New photos have emerged showing the retro OM-styled EM-5 Micro Four Thirds camera that Olympus is planning to unleash on the photo world. It’s the first camera in a new OM-D line, and offers a beautiful old school SLR aesthetic. The image above, which looks like some kind of ad, reads,

A new digital SLR era is about to begin. Digital SLRs, which simply replaced film with an imaging device did not change significantly in terms of size, weight and user interface. The revolutionary, new mirrorless camera, the OM-D, has an exceptionally light and compact body. Its Electronic View Finder enables photographers to check the Art Filter effect, color temperature, and exposure levels in real-time. When shooting, you can instantly “create” a truly unique world and preserve it in exceptional quality. The “world” will be transformed from something you see to something you “take part” in.

The OM-D is a groundbreaking, new digital interchangeable lens camera perfect for people who want to “take part,” “create,” and “share.”

You can see a higher-res version of the ad here.
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Photographer Stephen Oachs over at Aperture Academy caused quite a stir yesterday after sharing some photographs he took of a Japanese photographer he spotted in Kenya. The photographer revealed that he was field testing a new Canon 200-400mm with a built-in teleconverter, but what caught Oachs attention was the camera body the man was using — a Canon DSLR that he didn’t recognize. He writes,

You can see it in the photos I took… I see the “Q” button located by the big wheel on the right, which on the 7D is currently located on the top left. The battery grip seems to have a joystick. I also noticed a “Rate” button…hrm, any ideas?

Is this the new 5D Mark III, or maybe the 7D Mark II? This info I was not able to determine.

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Wells Fargo Advisors is becoming a pretty reliable source for news regarding cameras before they’re actually announced. Just weeks after the Fujifilm X-Pro1 and Nikon D4 were announced early by the service, the soon-to-be-announced Olympus OM-D camera is now semi-official as well. The wire confirms that Olympus will be reviving its old OM brand for SLR cameras through a new line of mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras, and that the camera will sell for over ¥100000 (~$1300) in Japan. It also states that the new camera will resemble the Olympus OM-1 film SLR camera — originally launched in 1973 — and be equipped with high-speed autofocus (rumored to be the fastest of all mirrorless cameras) and image stabilization.

(via Wells Fargo Advisors via Photo Rumors)

Update: To clear up any confusion: Wells Fargo Advisors doesn’t write the news, but simply publishes press releases received from a third party. In this case, the press release wasn’t published before it was supposed to — it’s simply a Japanese news source confirming that it had also heard about the new camera and upcoming announcement.

We’re about three weeks away from the rumored February 8th unveiling of the Olympus OM-D — a new Micro Four Thirds camera designed in the style of old school Olympus OM SLRs. The mockup above shows what the camera might look like based on the latest spec rumors. The 16MP camera will reportedly offer ISO 200-25600, a grip and a leather-covered surface, built-in flash, in-body image stabilization, a 610000-dot swiveling LCD screen, and speedy autofocus

(via blog.livedoor.jp via 43 Rumors)

Some spec rumors for the Olympus OM-D camera that we wrote about yesterday are starting to emerge. The retro-styled, weather-sealed magnesium body will reportedly resemble classic OM series film SLR cameras, and will be available in both black and silver. Rather than have a pentaprism like an actual SLR, the 16MP camera will feature a 1.44M dot electronic viewfinder. It’ll be 121mm wide, and will weigh 425g. The release date is rumored to be sometime in late March 2012.

(via Digicame-info via Photo Rumors)

Update: The rumored announcement date is February 8th — less than a month away!

Image credit: Olympus OM-2n & Zuiko 2.8/24 – one of the greatest cameras ever made! by mr. Wood

There might be a giant corporate scandal hovering over its head, but that’s not stopping Olympus from planning big things for its digital camera lineup. The company has placed a giant full page advertisement in Amateur Photographer magazine with the headline “OH MY GOODNESS!”. 43 Rumors is reporting that the company will be announcing a new Micro Four Thirds camera around February 8th that’s part of the 40-year-old OM camera lineup — in other words, a digital mirrorless camera that’s beautifully retro-styled. A trademark application filed on January 3rd indicates that camera will be called the Olympus OM-D (D as in digital). Watch out Fujifilm: Olympus is coming for you!

(via 43 Rumors)

Image credit: Olympus OM-1n by Attila con la cámara

Fujifilm’s beautiful X-Pro1 mirrorless camera isn’t official yet, but we now have a clearer picture of what the system will look like after a few product pages for X-series lenses were accidentally published on Amazon (they’ve since been removed). In addition to new images of the camera itself, prices for the lenses were revealed: $500 for the 35mm f/1.4 and 18mm f/2.0, and $600 for the 60mm f/2.4. Also, get this: the camera will be able to simulate 10 different kinds of film (e.g. Provia, Velvia, Astia, B&W)!
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This is the latest leaked photo of Fujifilm’s upcoming interchangeable lens camera, reportedly called either the X1 or LX10. The camera will probably be closer in size to the X100, though it will have an all black look that resembles the X10. There also appears to be some kind of handgrip on the camera, something that seemed likely after handgrip mounts were spotted in earlier leaked photos. We’ll probably see an official announcement sometime in the next month or two.

(via omuser via Photo Rumors)

If you’re curious as to which prime lenses Canon has marked for refreshing, recently filed patents may hold the answer. The lineup consists of a 50mm f/1.4, 85mm f/1.2, 85mm f/1.8, 100mm f/2.0, 135mm f/2.0, and 200mm f/2.0. There are also rumors that a 35mm f/1.4 Mark II is already floating around in the wild, which suggests that it will be officially announced in the near future.

(via Egami via Photo Rumors via Canon Rumors)

Image credit: Canon L series Primes – 35mm F/1.4 by Benjamin Ellis

Nikon has more than just a 36-megapixel D800 up its sleeve. The company is also planning to launch a Nikon D4 DSLR to rival the Canon 1DX, and specs of the camera were leaked this past weekend by Nikon Rumors. The camera will reportedly offer 16.2MP, 11fps, ISO 102400 (expandable to 204800), support for the new XQD memory card format in addition to CF, integrated ethernet, 51 AF points, face detection/recognition, and improved video capabilities (e.g. uncompressed video output and buttons for smooth aperture control during recording). The camera may be officially announced early next year alongside the D800.

(via Nikon Rumors)