Panasonic

Veydra Cinema Lenses for M4/3 Cameras

Three years ago when my house was broken into, all of my DSLR gear was stolen. The only gear I had left was my Olympus EP2, and 4/3 lenses for it. At the time I decided to not replace my DSLR, and go exclusively with the Micro 4/3 mirrorless format for both still and video work. One of the biggest challenges has been finding high quality lenses designed specifically for shooting video on a Micro 4/3 camera like the Panasonic GH4 or Olympus OMD. The ones that exist are either cost prohibitive to own, or require an adapter to work with my camera bodies. That is why I got all excited about this new KickStarter project from Veydra.

Veydra is planning on producing a set of premium cinema lens made specifically for filmmakers using Micro 4/3 cameras like the Panasonic GH4, Black Magic Cinema Camera, Olympus OMD, and more. The thing I like is the feature set listed on the site which includes, Resolution that exceeds 4K, Cinema 0.8 module focus and iris gears, Consistent front 80mm outside diameter & 77mm filter threading, Similar length for quick lens changes, Constant T2.2 aperture for easy lighting set ups, Brass plated mounts for durability.

Then there is the price. At $3200.00 for the entire set, this is a bit of a steal. Especially if the quality of the lenses is good as Veydra claims on their KickStarter page. I hope these guys make their goal, because this looks really exciting for the film making community, especially those of us working with small budgets.

Paris in the Morning.

Paris is a city that everyone should visit at least once. Out of all the places I have been in Europe, Paris will always be at the top of my list. The short film below from emeric captures an early morning in Paris, with an overlay of what people might be thinking.

The film was shot on the new Panasonic GX7 with Panasonic 14-42mm, Olympus 9-18mm and 75mm lenses. Shot entirely hand held it shows the cameras solid image stabilization, as well as overall image quality. Besides showing off the camera, Emeric also shows off Paris in wonderful way.

Magnum Photographer Ian Berry Talks About the GX7

The YouTube video below from Panasonic does two things, it advertises their new compact camera the GX& and it tells a terrific story. This is a beautifully shot and edited film featuring world renowned Magnum photographer Ian Berry. What I like about it is, it feels less like an ad and more like a vignette into Berry’s style of shooting, and his personality. Panasonic has done a great job of hiding the ad for the camera, inside a story that photographers and potential buyers can get behind. This is the soft-sell done right. At five and a half minutes in length it is worth watching just to hear what Berry says about blending in on the streets of Rome as he shoots.

Oh and did I mention just how amazing the video looks? I’m going to bet that this was shot on the Panasonic Lumix GH3. Just a guess, but it is one of the hottest DSLR’s for shooting video these day, so I think it’s a pretty solid bet.

Panasonic Headphone Packaging is Music to My Ears.

German agency Scholz & Friends has designed a new packaging system for Panasonic RP-HJE 130 headphones. Using a simple visual metaphor created by the product itself, the packaging and product combine to create a wonderful a music note. A simple gray line of text punctuates what these headphones are made for. “Made For Music”. The Panasonic name is positioned directly below the note in bold black type. Visually this simple design is simply stunning. It is the kind of packaging that stands out in a sea of boxes on a shelf, and the design of the headphones as a musical note is just brilliant. I’d love to see a series of these that are made up of different notes, so they could be positioned on the store shelf to read like a stanza of music.