Olympus PEN-F Digital Camera Body - Black

Paying homage to the 1960s classic F series, the Olympus PEN-F digital camera combines a lightweight, retro-style design with the latest state-of-the-art optical technology from Olympus' high-end OM-D range. Features include the firm's legendary 5-axis Optical Image Stabilisation and a newly designed 20.3-megapixel sensor that comes without a low pass filter to deliver blur-free stills and videos ...

Olympus PEN-F: Key Features:

• Quality and creativity in a stylish, iconic design
• Built for spontaneous, everyday street photography
• 20.3-megapixel Live MOS sensor
• 50MP high-resolution shot capability (Composite Mode)
• 5-axis image stabilisation (worth 5 EV stops when shooting at low ISO)
• 2.36-million dot EVF with real-time preview of setting adjustments
• Full HD recording at either 60, 50, 30, 25, 24 fps
• TruePic VII image processor
• Impressive low-light shooting: ISO 80 - 25,600
• 3.0" vari-angle touchscreen (1,037K dots)
• 10 fps continuous shooting
• Built-in Wi-Fi for sharing images via a smartphone
• Creative Dial to access Art Filters
• 1x SD memory card slot
• Micro Four Thirds lens mount

Olympus PEN-F | What You Need to Know

PEN designers step up
Like every Micro Four Thirds system camera, the PEN-F is built for spontaneous, everyday street photography without a tripod, so it’s more compact and lighter than much larger DSLRs. It’s also considerably better looking, an impression that is heightened when you pick it up. For a relatively small camera, it has surprising gravitas, it feels sensational in the hand and the finish sends a clear message: this camera is for people who appreciate the finer things in life – and who are capable of adding to those things with their own photography. The Olympus design team has gone to great lengths to make the PEN-F a potential style icon worthy of the original F series. Below its classic ‘step’ contour, the brand name is precisely engraved in the metal casing and the leather-like camera surround is deluxe to the touch. Even the dimensions and hatched surface of the dials are designed to make onlookers jealous.

EVF on board
The iconic aspirations of the PEN-F are not confined to its design. Street photography has never been more popular and the new PEN features a classic of the genre: a built-in electronic viewfinder that delivers the rangefinder-style shooting experience, including focusing assistance with focus peaking and image magnification of 0.62x. The EVF has a large, highdefinition OLED display with 2.36 million-dot resolution, which shows a realtime preview of any adjustments to settings, such as those accessible via the new Creative Dial. The PEN’s 5-axis IS essentially ensures a blur-free display.

New creative options
The largest metal dial in front of the PEN-F is the gateway to its newest creative features. Olympus prides itself on the variety of filters and options its cameras provide – and on making them easy to use. The Creative Dial embodies those ambitions with fast, no-look access to four settings, two of which are new to the PEN range: Monochrome Profile Control and Colour Profile Control. The first offers gradation-curve, film-grain, shading adjustment and black-and-white filter effects with three available presets. Colour Profile Control also comes with three presets and affects the gradation curve. It can be used to adjust the saturation of 12 colours to 11 different levels. A lever mounted at the back of the camera easily switches between different modes.

Low-pass filter-free for higher resolution
Image quality is where bulky DSLR cameras would hope to out-perform the PEN-F, but most will fall short. This unique piece of design is packed with state-of-the-art technology. The tried-and-tested 5-axis Image Stabilisation system remains the world’s best* and, combined with a new 20-Megapixel Live MOS image sensor that lacks a low pass filter, it enables longer exposure times at low ISO settings. The new sensor provides 25% better resolution, while maintaining low-noise and dynamic-range performance. The results are impressive, especially with spontaneous, handheld photography. Which, of course, is what the lightweight PEN-F does best.

Ultra-fast response
Speed of response is equally important when you’re shooting on the fly, and it’s a common fallacy that DSLR cameras generally respond faster than their Micro Four Thirds equivalents. The PEN-F lays this myth to rest with the category’s shortest* release time lag between pressing the shutter release button and the actual shot. The autofocus is also extremely quick, thanks to the Eye Detect AF feature and touch-panel access to point focusing. The PEN-F offers street style enthusiasts a number of other advantages.

High-speed sequential shooting at up to 10 fps makes it easy to track fastmoving subjects and a high-res Vari-angle LCD monitor is ideal for capturing videos or stills in tricky situations. At the request of keen photographers, Olympus has linked AF spot metering to the AF target, which helps achieve correct exposure in any shooting situation, while another OM-D-tested feature makes for an unexpected treat – High Res Shot bumps resolution up to the equivalent of 50 Megapixels.

For uploading images to photo communities and other media, the PEN-F supports Wi-Fi and the free OI.Share 2.6 app. Other user-friendly features include the Supersonic Wave Filter, which automatically shakes off dust that can settle on the sensor during lens changes – and avoids dreary lenscleaning procedures. For style-conscious owners, the PEN-F is compatible with a specially designed range of accessories as well as some 40 M.ZUIKO lenses, including the professional grade M.ZUIKO PRO range.

PEN-F Sample Images

Olympus PEN-F Digital Camera - Micro Four Thirds