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The Digital Pen F

Annna T

Active member
There is a review by Ming Thein which I find quite instructive.

Premiere and review: The Olympus PEN F ? Ming Thein | Photographer

To sum up :

He liked the ergonomic (save the for placement of the lug and the button in the front) : it offers a very nice shooting experience as the camera just disappears, allowing you to concentrate on pictures.

Concerning IQ improvements from the new sensor : he can't judge because he was limited to Olympus Viewer 3, so he has no point of comparison with his usual workflow, yet the increase in details seems marginal, but that may be due to the raw converter. The DR seems slightly better and ISO are usable up to 1600. But shadow noise seems a tad worse than on the E-M5II. But this needs to be confirmed when he will be able to convert the raws with his usual workflow.
 
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bradhusick

Active member
Mono mode here is JPEG only. Can't do RAW mono because the sensor is a color sensor with a bayer filter. There's nothing new here except they put it on a new dial on the front.

I see nothing compelling about this camera for my uses.
 

Elderly

Well-known member
Looks just like a lukewarm update - more in the design direction than real quality.

?
I wasn't expecting a miracle increase in image quality over the old sensor,
but increasing from 16MP to 20MP combined with nearly four* years of sensor design progress,
I was hoping for a more noticeable change.

* I think it's about that length of time since the original EM5?
 

4season

Well-known member
Looks like a charming hybrid between a classic Pen, a Leica 3F and something out of Inspector Gadget.

If not too much larger than the E-P1 then I'm definitely interested. I like the size and general form factor of the Pen body style but wanted my built-in EVF too.

Olympus Viewer 3: Was using that for awhile with my Stylus Tough TG4 raw files and the software seems to lay on noise reduction with a heavy hand regardless of how it's configured. Am much happier with the results I get using Adobe's raw converter.
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
This will be a success, particularly here in Asia. It pushes all the right buttons for the growing, young middle class here, and will compete directly with Fuji, the current market leader in Thailand (Yes, Fuji is outselling not only Sony and Olympus but Canon and Nikon too in the exchangeable lens camera market). Cute and retro is what it's all about. Google "Yamaha Fino" or "Honda Scoopy" and you'll see what I mean. Basically, it's an E-P5 with more dials and a viewfinder plus the number of megapixels starts with a "2". 20, 24 or 28... who cares? The photos are only going to Facebook and Instagram anyway.

For me? I would love to have it, just as I would love to have an X-Pro2 or a Df. But the GM5, which I have, is much smaller and the GX8 more capable and cheaper too, so probably not. But insert the sensor of the A7R II in this beautiful body, and I might change my mind. Olympus did patent a lens for mirrorless 35mm camera recently, didn't they?

Yamaha Fino, the best selling scooter in Thailand the last decade:





And for those who want the most bang-for-the-bucks and mostly care about how capable the camera is, the E-M10 II and G7 are impossible to beat in the world of m4/3. I'm quite sure I could do my entire photographic and video work with those two cameras without anybody other than camera geeks noticing that I'd sold my Nikon gear... if I did, but I won't :)

Just sayin' :rolleyes:
 

retow

Member
Seems that technical innovation has plateaued for mft and the number of knobs and art filters ought to make the difference. Nice, yes, this little Pen. But the same amount of money buys some serious gear these days.
 

raist3d

Well-known member
So after reading/checking things. I think the camera looks very nice. This is really for a new sort of market (in a way I am part of the market they are targeting- but more on that below)

Really like the new color and monochrome JPEG engine stuff- Olympus was sort of falling behind in their JPEG engine, and this puts them more where I think they can be. I still prefer Fuji's though.

The camera when you consider its capabilities, it's very small and nice. I do think at the asking price it should have been weather sealed- oh well. I guess it's a bit of a luxury item (if such thing can be said for any camera below the Leica level).

