I set out to test the effectiveness of the E-PM2 image stabilization against that of the E-M5 using the Olympus 75mm f/1.8 lens at a variety of shutter speeds with or without in-body image stabilization (IBIS, mode 1) engaged.

For each setting I took 10 handheld images without burst mode, refocusing for each shot. 100% center crops are shown below for each series. All samples are presented below without commentary.

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Amin
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Main findings:

-E-M5 IBIS is more effective than E-PM2 IBIS, especially at low shutter speeds.

-At all shutter speeds with both cameras, IBIS gave more consistent results than no IBIS.

-At 1/100s, the sharpest results from both cameras came with IBIS off. This was particularly noticeable with the E-PM2, where none of the shots with IBIS on were critically sharp.


UPDATE:

Kyle and Art made me aware of the role for the anti-shock setting. I set it to 1/8s as they suggested and got the following results with the E-M5:



Seems to me that this setting completely addresses the issue with IBIS at 1/100s, albeit at the expense of a slight increase in shutter lag and viewfinder blackout time.. Preliminary results are that even with this setting the E-PM2 results were not ideal at 1/100s. I'm continuing to look at this and will update with any new findings.

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Amin
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Looks like the E-M5's IBIS is slightly better at lower shutter speeds. The 5-axis IBIS looks to be showing it's advantage here. Thanks for the test Amin!

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Jonathan
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www.jonathanfriolo.com

Thanks Amin
Very interesting and clearly demonstrates the advantages of and differences between the IBIS systems
I would love to see a similar comparison between the two Olympus systems and the Panasonic OIS system ?
Regards
Rob

I found a similar difference between E-M5 and E-PL2 in the same shutter speed range. My experience with Nikon in lens IS was that such anomalies didn't exist for a given camera lens combination. However, some lens' IS worked much better on one body (D200) than another (D7000).

Guess I'll turn off the IBIS except when I need it. I've known I should, but this demonstrates that at higher shutter speeds there may be a distinct disadvantage to using it. Thanks for challenging my lazy habits. (Strange, too, I never especially miss stabilization when I'm shooting my primitive film cameras, but I do take more care at speeds below the reciprocal of the focal length.)

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Guillevic

thanks for doing that!

Whoa! thanks for patience in preparing so many comparsion shots :) Ability to make 50% sharp shots on 150mm eqiv. on 1/25 is great result for OM-D

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G3, P20, O45, O9-18, P14-42, P45-200

Good method, and tedious to show so thanks for doing the drudgery.

Now would it even be possible to persuade Olympus to insert a shutterspeed-dependant IBIS switch?

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Oly e-P1&17mmF2.8 e-600, e-410&40-150MkI, E-1&14-54MkI, Tokyo-Koki 300mm
Lumix G1&Yashinon45F1.7, e-pL1&CZJ135F3.5, e-P2&45mm. e-pL2&30mmF2.8

I leave on IBIS all the time unless using a tripod. I don't think it has any negative consequences at very fast shutter speeds. At middle of the road shutter speeds, it seems there is a trade-off of max sharpness and consistency.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Mu-43 App

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Amin
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