Photokina! New mirrorless releases from Canon, Panasonic, Olympus, and more!

55 Comments

1. So should I just sell all my m43 lenses and em5 body and just get the lx100? The only benefit I see in keeping my em5 would be the IS and ability to do wide and tele (as well as accept my Nokton 17.5).

   • Tb, I am not so sure about the LX100. I just read that 1st it doesn’t have a touch screen and 2nd it doesn’t use 100% of that mft sensor..

     Of course, not being able to use any of the Noktons would be the killer argument NOT to sell the MFT system camera.

     So, maybe reduce to the special lenses and get something like the LX100 for common / lighter photography..?

     • Thanks.. Think will start offloading those mid range primes and keep the specialty glass. No point in keeping 14/25 anymore. Probably still keep the 12-40mm though since it still has weather sealing which I still need. Aside from that will keep my 7.5 samyang and nokton.

2. The Canon EOS M is totally underrated. I have one and it’s a great little camera. As long as you’re not trying to use it for sports photography. Use it for travel photography and it’s fantastic.

3. I should say more of the sensor, not the full sensor. You will never be able to use the full sensor.

4. Hi Steve,

   Is there a link to preorder the silver LX100? Cant find one anywhere. Is it being release at a later time than the black one?

   • I posted it in the article, just under the LX100 blurb, in bold blue letters 🙂

     • He’s asking about the silver one, from another site I read that the Silver will not be coming to the US, which is the opposite of the GM1 which the silver one was US and black was the import color.

5. Hi Steve,

   Just wondering for the lx100, if the lx100 will make use of the whole sensor size to capture the photo since the effective mp is12mp and the crop factor is not 2 like other m43 system?

   • No, it uses a Multi-Aspect ratio sensor and does not use the whole sensor but if that bothers you just wait, I’m pretty sure there will be a hack that will allow the use of the full sensor.

6. Olympus did also some great interviews and a nice press conference here in Germany. They said that they will keep 3 OM-D models but slow down the production cycle. They truly want to stand behind their products and give the user the feeling that their products are reliable, stable in their price and not outdated after a half year. So their new product cycle will be about 2 years or longer and during that they’ll update and improve their existing cameras with new features via firmware updates instead of throwing new slightly updated cameras on the market like many other companies do.
   I really appreciate that and think it’s a fantastic step more companies should follow.
   Another thing they announced is their “Service Plus”. In many countries of Europe it existed already for the E-M1, but in October they’ll start to offer this free extra service to all OM-D cameras. It includes a special hotline, 6 months of additional warranty, a pickup service for defect cameras and a repair time of max 3 days (+ delivery). An many cases I’ve heard they even shipped a replacement camera if it was really urgent.

   This also made me a bit disappointed about the “normal” newspaper press. About half of the journalist left the Olympus press conference after half the time because they didn’t had new camera models and “just” great announcements for existing consumers. That such things are not worth a news or headline in their opinion is kinda sad in my opinion. As a consumer such things and new firmware Updatse for my existing camera make me more happy than a new camera model.
   There is also a new video showing the new tethered shooting application for Olympus cameras which should be released on September 24th http://youtu.be/AGlqoyF7_Bs

7. Things to note:

   1) The Panasonic LX100 won’t be using the full area of its 4/3 sensor for imaging.

   Source:

   “…the LX100 isn’t actually using the entire sensor, instead cropping it to allow for multi-aspect shooting…”

   http://www.dpreview.com/previews/panasonic-lumix-dmc-lx100

   2) The APS-C sensor in the Samsung NX1 is a BSI type.

   Source:

   “With a 28MP APS-C CMOS Sensor, which is supported by Back Side Illumination (BSI)…”

   http://www.samsung.com/uk/discover/camera/find-your-signature-with-samsung-nx1/

8. I’m not sure I understand the point of the recent fixed lens compacts. Are these devices THAT much more compact than, say, the Olympus OMD E-M10 with the kit lens attached? I’ve not seen any of them side by side to the E-M10, but they don’t appear to have much advantage in size any more. The E-M10 is about the same size as my old Canon G3.