The camera speaks to me ironically because I used to be a 4/3rds JPEG shooter for a very long time. I like the idea of getting shots out of camera playing with them in the camera/sharing them. That said....

I am looking for wearable and stealth and the GM5 is still smaller. As far as bigger camera goes, I do think the GX8 is the better deal both in capability and specially now price. And the GX8 isn't my camera because it's too big for what I want. I am waiting for the rumored GM7 which should have the same sensor and 4k video.

I do think that if this Pen F had the hand held high-res mode implemented, that would have been interesting for some shots for sure. It doesn't, it doesn't have 4k and no weather sealing. And it's $1,199 USD body only. Ah well.

I also was hopping Olympus revamped their menu system, but they didn't. So all the new UI that is added makes the camera even more complex that Olympus has had out there before, including any current OMD's... though at least they have a two manual dials/controls that are associated with such (front dial and tone curve level under the PASM wheel).

Still looks very nice. If I see in person and feels small I would think about it, but truth is the GM line is much smaller. Can't fault the size much given the IBIS, but for me, I want a smaller device.

- Ricardo
 

ptomsu

Workshop Member
Just check out this video, at least for me after watching I now better understand the PenF

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9gh6_3nT9A

Must reiterate I am normally a RAW shooter and never ever messed up with JPEGs, but what this little PenF offers makes me just rethink my shooting style. I can see that as soon as one allows in camera processing and usage of JPEGs and get the OOC JPEGs right, then this concept makes lot of sense. No more (almost) post processing and directly getting what you want while actually being in the middle of the scene.

Nevertheless I would like to see from Olympus something which is already available from Fuji - when you shoot Fuji, you can shoot RAW and assign all the profiles later in LR - if Olympus did that together with Adobe also for their profiles, especially for the PenF, then I would buy this camera/concept in a heartbeat.

Anyway maybe I would like to try that JPEG shooting out .... which I fear will become expensive, as I the very likely would want that camera too :LOL:
 

etrigan63

Active member
I just made a blog post about how, with this camera, Olympus is reviving a Victorian design ethic called the "Aesthetic Movement". Basically, if you are going to make something useful, make it beautiful as well.
 

Godfrey

Well-known member
For the past year, basically since I re-upped my interest in shooting with Polaroid SX-70s, my efforts have been to see how well I can get along with using just the in-camera JPEG engine on all my digital cameras to get as close as I have in mind to the finished image intent. The SX-70 was the inspiration because, in the last analysis, the idea of the Polaroid cameras is to produce completed prints with no further modification.

Since I produce a lot of B&W images, this effort has had its challenges—I'm very very comfortable with my raw to monochrome JPEG workflow. However, be that as it may, I found that with the Leica X, M-P, and now SL, as well as with the Olympus E-M1 and E-PL7, I can get to about 95% of my finish rendering intent on color work using just the in-camera JPEG engine with only minor finishing touches added in LR or Snapseed/Photogene working on the JPEGs only. It's not been so successful with the B&W work; only the M-P has the B&W filter simulations that let me do what I do with raw files in LR. With the M-P, I can get to almost straight out of the camera (done but for the border) with some scenes, with the others, I need to massage the output a bit more than is worth basing on the JPEGs as a rule.

I don't think I'd need a Pen F Digital on that basis; I can do the no-raw dance well enough with the kit I have. This makes me extremely happy. :)

It's always seemed Olympus's goal, however, to hand photographers a complete processing lab in their cameras that let them produce finished work easily. From the E-1 to the present, they've had some of the best in-camera JPEG engines around the industry, and they were one of the first to provide in-camera raw to JPEG conversions.

G
 

zensu

New member
For the past year, basically since I re-upped my interest in shooting with Polaroid SX-70s, my efforts have been to see how well I can get along with using just the in-camera JPEG engine on all my digital cameras to get as close as I have in mind to the finished image intent. The SX-70 was the inspiration because, in the last analysis, the idea of the Polaroid cameras is to produce completed prints with no further modification.

