A

A

A

A

A

Panasonic's development of the four-thirds sensor format (17x13mm approx.) continues apace with the DMC -G1 and its HD video endowed sibling, the GH1. Both cameras are fitted with the latest LIVEMos sensor developed by Panasonic in partnership with Olympus Optical Co Ltd.


1. The new Olympus Micro Four Thirds camera E-P1. The company promises further developments for this format and one can hope there might be an all black version, preferably in Urushi lacquer.

Thus far, products from both companies deliver an extraordinary level of equipment and image sophistication for their sensor size, although it is apparent that both also arrive at visibly different levels of image aesthetic and technical quality.


2. This was made on the Panasonic G1 at approximately four times life size using an old Visoflex mirror box, a set of M bellows and the lens head from of an Elmarit f/2.8 90mm (first launched in 1959.). The image is exceptionally micro-detailed and sharp right in the centre of the full size image.

I have limited experience of exploring files from Olympus kit. It includes hands-on an OM e400 and subsequent screen use and printing from that model; handling and inspection of large scale prints (A2) out of an e3 and whenever possible, assessing mechanical print reproduction of OM digital files from the earliest days of the e10 through...

THE BEAUTY OF BIC

The best thing about the ubiquitous biro is its simplicity.

In France, Bic is the generic name of all such writing instruments. Flip the cap off a slender yellow plastic stalk and apply to paper. Usually, it works.

In 1959, the Olympus Optical Co Ltd., launched the Pen camera; a product designed for writing with light conceived around the principle of functional simplicity in a compact but elegant package. It worked and the company made and sold hundreds of thousands of the many different models of the Pen and Pen F half frame cameras produced over the next 20 odd years.

But half frame was nothing new. Other companies, in an effort to woo more customers to the miniature 35mm film format by marketing the advantage of economy to be gained from obtaining 72 frames from a single cassette instead of the normal 36, had launched similar products. Mostly, until Olympus launched the Pen series, half frame models were built around regular full frame cameras with the film gate and viewfinder masked off to the appropriate 18X24mm format.

Two factors point to reasons why the Pen series were so successful; the cameras were simple to operate and the D type Zuiko lenses were specially designed for the task of maximising image quality from such a small area of film.

Olympus had developed new D type objectives for its earlier medium format cameras and it continued to refine...