Another Three Arrows In Your Mirror-less Quiver

The advent of the Olympus and Panasonic mirror-less cameras - the micro 4/3 system - has seen some amazing lens performance from the two manufacturers. Each have unique focal length and aperture combinations as well as shared equipment. There are special features abounding , yet there is one thing in common between them - a common mount and operation.

Now there is a third alternative - another exclusively Japanese manufacturer has taken options on the mount design and operations - Sigma is in the game.

And in a good way. Sigma is making three micro 4/3 lenses in prime form that are proving to be superb in terms of resolution and colour performance. The new " Art " design for the barrels is very smooth and sleek and they all have the feel of quality in the focussing.

We've tested them here on our cameras and our Olympus expert, Gavin, has had a chance to go head-to-head with equivalent Olympus lenses. Even he is impressed.

I am hoping that they also take up options for Fuji X mount and fill in with these focal lengths. I use a Sigma currently on an APS-C DSLR and am more than happy with the performance.

Houston -The Dot Has Landed - And Taken Off Again

Well the Leica T is pretty much here - we had a product launch last night with Daniel from Leica showing the camera, lenses, and accessories.

If you want to see it today...you can't. He took it away again. HOWEVER...he and Saul promised that the whole shooting match will be back here in the shop on the 28th of May, in stock, supplies for sale - you bring money, you get camera.

The whole shooting match includes a range of accessories - two lenses are to be made with the T mount right now and more are coming. There is an adapter to let you use Leica M mount lenses on the camera. There are four fitted plastic cases and a leather model. There will be system cases. There is an electronic viewfinder with GPS in it. There will be a new flash. There is the best camera neck strap in the universe available for it and some pretty snazzy coloured wrist straps. The batteries are to be colour-coded for the camera colour - because they feature a metal plate at the end that forms part of the external surface of the camera.

The device itself is elegantly designed and uniquely manufactured. Only two buttons  -shutter and video start/stop. The rest of the commands go through the very large touch screen.

You are not overwhelmed when you turn the screen on - you pick the criteria that you wish to deal with and cache them in your own interface screen. If you are a steady customer you just need a few controls. If you are the type who jitters around a lot you can have a lot of things to fiddle with. Your choice.

As with many modern devices, it Wi's and Fi's and you can control it from your electronic ear warmer, pocket warmer, or lap warmer. If you wish to put it on the end of a pole and wave it over the wall you can fire it from the ground. Do not laugh - someone will.

The strap that we alluded to earlier is the best in the place because it plugs into the camera body with a minimum of fuss - you get to keep your fingernails - and it is a tough, smooth neoprene rubber. Entirely in keeping with the style of the camera.

The " Leica Enthusiast " who worries whether the company has done a good thing can rest assured. They have. It's an elegant but not as expensive option to the big 'ol M camera. It will develop its own line of lenses and followers. The geeks on forums who cannot afford to buy it will bat the idea of it about like they always do, but the people who can afford to buy it will have a wonderful instrument that takes wonderful pictures.

Red Dot Special

Well, we seen it.

Turns out to be a new Leica camera. Carved out of a solid block of aluminium and polished by hand.

Lens on front, screen on back, no buttons apart from the shutter one - all screen touching for operation. New lens mount - adapters will be made for older Leica lenses.

Most stylish camera on the block today.

Will be on sale after the 28th of May.

Launch Day

Today is a momentous day for the Western World. Or at least the portion of the Western World that hovers around 230 Stirling Street...and for that matter those members of the Eastern World who do the same...

Today is Launch Day for a new Leica product. I'm not allowed to show it here on the blog, but that is okay because I have not seen it myself. I can say it is smaller than the Graf Zeppelin and more expensive than a Kinder Surprise egg. It may, or may not take digital pictures and it may, or may not be carved out of a solid block of metal. Actually that also applies to the Kinder Surprise too...

After work we are going to have ...more work...as we roll out the new item and celebrate it. There will, presumably, be drinks and snacks. If not, there will, assuredly, be murder.

Watch for us in the papers.

A Looming Problem - The Wide Angle Lens

Those of you who have shot 21mm Super Angulon lenses on Leica film cameras may skip this post. Also anyone who has ever owned an 18mm Hologon. You know the drill already.