Since I produce a lot of B&W images, this effort has had its challenges—I'm very very comfortable with my raw to monochrome JPEG workflow. However, be that as it may, I found that with the Leica X, M-P, and now SL, as well as with the Olympus E-M1 and E-PL7, I can get to about 95% of my finish rendering intent on color work using just the in-camera JPEG engine with only minor finishing touches added in LR or Snapseed/Photogene working on the JPEGs only. It's not been so successful with the B&W work; only the M-P has the B&W filter simulations that let me do what I do with raw files in LR. With the M-P, I can get to almost straight out of the camera (done but for the border) with some scenes, with the others, I need to massage the output a bit more than is worth basing on the JPEGs as a rule.

I don't think I'd need a Pen F Digital on that basis; I can do the no-raw dance well enough with the kit I have. This makes me extremely happy. :)

It's always seemed Olympus's goal, however, to hand photographers a complete processing lab in their cameras that let them produce finished work easily. From the E-1 to the present, they've had some of the best in-camera JPEG engines around the industry, and they were one of the first to provide in-camera raw to JPEG conversions.

G
I'm in the process of testing my newly IR modified E-P5. I'm using the Art Mode and setting the camera to shoot monocrome with a digital red filter. The camera offers more digital color filters to tweak the JPGs' so that minimal PP'ing is needed. So far so good. It's my understanding that the new Pen F will offer IR mode in its' Art Mode. If this new digital IR filter is indeed a feature this new camera offers I might need to look at this a little closer.
Bobby :thumbup:
 

etrigan63

Active member
This camera is calling to me as an everyday carry camera. I am using my A7 II for real work now, but that is me justifying to myself. Once the raw processors get updated, I will take a look at the raw files dpreview was kind enough to post and see how they look in my workflow.
 

ptomsu

Workshop Member
This camera is calling to me as an everyday carry camera. I am using my A7 II for real work now, but that is me justifying to myself. Once the raw processors get updated, I will take a look at the raw files dpreview was kind enough to post and see how they look in my workflow.
I think I will do the same. Test the RAWs and see how I like them. I actually have hoped that LR6.4 would already support these RAW files, but unfortunately did not. Hope they bring it soon.

If LR would finally allow to apply the same filter settings to the RAWs in post process like it does for the Fuji, I would buy this camera in a heartbeat!
 

jonoslack

Active member
Seems that technical innovation has plateaued for mft and the number of knobs and art filters ought to make the difference. Nice, yes, this little Pen. But the same amount of money buys some serious gear these days.
Hmmm, but it seems to me that (with the exception of video) this is perfectly capable of being serious gear (just don't fiddle with the knob on the front if you don't want to!)

To me it looks like fun - and that shooting ORF+jpg fine will give you the best of both worlds. I can't see anything to dislike and am certainly dooomed!
 

ptomsu

Workshop Member
Hmmm, but it seems to me that (with the exception of video) this is perfectly capable of being serious gear (just don't fiddle with the knob on the front if you don't want to!)

To me it looks like fun - and that shooting ORF+jpg fine will give you the best of both worlds. I can't see anything to dislike and am certainly dooomed!
So you will get one soon :thumbs:
 

4season

Well-known member
I cooked up a rational-sounding explanation as to why I'd want a Pen F when I already have a Sony A7 outfit which serves me perfectly well, but who am I trying to kid? I want the Pen F because it looks cool :LOL: I'm sure it'll be a substantial improvement over my E-P1 which has been my only M43 camera body to date.
 

raist3d

Well-known member
Size comparisons... Disclaimer- it's always good to grab the camera in hand in real life, so I would use this as a guide.



- Ricardo
 
V

Vivek

Guest
It is also ~ twice as heavy as the GM5.

Apart from the size, the pen F is a lot of camera than the GM5 with its (refers to GM-5) severe limits in pretty much every department.
 
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