Photography News issue 17

Latest photography news

Thenext generation Olympus OM-DE-M5Mark II hits the streets – and this issue

NEWS INBRIEF CANON FIRMWARE UPGRADES With the new firmware upgrade for the Canon EOS 5D Mark III, you’ll get improved AF controllability as well as a string of fixes. There’s also a firmware upgrade for the EOS- 1D X that includes removing the vertical lines that appear when shooting long exposures. www.canon.co.uk TOOLS DxO has announced the latest update to its image processing software, OpticsPro v10.2 as well as new versions of FilmPack v5.1 and ViewPoint v2.5.2. Updates support Sony A7 II, Panasonic LX100, Pentax K-S1 and Samsung Galaxy S5, and are available to purchase now. Prices range from £59 to £159. www.dxo.com OPTIMISE YOUR

capable of spectacular 40-megapixel composite stills. The Mark II is much more movie friendly and offers more flexibility in

The wait is over as Olympus announces the release in late February of the new OM-D E-M5 Mark II, which builds on the award-winning credentials of its predecessor. Its biggest boast comes in the form of its world-leading image stabilisation technology, which compensates camera shake to the equivalent of a shutter speed five stops faster – excellent news for handheld moviemaking and low-light shooting. The Mark II is lightweight but still has a sturdy build that is fit for all-weather shooting, being dust and splash resistant as well as being able to withstand freezing temperatures. There’s been further tweaking with modified finger controls but as with the original E-M5, the Mark II features a vari-angle screen. On the inside, there’s a TruePic VII image processor – the same as in the top-of-the-range E-M1 – and a new 16-megapixel Live MOS sensor that’s

and it has a high-speed AF with the ability to focus in as close as just 50cm. The 14-150mm f/4-5.6 will also be available at the end of month for £549.99. Anewaction camhas also been released, the Tough TG-860. It features all the usual Tough stats, including being waterproof, shockproof and crushproof, plus it boasts an ultra-wide-angle lens – the widest you’ll come across in any compact camera. There’s more shutter release buttons so you can shoot videos and take pictures with either hand. A tilting LCD screen makes action selfies easy and the camera itself will be on sale in mid-March for £269.99.

terms of frame rates when shooting in full HD. Built-in Wi-Fi means you can remotely control the Mark II and share your images using the OI.Share app. The body only price is £899.99 and kits with an interchangeable lens will start at £1099.99. In other Olympus news, the firm has refined its M.Zuiko Digital ED 14-150mm f/4-5.6 telephoto lens, creating a second gen version that now also includes weatherproofing to keep it in stride with the likes of the new E-M5 Mark II. This all-rounder is lighter than you might expect, weighing in at just 285g and is also surprisingly compact. You’ll get edge-to-edge clarity

π To find out more, go to www.olympus-europa.com.

Fit your full-frame camera with Samyang’s new 135mm f/2 ED UMC telephoto lens, which is on the market at a suggested retail price of £419.99 for Nikon AE and £389.99 for Canon, Sony A, Pentax and Sony E fittings. It has 11 elements in seven groups and it uses Ultra Multi Coating to minimise ghosting and flare and to the same end there’s also a detachable lens hood, whilst spherical aberration and distortion are kept to a minimum thanks to the floating element design. Focus on Samyang

Basedaround the core functionalityof theNX1, Samsung’s newNX500combines industry-leading technology with a portable size and advanced creative features and functions. Low-light scenes are easily captured thanks to its 28-megapixel Back Side Illumination APS-C sensor. Powered by a DRIMeV processor, the NX500 promises to achieve superior colour reproduction, improved noise reduction and enhanced image quality. For videographers, you can record in either 4K or UHD and the built-in HEVC Codec compresses high-quality videos to half the size and bit rate for efficient storage without compromise on quality. It comes in three colours – black, white and brown – and will be released from March, price to be announced. Big power, small size

π To find out more, go to www.samsung.com.

Two lens announcements from Pentax this month, both telezooms. The HD Pentax-D FA 150-450mm f/4.5-5.6ED DC AW covers an equivalent range from 230mm to 690mm in APS-C format. This lens is dust and weatherproof, sealed in 21 places, and has three ED (extra-low dispersion) and a super-low dispersion glass elements to minimise spherical and chromatic aberrations. It’s equipped with a Quick-Shift Focus System, allowing you to instantly switch to manual focus after the subject is captured in focus by the AF system. The HD Pentax-D FA* 70-200mm f/2.8 ED DC AW produces the highest image quality of all Pentax interchangeable lenses. It Extending the range Top spec lenses and a full-frame DSLR announced by Pentax

maintains a maximum aperture of f/2.8 throughout the entire zoom range and also has a dust and weatherproof construction. It too benefits from a Quick-Shift Focus System. Prices and release dates are yet to be announced. Full-frame lenses means there’s a full-frame camera on the horizon. What we know is that it’ll be a K-mount DSLR with a 35mm full-frame image sensor and is also compatible with DA-series APS-C lenses. Launch is likely to be by the end of 2015.

π To find out more, go to www.syopt.com.

π To find out more, go to www.ricoh-imaging.co.uk.

Photography News | Issue 17