I discovered the effects of superwide angle shooting at the Burswood Hot Rod Show in 2012. I took the 8-16 Sigma lens into the Burswood Dome on my Nikon D300 and shot away. The images in the viewfinder had straight edges - the 8-16 does not do fisheye distortion. They looked amazing - despite the fact that the lighting was appalling.

A recent review of those pictures horrified me. Every car shot from the front or rear quarter looms out of the picture like a cartoon monster. It is reminiscent of the worst of the old Linhof Chamber Of Horror articles. I got the cars on the sensor in the crowded conditions, but the images are neither attractive nor accurate.

I tried again with the 23mm lens on the Fujifilm X-100 at the Big Al Show this year and was pleased with the results - as the lens replicates what the 35mm lens saw on a film camera, there was much less distortion. Mind you, it was necessary to back off further on the open ground to get the entire car in the frame, and this might have been difficult in a closed venue.

The compromise between the two seems to be a focal length of 18-19 mm on an APSC sensor. It approximates 28mm on a film camera. I can achieve it on the Fujifilm X-E2 with the 18mm f:2 lens or by screwing the WCL-100 to the front of the X-100. There is more to see, but it does not loom out of the picture - a good balance.

And I can agree with Fujifilm - the WCL-100 does not degrade the image of the X-100 lens in any way.

Note: the Bugatti is a deliberate artwork in the Art gallery of NSW. Marvellous, but not driveable, except in your dreams.

Like Peas In A Pod - With Fuji

Are all mirror-less cameras the same? Are the systems really identical - like peas in a pod? Can you buy one camera and use other lenses? Should you get a body here and the accessories there? How many forums should you read at any one time before your brain explodes?

To give you a quick series of answers; no, no, yes, no, none.

There are at least 6 mirror-less systems that I can think of and only two of them share similar lens mounts. With a bit of a fiddle and two trombones you can adapt some of the other maker's lenses to some of the other maker's bodies but you always drop some of the maker's automatic features...and you frequently pick up optical distortions that make the whole thing an exercise in futility.

While I love to hook up unlikely combinations of optics and sensors - after all I work in a camera shop - I have come to the conclusion that in general you really should stick to the lenses on offer from the particular manufacturer of bodies you have chosen. The exception to this rule would be if  Zeiss offers a lens for your chosen lens mount. These are likely to be very good lenses indeed and you will be asked to trade many potatoes for them.

All the above leads to the subject of this post: the new Fujinon 10-20 lens for their X-mount cameras. Fujifilm are forging ahead with the APS-C sensor cameras - the new X-T1 being hot at present - and they needed to supply a wide angle zoom for the landscapers and interior shooters. The 10-24 will give the same angle of view as a 15-36 would on a full-frame camera, but with a fast autofocus or focus peaking on suitable bodies.

Note: The focus peaking really does work well for manual focus in a studio situation - it makes it easy to see in dim conditions when you are dead on for focus. It also costs a few potatoes but is well worth it.

A Thursday Night Party - And Friday Morning After

I was not here. Dang. I wish I could have been here. But then I was there
where I wanted to be anyway...

Last Thursday evening saw a promotional night here at Camera Electronic for the Fujifilm X-T1 camera. This is the new flagship camera for Fujifilm that uses the X-series sensor and combines it with a top-quality professional system body.

As is the wont round here, there was food, drink, new cameras, and a guest speaker - Megan Lewis. I note that she has a wonderful eye for people capture as she has left one of her hard-bound books here; "Conversations With the Mob". She photographs widely in the indigenous community.

The Fujifilm night also featured bargains on cameras and lenses - Saul has saved me a flyer of the offers that were available on the night - and I have had a chance to compare it to the Fujifilm price I saw at a camera store in the Ginza last Friday morning. The heading image is the window shot I took, though I suspect that this was considered bad manners in Japan - certainly another store along the street had some nasty little signs scolding English-readers for attempting to record the prices.

This seemed a little harsh to me - people here ask prices all the time and then dive into their mobile phones to try to find a cheaper price to wave in our faces. We accept it philosophically. At least they are waving the phones at us instead of breaking off the conversation every three minutes to discuss the noodles in the food hall...

