[Phil Balsdon] ... "Sadly the moment another manufacturer offers an equivalent camera with a full 35mm size sensor the Panasonic AF100 will be an also ran." ...
Hi Phil: I hear you, and your point is well taken, but I hope you will agree that there'll never be a perfect camera which fits all budgets and project requirements.
Every camera is an also-ran at some point, even the beloved 5DM2.
A "full-frame" DSLR cam can be perfect for some projects, and it can be inappropriate for others (difficult to focus, alias/moire artifacts, etc.).
As you probably know, the image area of the m4/3 sensor in the AF100 & GH1 is more than 4 times the area of the sensor in a typical pro 2/3" camera. Thus, m4/3 has nice DOF characteristics. Can't get as narrow DOF as the 5DM2's sensor, but not too shabby.
As I understand it, compared to 35mm _motion_ picture film, the AF100 & GH1 sensor (when used in 16:9 mode) has a 1.18 crop factor.
Anyway, it's great we have so many good tools to choose from!
Sorry to take this thread off topic. Cheers.
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