Seb Farges shot the video on top with the new Noktor 12mm f/1.6 macro and cinematic lens: “This is, to my opinion, an incredible lens, fast and wide, and there is no visible distortion. The focus and aperture rings are very smooth. It is all made in metal. XXX There is in my test a small vignetting in the outside shots due to the use of a 62mm L.C.W variable ND filter (with a 58mm/62mm step up ring). To avoid the vignetting you’ll need a 67mm or a 72mm filter with the right step up ring, because remeber this is a wide lens!”

Bert Stephanie (Click here) also shared his first impressions about the lens: “I’ll leave the pixel peeping to others but at first glance, I think the optical quality, sharpness and distortions seems to fit my needs.”

The new Noktor is not available for preorder yet. It will start shipment in late November. The other Noktor lens, the 50mm f/0.95 is in Stock on [shoplink 25691 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink] and on the Noktor website. As you know the Noktor project is now owned by SLRmagic.

Other SLRmagic lenses for Micro Four Thirds:
SLR Magic 12-36×50 ED Straight Spotting Scope lens (w/ hand grip) is now available on [shoplink 25887 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink].
SLR magic 11mm f/1.4 lens you can preorder on [shoplink 22154 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink].
Toy Lens 26mm f/1.4 lens on [shoplink 18603 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink].
SLR Magic 35mm f/1.7 MC lens on [shoplink 14881 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink].

panasonic lumix g x vario pz 45-175mm video test from Roderick Kar on Vimeo.

Panasonic just released the new firmware for the GF2/GF3/G3 cameras. You can download it here: http://panasonic.jp/support/global/cs/dsc/download/index.html. The new version 1.1 added the function for using the new power zoom X lenses, the [shoplink 25104]Panasonic 14-42mm X lens[/shoplink] and the [shoplink 25103]Panasonic 45-175mm X lens[/shoplink].

Our reader Roderick Kar made the video comparison you see on top and posted some image samples on Flickr (Click here). And you can see the “transparent” version of the X lenses at DC.watch (Once on the site scroll down to see the pics).

According to Panasonic both lenses should be available in October but I wouldn’t bet on that. The [shoplink 23110]Panasonic-Leica 25mm f/1.4[/shoplink] was supposed to be available in US and European stores in August but only very few lenses have been shipped to “western” countries in late September. And are now still out of Stock at [shopcountry 23110]. Until now Panasonic cameras and lenses always have been in Stock 2-3 months after the announced availability month.

Panasonic 14-42mm X lens at [shopcountry 25104].
Panasonic 45-175mm X lens [shopcountry 25103].

There is a double hands-on review of the new 12mm f/1-6 Noktor lens:
You can read the first hands-on at ThePhoBlographer (Click here): “How does the lens feel? It’s very well built: all metal body and quite heavy for a micro four thirds lens. But it’s not overpoweringly heavy.”
And the second hands-on has been written by Steve Huff (Click here): “I can see that at f/1.6 it is a little teeny bit soft at the edges but still looks VERY nice. By f/2 it sharpens up and is just about flawless. Also this lens has VERY LITTLE distortion. Oh, did I mention it also doubles as a macro lens?”.
If you are interested in getting this lens there is still NO preorder option yet. The only Noktor lens that ships right now is the Noktor 50mm f/0.95 on [shoplink 25886 ebay]eBay[/shoplink] or on their website.

Spotting Scope lens in Stock:
The other news is that the SLR Magic 12-36×50 ED Straight Spotting Scope lens (w/ hand grip) is now available on [shoplink 25887 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink].

Other SLRmagic lenses for Micro Four Thirds:
SLR magic 11mm f/1.4 lens you can preorder on [shoplink 22154 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink] Toy Lens 26mm f/1.4 lens on [shoplink 18603 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink] SLR Magic 35mm f/1.7 MC lens on [shoplink 14881 ebay]eBay (Click here)[/shoplink]

Peter Lueck (Click here) posted a new Olympus 45mm f/1.8 review. The review is in german but the conclusion is the same form other reviewers. This is a sharp lens with almost no flaws. For the price a real must have lens! Oly the body quality is not as good as the [shoplink 23576]Olympus 12mm f/2.0[/shoplink] lens but it also cost a lot less!

