Some camera almost do not need an introduction. The Panasonic DMC-L1 is one of the few cameras that managed to create that “WOW” reaction the day it has been announced (Feb 26, 2006). It was a unique Four Thirds DSLR camera. Panasonic had the courage to make a DSLR look like a Rangefinder

It shared many components with the Olympus E-330 (lens mount, mirror box, auto focus and auto exposure sensors).the DMC-L1 does not have an additional small live view CCD on the top of the viewfinder chamber (you can just make out where it should be below), so only has one live view mode. Disappointingly this means that in normal viewfinder mode you’re actually looking through a half-mirror with a dimmer view for no actual gain.

Image courtesy: Dpreview.

The L1 has an optical porro finder which uses a four mirrors (one sideways swinging) to bend light from the lens to the viewfinder eyepiece. This unusual design was first seen in the E-330, and as this is the same optical system it provides the L1 with the same compact layout. Unfortunately just like the E-330 the L1’s viewfinder view is very small compared to other digital SLR’s, it’s also darker than you would expect.

Too bad Panasonic quietly quit from the Four Thirds system. Would have been nice to see a follow up of the L1!

Photographyblog, Luminous Landscape, CameraLabs, Photographic Central and Dpreview.

Hands on by Steve Huff

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ePhotozine (Click here) posted the next E-P5 review. And like so many other reviewers before the only real drwaback is the high price. That’s what ePhotozine says about the E-P5:

The only problem with reviewing the Olympus “PEN E-P5 is the potential to run out of superlatives when describing how amazing this camera is. Although we, along with many others, do think the Olympus menu system is due a refresh, and to get the best out of this camera we’d recommend investing in one of the excellent Olympus or Panasonic prime lenses available. The price of the Olympus PEN E-P5 puts it at a very similar price to the E-M5, however, for those that want a more compact body, and the latest features, the E-P5 is the one to go for.”

Meantime mroe E-P5 kits are in Stock in USA stores:

Black E-P5 superkit at Amazon (Click here) and Adorama (Click here).
White E-P5 body only at Amazon (Click here), BHphoto (Click here) and Adorama (Click here).
Black E-P5 with 17mm lens at BHphoto (Click here).
Black E-P5 body only at Amazon (Click here) and BHphoto (Click here).

The brand new Nikon G to MFT Speed Booster can now be preordered at BHphoto (Click here). And a review of the new adapter can be read at Peterbphotos (Click here). He writes:

“There seems to be no real image quality issues with using the Speed Booster and for low-light work – a real treat. With DX lenses and the 0.71x magnification of the Speed Booster, you have a lot more wide options for the Olympus system.”

Links to Nikon G lenses at Amazon, Bhphoto and [shoplink 40258 ebay]eBay[/shoplink].

P.S.: A Lens Turbo version should arrive by end of this year. Save this search on Slidoo to get notified when it’s available on eBay.

If you have a nice story you want to be posted on 43rumors send the full article at 43rumors@gmail.com.

Today 43rumors reader Roberto posts that extremely long and detailed Yasuhara Nanoha X5 MFT lens test. This lens costs $499 (at BHphoto) and isn’t certainly a lens for the mass. But you can do some great things with it! So click on the link below to read the full test.

Image courtesy by Niels (Click on pictures to enlarge the size)

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Editor’s note: After four years of existence I decided to finally create some space for all MFT camera ownsers. You can now write articles for 43rumors by submitting them at 43rumors@gmail.com. This is the first article of the new series written by 43rumors reader Niles (myfashioninspiration.creatorsofdesire.com).

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Niels:

I’ve been using MFT since the moment I started photography a couple of years ago (first an Olympus E-PL1, now a Panasonic GH2). Primarily to make fashion photos and videos of my girlfriend for her fashion blog. In this streetstyle/fashion world there is one dominant style of photography: fast lenses wide open to make the subject really pop out of the street.

To push this style to the max a lot of fashion bloggers use a full frame camera and I had set my mind on getting one myself until I had a chance to borrow a Canon 5D mkIII for a couple of days and did some comparing. The results of this comparison were actually surprising to me.

Because, like a lot of bloggers, I only really use the photos for web and never print, I decided to make the comparison as practical as possible and non scientific. I put down a tripod, took a shot with my Voigtlander 25mm f0.95 (wide open) on the GH2, then the same shot with the Canon 50mm f1.2L wide open on the 5D mkIII and then scaled both images down to the resolution I use on the web. I kept the images as raw as possible and only made slight color changes to make them match better.

