Done to death I know...

I'm hesitant about moving from DSLR to M43, I'd like the OMD since it seems very much like a DSLR, but the price has me a bit. With the EP3 I could afford a couple of the lenses I want. With the OMD I'd have to wait a while to get everything I really want. I want a camera (and lenses) that will make me not regret having to sell my current system to buy.

important to me- right now, this may change

-accurate AF, doesn't need to be real fast, although fast is still good
-DSLR like IQ otherwise I'd buy the Canon GX1 and deal with a p&s and no lenses
-I really like the ISO, f/stop etc on top on on the wheel on the back of my camera, I really worry about hiding all that in a menu, I change things very quickly when needed, both cameras will be bad in this aspect
-weight, my #1 reason for this change this is the HUGE disadvantage with the DSLR and why I'm thinking about this
-glass is always better then body, so is better glass better here with the EP3 then only 2-3 lenses on the OMD?

I feel the jump to M43 may be better suited with the OMD (it is the camera that got me seriously thinking about this apart from what was offered in 2009) Would the EP3 make me want to keep the DSLR?

I know I need to answer this myself, but if the EP3 is like 90% of the OMD I think it'd be fine, but if it's more like 70% is it worth it? Main problem NO stores around here carry the M43. The closest one is 2 hours from here (and traveling is not easy at all) no one carries the OMd so I can't feel how it'll handle without ordering it and if I hate it sending it back. I tried the S90 vs the G11 (canon) and hated the small feel of the S90 and liked the G11 ok. Not as comfy as the DSLR but easier to have with me all the time due to the weight. I wish more places had M43 or even had the OMD in stock so I can get this over with already! ha ha!

Here's an idea: buy an EP2 for a few hundred bucks and play with it for a while. See if you like the image quality you're able to squeeze out of it as well as the form factor and how it fits in your hand... If you're into it and tickled pink, then you'll LOVE the EP3 (which obviously is a bit better IQ-wise and has more features...) Honestly, I think you'll absolutely love the EP3 and if you can't quite swing the coin for the OM-D at the moment, no worries cause there'll definitely be used OM'D's coming down the pike soon enough. In the interim you can hone your M-4/3 skills on the EP2 (or EP3) in anticipation to the big OM-D upgrade.

This was what I did to ween myself off of big huge Nikon DSLRs (which I keep around for jobs that require that full-frame look...). Trust me, even the EP-2 with the EV2 finder will make you smile. PROMISE.

Good luck!

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Your first 10,000 photographs are your worst. – Henri Cartier-Bresson


OM-D | E-P3
14 | 20 | 45 | 7-14 | 14-45 | 40-150

2 or 3 lenses on the OM-D should do you fine. We're still developing the native lens collection for Micro Four-Thirds, so you may as well just pick up the best of what's out at the moment and wait on the rest to get here. If you can afford a few lenses with the OM-D purchase, I would just go with that. Most of the lenses overlap each other at the moment anyways. Many shooters of the system just use a trinity of lenses, like for instance... higher-end trinity: m.Zuiko 12mm f/2, Leica 25mm f/1.4 Summilux, and Leica 45mm f/2.8 Macro-Elmarit, or a cheaper and smaller trinity: Lumix 14mm f/2.5, Lumix 20mm f/1.7, and m.Zuiko 45mm f/1.8. If you're in a good area, maybe you can even get the m.Zuiko 75mm f/1.8 as your longer prime. That would go beautifully with a 25mm f/1.4 Summilux and a 12mm f/2.

I really don't know what kind of budget you're talking about though, when you say 2-3 lenses.

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Olympus E-3 | Olympus E-PL2 PEN | Olympus E-PM1 PEN | Zuiko ED 50-200mm f/2.8-3.5 SWD | Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 | Vivitar 100mm f/2.8 Macro | Carl Zeiss Sonnar 135mm f/2.8 | Konica Hexanon 50mm f/1.4 | Konica Hexanon 85mm f/1.8 | G.Zuiko 50mm f/1.4 | Zuiko 35mm f/3.5 Macro | Zuiko 25mm f/2.8 | KMZ Jupiter-3 50mm f/1.5 | E.Zuiko 200mm f/4 | Zuiko 75-150mm f/4 | Olympus EC-14 teleconverter | VF-2 and VF-3 Viewfinders | EMA-1 Mic Adapter | Olympus FL-36R and FL-50R speedlights

cyclopsphoto.ca

Budget, if I'm VERY lucky I can get around $1800-2000 for ALL my DSLR stuff including the larger bag I won't need any more and things like the shutter release cable and filters. That's if I can get people to buy everything. So with the $1300 OMD with kit and the 45 1.8 and maybe the 20 1.7 plus tax, that's about all for now if I can finagle things a bit.

With canon the saying was glass before bodies, meaning if you have $2500 you can go with the 5DII with 1 regular lens, or you can go with the rebel and 2-3 Ls to go with it. That's why I originally went with the 30D and 4 lenses that I really wanted. Still have the glass the camera is now a 60D.

I know in a couple of years (as long as I like this format) I'll still have the glass and will have a different camera. But I also don't want to get discouraged with a camera that is so different from the 60D that I don't like it.

