Olympus sells Imaging Business

[Video Hummus]

5 hours ago, Tim Sewell said:

Over on DVX User, John Brawley was suggesting that Olympus might be continuing lens manufacture.

Would be nice to see some of their older OM mount f2 telephoto primes redone with modern techniques to reduce size and weight.

Would be nice to see more Pro grade zooms at f/2, 8-18, 12-35, 40-150. We have f/2.8, f4 primes and zooms that are already tiny.

[MrSMW]

I'd like to see Olympus cameras and lenses continue to exist and be developed but think it's an utter fantasy that this will be the case.

I hope I am proved wrong. But suspect not.

[leslie]

i was in a camera store today. They had Olympus E-M10 III listed at $799 aus the m1 At $2000 i was thinking good luck getting those prices with olympus about to sell their camera business.  I kinda like the chrome e-m10 111 been looking for something smaller with a photographic side to things (more so than the P4k anyway ) the bonus would be the 4k video. The fact that olympus may or may not be jumpng from a sinking ship doesn't really bother me most electronic things seems to work for years and years. Not quite sure how it would match up with the p4k.  Just wondering what the bit depth is on the video is it 8. 10, .or 12 bit ?  I forgot to ask at the shop. if i did buy i'd get it online as i have seen them new for $575 australian which isn't too far from mr reids $500 unicorn

[rawshooter]

Apparently, the Olympus brand name will be dropped from cameras and lenses, and they will simply be sold as "OM-D", "Pen" and "Zuiko" with no other brand name. But that was to expected after the sell-off:

https://www.43rumors.com/what-happens-next-2020-camera-and-lens-release-will-definitely-contonue-after-that-new-products-will-be-branded-as-omd-and-zuiko/

[ac6000cw]

3 hours ago, leslie said:

Just wondering what the bit depth is on the video is it 8. 10, .or 12 bit ? 

It's 8-bit

[PannySVHS]

I don´t even want to say much about it. Still got my Pen EP2. Beautiful looking camera. EP5 looks like perfection! Olympus made by far the most beautiful cameras in the system cam world. I am not even talking about the analogue OM cameras nor Zuiko lenses. Sad, all I can say. Not much into posting ads but this one is too much cheesy fun. Video shot with the OMD EM5. Makes me want to be a hipster too 🙂 

 

[Tim Sewell]

Come on. Has to be a parody.

[PannySVHS]

1 hour ago, Tim Sewell said:

Come on. Has to be a parody.

If you like parody, you like cheesy fun. I loved the ad. Dunno why. I should ask the gods of Olymp. Tomorrow at dawn.:)

[Marcio Kabke Pinheiro]

Looks like there will be a E-M10 MK IV soon. Don't expect too much, probably just the 20mp sensor (but with CDAF only), same chipset as the E-M5 MK III, but with fewer modes (no high res shot, simplified interface, etc).

But if they do the E-M10 MK II path (which was 85% of the E-M5 MK II with a much lower price) it would be very interesting.

[hoodlum]

Latest Olympus interview at dpreview.

https://www.*BAD_URL*/interviews/1110652776/olympus-interview-we-are-extremely-grateful-to-all-of-our-customers-for-their-loyalty-and-support

 

[Marcio Kabke Pinheiro]

2 hours ago, hoodlum said:

Latest Olympus interview at dpreview.

https://www.*BAD_URL*/interviews/1110652776/olympus-interview-we-are-extremely-grateful-to-all-of-our-customers-for-their-loyalty-and-support

 

100% corporate talk, no clear info given.

[hoodlum]

10 hours ago, Márcio Kabke Pinheiro said:

Looks like there will be a E-M10 MK IV soon. Don't expect too much, probably just the 20mp sensor (but with CDAF only), same chipset as the E-M5 MK III, but with fewer modes (no high res shot, simplified interface, etc).

But if they do the E-M10 MK II path (which was 85% of the E-M5 MK II with a much lower price) it would be very interesting.

Olympus went with your first suggestion based on the just leaked specs.  At least this will provide some deals on the E-M10iii.

[Marcio Kabke Pinheiro]

19 hours ago, hoodlum said:

Olympus went with your first suggestion based on the just leaked specs.  At least this will provide some deals on the E-M10iii.

Yep, don't expected anything else.

I know why this - bought a E-M5 MK II with full price just after the release (last time that I've bought a camera just after the launch or preordered) and some months after they released the E-M10 MK II with a much lower price.

The MK III had a very dumbed down menu and, for photos specifically, the MK II was a much better deal.

The MK IV probably will have the dumbed down menu too (no problem with a simpler graphical menu for newbies - is the target for this camera - but keep the original menu intact); if the 4k is oversampled for the 20mp sensor (which probably is) it could have a bit more quality. If not, get the MK II for stills and MK III for video.

Already saw some people selling used MK IIIs in the mu43 forum for US$ 280, it is a bargain.

[Andrew Reid]

On 7/15/2020 at 7:22 PM, Márcio Kabke Pinheiro said:

100% corporate talk, no clear info given.

And a complete lack of journalism too.

Barney Britton.

No backbone.

Thinks he is a hotshot photographer "in" with all the CEOs because they use him as a marketing mouth.

