Electronic 'teleconverters' on Olympus PEN/Panasonic G-series Micro 4/3 (1 Viewer)

Dear all,

What are your experiences with this electronic 'teleconverter' system built into these camera bodies? I have a few queries here:

(1) Does it operate by way of the camera internally increasing its crop factor?
(2) What impact does it have on image size and quality?
(3) Does in-camera (for Oly) and/or in-lens (for Pana) image stabilization still work in this mode? is it compromised in any way?

Thanks :t:

Hor Kee

Hi Hor Kee,

I am unsure of what you mean by electronic teleconvertors on the PEN bodies.

Neither the Olympus EP1 or EP2 have this feature, in common with most slrs (or after a couple of years use it has eluded me and you can put me straight).

Fixed lens cameras such as the Olympus XZ-1 do have what they call an electronic zoom which works by cropping the numbers of pixels as you suggest in your point 1.

Normally this will show a reduction in quality and image size, there are exceptions in the case that the whole sensor is not used, because a lesser resolution has been set where an additional electronic zoom is possible without an obvious drop in quality.

With any zoom the longer the effective focal length, the more it becomes likely that the image stabilisation (of all kinds) may be unable to compensate for camera movement.

I would recommend downloading the user handbooks from Olympus and Panasonic for the cameras you are interested in, then, if you need further explanation you can quote the section that is unclear and we can provide more accurate help.

There is a feature that allows you to 'zoom in' on picture you have taken, but this is used for checking the quality of the shot after taking it.

Hope that this has helped.

J

Hor Kee said:

Dear all,

What are your experiences with this electronic 'teleconverter' system built into these camera bodies? I have a few queries here:

(1) Does it operate by way of the camera internally increasing its crop factor?
(2) What impact does it have on image size and quality?
(3) Does in-camera (for Oly) and/or in-lens (for Pana) image stabilization still work in this mode? is it compromised in any way?

Thanks :t:

Hor Kee

Click to expand...

Hi Hor Kee
I'm not sure I can help a great deal but I have always used Panasonic cameras with the extra optical zoom or extra teleconversion zoom (I don't think Olympus cameras have this facility but I could be wrong).

My understanding is that it is as you suggest - an internal crop factor of the image on the sensor. It is not a digital zoom so you don't lose resolution or sharpness. It is simply a way of increasing the control you have over the final image i.e. by 'cropping in' closer, you get the exposure, composition and focus exactly the way you want it for the subject. I always have mine turned on whether I'm using the FZ8 or G3.

In terms of image size, it is reduced (i.e. for the Panasonic G3 in 4:3 format, using medium resolution, the image is reduced from 16MP to 8MP. This gives a teleconversion factor of x1.45, by my reckoning). Thus, a 600mm lens becomes an 870mm lens without loss of detail.

In terms of image quality. I don't see any noticeable loss.

The in-lens image stabilisation works in all modes unless you choose to turn it off! The issue to think about is that with the longer reach, the stabilisation becomes more important so increasing shutter speed to compensate for hand shake is the way forward, if possible.

I hope that helps
Hobbes

Hobbes2 said:

Hi Hor Kee


In terms of image size, it is reduced (i.e. for the Panasonic G3 in 4:3 format, using medium resolution, the image is reduced from 16MP to 8MP. This gives a teleconversion factor of x1.45, by my reckoning). Thus, a 600mm lens becomes an 870mm lens without loss of detail.



I hope that helps
Hobbes

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WOW Hobbes i think i can do it with the Olympus E620, but that will reduce the image to 6 MP, not sure about the EPL1 but i will check tomorrow, if so then i can have an effective 870mm lens with my 100-300mm lens.

thanks so mcuh

ammadoux said:

WOW Hobbes i think i can do it with the Olympus E620, but that will reduce the image to 6 MP, not sure about the EPL1 but i will check tomorrow, if so then i can have an effective 870mm lens with my 100-300mm lens.

thanks so mcuh

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That's great, Doux! Very pleased to have helped. I do find the extra reach and control make all the difference. 6MP should be fine for posting photos on the web and making standard prints, but, you'll have to see how it feels for you, obviously. All of my FZ8 photos were shot at 5MP.
All the best
Hobbes

Hi All,

Very interested in how you have achieved this. The only facility that I was aware of on Olys to date was the ability of changing aspect ratio ( on the E-30, 620 and P2 etc) , which basically crops the sides of the sensor image - which your drop in pixels would suggest. I know some cameras do use oversize sensors which helps to do this sort of thing without actually cropping. I know Panasonic do something similar on their Intelligent Zoom feature.

Let me know what you did so I can play too.

J