But back to the prices in Japan. Once I got back and looked at our specials and did the Yen conversion I realised that we were just as good value as Japan. And if you bought from us you got Fujifilm Australia backing up a legal warranty. I suspect this might very well be the case with other manufacturer's goods as well. The money and safety moral here is to shop locally.

I might also say that the camera stores and departments in Japan are fun and noisy, and in some cases as crowded as our floor, but sometimes they do not have any more stock than we do, and some of their stock looks decidedly...decidedly...well, let me just say that I know where the world breeding stock for really, really BAD camera straps is, and it takes a strong man to look on it without blenching. I had to sit down and ask for a glass of water.

Baka Gain

I am home again, and not permanently damaged. There was a point on the flight via Japan Airlines when I wondered if I would be able to unfold myself and walk again but the crisis passed. The trip taught me a great deal:

1. I shall be tolerant of those who do not speak my language. They were of me, and we managed well.

2. Bad language, entitlement, impatience, and greed have no place on either side of the sales counter.

3. Karaoke is the name of a volcano that exploded in the 1880's...

4. There are only 6 Suzuki Swift motor cars in Japan. All the rest are in Australia.

5. Camera store prices in Japan are no cheaper than they are here.

6. You can screen print Hello Kitty on anything.

7. No fish-flavoured drink is ever good. Cocktail or smoothie, it is just wrong...

8. When in doubt, smile. When in trouble, run.

9. Piety does not equal holiness does not equal morality.

10. Beer vending machines in the street do not make for drunken public orgies. The potential for bad behaviour is in the purchaser, not the vendor.

11. Japanese dogs do not bark. They are too polite for that. They raise their eyebrows at you...

12. It is not necessary to duck under hotel door lintels in Japan, but ship's deckheads and hatch coamings are another matter.

13. Follow the tour guide with the flag, lantern, or fish. Follow your own tour guide.

X-E2 - Picking The First Fruit

It has recently fallen to my lot to possess a Fuji mirror-less camera. It is not the first camera of this brand for me - I also use a Fuji X-10 and a Fuji X-100 - but it is the first one that has an interchangeable lens.

It features the new X-trans sensor, and the literature promises great things in terms of resolution and freedom from distortions. I ventured out yesterday to test the camera and to compare it to the others.

At the start, I have to say that the images were taken on jpeg rather than a RAW setting. My current operating system does not support an update of the Photoshop Elements to decode this new RAW. Nor does my Aperture program - but I am not too worried, since I know that the jpegs that come from the Fuji X series are nearly perfect...as long as i do my job and get the exposure right.

Of course if the scenes I take are evenly and brightly lit I can just trust to the matrix metering in the camera to deliver the right settings. Putting the shutter speed and the aperture ring on "A" and just letting them get on with it is totally successful. But I'm a awkward soul - I deal with subjects that are brightly coloured, reflective, and parked in appalling light. Cars are fun, but the lighting isn't.

To defeat this problem, I use a rig made of a Nikon Sb 700 flash, a flash bracket, and whatever camera system i have at the time. Sometimes it has been big film cameras, sometimes big DSLR cameras, and sometimes a small Fuji. The flash on the fuji bodies can be switched to command an external flash and I just dial up the power I want on the SB 700. I also run an outboard SB 700 on a small Manfrotto stand.

Yesterday's cars were veteran and vintage - a majority of which have solid colour paint schemes. This is good - metallic paints can be a pain to photograph as they send back troublesome hot spots from flash. I set the X-E2 to the bog standard settings and blazed away. You cannot say to start with what custom settings might be necessary for each new camera in each category of subject, so it is better to start from a central point.

In the event, I think I will dial down the saturation for car shows in the future - the dull-coloured cars are helped, but if the owner has decided to paint his Maxwell red the result can be a little Mexican...This will also apply to belly dance and Bollywood shows as the dress designers generally turn their colour control to "9" and throw the knob away to begin with.

I noted that there was little need to invoke unsharp masking for the images from the X-E2 in Photoshop. the jpegs seemed as sharp as needed straight up. Indeed there was very little PShopping done to the whole shoot - as long as I dialled the SB 700 anywhere near the correct fill ratio the results were ready to crop and save.

I will experiment next with the X-E2 at a belly dance hafla in April. You get to see the results so make sure you are over 18!

