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"Is Olympus throwing away its biggest advantage?" - article

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Raist3d

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"Is Olympus throwing away its biggest advantage?" - article

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I feel like this article is like 2-3 years overdue, but it sure hammers on what I mentioned of keeping the size / advantage well defended vs not.

To be fair I think the EM5.3, EP7, EM10MKIV are cameras that put the size back along with the pro 12-45 F4.0. Just linking the article for someone noting what has happened in m43rds development. I don 'think it was just Olympus.

I really hope OMDS gets a chance to re-release the smaller primes in weather sealed form and maybe a tweak or two. And perhaps 1-2 pro F1.4 primes.

The one thing I think the article doesn't focus as much is on the bodies. I still think the best m43rds body would be a pro level class EM5 one. Have an optional grip with more battery/ cpu power.

Anyhow- not to start any fights or anything- just found that someone wrote this now kinda interesting, though I think the article comes a bit late now.

By the way, he considers the new F4 12-25 Pro zoom big. I thought it would be smaller given there's the F2.8 version of it. I get it has more range. Maybe it should have had the range of the F2.8 version and be smaller. Still seems like a cool lens.
 
I like options so I think E-M1 is fine, and if they want a halo product, sure make a E-M1X style body (that camera doesn't do that well as a halo product though..). But I agree that E-M5 is probably the sweet spot, with the 12-40mm f/2.8 being around the size that I consider to be maximum for that style of body. That does make the 8-25mm "too big", and the same goes for the f/1.2 primes. If only they had gone f/1.4, look at the relatively tiny Panasonic 25mm f/1.4.

Too bad the new E-M5 III feels like it sits slightly lower in the product stack compared to the old models. Missing out on the new processor (and so, the new face detection, liveND and HHHR at least) and cutting too many corners on body structure. Also it really should have had updated EVF and screen, and dual card slots even though that would mean a slight increase in size.
 
I never understood why Olympus went the route with big and bulky PRO gear. Why they didn’t do small f1.8 PRO primes? These f4 PRO zooms are definitely a move to right direction, but I’m afraid it’s too little too late. Small size surely is the advantage mft has.

I moved away from mft, but will come back for sure as soon as we have small f1.8 PRO primes and E-M1mk4 with new sensor.
 
Last edited:
A_Mist said:
I never understood why Olympus went the route with big and bulky PRO gear.
Click to expand...
This is exactly what Olympus did with their 4/3 DSLR line of gear too. It turned out to be wildly successful too! Put Canon, Nikon, Sony, etc. almost out of business and made Olympus King of the Heap. :-)
A_Mist said:
Why they didn’t do small f1.8 PRO primes? These f4 PRO zooms are definitely a move to right direction, but I’m afraid it’s too little too late. Small size surely is the advantage mft has.

I moved away from mft, but will come back for sure as soon as we have small f1.8 PRO primes and E-M1mk4 with new sensor.
Click to expand...
--
Henry Richardson
http://www.bakubo.com
 
Last edited:
Henry Richardson said:
A_Mist said:
I never understood why Olympus went the route with big and bulky PRO gear.
Click to expand...
This is exactly what Olympus did with their 4/3 DSLR line of gear too. It turned out to be wildly successful too! Put Canon, Nikon, Sony, etc. almost out of business and made Olympus King of the Heap. :-)
Click to expand...
Hehe, love the sarcasm because it is precisely what they did in 4/3rds days ending up killing the system. At least there's still smaller lens options in m43rds.

Would be great if they do pro-level F!.4/F1.8's as someone else said. Weather sealed. Imagine that with the EM5MKIII.
Member said:
Member said:
Why they didn’t do small f1.8 PRO primes? These f4 PRO zooms are definitely a move to right direction, but I’m afraid it’s too little too late. Small size surely is the advantage mft has.

