om-d

Olympus has fallen – When $400 million camera sales per year are not enough

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Olympus PEN-F

Officially a restructuring, but probably more likely the end. This is the saddest day and my thoughts are with the Olympus employees, hoping their best engineers can find a home at other camera companies. The new camera division under Japan Industrial Partners could be seen as something as a risk for any employees transferred here to work on the latest OM-D selfie stick. Far better to leave and work for Sigma, Panasonic or Fuji in my opinion.

Also in my opinion, Olympus could I am sure have found a bigger and more innovative backer than a private investment fund. In fact the saddest thing about this is the cultural side. A company like Apple could have had bought Olympus with their loose change and made good on a legacy of 83 years of photographic history to the benefit of this planet. Instead, the tech companies whose products brought about the demise of a photographic giant seem happy to see the jewel crushed into its component pieces and sold as scrap!

Read moreOlympus has fallen – When $400 million camera sales per year are not enough

Olympus E-M1 firmware update to address video mode – but will we get 24p and higher bitrates?

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The Olympus E-M1 is sitting on a goldmine. The 5 axis stabilisation system is heaven for video, but very little attention was given to video specs. The codec is only capable of recording in one frame rate, 30p, which is an NTSC rate completely unsuited to 70% of the world’s population living in Europe, the UK, China, Brazil and Australia. Consumers need 25p or 50p… and filmmakers are desperate for the 24p look!

Now Olympus are said to be working on a firmware update (source: 43rumors) that gives 21 steps of manual audio gain control (1 step more than the GH3).

Here is a summary of what else video users need.

Read moreOlympus E-M1 firmware update to address video mode – but will we get 24p and higher bitrates?

Why the Olympus OM-D E-M1 is better than expected for video (Review)

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[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/85773475[/vimeo]

Featuring original music by HERDWHITE –  “I Already Know What For”.

The E-M1 is a real surprise for a video.

For this review I decided to set myself a challenge with a musician friend, where we’d shoot a music video ‘Dogme 95’ style.

  • Entirely handheld with the Olympus 5 axis stabliser
  • Very basic lights (iPhone torch and a flame)
  • Maximum of 2 shooting days

In the process I learned a lot about what makes the E-M1 such an effective camera for filmmakers.

Read moreWhy the Olympus OM-D E-M1 is better than expected for video (Review)

Olympus OM-D E-M5 Review

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[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/46037469[/vimeo]

Journey – by Andrew Reid

Does the new OM-D E-M5 manage to produce a GH2 style virtuoso performance in video mode?

I have to say there are some question marks over that – but as a stills camera it is now my absolute number one choice against some very tough competition – the 5D Mark III, Fuji X Pro 1 and Sony NEX 7.

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Olympus OM-D E-M5 first impressions

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For me the OM-D is a superb stills camera with question marks for video. So satisfied I am with it as my main stills camera I’ve replaced both my Fuji X Pro 1 and NEX 7 with it for stills. Much better AF and the lens range were certainly a factor in that, but this camera also combines the retro good looks of the Fuji with the operational fluency and advanced featureset of the NEX 7, as well as offering superb 5 axis image stabilisation inside the body.

But how does it do for video?

Read moreOlympus OM-D E-M5 first impressions