   And the prices of these things are in the same neighborhood as the E-M10. Why wouldn’t I want an E-M10 (which has the same IQ as the E-M1)?

   I’m not saying these things shouldn’t be produced or that no one should buy them. I just don’t get WHY they are desirable cameras.

   • Well, the lens you get is fast and would be pricey separate. It is more compact.

9. The LX100 is perfect for me. I find m43 format (half-frame) good enough. And you practically get a lens with a body for free. 😉 Not really, because I find lens Panasonic lens prices a bit high. But that’s still a good price on the LX100.

   The Sony A7s and the Panasonic LX100 are a good combo. That’s my aim. These are exactly the cameras I have dreamed about.

10. If you look at a fair like Photokina, you’ll see trends that are interesting and frightening at the same time.

    The compact & supercompact market has been taken over the smartphones, still there is a tremendous offer from all major brands.

    The niche of MLICs – overall not that immense in true sales numbers – is getting pretty crowded – not to say overcrowded. A “déjà vu”, and to be honest, quite a few people entering the MLIC-arena are likely over two or three years going to complain over the weight and size again just like they did with DSLRs – and not too much caring about sensor size and lenses step into the next generations of smartphones as a no-brainer. I’m pretty sure that we haven’t seen the last of what is going to happen.

    The very premium end of the MLIC-ranges is overpriced and I dare to predict that some people will discover after the inevitable retro-hyping now when you’re more serious these over-electronic conceived devices are not necessarily the most reliable and stable investment. Look already now at second prices…most of this gear doesn’t hold its premium at all, everything is sold very cheap also due to the fact that the true life of these products is extremely short and nothing of it proofs to be perfect (otherwise there wouldn’t be model after model with just minor fixes).

    Precisely this could be Nikon & Canon”s strategy to wait for a moment that DSLRs will be a more advanced /professional subject only. Why invest massively in a small MLIC market niche that will remain under a severe pressure and experience an increasing competition?

    BTW… in the above article it looks as Nikon didn’t do anything. Over the last year they released in the FF market the Df, 4Ds, D810 and D750 – all very strong cameras, and in the DX-market the D3300 and D5300. Most of these offerings is still outperforming a lot of what is being offered in the MLIC market, Yes indeed where is Canon – reading through a lot of blogs I notice quite a few of Canon-photographers that convert to the premium part of the MLIC market (say Sony, Olympus, Fuji) but I can’t imagine that anyone into serious photography and owning the very best Nikon FFs leave that path so easily. A major exception were the ones being very disappointed in the D600-debacle. Hard to imagine that is an ongoing trend, I just don’t believe it and the most recent releases are very strong products.

11. That GM5 does look beautiful.. But I think the M.Zuiko 7-14mm might replace my 9-18 and I will have a look at the 40-150 to complete my 12-40mm. Not sure if I’d really buy it, though.

    I can’t wait to see news about the Voigtländer 10.5mm 0.95 and first pics of that lens <3

    Oh, and somehow I wish Olympus would have come out with that E-M1 Silver earlier. Most of my lenses are silver and look somewhat akward on the black E-M1.. With the silver edition it wouldn't matter whether the lens was black or silver. On the ther hand, they perform well no matter what colour ,-)

12. You missed the most important and the most frustrating product announcement, the Canon EF-S 24/2.8 STM. More than 10 years after the introduction of their first consumer APS-C DSLR Canon responded to the need for a compact, wide-angle/standard prime lens. That lens three years ago would have saved me a lot of money, rather than jump on the mirrorless bandwagon.

    I would have preferred 22mm and f2.0, but by choosing 24/2.8 Canon likely avoided the hassle of a retrofokus design and was able to achieve a very compact lens.

13. The LX3 is the camera that introduced me to real photography (before that, I was ‘snapping pictures’). Since then, I have aquired a dslr, a Nikon V1 and a GH3, while I’m still using the LX3 occasionally when I want to travel light. It seems like the circle is round, and my next camera will be the LX100. I didn’t like the feel of the lighter LX5/7 so it seems that the hefty LX100 will be exactly my feel. The large sensor, button lay out and that Leica lens makes up a very serious camera! Not to mention the 24p 4K video. Jaw dropping. I didn’t see this one coming! (I was expection a 1 inch sensor).