I moved away from mft, but will come back for sure as soon as we have small f1.8 PRO primes and E-M1mk4 with new sensor.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
--
Raist3d/Ricardo (Photographer, software dev.)- I photograph black cats in coal mines at night...
“The further a society drifts from truth the more it will hate those who speak it.” - George Orwell
 
Last edited:
I think consumer want choice and the idea of zuiko and zuiko pro is correct however to have a pro lens that is f/4 is not credible. Perhaps they need to abandon the idea of constant aperture number which they seem to be fixated with

In terms of body they also need a light line and a pro line and the pro line does not need to be small as performance and long battery are achieving by size and construction to dissipate heat

The remaining question is how big are those segments and do they make a profit on each item they sell? Probably not and some of the pro lenses may as well be big flops (the 17mm and 25mm are very nice but who needs 1.2 for a lens that is wide/standard?)

Personally I have been systematically eliminating all Olympus equipment in the last 9 months I no longer have cameras and I have two lenses left and they are both Zuiko non pro the 60mm macro and the 75mm. I keep them not because they are light but because the are unique in terms of focal length which is my deciding factor for lenses.

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Raist3d said:
The Oly 75mm F1.8 m43rds lens is what keeps me shooting m43rds every time I get tempted to look elsewhere.
Click to expand...
It is a patent by Sigma...
 
A_Mist said:
I never understood why Olympus went the route with big and bulky PRO gear.
Click to expand...
simple strategy . trying to reach a wider audience . having a Choice is ALWAYS a better option
A_Mist said:
Why they didn’t do small f1.8 PRO primes?
Click to expand...
Because lots of people on those forums and on the internet would have been whining non stop that F1.8 is not really F1.8 and all of that nonsense
A_Mist said:
These f4 PRO zooms are definitely a move to right direction, but I’m afraid it’s too little too late.
Click to expand...
A_Mist said:
Small size surely is the advantage mft has.
Click to expand...
One of them among 5 or 6 clear obvious ones
A_Mist said:
I moved away from mft, but will come back for sure as soon as we have small f1.8 PRO primes and E-M1mk4 with new sensor.
Click to expand...
the em1m4 MAY happen but the lenses not in a million years . you are not coming back any time soon , I guess

Harold
 
Raist3d said:
The Oly 75mm F1.8 m43rds lens is what keeps me shooting m43rds every time I get tempted to look elsewhere.
Click to expand...
Good for you but if I go by what people are saying , not really a small lens either ... but the issue here is really that this is not a very popular focal length ;-)

I would NOT recommend this lens to anyone for general or portrait photography :-P
 
Harold66 said:
A_Mist said:
I never understood why Olympus went the route with big and bulky PRO gear.
Click to expand...
simple strategy . trying to reach a wider audience . having a Choice is ALWAYS a better option
Click to expand...
Unfortunately we didn’t get to choose small f1.8/f2 primes.

Harold66 said:
Harold66 said:
Why they didn’t do small f1.8 PRO primes?
Click to expand...
Because lots of people on those forums and on the internet would have been whining non stop that F1.8 is not really F1.8 and all of that nonsense
Click to expand...
So you are saying Olympus didn’t do these small PRO primes because people would’ve been whining that f1.8 is not f1.8 on internet forums? Ok. Thank you for the contribution.
 
A_Mist said:
Harold66 said:
A_Mist said:
I never understood why Olympus went the route with big and bulky PRO gear.
Click to expand...
simple strategy . trying to reach a wider audience . having a Choice is ALWAYS a better option
Click to expand...
Unfortunately we didn’t get to choose small f1.8/f2 primes.
Click to expand...
no idea what this means . you got a fair number of f1.8 primes in the line up
A_Mist said:
A_Mist said:
A_Mist said:
Why they didn’t do small f1.8 PRO primes?
Click to expand...
Because lots of people on those forums and on the internet would have been whining non stop that F1.8 is not really F1.8 and all of that nonsense
Click to expand...
So you are saying Olympus didn’t do these small PRO primes because people would’ve been whining that f1.8 is not f1.8 on internet forums? Ok. Thank you for the contribution.
Click to expand...
Absolutely , undoubtedly ... Not saying that this is the ONLY reason but for sure one of them . I mean not just enthusiasts but camera stuff reviewers on the net
 
