Olympus To Release Digital Specific Lens

Olympus will introduce a new Zuiko Digital SpecificTM 11-22mm F2.8-3.5 wide-angle zoom lens (equivalent to 22-44mm on a 35mm film camera) for the Olympus E-1 Digital SLR next year.

The new lens is the latest Zuiko Digital Specific Lens designed for the Olympus E-System, the world’s first 100% all-digital interchangeable lens SLR system. The 11-22mm F2.8-3.5 lens ($699.95 USD MSRP) will hit the street in early February 2004.

“The exceptional wide-angle capabilities of the Zuiko Digital 11-22mm lens will expand the creative possibilities for professional photographers,” said John Knaur, senior marketing manager, Olympus America Inc. “The new lens also has great light gathering power that will allow photographers to shoot with a wide range of shutter speeds in low light conditions.”

The Zuiko Digital 11-22mm F2.8-3.5 features two aspherical glass lenses that minimize distortion, spherical aberration and “Koma” aberration. A new multi-coating process applied to the first two lenses helps remove ghosting and glare, problems often associated with wide-angle lenses. The 11-22mm focusing system also utilizes a floating mechanism to deliver sharp, high contrast images up to the lens’ closest focusing distance, 0.28m (11.02 inches) at any zoom setting.

Zuiko Digital Specific Lenses are designed specifically for digital capture with smart technology that delivers edge-to-edge sharpness with reduced distortion and shading. The lenses are designed to perfectly match the imager so light strikes the sensor directly, ensuring rich, accurate colors, sharp contrasts and bright images even at the edges. Zuiko Digital Specific Lenses deliver higher resolutions, faster aperture speeds and focusing, and more compact sizes than equivalent 35mm lenses.

Zuiko Digital Specific Lenses are based on the new Four Thirds System, an open standard for digital SLR cameras and interchangeable lens systems that utilize a 4/3-type image sensor. The Four Thirds System is designed to achieve an optimal balance between image quality, camera and lens size, and system expandability. The system maximizes the performance of image sensors and lenses with a 100% digital-from-the-ground-up design. Olympus introduced the E-1 professional Digital SLR in October 2003 with an initial round of Zuiko Digital Specific Lenses.

ZUIKO DIGITAL 11-22mm F2.8-3.5 SPECIFICATIONS

• 35mm Equivalent: 22-44mm
• Lens Construction: 12 elements in 10 group
• Angle of View: 53°~89°
• Closest Focusing Distance: 0.28m/11.02 inches
• Max. Image Magnification: 0.13x
• Blades #: 7
• Max. Aperture: F2.8 Wide – F3.5 Tele
• Min. Aperture: F22
• Filter Size: 72mm
• Dimensions: 75 x 92.5mm/2.95 x 3.64 inches
• Weight: 485g/15.60 oz.
• EC-14: Yes
• EX-25: No
• Lens Hood (Included): LH-75
• Lens Cap (Included): LC-72