I don't think that's a fair comparison, you're not comparing a mirrorless to a dslr, you're comparing a dirt cheap camera to an expensive camera.

A more fair comparison would be more like the OMD v.s. the E5 or a nikon d3200 v.s. the epm2.

Generally speaking there's only 1 option a mirrorless camera doesn't have that a dslr does - that's the mirror-lock-up feature. If you want more buttons to adjust your settings you should have looked at the e-p3 / omd / GH2 / GH3. I think the OMD comes pretty darn close in the number of buttons and dials as the e5.

Some DSLRs don't have the same features either. On another forum I'm on, a member was trying to use a legacy lens on a Nikon D3100. It turns out that camera doesn't allow light metering on non-native lenses. Maybe that's a good thing if you want to learn how to use an external light meter...

What will serve you the most is to learn about composition and light. Photography is really all about capturing light in the context of your composition.

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Doc Klepper in the USA
I am a photorealist, I like my photos with a touch of what was actually there.
Polite C&C always welcome, Thanks.

I would suggest you can greatly improve your photography skill by carefully going through high quality non-photography magazines and studying the lighting used in the ads. This is photography that professionals are buying. I would also recommend spending time at art museums studying the painters of the past; look at composition, perspective, and use of light from the painters. Add to your "visual vocabulary" by doing some serious people watching from your local cafe - see the light and anticipate the changes that will happen when he/she turns their head as they are about to - where would I need to be? How would I expose it; for the shadows? for the highlights? Then sit and watch a landscape for hours while the iight changes.

Modern cameras are truly amazing. They can be of incredible help in bringing your vision to life. Work on your eyes and brain first (school, practice) and literally ANY camera will do. If you want a really fun test, try this:

1) Put your current camera on a table.
2) Put a Nikon D4s on the same table.
3) Ask them each to take a great picture of you.
4) Select the picture that is more creative or just plain better.

I want a camera that can take a picture of me by just asking it to! Voice activated camera for the win! ;)

The only advantage in a DSLR, as far as it being an improved tool for developing your skills, over the PM1 would be its viewfinder (eyelevel, ...) and, as far as that goes, a good mirrorless body (OM-D, Pany G-5, Pany GH-3, ...) would provide the same advantage. Staying with a m43 body would also be the best fit with the PM1 when considering lenses and other accessories.

I don't think things like manual focus lenses or a DSLR will help you become a better photographer. I mean, I enjoy using MF glass, but AF isn't cheating, and if contax made an autofocus 50/1.4 planar I'd be all over that in a heartbeat. Learning to zone focus/hyperfocal focussing can help if you're into street or landscape shooting, though.

What helps make learning easier is having a camera that allows simple adjustment of the basic settings - aperture, shutter speed, ISO, exposure compensation, metering, burst mode, AF points/mode. That's pretty much all you really need access to. Low-end/cheaper DSLRs often still have so-so handling in this regard; Pentax is a relative exception. I don't click with lower end Nikon gear and really don't like the xxxD series Canon stuff because they're not well laid out.

Right now, the E-M5 is probably the best Oly option in terms of external controls, and the GH-2 (or GH-3 if you can swing the price tag) look very interesting as well. Direct access to controls via dials makes life a lot easier. But at the end of the day, all you really need to know is how to adjust the settings mentioned above on your camera. Get familiar with that and you're good to go. Then it's down to developing an eye for composition. I find primes are a fun learning tool as well, because they force you to move to get the framing you want, and help make you aware of subject distance, angle of view and so forth.

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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
Legacy: Contax Zeiss 50/1.4, 35/2.8, Leica R 50/2.0, 28/2.8, Pentax 50/1.7

The only thing a DSLR might help IMO is teaching good camera holding techniques, assuming of course you using the viewfinder and not the DSLR's rear screen. My son was getting blurry shots with his Pen because he was holding the camera by two edges and too far from his face, once I put the viewfinder on and he started holding the camera to his face he got better results, so I would say that keep what you have, add a viewfinder, and as others have said here, practice, practice, practice, one advantage of digital is you can shoot to your hearts content, and if you don't like the results see why you don't delete and go again :P

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My Flickr...


Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury
Signifying nothing. — Macbeth

I was an E-3 user who stopped using it in favor of an E-M5. While I did buy the adapter to use the E-3 lenses on my M4/3 camera, the 4/3 lenses are much larger, and they focus more slowly on M4/3 bodies due to the different focusing method those cameras use.

Your current camera has all the manual modes, A, S, and M...the only difference is the controls aren't as easy to use like the dual wheels on an E-3 or E-M5.

As well you can add an electronic viewfinder to your current camera making it more like a traditional camera.

There's also an online simulator that helps you learn the controls:
CameraSim | SLR Photography Demystified

Broadly speaking, there are two parts to photography, art and craft.

Art is taking compelling images of interesting subjects. Light, composition, vision, etc. Gear is not likely to make much of a difference (although some claim more serious equipment or shooting on a tripod will cause you to slow down and think more).

Craft is shutter speed, f-stop, noise control, flash, etc. Any camera with appropriate controls should be adequate for this. A p&s without manual controls will obviously be an issue, but anything above that level should be fine. On the other hand, if you want to learn to shoot fast paced sports, you'll likely need a DSLR and high end telephoto lenses.

Playing with new gear is fun and if you have easy access, do it. I'd only buy something if I could articulate how it will make things better.

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http://fruminousbandersnatch.blogspot.com/