Harold66 said:
A_Mist said:
Harold66 said:
A_Mist said:
I never understood why Olympus went the route with big and bulky PRO gear.
Click to expand...
simple strategy . trying to reach a wider audience . having a Choice is ALWAYS a better option
Click to expand...
Unfortunately we didn’t get to choose small f1.8/f2 primes.
Click to expand...
no idea what this means . you got a fair number of f1.8 primes in the line up
Click to expand...
Strange that you have no idea, since we are talking about f1.8 PRO primes which is quite evident in every post I’ve made in this topic - including the ones you have quoted.
Harold66 said:
Harold66 said:
Harold66 said:
Harold66 said:
Why they didn’t do small f1.8 PRO primes?
Click to expand...
Because lots of people on those forums and on the internet would have been whining non stop that F1.8 is not really F1.8 and all of that nonsense
Click to expand...
So you are saying Olympus didn’t do these small PRO primes because people would’ve been whining that f1.8 is not f1.8 on internet forums? Ok. Thank you for the contribution.
Click to expand...
Absolutely , undoubtedly ... Not saying that this is the ONLY reason but for sure one of them . I mean not just enthusiasts but camera stuff reviewers on the net
Click to expand...
LOL.
 
A_Mist said:
Harold66 said:
A_Mist said:
Harold66 said:
A_Mist said:
I never understood why Olympus went the route with big and bulky PRO gear.
Click to expand...
simple strategy . trying to reach a wider audience . having a Choice is ALWAYS a better option
Click to expand...
Unfortunately we didn’t get to choose small f1.8/f2 primes.
Click to expand...
no idea what this means . you got a fair number of f1.8 primes in the line up
Click to expand...
Strange that you have no idea, since we are talking about f1.8 PRO primes which is quite evident in every post I’ve made in this topic - including the ones you have quoted.
Click to expand...
True but not in the last post

Anyway to stay on your point , lots of users based on their comments would not be willing to pay high prices for f1.8 lenses, at least not all of them

I personally think that the soft spot for many normal focal lengths in the m4/3 lens line up is F1.4

I think making the 17mm and 25mm , if not the 45mm , in f1.4 instead of f1.2 would have been a smarter move

 
Harold66 said:
A_Mist said:
Harold66 said:
A_Mist said:
Harold66 said:
A_Mist said:
I never understood why Olympus went the route with big and bulky PRO gear.
Click to expand...
simple strategy . trying to reach a wider audience . having a Choice is ALWAYS a better option
Click to expand...
Unfortunately we didn’t get to choose small f1.8/f2 primes.
Click to expand...
no idea what this means . you got a fair number of f1.8 primes in the line up
Click to expand...
Strange that you have no idea, since we are talking about f1.8 PRO primes which is quite evident in every post I’ve made in this topic - including the ones you have quoted.
Click to expand...
True but not in the last post

Anyway to stay on your point , lots of users based on their comments would not be willing to pay high prices for f1.8 lenses, at least not all of them

I personally think that the soft spot for many normal focal lengths in the m4/3 lens line up is F1.4

I think making the 17mm and 25mm , if not the 45mm , in f1.4 instead of f1.2 would have been a smarter move
Click to expand...
 