He is the archetypical Southern tweed wearing twat.

Manchester guy would have had no nonsense replies, even if he had to deck him first.

[sgreszcz]

On 6/24/2020 at 8:12 PM, Márcio Kabke Pinheiro said:

I will probably always have some m43 gear, even when the format ends. For travel, it is an almost perfect format.
But have a lot of stuff to offload (most kit lenses and old bodies), the financial hit is somewhat significant.

I totally agree.  For the stuff that I do, the Olympus E-M5iii and 12-100 f/4 is a fantastic combination.  Small, light, weatherproof - the PDAF is a bonus although I often use the manual clutch on the 12-100.  That pair shoots a very nice, extremely stable (gimbal-like) cinema 4k image with good colours that I don't even need to grade.  The 12-100 f/4 with the extra 2x punch-in crop gives me 24-400mm full-frame equivalent range in 4k.  Also it allows for macro-like close focusing. 

I throw that combo, the Panasonic 25 f/1.4 for interviews, a couple of Instamics, a Rode video micro, a small tripod, and my Mavic Air drone in a little backpack and I'm good to go for the day.  No, I'm not going to be on Netflix or win any awards, but for the outdoors/environmental and event/community video that I do, Olympus is more than great.

As far as excess gear, I probably should sell off my GH5 as I'm not using it as much now I have the E-M5iii.  I also am thinking of selling my 17 and 45mm Voigtlanders which I love, but don't get a lot of indoors or low light work, especially after COVID.  I still keep a Panasonic GX80 with dummy USB battery as it is so handy for timelapses and useful as a backup camera.  Maybe I should look at a cheap E-M10ii as a B-cam to match my other Olympus.

I've been considering other systems (fuji, sony, canon) but they all have limitations (size, stability, cost) compared to m4/3 and especially Olympus that has a little bit more "magic" to me over Panasonic.  There must be a market for small, good quality video, stabilisation for vloggers or people like me.  @fuzzynormal seems to be in the same camp as well as people like Chris Eyre-Walker.

Too bad Olympus didn't capitalise here and Panasonic is making similar mistakes.  Olympus should have thrown in every trick they had including better video-assist tools into two cameras - a small EM10 and a larger "pro" EM1.  Panasonic needs a GH5 in a GX80 body and similar tech in an LX100 body with fixed, high-quality zoom lens and IBIS.

[Andrew Reid]

On 7/14/2020 at 7:19 PM, PannySVHS said:

I don´t even want to say much about it. Still got my Pen EP2. Beautiful looking camera. EP5 looks like perfection! Olympus made by far the most beautiful cameras in the system cam world. I am not even talking about the analogue OM cameras nor Zuiko lenses. Sad, all I can say. Not much into posting ads but this one is too much cheesy fun. Video shot with the OMD EM5. Makes me want to be a hipster too 🙂 

 

The most amazing thing about that is it only has 120 views.

For a video with a topless model on the internet, that is a real surprise.

It is proof of why Olympus couldn't sell enough cameras.

They can't even promote tits on the internet.

[Video Hummus]

2 hours ago, sgreszcz said:

Olympus that has a little bit more "magic" to me over Panasonic.

I agree. But I’m hoping a GH6 will have improved IBIS, the tweaked S1H color science and PDAF. All that with the usual reliability and unlimited recording we’ve come to love from GH cameras.

Too bad the IBIS doesn’t work with the IS in the 12-100 on Panny cameras. They need a similar lens with IS! 

[fuzzynormal]

I'm shooting stuff on the EM10III right now and while it's certainly not the GH5 I sold, this modest Oly is so perfectly capable that I'm still kind of amazed you can find them for $300.

Olympus Imaging is circling the drain and not long for this world, but if they're willing to go out with a flourish I'd simply suggest that they offer the soon-to-be-released EM10IV with three very simple achievable specs:  4K60p, Audio Input, and Headphone Monitoring.  Everything else they do with the EM10 is fine.  Hell, I don't even care if it stays a 16MP sensor.

There's your vlog camera for the masses  (and cheap ass old farts like me)

It'll never happen, but why can't a cheap camera have audio inputs and a headphone jack?  Surely those components aren't THAT expensive to include?

[IronFilm]

2 hours ago, Andrew Reid said:

The most amazing thing about that is it only has 120 views.

For a video with a topless model on the internet, that is a real surprise.

It is proof of why Olympus couldn't sell enough cameras.

They can't even promote tits on the internet.

HA! Very true. 

But then again, maybe that was not the main source as to where they put out the video??

Here is another one, only 64 views:

https://vimeo.com/71493770

Makes me think that Olympus were not promoting a vimeo video at all, seems too long for a TV advert though? Maybe was a clip on their website hosted by themselves. 

Surprising it isn't on YT. 

[MrSMW]

5 hours ago, Andrew Reid said:

The most amazing thing about that is it only has 120 views.

For a video with a topless model on the internet, that is a real surprise.

Views have just gone up.

They missed a trick here...

Titled ‘Modern Art Twat Production’ and no one will watch it, but if it had been titled, ‘CLICK HERE FOR FREE TITS!!!!!” then maybe Olympus would not be up for sale.