NOW It's Hands On. Fuji X-T1

Came in early. Made sure the battery of the Fuji X-T1 was charged. Put on the 18-55 lens and popped around the place shooting. Some of the results are here on this post, though the nature of a blog picture can never show the entire quality of the file - it is too small.

Right now, I can't see what the RAW work would be like - this computer has too old a copy of PE to do it and Aperture doesn't support the X-T1 RAW file yet. This will be added, no doubt, in the next few months. Until then I would have to use one of the jpeg file settings.

This is not a limitation with Fuji. I discovered a long time ago with my Fuji X-10 that the jpeg files were so good that I didn't even bother to update to RAW work for two years. I could go to the car shows and shoot happily and just show or print the jpegs as is.

Of course, since I decided to get fancy and add to my fill-flash setup ( see previous posts ) I had glorious opportunities to stuff up the exposures....and seized those opportunities...so starting to use the RAW has proved to be a benefit. I can recover my sins gracefully in a darkened computer room with the door shut.

For the time being, I would shoot the X-T1 in studio in jpeg readily - I can see the results straight away and modify them with studio lighting. I would also feel perfectly confident in using it as a field camera dependant upon the camera's meter - it does a far better job of exposure than I do, as long as I do not try to help it out.

And Adobe and Apple will beaver away in the electronic background and one day announce that you can use their products with Fuji X-T1 in RAW.

Note, I suspect that you can use the Fuji RAW conversion in the camera right now on a picture by picture basis.

Please also note one ergonomic/design note. Like some Canon lenses for Canon cameras, Fuji X lenses for Fuji X cameras have a metal lens mount and the electronic contacts that are recessed slightly into the mount. Fuji have the advantage over Canon that there is only one type of mount - you don't get confused with red-dot or white-square when you try to mount a lens. Fuji have the advantage over my large Nikon in that the Nikon mount is filled with sharp edges and protruding levers and can be a bit crunchy when going on and off.

If I could offer one request to the Fujifilm company in their lens design, it would be to follow the lead of manufacturers who place a raised dot or other external indicator at the point where their lens mount engages the body. Just to be able to feel the orientation as you bring the lens to the camera. I suppose you could always sew a button to the lens with a strong bit of twine...I must try this with the shop lenses.

I'll let you know how I get on...

Very Nearly Hands On With the New Fuji X-T1 camera

Okay, we HAVE got our hands on the Fuji X-T1. As I type the staff are fighting tooth and nail to get a play with the new camera. I got two quick shots before it was whisked away, but at least I got to see some good bits.

One, the hand grip is perfect for the balance of the camera.

Two, the viewfinder is brilliant. Big.

Three, the classic front and back control wheels are exactly where your fingers need to find them for the operation of aperture or shutter speed.

Four, it looks as though the TTL control contacts in the hot shoe have been changed from those on previous Fuji cameras. There are four silver contacts plus a gold one as well as the central contact. This argues a new set of flashes coming. Hip. Hip. Hooray. Should this be the case, this camera will be the central pivot of a new professional system. I wait with bated breath.

Five, the inclusion of the tilting screen is welcome. Forget peering down through the gloom in the studio when you can pull the screen out and use it as a waist-level viewfinder.

Six, the focus assist button that boosts the center of the screen to allow you to focus is as precise as you could ask for. Beats the old microprism screen all hollow.

In short, an extremely desirable object. Watch out for our launch night when we get this baby in action!

The Window Of Opportunity Is Open - Take A Shot At It Now!

Well, if you are quick you get two of the best deals I have seen in this shop in a long time.

This is a chance for someone who wants two-lens kits for enthusiastic photography. I mean the sort of shooting that takes in family, landscape, travel, sports, and riots.

The cameras are the Fuji X-M1 and the Fuji X-A1. The lenses are Fujinon aspherical zooms. with each two-lens kit you get:

1.  The XC 16-50 mm f:3.5-5.6 OIS lens
2.  The XC 50-230 mm f:4.5-6.7 OIS lens

The OIS means internal image stabilisation in the lenses. Steadier shots at longer focal lengths.

The X-M1 has an X-trans sensor and the X-A1 has a Bayer-array sensor. They both have tiltable rear LCD and integral flash as well as all the Fuji specialist programs. The build quality is superb and the ergonomics are perfect for most hands.