14. Hey Steve, just F.Y.I. the high price of the new NX1 is largely because of the internal 4K video using h.265. h.265, by the way, is a next generation video codec that captures 4K video at ProRes quality (500Mbps) at much lower bitrates like 15-35Mbps. This camera’s internal 4K is potentially bigger then the GH4’s offering. But I guess we will see.

15. What about all the new Sony lenses added to their roadmap?

    The Sony/Zeiss 35/1.4 is high on my list and that little 28/2 looks promising. It appears that Sony is answering the call for fast primes.

16. Nice to see the Olympus OMD-EM-1 in silver but would have preferred the dials in black … a little bit of contrast goes a long way 🙂

17. Just my opinion, but I think camera makers who are not pushing the envelope with compact full frame, or even medium format cameras – need to get their R&D departments working on a Smart Camera – that has a built-in phone! Camera makers have already lost the majority of their market share to the likes of Nokia, Samsung, and iPhone … why not make a Nikon, Canon, or Fujifilm SmartCam + Phone?

    I’m only being a little ironic and facetious here … I think ultimately, there will be two factions of photographers:

    1. serious photographers who want a real camera, capable of high-res, low-light, high ISO, full frame, etc …
    2. people who snap photos with their phones.

    A new mirrorless ‘this’ … a 1″ sensor ‘that’ … and a silver bodied ‘whatever’ must have had the crowds on their feet at Photokina.

    As always, love and appreciate your reporting Steve – and I agree that the A7-S is Best In Show so far this year (wish I hadn’t bought the A7-R before the S came out!)

18. Is the Leica version of the LX100 coming as well? I’m sure sooner or later it will and will be nothing short of drop dead gorgeous, but will also be double the price :/
    This photokina gave me some serious GAS. Will be checking your site later 🙂 and can’t wait enough for your reviews!

    • Yes, a Leica version is coming.

      • how much extra for Red Dot?

        • Dunno yet. Someone else here said about $1350, but that’s a rumor, I think.

          This is one Panasonic that’s almost worthy of being rebadged with a red dot, I think.

          Rumored to be called the D-Lux something… (maybe 7 or 8).

          • Leica D-Lux Typ 109
            http://us.leica-camera.com/Photography/Compact-Cameras/Leica-D-Lux-Typ-109

19. oh, and the Panasonic phone comes with a 28equiv f2.8 Leica lens .. just wow

20. hi Steve,
    I think it would be great to mention that
    1. Olympus has also released a 1.4x teleconverter for the 40-150 lens, which will also work for the upcoming 300mm f4 lens.
    2. Panasonic released the Lumix DMC-CM1 smartphone with 1-inch sensor!!! I know you are an iPhone guy, and so am I, but I think that’s pretty impressive.

    I don’t know about you, but Photokina has been fantastic. Some very exciting products. Would love to get the LX100 for my girlfriend for birthday, but I know for fact she will LOVE the black+red GM5. And I would love to have the LX100 with waterproof casing. Would be fantastic for diving! 🙂
    Cheers

    • The best is yet to come 🙂 Check back here tonight, late. As for the phone, I am an Apple guy 100% so a panasonic phone is not for me but I applaud them for it.

    • Yes, impressive to put such a sensor inside, but the design leaves me cold. And hopefully that lens doesn’t move out inside your pants. Still, good for them and it seems much better than what Samsung has done to combine the two. Nokia Lumia 1020 idea is more attractive to me. Yes, not that great noise performance, but scaling down that 41 MP pictures leaves you with very sharp pictures.

21. interesting to compare IQ of LX 100 vs Sony RX100 of course and with m4/3 camera with some popular primes – 20mm 1.7 etc

    • Don’t forget the Ricoh GR, which is cheaper than both and has an APS-C sensor and fantastic 28mm lens.

