Olympus PEN-F Preview

January 27, 2016 | Gavin Stoker | Compact System Camera | Comment |

‘A masterpiece for creating your own masterpiece’ is the confident pitch for the latest Micro Four Thirds compact system camera from Olympus: the Pen-F.  Rather than replace the formerly range topping E-P5 in the Pen line up however, Olympus suggested to Photography Blog at its London preview that the new rangefinder-styled camera – if successful – should form a new, independent strand on its own.

“People kept asking us why there wasn’t a Pen camera at the same level as the OM-D,” revealed Olympus UK Marketing Manager Mark Thackara at our preview session. “This is all about craftsmanship… there are no screws visible anywhere on the camera. It’s about the attitude the owner will have in taking their pictures – the camera promotes a more considered approach, rather than snapping.”

With the new Pen-F shell constructed from milled aluminium, the extra dial on the front harks back to the ISO dial on the original film-based Pen F, the half frame single lens reflect camera introduced by Olympus in 1963. Indeed the retro design of the new, digital Pen-F, very much recalls that classic ‘swinging 60s’ style, also promoted to great effect by the likes of Fujifilm’s X series.

Olympus UK sees the possible audience for its latest camera as being made up of “die hard Olympus fans, people who simply love the rangefinder format, plus the ‘visually educated’ – by which we mean architects or designers.”

Key features at a glance

The key selling points of the new Olympus Pen-F include a 2.36 million dot OLED eye-level viewfinder, 20 megapixel sensor and 50MP high resolution mode – enabled by the capture and combination of eight separate images, a feature first introduced (albeit at a lower 40MP resolution) on the OM-D E-M5 Mark II.

Also featured on the new Pen-F – available in a choice of either all-black or black and silver body – is a monochrome profile control that actually offers the selection of several different filters, whilst 5-axis image stabilisation (another key feature of the OM-D range) is built in. Olympus told us that this is the same system as on the E-M5 and M1.

“The Pen-F features a new imaging sensor,” Mark told us. In fact it is a new 20MP Live Mos sensor with no pass through filter. “Olympus doesn’t just want to go for megapixels, but for overall quality.”

Its colour profile control has been inherited from the E-M1, and aperture and art filters can be changed independently of each other. Additionally it’s the first ‘Pen’ to shoot in the rangefinder style, features built-in Wi-Fi for the sharing of images, and again provides the ability to use a smartphone as a remote to control the majority of the camera’s key functions. Further enticements include an articulated rear screen that flips out at right angles to the camera, not merely tilting up or down, a TruePic 7 processor, 10fps sequential shooting, plus a light sensitivity range stretching from ISO80 to ISO25600.

The Pen-F differs from the top end OM-D models however in that it is not weather or dust proofed. It doesn’t offer full 4K video capture either, with Olympus’ Mark Thackara adding that more points of difference will become clear as the OM-D range evolves – and hopefully this one alongside it.

There are plenty of accessory options being offered alongside the new Pen, including a high-end genuine leather bag and British made leather strap from London-based leather studio ‘Otzi’ (www.otzilondon.com).

With the camera being shipped this February, UK retail price is £999.999 body only. There is also a lens kit option that twins it with a 17mm f/1.8 black lens for £1199.99, or it’s a suggested £1099.99 with a 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 zoom.

Want to see exactly what the new Olympus Pen-F camera looks like in the flesh?

Check out our hands-on gallery of photos of the Olympus Pen-F camera.

Image Gallery

Click on a thumbnail to see the full version.

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