Best of all is the price:

For the month of February the X-M1 kit is $ 998 and the X-A1 kit is $ 686. All up, all going, all good.

Be warned - there are only so many of the lens kits available. Hop in for your chop and get the best bargain in the place. Now.

The Low Priced Spread - Surprisingly Nutritious

Every so often something pops up here in the shop that surprises me. That's why we keep a big can of Mortein handy...boom boom...

No, really - we get products that do not attract the attention they deserve. One of which is this unassuming little travel tripod from Weifeng  - the WF 6615. The numbering tells me that it s probably made by the same people who make Fancier and we have had some good tripods from them in the past.

The older ones were extremely good value for money, but heavy. This latest offering goes the other way - it is a travel tripod that tries to give the most stability for smallest size and weight. I think it succeeds admirably.

Cynics and smart-alecs will look at a lot of products and mumble the names of their competitors and try to suggest that they are a knock-off. Perhaps, but when you consider the price, they are not rip-offs. This little tripod walks out of the door ( on three legs...) for a measly $ 149.

The quick release plate on the top is Arca-size so you can interchange it onto a lot of other gear . Gone, I fervently pray, are the days of Optex and Vanguard and Uncle Fred's Tripod and Bait Shoppe brand tripods that had their own mutually incompatible plates. We regularly see sad hopefuls trolling the streets for old unmatchable plates and it means trouble. Weifeng at least decided to copy the one of the main players.

There is a securing post on the underside of the quick release holder as well as a green bubble level that are a touch that might well be copied by other manufacturers - they are actually useful. The whole thing even comes in a bag for that price.

Jason says Weifeng is a first name, so maybe that's who makes them...Uncle Weifeng.

Show Us Your Big Thing, Honey

What!

How Dare You! I'm not that sort of a blog!

Well, actually you are - because I was talking about the largest of the Fuji mirror-less cameras - the Fuji X-Pro 1. The people at Camera Electronic have a special going on them right now - you can get a body for $ 998 or a body and lens kit at $ 1498. It is likely to be the best Fuji bargain you will get for a long time.

And it is the sort of bargain that develops into a real love affair. I'll make no apologies - I'm the Fuji fan here in the place - I own two of their cameras and am sorely tempted to make it three...this camera is the foundation of the interchangeable X-mount lens series and from the looks of the "lens roadmap" that they issue, the next few years are going to see a truly professional range of glass.

Please forgive me for using the term "professional" as if it made the lenses better. "Professional" means that somebody professes something, and ALL the manufacturers do that. It is called advertising...Take professional as meaning that a working photographer could use the Fuji X lenses to do reportage, weddings, portraits, or sports and get paid, yelled, or shot at as the occasion demanded. And with good contrast and resolution.

The X-Pro1 is has a viewfinder with optic and electronic presentation and is well adapted to all their X-mount lenses. There is also an adapter to allow Leica M-mount users to put their lenses on the camera. Gotta lotta Leica lenses? Wanta top quality body to start shooting digital? Fuji X-Pro1 for under a grand!

See. It IS that sort of a blog. Sexy.

That Damn Wall Is Back

Last year you will remember that we constructed the Great Wall of Olympus on the shelves behind our sales counter. We had a solid barrier of Olympus micro 4/3 cameras in boxes on sale.

 For months we could not get to the items on the shelf  - in fact we think one of the smaller staff members got trapped behind ir. There were noises and cries for help. They got fainter as the days wore on and eventually stopped. It was along about that time the smell started...

 But that was last year, and we have moved on. New shop fit and all. But...the damn wall is back.

This time it is Fuji X-series cameras and Panasonic Lumix cameras. As you can see from the photographs we have X-E1, X-M1, and X-A1 cameras piled in one section - and X-20 cameras piled in another. The Panasonic section is stuffed full to the top with Lumix G7 cameras. They are all looming over us and if they fall no-one is safe...

You can help prevent a terrible tragedy. Come in and buy a camera or two and take them away on holiday. Have a good time and take wonderful pictures. And let us get through to the filter shelf without having to use an assault ladder or a HIAB.

Fuji X-E1 with 18-55 lens....................................$ 988

Fuji X-M1 with 16-50 lens..................................$ 998

Fuji X-A1 with 16-50 lens....................................$ 711

Fuji X-20 with 7.1-28 lens...................................$ 668

Panasonic Lumix GX7.......................................$ 998

Please note we also have camera bags that replicate themselves in dark corners. Buy one and help cull the breeding stock.