22. Ok here are my comments. 😛

    LX100, whoa, very very interesting camera. I have been toying with the idea of having a compact (or at least even more compact then my EM1) on the side for those days where I just want to bring something simple with me to have fun and shoot with my kids. Its funny that after using Canon DSLRs for so many years that I still want something smaller then the EM1 ha! Anyway this one definitely has my attention because of the nice speedy leica brand glass. I love my 25mm 1.4 Panny/Leica so I am very interested to see some results from this camera. Steve, are you planning on reviewing this one? 😀 Please? 😀

    GM7 is the camera that I thought would be my choice but with the LX100 I have to take pause. Definitely there are advantages of using my existing M43 glass with the GM7 but… considering the application I am looking for, an all in one with leica quality glass might be a better choice. Will look forward to comparing the 2 to see how they stack against each other. I am assuming it will come down to a detachable lens system or not.

    Oly 40-150mm. Cost is about what I was expecting. This should be a no-brainer for your M43 super-tele needs. A year ago I thought it would be mine as soon as it hit the street however, I have grown to love my compact lenses so much that this one will probably be farther down the road then I thought. Though I am confused, did they release the 7-14 as well? that trifecta kinda seems like it would be all the glass you could every want/need for your Oly minus adding a super fast normal or 35 equivalent. Just wow.

    Sony 16-35 F4. Is it me or is the F4 speed kind of a bummer? I was hoping for 2.8 constant. oh well. Still looking forward to see some shots from it. Maybe I can be swayed?

    Disappointed in Canon. They were my brand of choice for the last 10 years. Times are a changin’.

    Samsung, interesting but I think they need to show me some more consistency in their quality and a little more insight to their approach before I would invest in their system. Still, they do seem to have some good ideas out there. I played with their smartphone meets smart camera for a day (I forget the model) and I actually enjoyed the experience. The shots were mostly ho-hum but that could have just been me. I think most people will be hard pressed to spend that kind of money on a Samsung camera. If I was on their marketing team I would be focusing more on ultra compacts with 4k video capable features. Something that differentiates them from a standard Camera manufacturer.

    Once again thanks for your wonderful site and the time you take pulling all this info for us! You rock Steve!

23. The samsung makes me curious:
    1/8000 shutter, 1/250 flash sync, 15 FPS, 4K video, large BIS sensor on the market with 28MB and a 16-50 2-2.8 lens does not look overpriced……

24. LX looks great! imo most interesting camera from mentioned

25. A big bummer for the LX100 is not having a built-in flash, that doesn’t really make sense for an “all-in-one” compact type of camera. Installing the flash on the hot shoe makes the rig huge plus who wants to carry around a flash unit?

    And yes, using flash does come up when out and about even with low-light capable cameras. Especially with a compact camera. That’s the reason why any cameraphone that doesn’t have built-in flash is a joke and not taken seriously as a camera.

    • I’ll have a built in evf over a built in flash anytime.

26. Canon needs to just stop making these little cameras if they aren’t even gonna try. Look at that thing! It looks like a terrible, half hearted attempt to copy the RX100. I remember when Canon made some of the best, and surely best selling, pocket cameras several years ago. For $700 why would anyone buy this over an RX100, any version. (I just picked up the original, brand new for $349) The majority of their camera business may be in DSLRs, but if they aren’t careful they are going to go the way of Kodak in the not too distant future.

    • Okay, I’ll bite.
      The GX7 has that the others do not: 24-100 1.8-2.8, touchscreen (can pull focus), click control ring, 31 point AF

      • I agree. The G7X actually looks like a much more appealing camera than the RX100. A viewfinder is nice, but realistically not something I am likely to use on a camera like this. The touchscreen for focus is a huge benefit.

        The LX100 is in a slightly different class, as you can’t even pretend it’s pocketable at that size.

      • It’s all about the click control ring for me!

        I love it on my Canon S90 and it really adds to experience when shooting manually. The lack of this feature stopped me from upgrading to the RX100, so this new GX7 sounds sweet!

      • Agreed, the G7X is actually quite a good camera. I love my Sony RX100 and if it were to die, I would rather upgrade to the G7X instead of the RX100III, if I had the cash that is.

        The brand new prices for these 1″ sensor cameras and for the LX100 are pretty ridiculous, IMO. I could get a Ricoh GR for less than $700, get a bigger sensor than the LX100, and still have a truly pocketable camera. With my style of shooting, sneaker zoom works just fine.

