Pogue on Panasonic G1 NYT

I read that this morning and the damning segment to me was his saying, "why bother; there are only two lenses and the camera really isn't that small" or words to that effect. He did hold out the hope that Olympus is making a much more portable version of the micro 4/3 sensor.
 
kevin m said:
I read that this morning and the damning segment to me was his saying, "why bother; there are only two lenses and the camera really isn't that small" or words to that effect. He did hold out the hope that Olympus is making a much more portable version of the micro 4/3 sensor.
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After much excitement about the concept, I came to the same conclusion.

Looking for Oly's take...and maybe Samsung's.
 
kevin m said:
I read that this morning and the damning segment to me was his saying, "why bother; there are only two lenses and the camera really isn't that small" or words to that effect. He did hold out the hope that Olympus is making a much more portable version of the micro 4/3 sensor.
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hey, you gotta start somewhere. I think it is intriguing.
 
I was hoping he was going to write about the new 4/3s and he did. The G1 as he says is nothing to get excited about in and of itself but the direction it represents is exciting.

It could be, if done right, what the first Leica's were to 35mm photography. A new format, at first not taken seriously but the size and quality eventually lead to a new style of photography.

So far there hasn't really been anything digital that has done something different. You've got your point and shoots and your SLRs which are both pretty similar to their film equivalents, but a specific digital format with small, interchangeable lenses and live view seems like the sweet spot, but we'll have to see.

I think the older Prosummer cams (The older Canon G's and the Olympus 5050) were heading in the right direction but got sorta side swiped by the mega pixel wars and the onslaught of cheap SLRs. Maybe this will put things back on track for a rangefinder like digital.
 
...a specific digital format with small, interchangeable lenses and live view seems like the sweet spot, but we'll have to see.
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I agree. I think there's a real, untapped market out there for a digital camera that hasn't been made yet. I love my R-D1 and my SLR, too, but I could trade them both for the "right" camera.
 
Look at this Dpreview page on the lens timetable rollout for the Panasonic products

http://www.dpreview.com/previews/PanasonicG1/

I like the 7-14mm and 14-140 zooms planned.

The size of the camera is smaller than the Leica M8, which means for me its about the right size for most of us. I have medium to large size hands so for me I am looking for a camera that is not so small that the VF and controls are usable. Just look into the viewfinder of the new Ganon G10 and tell me its easy to see the composition especially if you wear eyeglasses. Thats what you get on most tiny cameras and so size advantage is not a gaurantee of satisfaction.
 
Now that these cameras are finally getting out there I hope a couple of men in sheds have taken them to some measuring tools and started to come up with m mount adapter concepts. Bring on the m4/3 I say, if they do it right I will slap down my cash.
 
I would say of those "roadmap" lenses only the 20mm 1.7 interests me. Slow zooms don't really float my boat.

Something like a 15mm 2.0 would be just about perfect but we'll have to see what Olympus is going to do as the body they are showing is a hell of a lot less SLR like and more what I'd be looking for anyway.

Since these sensor effectively doubles the focal length of any lens, the adapter thing doesn't do much for me. I'd rather see some new fast lenses in the 10-20mm range specifically made for these little beasts. No need to snap on my 35mm Summicron to get a 70mm lens I wouldn't use much.
 
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To me a rather pointless camera for what it could be, Pop-flash, no fast fixed focal length lenses, copy of dSLR form....

Oly's prototype at Photokina wasn't any better and they once made the PEN which is what this camera should be.

I just looked up some numbers:

G1 body only: 124mmx84x45 630grams

Pen FT with 38/1.8 lens 127x69.8x62.5 600grams.
 
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This article sounds more like a Panasonic PR brochure text than a review, to me. Red berry shot: "See that softly blurred background? That’s a specialty of S.L.R.s—and of Micro Four Thirds cameras." Mr. Pogue, I've seen tons of macro shots from smaller than 4/3 sensor cameras with even more bokeh. Of course one can get more bokeh the bigger the sensor is, but nothing's impossible if you handle angle of view, distance and aperture well.

Or the goat shot: "Here’s another shot that would look totally different if you took it with a compact camera. You wouldn’t be able to get that limited depth of field (blurred background); it would all be in focus." Unimpressed again - I can get more "blurred background" out of the the Canon Powershot S3 compact camera I occasionally use.

But no word about the quality of the electronic viewfinder. Would have been interested in reading how it compares to the optical finders of the Pana/Oly fourthirds slrs. Because, in my estimation, this might be the big weak point of that micro 4/3 system, unless one uses fast primes and optical finders in the hotshoe.

Didier
 
This Panny may not strike a chord with the predominantly male RFF-er..

But I bet it will be a 100% winner with that 'other half of the population'.. It's light, will fit small hands, and looks awfully cute.

The only mistake Panasonic makes is to not have it in pink!
 
there is a lag, but G1 is much quicker than compacts.
the finder is big and quite nice.

still, i'd recommend everybody who is fairly interested in this camera first to try out yourself before buying.

s.
 
Panasonic took the 1.4mp lcd EVF from their professional video line. The point was to have something that had high enough pixel density so you could not even see the individual pixels. The refresh rate is 60hz so you should see no flicker. The key is the new shutter which is normally open so that live view is faster.

I am not insulted that the camera is only a little smaller than an M, for me its a good size. An OM sized camera but slimmer would also be fine with me.

If I can use my 21/25/35/50/and 90 M mount lenses with adapter I could buy the 25mm f1.4 and the Pany 7-14mm zoom and have my needs covered.
 
Good review, and good conclusion, I'll wait for the HD-video capable version of this camera (or the Oly one, of course). The reviewer is correct, this kind of technology is just begging for videos.

But I must be in the minority, I have no problem attaching big honking piece of glasses and metal (the older the more fun) in front of a tiny camera 😀 😀
 
I am definitely liking the concept behind the G1. The fact it is not as small as people wanted is a moot point. Interchangeable lens cameras with a half decent sized sensor are not going to be that small anyway. Certainly not pants pocketable, Pentax 110 notwithstanding. Smaller primes are definitely on the way with Olympus surely joining in eventually.

The big thing for me is the annoying chunkchunk of the mirror will be gone!
 
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