Authentic Photography

A few years ago I decided to be an Authentic Photographer. So I went out and bought things to make myself look like I was living in the 1950's. It was an easy choice - I still had a number of inherited articles of clothing from the time in my wardrobe and they were not worn-out yet so all I needed to add was the camera and film and darkroom equipment and film and chemistry of the period.

I chose a Crown Graphic camera and a Graphic View with lenses and shutters from the same company - I think the glass was by Wollensack. I chose Ilford HP5 and Kodak Portra 160 sheet film. I used Rodinal developer and Fuji's version of C-41 chemicals. the paper was Ilford Multigrade IV. I ate pastrami sandwiches and drank cups of tea.

I include the last reference because I haven't have a big breakfast and I'm hungry. It is equally authentic and equally false. The photography of the 1950's had nothing to do with me - any more than it had to do with C-41 chemistry from Fuji or Multigrade IV. I never encountered pastrami in the 1950's - we called it corned beef - and I didn't drink tea. The whole attempt at being authentic was actually playing at being someone else.

So I sat and thought what would be " authentic ". I could go out and capture the universe on a Kodak Starflash camera if I care to - you can find them at junk sales and on eBay. I could wind the clock forward to 1966 and get myself an Asahi Pentax SV and some Plus X and  Kodachrome II. Or not, as the Kodak case may be...

Would my pictures look better? Would I be able to go to the hot rod show and bring back certain results? Would I spend 5 x the amount of money and time getting 1/5 of the results? I think I know the answer to that question...

This train of thought was occasioned by seeing a van on the road this morning with the sign " Authentic Bathroom Renovations ". It caused me to ask myself what an inauthentic bathroom renovation would look like...probably a lot like me with a Crown Graphic camera.

Fuji Introduce An Air Force And A Navy Version Of Their Camera

Well that was a flat-out lie, but you must admit from the look of the things that one looks as though it is land-based and one looks as though it flies off a carrier. The truth is a little more complex.

The silver camera is the Fuji X-M1 fitted with their 16-50 mm f:3.5-5.6 OIS lens - a beautiful all-round piece of glass. The lens delivers the same angles of view that we would expect from a 24-75 lens on a full-frame camera. It is very well built.

The X-M1 is based around the new Fuji X-Trans sensor with a slightly different arrangement of the colour sensors on its surface from the standard Bayer-array that other manufacturers fit. Users can see an increase in colour fidelity and low-noise sensitivity even in jpeg images.

Here I must put a personal note in - I use a Fuji X 10 camera and have never even bothered to shoot RAW with it - though it does do RAW - as the jpegs were so good right from the start. Anyone who gets any of the Fuji cameras would be well advised to test out the jpeg for themselves before switching to RAW. You might find it does all you need without using up extra memory.

Any road, the Fuji X-M1 with that lens is about the $ 1049 mark, give or take an argument
or two.

The blue Navy version is actually the Fuji X-A1. Same body, I think, and same lens, certainly - but the sensor in this one is the more conventional Bayer-array. I'll have to refer you to DP Review to see the complexities of that but it may be that your photo needs would be well met by this level of light handling.

If so, pocket the difference in price - the Fuji X-A1 is about $ 849 - or spend it on a second lens for the camera. I'd pick the 14mm myself, but then I'm a studio and closeup shooter and I'm biased.

Not biased about the Navy or the Air Force, though. Both fine services.

Batter Up - Increasing Your Hits

Those of you who have been following my other blog - Here All Week at  hrhoa.wordpress.com will have read of my efforts to lighten the load when I go out and shoot motor car shows. I mentioned it here as well, when I ran afoul of Western Australia's harsh mid-day sunshine.

Well, a little thinking and a determination to keep my pocket money for beer, books, and toy cars has paid off. I rustled through the Hazel Leaf Studio cassette de junque and found a metal Metz 45 flash bar, a Stroboframe 300-405 locking accessory shoe, and a Nikon SB 700 flash. The Nikon goes on remote SU-4 and manual setting, and the Fuji X10 on the Metz bar fires it off - even in the strongest direct sunlight. Powerful fill flash results, and as the Fuji synchs at all speeds. you can leave it on M and play all up and  down the keyboard.

