The Mirrorless Future Is Now

It’s been nearly 14 years since the introduction of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1, the first interchangeable-lens digital camera to replace the optical viewfinder with an electronic one, eliminating the need for a mirror by displaying the output of the camera’s sensor. On its introduction, we wrote about the possibilities that the camera presented for reducing the size and weight of interchangeable-lens cameras. The DMC-G1 was also the first Micro Four Thirds sensor model, and the combination of this sensor size with the elimination of the mirror allowed Panasonic to hail the camera as the “world’s smallest and lightest digital interchangeable lens camera” at the time. In our coverage of the camera, we noted that, “With the mirrorless system, the G1’s flange back, which is the distance between the mount and the image sensor, has been reduced from 40mm—as specified in the Four Thirds System—to approximately 20mm.”

Though the potential of mirrorless