There is a difference in depth of field noticeable but it really did make me think again if it was worth the extra thousands of euros. There are some obvious advantages to an expensive camera like the mkIII, the auto focus of the f1.2L was a welcome feature for photography compared to my Voigtlander, the low light quality was great and in full resolution the sharpness and details were noticeable but I also came home with a sore wrist after walking around with the mkIII in my hand for a day where as the GH2 is relatively light weight and compact. And scaled down to a web resolution the images start looking alike more and more.

I decided to stick with MFT for the time being. I’m also curious to see what effects Speedbooster solutions could have on the depth of field. But to the millions of fashion bloggers out there who feel they can only make blog photos with a full frame camera: a mirrorless camera with a fast lens might just do the trick for you for a fraction of the price and weight.

If you’re curious for more MFT fashion material: last year I made this short film on the GH2 using the Voigtlander 25mm f0.95, the SLRmagic Hyperprime 12mm f1.6 and a vintage OM lens: https://vimeo.com/54944767

Kind regards and thanks for the great blog!

Niels

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Editors’s note: Some topics I am interested in:

– Professional on field reviews. Unlike DxO or Dpreview what I want is to learn more about the real life use of cameras and lenses! No charts or pixel peeping needed :)
– Testing of little known lenses
– Funny stories around the use of MFT
– System comparison: Example,  switching from DSLR to MFT system

Metabones Micro Four Thirds Speed Booster test with Blackmagic camera from Philip Bloom Reviews & Tutorials on Vimeo.

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The new Nikon to m4/3 speed booster already got tested by Ed on DVXuser (Click here):

“I can tell you I LOVE that with this adapter I’m getting closer to what the original FOV is on the lens. Now that each lens is a bit wider- my 28mm “looks” more like what I remember it’s supposed to. The m4/3 crop factor is now not so much of an issue with my old Nikkor primes. And of course the extra stop of light never hurts!!”

found via Nofilmschool.

The OM adapter will now come as next!

Click on the link to check the OM lens price and auctions on eBay: [shoplink 28869 ebay]21mm f/2.0 and 21mm f/3.5 lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28870 ebay]24mm f/2.0 and 24mm f/2.8 and 24mm f/3.5 shift lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28871 ebay]28mm f/2.0 and 28mm f/2.8 and 28mm f/3.5 lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28872 ebay]35mm f/2.0 and 35mm f/2.8 and 35mm f/2.8 shift lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28873 ebay]40mm f/2.0 lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28874 ebay]50mm f/1.2 and 50mm f/1.4 and 50mm f/1.8 and 50mm f/2.0 macro and 50mm f/3.5 lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28876 ebay]55mm f/3.5 macro lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28880 ebay]85mm f/2.0 lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28881 ebay]90mm f/2.0 macro lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28882 ebay]100mm f/2.0 and 100mm f/2.8 lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28884 ebay]135mm f/2.8 and 135mm f/3.5 lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28885 ebay]180mm f/2.0 and 180mm f/2.8 lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28886 ebay]200mm f/4.0 and 200mm f/5.0 lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28887 ebay]250mm f/2.0 lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28888 ebay]300mm f/4.5 lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28889 ebay]350mm f/2.8 lens[/shoplink],, [shoplink 28890 ebay]400mm f/6.4 lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28891 ebay]500mm f/8.0 lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28892 ebay]600mm f/6.6 lens[/shoplink], [shoplink 28893 ebay]1000mm f/11 lens[/shoplink].

ePhotozine (Click here) posted the first review of the new Samyang 16mm f/2.0 lens. The lens gets Highly Recommended:

“Those looking for wide aperture lenses for the APS-C or smaller format camera need not continue looking at full frame lenses, that generally cost and weigh more now this lens is available. Although some photographers may find manual focusing off putting, spending a little time practising and getting used to how the lens behaves will pay dividends in the long run. This is especially true when considering how little this lens costs for what you get.”

These are the shop search links to see if and when it’s in Stock: [shopcountry 40100].

eBay links on all Olympus Four Thirds lenses:
[shoplink 20647 ebay]Samyang [/shoplink], [shoplink 20684 ebay]Walimex [/shoplink], [shoplink 20649 ebay]Rokinon [/shoplink], [shoplink 20650 ebay]Opteka [/shoplink], [shoplink 20651 ebay]Falcon [/shoplink], [shoplink 20653 ebay]Vivitar [/shoplink] and[shoplink 20652 ebay]Bower [/shoplink].