Children - TTL flash is wonderful for weddings, kids in the park, and infantry assaults when you really have no time to think out your settings. But you never learn to light with TTL. Go manual and shoot and look and think and shoot again.

So is it lighter than an equivalent DSLR rig? Yes, by a factor of several tonnes. Does it do the job? For web publication, brilliantly well. It is the answer for the Automotive Jimmy Olsen who wants to fly but doesn't want to have to do it in the bomb bay of a B-36.

Note to photos: the local team lost woefully at the baseball last night but the Fuji was a winner. Also, note the sticker on the back of the '60 Lincoln. I didn't know whether to be delighted or appalled...

Oh My, Eeeeeee! - The OM-D E-M1

I always wanted to own an M-1. I was never able to locate a Leica camera of this name and every time I asked for an M-1 Garand I got funny looks at the police station. It has been most frustrating.

My prayers are answered - the Olympus company have introduced their flagship micro 4/3 camera body with this model number. I can now take perfect pot shots legally...

Gavin, our Olympus expert, has been testing the new body - as have a number of our customers who pre-ordered this new camera. His verdict is a resounding Yes. When I asked why...

The number of configurable controls that have been put on the outside - apart from the pro-quality front and back thumbwheels  - that allow the user to program the thing to their particular workflow. Note on the images the two front panel buttons, the two Fn buttons, and the video button that is assignable as well. There is a two-way switch just near the eyepiece that switches you into two menu streams, and even on the left hand end - where the film rewinder used to live - there are two rapid access buttons.

I noted that the on-off switch has returned to the traditional Olympus location at this LHS. Gavin was noncommittal about this but I like it - less chance of knocking the thing and turning the camera on just before you put it away...

Another great ergonomic decision also lives in the center of the mode dial - there is a lockable button that will allow you to set the mode and then not knock it out of alignment with your thumb. You can free it and spin it as much as you want but if you want it locked it will stay put.

The section of the camera that gets artistic...the art filters and the retouching...seems amazing. he showed me the watercolour mode and it is charming - pastel and freely flowing. There is also a section that builds up multiple exposures side by side for a story-telling effect. I thought that the "instant-film-like" section that puts an image into a heavy paper frame and then writes a date under it was good for social photos.

The good part about this report is the bit where I tell you that we got 'em in stock now. Like, you bring us money and you take one home. Today.

Elementary, My Dear Watson - With Fuji

Ah, Watson, you're here. I hope your in-laws enjoyed their visit.

What? You are astounded that I know of it? But you told me the whole story as you walked up the street. The slightly bent posture and the way you held your hand told me that you had recently handled a heavy object on one side of your body - a valise. The fact that you have a spot of Vicker's steam-oil on your right boot speaks of a visit to a railway station - specifically Paddington as the only railway company in the Great Britain that uses Vickers is the Great Western Railway. Your posture and fatigue exactly coincides with the departure of the 5:12 for Taunton - where your Bother-in-Law and Sister-in-law live. And the look of relief on your face is indescribable...It is so simple when we observe and deduce.

Now, while Mrs. Hudson busies herself with the tea things, have a look at these two cameras from the Japanese firm of Fujifilm and see what you can tell me.

Precisely. They are designed to steal the plans of the Hamilton-Fyshe lighter-than-air mortar emplacement. We must speed to Portsmouth and alert the authorities once the crumpets are done.

What first alerted you? For me it was the weight. The same as the ordinary cameras. And then it was the controls. Just the same as the ordinary cameras. And the settings...just the same as...

But look closely - the entire body in each case is a casting made of plastic. The lenses have plastic fronts and plastic plates on the back. Even the screws holding them together are engravings...Models - wonderfully detailed 1:1 models.

Obviously the nefarious agent of destruction - Professor Justin - will be placing these in the hands of minions who will decoy the sentries away from the Hamilton-Fyshe emplacement while the real Fuji X-E1 cameras are used to record the details. We can only hint at which Foreign Power will be paying for this espionage but I think that we can safely say that Professor Justin never does anything foolishly. A dangerous adversary.

So, grasp your teacup and your Adams revolver - we must away to save the Empire!