photo:olympus_evolution
evolution of technologies used in Olympus camera gear
see also:
35mm film technologies
| year introduced | technology | comments |
|---|---|---|
| 1959 | PEN half-frame 35mm film rangefinder cameras | a more affordable and more compact “Leica rangefinder system” and the 1st half-frame camera made in Japan; designed by Yoshihisa Maitani |
| 1963 | 1st to use rotary shutters | PEN F series of half frame cameras |
| 1972 | 1st compact 35mm film SLR system | the OM-1 and OM system revolutionised the SLR world |
| 1972 | 1st macro lens for a 35mm camera that incorporated floating elements | OM 50mm f/3.5 macro |
| 1972 | 1st macro lens for 35mm designed for 1:1 reproduction | OM 80mm f/4 1:1 macro |
| 1975 | 1st off-the-film (OTF) TTL flash metered camera | OM-2 |
| 1984 | 8 point spot metering with highlight/shadow metering | OM-2Spot, OM-3, OM-4 |
| 1985 | 1st 50mm macro with f/2 aperture | OM 50mm f/2.0 macro |
| 1986 | 1st macro with f/2 aperture in the 90-105mm range | OM 90mm f/2.0 macro |
| 1987 | 1st super-FP high speed flash sync (to 1/2000th sec) | OM-4Ti |
| 1995 | fully manual SLR capable of OTF TTL auto flash | OM-3Ti |
| 2003 | Olympus decides to stop making film cameras | end of the OM range |
digital technologies
| year introduced | technology | comments |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Olympus' 1st digital cameras in production | 0.8mp Olympus D-300L, 0.3mp D-200L |
| 1999 | 2.5mp digital cameras | 2.5mp Olympus C-2500L |
| 2000 | 15fps 1.3mp digital camera with shutter to 1/10,000th sec | 1.3mp Olympus E-100RS |
| 2001 | 1st 4mp camera available | 4mp Olympus E-10 |
| 2002 | 5mp camera support for 1Gb microdrives, automatic dark frame noise reduction, progressive scan mode, pixel mapping, flip out LCD | 5mp Olympus E-20 |
| 2002 | 5mp, wide aperture, f/1.8-2.6 3x zoom len prosumer | the very popular 5mp Olympus C5050 |
| 2003 | Olympus, Panasonic and Leica start production of Olympus Four Thirds dSLR system dSLRs and the 1st sensor dust removal system (SSWF) | 5mp Olympus E-1 dSLR with Kodak sensor |
| 2003 | new version of digital TTL flash | Olympus FL-50 flash and macro flashes |
| 2003 | one of the sharpest lenses ever made | Olympus ZD 50mm f/2.0 macro lens |
| 2003 | 600mm field of view lens with f/2.8 aperture | Olympus ZD 300mm f/2.8 super telephoto lens |
| 2004 | the best of the 8mp prosumer cameras of 2004; added EVF, larger 4x crop sensor and 28-140mm f/2.4-3.5 lens | the very popular 8mp Olympus C8080WZ camera |
| 2004 | 1st Olympus consumer level dSLR | 8mp OlympusE300 |
| 2005 | lightest and smallest dSLR | 8mp OlympusE500 |
| 2005 | 1st 180-500mm field of view zoom lens with f/2.8 aperture | Olympus ZD 90-250mm f/2.8 super telephoto lens |
| 2005 | 1st 300mm field of view lens with f/2.0 aperture | Olympus ZD 150mm f/2.0 super telephoto lens |
| 2005 | 1st constant f/2.0 zoom lens | Olympus ZD 35-100mm f/2.0 lens |
| 2006 | 1st fulltime Live View or optical dSLR with fast AF, and 1st with a tiltable screen | 8mp Olympus E330 dSLR - unique Live View sensor placed in porrofinder housing so no need to lock mirror |
| 2007 | 1st dSLR with sensor-based image stabiliser and live view mode | 10mp Olympus E-510 dSLR |
| 2007 | smallest and lightest dSLR | 10mp Olympus E-410 |
| 2007 | 1st weatherproofed dSLR with swivel and rotate LCD screen | 10mp Olympus E-3 dSLR with 11 cross-point AF sensors optimised for SWD AF |
| 2007 | new SWD AF technology in lenses | eg. Olympus ZD 50-200mm f/2.8-3.5 lens, Olympus ZD 12-60mm f/2.8-4.0 SWD zoom lens |
| 2008 | 1st constant f/2.0 zoom lens with SWD | Olympus ZD 14-35mm f/2.0 SWD lens |
| 2008 | remote TTL flash - 1st for Olympus | Olympus E-420, E-520, FL-36R, FL-50R flashes |
| 2008 | prosumer dSLR adds CDAF in Live View, Art Filters, digital level gauge, vertical panning mode for IS, and multi-exposure modes | 12mp OlympusE30 |
| 2008 | CD-AF compatible Four Thirds lenses | eg. Olympus ZD 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 II zoom lens |
| 2009 | mid-level dSLRs | 12mp Olympus E-600 and E-620 |
| 2009 | 1st Olympus Micro Four Thirds system camera | 12mp Olympus E-P1 PEN (EP1) |
| 2010 | the last Olympus dSLR? - their 1st with HD video albeit only 720p | 12mp Olympus E5 dSLR |
| 2010 | near silent a catalogue of Micro Four Thirds lenses for use in video | designated MSC (Movie and Still Compatible) |
| 2011 | fastest S-AF of any camera with 3x zoom lens | 12mp Olympus E-P3 PEN (EP3), Olympus E-PL3 PEN (EPL3) |
| 2012 | best mirrorless camera - fastest S-AF of any camera, best IS in any camera (new 5-axis technology), 9fps, unique Live BULB and timed BULB, tiltable touch screen, 20 Mbps 30p 1080 video, weatherproofed; new Sony sensor instead of Panasonic | 16mp Olympus OM-D E-M5 camera |
| 2013 | new PEN with features of E-M5 but adds smaller AF zones with 800 points, 1/8000th sec, auto panning detection for IS, focus peaking, “Photo Story”, x-sync 1/320th, WiFi control by smartphones | 16mp Olympus E-P5 PEN (EP5/EP-5) |
| 2013 | on-sensor phase detect AF = Dual AF; best IS in any camera; Color Creative; 24Mbps 30p video; no AA filter; autoHDR; improved IS, 2.4m dot EVF, full WiFi control by smartphones; 51 RAW buffer; sharpening to in-focus areas only; | 16mp Olympus OM-D E-M1 |
photo/olympus_evolution.txt · Last modified: 2013/09/22 01:25 by gary1