Compact SLR Cameras

There are now four manufacturers who offer down-sized digital SLRs; Olympus, Panasonic, Samsung and Sony. As with their standard SLRs, Olympus and Panasonic use the smaller four-thirds sensor, Sony and Samsung use the APS-C size. Three big names missing here are Canon, Nikon, and Pentax. I expect they will come into the market over the next 2 years.

Why the need for a smaller SLR? Manufacturers noticed that many professionals and advanced amateurs were using quality compacts as a back-up camera, with the Canon G series and the Panasonic LX3 being amongst the leading contenders. Add to these the people who have owned only digital compact cameras but want to move up a notch without being overwhelmed by full-blown dSLRs. So the manufacturers decided to sell both niche markets a compact sized camera with the larger SLR sensor and where they have the opportunity to buy extra lenses. All of this earns extra revenue for the lens and camera manufacturers.

The current smaller SLR models are slimmed down by discarding the pentaprism and mirror-box of the more conventional SLR bodies. This has meant a different series of lenses and mounts though legacy lenses can be used on the Panasonic/Olympus range of cameras using adapters. The Samsung NX10 and more expensive models of Panasonic use an electronic viewfinder (EVF) built into the body of the camera. Others rely on the rear LCD as a viewfinder or offer an EVF as an accessory.

I just wonder if these cameras go in the right direction. I'm sure they would fit the market better without the interchangeable lens facility, or perhaps there is another market for a APSC or four thirds camera with a fixed zoom lens. My brief would be for something to fit in a jacket pocket: something that can be carried at all times.

One of the ideas copied over from compact cameras is to use software to rectify the rectilinear and chromatic aberrations of the lens rather than having extra elements in the lens correcting them in the optics. It means the lenses can be made smaller, lighter, and less complex. But, doing it in software means that there will always be some distortion of pixels. This will never be a problem for most people, but will be picked up when supplying images to photographic libraries. DxO Optics Pro software does much the same thing but processing images from my Canon G9 and Pentax K10D made them unsuitable for stock libraries.

So my interest in buying a new compact SLR has waned. For most of the pictures I have taken this year then the Canon G9 has been more than sufficient.