I was going to buy the OMD and 12-50 yesterday when I got home from work, but as I said the camera went from maybe getting it next week, to who knows. I know ordering it now will put me on a list for the next shipment, but is it fate telling me to get a different camera for now? I also worry about the canon M43. Maybe that'll be better yet (although since they're new into this, and their last camera I think is a dud.) I wonder if I'll like the canon menu better and they'll have the ISO and f/stop stuff on top. I also know that the next OMD and EP5 or whatever will be out soon enough too.

Maybe I'll research the EP2 for now while I wait. Maybe saving even more money will help. I need to do this soon though. My 60D's weight is frustrating me. I again left it home today due to the weight. I love this darn camera so much I know I'll miss it. But I missed taking photos today even more I think. Having a little M43 (instead of the p&s which I didn't like at all) will allow me to shoot more.

Do you shoot JPEGs or RAW? How important is an eye-level viewfinder?

Assuming you intend to use your camera like a DSLR - shooting at eye-level, and doing a fair amount of post-processing/RAW shooting - you might give the Panasonic G3 a look. Better quality than the E-P3/EVF, at a considerably lower price. Also, fairly DSLR-like ergonomics.

DH

I'd say around 85-90% of the folks on this forum that switched from Rebels and 60D's to m4/3rds were satisfied didn't regret the switch. I think you'd find the OMD is much more like your existing 60D than an E-P3 would be (I used to have a T3i)

I personally value jpeg IQ more than ergonomics so even though I have an OMD, I do the majority of my jpeg shooting with my $149.00 E-PL1 body which is kind of slow and lacks dials. Why? because E-PL1 jpegs are so good you can get stunning results like this OMD 12-50mm lens on my E-PL1 with the inexpensive kit zoom lenses (outdoors in good light)

For action indoor shots, however, you'd need an OMD to keep up with the action and give you an athletic shooting experience that closely matches what you are used to with your 60D

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E-PL1, E-M5, 14-42, 40-150

I have a 60D and an EM5. I also had an E-P3. I think you would be much happier with the EM5, but I am not sure you would be twice as happy with it. I think you can get a refurb E-P3 for under 600 bucks with the 14-42. The EM5 with the same lens would be almost twice as much.

I would say that the EM5 is pretty comparable to the 60D. I think it shoots high ISO better and the IBIS is simply amazing. I could make the switch and be perfectly happy.

Maybe you could try out an E-P3 and see if you like it before you jump in. You could buy a used one here on the forum, and then if you like m4/3 you could sell it for not a huge loss.

There's nothing wrong with that set. I'm sure you would be happy with it. If it were me though, I'd save the $300 from the kit zoom and get the body-only instead for $1000. That $300 could be used towards better things like perhaps upgrading to the Leica 25mm f/1.4 Summilux in place of the Lumix 20mm f/1.7, or perhaps adding the Lumix 14mm f/2.5 (while keeping the 20mm/1.7 and 45mm/1.8) along with some other accessories like speedlight, spare batteries, etc.

Of course, your original idea with the 12-50mm, 20mm/1.7, and 45mm/1.8 is also a good idea. The 12-50mm is fully weather sealed so you can have an all-weather combo, and it has a little better macro capabilities than the other two lenses. The 20mm/1.7 and 45mm/1.8 are both very compact lenses, and will fit easily in your bag without taking up any extra bulk. The 14mm f/2.5 is also very compact as well, if you wanted to add that for cheap.

Just a few ideas... ;)

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Olympus E-3 | Olympus E-PL2 PEN | Olympus E-PM1 PEN | Zuiko ED 50-200mm f/2.8-3.5 SWD | Zuiko 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 | Vivitar 100mm f/2.8 Macro | Carl Zeiss Sonnar 135mm f/2.8 | Konica Hexanon 50mm f/1.4 | Konica Hexanon 85mm f/1.8 | G.Zuiko 50mm f/1.4 | Zuiko 35mm f/3.5 Macro | Zuiko 25mm f/2.8 | KMZ Jupiter-3 50mm f/1.5 | E.Zuiko 200mm f/4 | Zuiko 75-150mm f/4 | Olympus EC-14 teleconverter | VF-2 and VF-3 Viewfinders | EMA-1 Mic Adapter | Olympus FL-36R and FL-50R speedlights

cyclopsphoto.ca

^ I was about the write the same thing...skip the kit lens and invest that $300 elsewhere.

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Olympus OM-D E-M5
Panasonic Lumix 12-35mm F2.8
Panasonic Leica Summilux 25mm F1.4
Panasonic Lumix 45-175mm F4-5.6

I may get crucified for this, but to me the output between the 2 cameras is close enough. And considering the crazy low prices you can get an E-P3 for, it's no contest. With your budget you can get an E-P3 with a couple zooms to cover your the whole range AND a couple primes in your preferred focal lengths. I bought an E-M5 and after using it for a week or so, I couldn't justify keeping it for the price difference. Yes, it's a nicer camera, but it wasn't worth the price difference to me. Happily back with my E-P3.