I've been reading the OM-D/5D2 thread with great interest. I prefer the E-P3 form factor over the OM-D, but that thread has me thinking maybe both is a good answer. I'm really hoping for an E-P5 with the same sensor, obviously.

Now that some of us have been shooting with the OM-D for a while, can we have a discussion on the humming/vibrating issue that popped up initially? What's the deal in real life use? That would annoy the hell out of me, and likely just keep me waiting for the next PEN.

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Nikon D600, 24-85VR, 70-300VR, P7700, SB-700.

I wouldn't call it a humming or a vibrating, it's best described as a soft whirring, like a small fan is moving air. (Of course, the camera is sealed, so it can't be a fan, but that's how it sounds) And unless you are taking pictures in a mortuary, you'll never notice it in real life. It's enough to tell if the camera is on, rather than asleep, but not at all distracting as soon as you start paying attention to your subject rather than the camera.

The noise is a non issue in a reality real life. It is an issue for those that are more concerned with such issues rather then using the camera for its intended purpose - taking photos.

In a very quite room I can it and its a soft sound, hardly noticeable. If you take portraits of Ninjas in action then maybe it would be an issue.

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In normal use, it's a total non-issue. You wouldn't hear it unless it was dead quiet or if you held the camera to your ear. The only time I find the IBIS hum annoying is if I am inside with no real background noise and just want to turn the camera on to review some images on the memory card.

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Nic
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>> Insert quote here <<

I literally have to press the camera to my ear to hear it. But it's there.

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Can I relate it to the noise/feel of a Nikon VR lens adjusting? More or less than that?

I can't get used to the idea of a camera no longer being a passive device I control. What causes it? The in-body VR? If so, I'd expect the E-P4/5 to do the same thing. I love my PENs, enjoy them more than any cameras I've had in 30+ years. If this is just the "way" now, I'll get used to it I suppose, and that IQ in the OM-D/5D2 thread is VERY impressive!

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Nikon D600, 24-85VR, 70-300VR, P7700, SB-700.

That noise is just the OM-D purr.

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Vernacular shooter/amateur photographer
500px | flickr

I can hear it in a dead quiet room with no other sounds - it's a soft whirring, not at all annoying. In actual normal shooting conditions (i.e. anywhere outdoors where there's even a bit of sound, like quiet traffic, wind rustling through leaves, people talking at normal volumes) you don't notice it at all. Not even a little bit. About on par with the IS sound on my 24-105 (i.e. quiet), and quieter than the IS on my 100-400 (which is still not objectionable)

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EOS: 5DII, 30DIR, 24-105L, 35L, 135L, 15/2.8 FE, Σ 50/1.4, Σ 105/2.8 macro
Mu43: GF2, E-M5, P14/2.5, P20/1.7, O45/1.8, P7-14, O12-50, P12-35, P100-300
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Then you probably won't like any digital camera. Seriously, they all do all kinds of active things. If you shoot jpeg, the file is the way it is because of what some programmer in Japan created.
It is the IBIS. The "5-axis" IBIS means the sensor is not rigidly mounted, and the mechanism to apply IS is always needed to hold the sensor in place, even if IBIS is turned off.

I doubt that the next generation of Pens will have the same noise, though, unless the cameras are quite a bit bigger than the current pens. The sensors for the 5-axis IBIS are mounted in the "hump", and I don't see where there would be room for them in the current Pen body style.

Active and passive in terms of physical movement/noise, I thought that was obvious when taken in context, sorry.

Anyone HAVE, say a Nikon 18-200VR and an OM-D? Comparable movement?

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Nikon D600, 24-85VR, 70-300VR, P7700, SB-700.