A coupel of readers contacted me to say that Amazon.com finally shipped their Olympus 45mm lens (Click here to preorder on Amazon).

Full preorder links of the new Oly lenses (Click on store name):
Olympus 45mm f/1.8 at [shopcountry 23577].
Olympus 12mm f/2.0 [shopcountry 23576].

As you know DxOmark tested the Nikon 1 sensors and gave it the same score as the m43 sensors. But look at that simple image comparison posted by massimo on dpreview forum. Time for DxOmark to add the resolution as a parameter in their tests otherwise their score really is misleading!

New Olympus E-PL3 Review at DCresource (Click here): “Overall, the Olympus E-PL3 is a well-appointed, relatively inexpensive interchangeable lens camera that offers a lot of bang for the buck. It produces high quality stills and videos, offers features for both beginners and enthusiasts, and has generally very snappy performance. While there’s some room for improvement, Olympus’ midrange Pen is definitely worth checking out“.

Olympus PEN E-PL3 review at Techradar (Click here): “Compared against the E-P3 it represents very good value for money indeed, although against other competitors from rival manufacturers it still looks to be a bit on the pricey side. It wouldn’t take much of a drop in the street price for that to change though. In the meantime, should you have your heart set on one you are unlikely to be disappointed.”

My First Sunday Afternoon with the Olympus EPM-1. Yes, the EPM-1. I’m “Pen Ready.” (Kirk Tuck via Noisycamera).

Panasonic LUMIX DMC-GF3 review by PDNonline (Click here): “Like I said, it’s a pity this camera isn’t more aimed at pros. While I really enjoyed my time shooting with the gorgeous Leica M9-P, I had more fun with the GF3 overall“.

Micro Four Thirds Lens Comparison: Olympus 12mm f2 vs. Panasonic 14mm f2.5 (ThePhoBlographer).

Shop links to the mentioned cameras and lenses:
Olympus E-PL3 at [shopcountry 23567].
Olympus E-PM1 at [shopcountry 23565].
Panasonic GF3 at [shopcountry 23109].
Panasonic 14mm lens at [shopcountry 16258].
Olympus 12mm lens at [shopcountry 23576].

Video on top: 45-175mm X lens Powerzoom smoothness test

The new [shoplink 25103]45-175mm X[/shoplink] lens will be in Stock this month (October) and so it’s time to read some reviews :)

The Clubsnap forum (Click here) tested the lens. The lens is as sharp as the 45-200mm lens, with very good color reproduction, accuracy and contrast. It has some vignetting wide open but no chromatic aberrations at all. The lens has been tested on the Olympus E-P3 so there is no auto correction like on Panasonic cameras. According to the reviewer the Power OIS is very effective (more useful than the built-in IS from Olympus!). You can read the full conclusions form the reviewer on page two of the thread.

Also ePrice (Click here) tested the same 45-175mm X lens. The review is written in Chinese and contains many image and video samples. From what I understood the reviewer liked the lens a lot! :)

You can preorder the 45-175mm lens at [shopcountry 25103].
And the amazing 14-42mm X pancake preorder links at [shopcountry 25104].

Steve Huff (Click here) posted the full Olympus 45mm f/1.8 review: “This lens gets my highest recommendation if you are a Micro 4/3 owner. Anyone who knocks this lens (don’t think there will be any) has never tried it or had a defect“.
I couldn’t agree more with Steve. This is a must have lens. Click those links to check if the lens is in Stock or not: [shopcountry 23577].

More reviews:

Which One? Olympus EPM1 vs Olympus EP2 Comparison Review (ThePhoBlographer).
SLRclub (Click here) posted a very long Olympus 12mm f/2.0 review. As you know it is in korean and impossible to translate via google tool because (as usual) SLRclub posted the review as a long series of jpg images.
Teh thai website Gadget4thai (Click here to read the translation) tested the Olympus 45mm f/1.8 portrait lens.
The polish website Optyczne (Click here to read the translation) tested the Panasonic GF3.