Micro Four Thirds (MFT) users received a shock last month when news filtered out that Panasonic had abruptly discontinued three more Micro Four Thirds lenses.
The Lumix S Pro 70-200mm f/4, Lumix G 42.5mm f/1.7, Leica G 12-60mm f/2.8-4 and Leica DG Summilux 25mm f/1.4 II were all listed as discontinued on Panasonic’s Japanese website.
Of course, manufacturers discontinue products all the time. But it’s normally because the products have direct replacements already in the ecosystem – which these lenses don’t.
And this, combined with the fact that there was no formal announcement of the discontinuation, has led some users to be concerned about how committed Panasonic is to the future of Micro Four Thirds cameras and lenses alike.
It was in this frame of mind that I sat down to watch a recent Q&A video by Australian YouTuber, Geeky Nerdy Techy (real name Shane – he’s great), in which he posits that Panasonic might be planning on introducing Super 35mm / APS-C cameras for L-Mount.
Further, that the next camera in its video-centric GH line – presumably the GH8 – might end up joining the L-Mount Lumix S system, with a Super 35mm sensor rather than full-frame.
ABOVE: Watch Geeky Nerdy Techy's video
It’d be similar to what Sony did with the FX30 and, as Shane says, it would make a lot of sense.
The larger sensor could assuage the concerns that some users have over MFT’s low-light ability – even though, as Shane points out, and as my editor James is no doubt screaming as he reads this, that hasn’t really been an issue for several generations now.
It also could be useful for people who are already invested in the ecosystem of L-Mount lenses, enabling them to construct a setup where they can switch between full-frame and Super 35mm and keep using the same glass.
But where would that leave Micro Four Thirds? That’s the thorny question – and Panasonic’s unceremonious discontinuation of its MFT lenses doesn’t inspire confidence.
While manufacturers generally won’t tell you that they’re giving up on a system, products being discontinued without new ones to replace them is often a sign that, as Shane says, "the writing is on the wall".
Look at Canon and Nikon. They never formally announced that they were giving up on DSLRs – they just stopped making new ones. I’m sure if asked, Panasonic would reaffirm that it is committed to Micro Four Thirds. But how many years did Sony spend making the same claims about A-mount?
An MFT to L-mount adapter unfortunately isn’t really possible, due to near-identical flange distances of the two systems (it’d have to be inconceivably tiny).
We’ll have to wait and see what Panasonic’s plans are for the venerable MFT system that it co-founded with Olympus – but I’m hoping there’s still life in the old dog yet.
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