27. I think the Canon G7X is actually a pretty good product. Sure, its similar to an RX100 but it has a few advantages. F2.8 at 100mm is pretty good and it is the same size as RX100 iii. I don’t really see an EVF as necessary in a pocket camera like this. It’s not an innovative release but does add some good features. The Panasonic LX100 is nice but it is a fair bit larger. The competition in the large sensor compacts is nice. Hopefully the prices will start to come down as there is more selection

28. My favourite release so far has to be the GM5. I’v been considering a GM1 to pair with either my 20 1.7 or 14 2.5. But this seems even so much better with the EVF and hot shoe, would be perfect to always bring in a coat pocket!

29. Looks like

30. Wow. Panasonic just hit one out of the park. That LX100 looks fantastic. Be interesting to compare it to the Leica X Vario?

    On the other hand what are Canon & Samsung thinking?

    • “Be interesting to compare it to the Leica X Vario?”

      No need. Leica will have their own version of the LX100 in short order. It’ll be identical, sport a red dot, and sell for twice the price. 😉

      Oh, and it’ll come with a copy of Lightroom (sorry, forgot about that).

      • The Leica version of the Panasonic LX100 was announced today. It removes the grip, adds the red dot and $300.

    • The Leica one is rumoured to be $1350

      • Actually, this may be the only Panasonic camera that actually deserves a re-badged Leica version. It’s quite nice.

    • Samsung doesn’t understand photographers yet. I say “yet” because it took a while for Sony to figure them out, but now they are killing it. Maybe – and that’s a big maybe – Samsung will eventually figure it out too.

      Samsung tries to make everything: phones, computers, TVs, appliances. They even make cars. They build cameras the way they make computers: impressive specs on paper, but lacking in the controls and subtleties that appeal to users. Samsung cameras are gunning after Sony, but they’re a few years behind. I don’t see them catching up anytime soon. They still see cameras as just another electronic device.

      BTW – I live in Suwon, South Korea, where Samsung’s R&D and marketing offices are located. On the street with my X100S, I have often been asked, “Why did you buy a Fuji camera? You should buy a Samsung.” I explain that Samsung doesn’t make anything like the X100S. They inspect it, and then say, “But you should always buy Samsung.” I just shake my head.

      The fierce brand loyalty in their home country, coupled with the popularity (dominance?) of their TVs and smartphones worldwide, gives them a false sense of confidence when it comes to making cameras.

      So who will buy the overpriced NX1? Wealthy Koreans who don’t know much about photography. Though it’s worth noting that Nikon still dominates the pro and enthusiast market here.

      • Indeed. I know a couple of Korean guys and their kitchens and living rooms are stuffed with anything Samsung, LG, etc. and they obviously drive KIAs and Hyundais. Their brand loyalty to Korean makers is almost amusing and the historically and politically based rivalry with Japan only reinforces it. You make a good point about photographers being a rather peculiar group that is sometimes hard to figure out. They tend to like traditionalist, almost nostalgic elements on their cameras that help them to bond with what would otherwise be just another soulless electronic device. I think Panasonic cameras suffer a bit precisely because Panasonic is perceived as a consumer electronics brand, desptite the fact they make excellent cameras. It took me a while to figure that out too 🙂

        • Sony has been working very hard to shuck their “electronics” image and become a respected camera company.

          And there’s no question as to why Panasonic uses “Lumix” as their camera brand name 😉 Though I’ve liked the Panny M4/3 lenses I’ve used.

          To be fair, I’ve used a couple Samsung mirrorless cameras (NX line) and they didn’t seem much different from Sony’s NEX cameras. They both just feel like tiny computers to me. Image quality was good.

          What’s crazy is that Korean products like Samsung and LG are MUCH MORE expensive in South Korea than they are in the US or Europe!! The reason is brand loyalty (and tariffs) give them an artificially high market share here. Samsung laptops are almost as expensive as Apple laptops in Seoul! It’s ridiculous.

          Pride is part of the reason Koreans buy Korean brands, but there is also a strong sense that it’s necessary for the economy. Samsung alone constitutes 20% of South Korea’s entire GDP.

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