A_Mist said:
Harold66 said:
A_Mist said:
Harold66 said:
A_Mist said:
Harold66 said:
A_Mist said:
I never understood why Olympus went the route with big and bulky PRO gear.
Click to expand...
simple strategy . trying to reach a wider audience . having a Choice is ALWAYS a better option
Click to expand...
Unfortunately we didn’t get to choose small f1.8/f2 primes.
Click to expand...
no idea what this means . you got a fair number of f1.8 primes in the line up
Click to expand...
Strange that you have no idea, since we are talking about f1.8 PRO primes which is quite evident in every post I’ve made in this topic - including the ones you have quoted.
Click to expand...
True but not in the last post

Anyway to stay on your point , lots of users based on their comments would not be willing to pay high prices for f1.8 lenses, at least not all of them

I personally think that the soft spot for many normal focal lengths in the m4/3 lens line up is F1.4

I think making the 17mm and 25mm , if not the 45mm , in f1.4 instead of f1.2 would have been a smarter move
Click to expand...
Yes, finally something we can agree - f1.4 PRO lenses would’ve been a smarter move than f1.2’s.
It seems they were in the right track in the end after all, with small and awesome f4 zooms, now f1.8 PRO primes are desperately needed! That would bring some serious advantage in competition.
Click to expand...
Perhaps there has been some plans internally, as the roadmap has for a long time had the "bright PRO prime lenses" between 10-60mm and the existing f/1.2s sure don't need updating. Sadly nothing has materialized over the years in that range.
 
red pencil said:
red pencil said:
I think making the 17mm and 25mm , if not the 45mm , in f1.4 instead of f1.2 would have been a smarter move
Click to expand...
As long as they are spot on wide open otherwise it just doesn’t matter
Click to expand...
Really ? I think it makes a difference in weight , size , filter size ...and price :-D
 
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Raist3d said:
"Is Olympus throwing away its biggest advantage?" - article

https://www.digitalcameraworld.com/news/is-olympus-throwing-away-its-biggest-advantage

I feel like this article is like 2-3 years overdue, but it sure hammers on what I mentioned of keeping the size / advantage well defended vs not.

To be fair I think the EM5.3, EP7, EM10MKIV are cameras that put the size back along with the pro 12-45 F4.0. Just linking the article for someone noting what has happened in m43rds development. I don 'think it was just Olympus.

I really hope OMDS gets a chance to re-release the smaller primes in weather sealed form and maybe a tweak or two. And perhaps 1-2 pro F1.4 primes.
Click to expand...
If they make the f1.4 primes around the same size as the pana 25mm f1.4 (our only small fast WR option) then I would go for that.
Member said:
The one thing I think the article doesn't focus as much is on the bodies. I still think the best m43rds body would be a pro level class EM5 one. Have an optional grip with more battery/ cpu power.
Click to expand...
I think the em5 is a great platform. However many don't agree with us and find it too small even with a grip. I think that is why the g9 and em1 are quite popular despite being some of the biggest bodies in system.

I like the idea of an external grip with more battery power and processing power.
Member said:
Anyhow- not to start any fights or anything- just found that someone wrote this now kinda interesting, though I think the article comes a bit late now.

By the way, he considers the new F4 12-25 Pro zoom big. I thought it would be smaller given there's the F2.8 version of it. I get it has more range. Maybe it should have had the range of the F2.8 version and be smaller. Still seems like a cool lens.
Click to expand...
I thought it would be smaller, and maybe they should have gone for a variable aperture instead. Maybe like a f4-f5.6? I think with things like dxo mft can afford to use slower apertures now.
Member said:
--
Raist3d/Ricardo (Photographer, software dev.)- I photograph black cats in coal mines at night...
“The further a society drifts from truth the more it will hate those who speak it.” - George Orwell
Click to expand...
 
If Micro 43 Rumors is to be believed Olympus is developing an 20mm/f1.4 Pro Prime Lens. It will be the first of a series of F1.4 Pro prime lenses.

The E-M5.3 is slightly smaller and lighter than the E-M5.2. The E-P7 is smaller and lighter than the E-P5.

The 12-45/4.0 is the start of the f4.0 Pro Zoom Lens Series. There is a 40-150/4.0 shown on the lens roadmap.

Dave
 
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