GH3 page at Amazon (Click here) and a full Olympus presentation page at Amazon (Click here).
GH3 at Amazon (Click here), Adorama (Click here), Bhphoto (Click here), Panasonic US and in Europe at Wexphotographic UK and Technikdirekt.
35-100mm X lens at Amazon (Click here), Bhphoto (Click here), Panasonic US.
E-PL5 at Amazon (Click here), Adorama (Click here), Bhphoto (Click here). In EU at Amazon Germany, Amazon UK, Amazon France,
E-PM2 at Amazon (Click here), Adorama (Click here), Bhphoto (Click here). In EU at Amazon Germany, Amazon UK, Amazon France,
XZ-2 at Amazon (Click here), Adorama (Click here), Bhphoto (Click here).
60mm macro at Amazon (Click here), Adorama (Click here), Bhphoto (Click here).
12mm Black prime lens at Amazon (Click here), Adorama (Click here), Bhphoto (Click here).
15mm cap-lens at Amazon (Click here), Adorama (Click here), Bhphoto (Click here).

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Olympus XZ-2 review by Robin Wong (XZ-1 still rules the ranking)

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Our friend and superb photographer Robin Wong (Click here) reviewed the new Olympus XZ-2 camera. The main question is, is it good enough for street photography?: “I’d say a definite yes. It is small enough to be discreet, light and easy to be carried with you everywhere…Most importantly, the XZ-2 delivers amazing image quality for a compact camera“.

I have no doubts about the quality of the XZ-2 but I think it’s too pricey. Will you spend $599 for the new XZ-2 (Click here) when you can buy the older generation XZ-1 for $199 at Amazon (Click here)? That’s a huge difference in price that may not be justified by the new XZ-2 features and improvements. And the Sony RX100 with much bigger sensor is only $50 more expensive. For now the XZ-1 is beating both, the XZ-2 and RX100 sales at Amazon (here is the ranking).

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Surprise: The Olympus E-PL5 has no Low-Pass Filter (no AA filter).

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Recent E-M5 and E-PL5 comparisons showed how the image quality is quite different despite the fact that both uses the same Sony 16MPX sensor. Our friend Pierre Paul Lepidi (translation here) may found one of the possible causes that may explain the increased E-PL5 image quality. He contacted Olympus France and got the confirmation that the E-PL5 uses no Low-Pass Filter at all!

The exact info from Olympus France was: “As agreed during our recent telephone conversation, we confirm that the unit E-PL5 lacks the LPF, low-pass, unlike the M5-E device.”

This new PEN cameras didn’t excite us a lot when announced back in September and they never managed to jump into the best mirrorless camera rankings. But they are grabbing more and more attention now!

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New PEN preorders:
E-PL5 at Amazon, Adorama, Bhphoto. In EU at Amazon Germany, Amazon UK, Amazon France,
E-PM2 at Amazon, Adorama, Bhphoto. In EU at Amazon Germany, Amazon UK, Amazon France,

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More info about Low-Pass (or so called Anti Aliasing) Filters on Wikipedia. E-M5 vs E-Pl5 tests at M43.eu (Translation here) and Techradar.

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