dcisive
Mu-43 Veteran
Registered: February 2010
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Posts: 345
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Review Date: Sun June 3, 2012
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: $1,299.00
| Rating: 10
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Pros:
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Lightning fast and accurate autofocus, superb solid weatherproofed build, Great accessories that enhance the ergonomics, The legendary Olympus colors
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Cons:
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Would like to see higher bit rate video implemented,
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I'm just going to begin with a quick review and hopefully have a more exhaustive one later once I've had more time to explore ALL the many features of this camera. I am coming from having owned many pro DSLR bodies and a NEX 5N system. I sold them ALL to finance the OMD setup once I had a hands on with it. I frankly doubted it's prowess until that opportunity arose, and from that point on I had little doubt it would meet my needs
Unlike some I really like the locations of the various buttons for access to the features. The Fn2 and Playback buttons do have a bit of a squishy feel but that is due to the weathersealing and frankly it doesn't bother me as it does some.
The IBIS on this camera is everything and MORE. I literally can't believe the shots i"m getting away with handheld rendering perfectly steady and sharp images without flash. It sure does boots one's confidence in what you can accomplish with it in place. For video it's at least as if not more impressive.
The OLED screen has been wonderful to work with and I like the color rendition and clarity. The screen is very solid in it's mount and instills confidence in it's build. The angles of use are all I'd need regarding up and down. Not fully articulated as on the GH2 but frankly this is fine for me
Having come from both a EVF and OVF I'd have to rate the OMD's viewfinder as top flight. While it tends to present a brighter image than what I would deem "average" it does NOT present plugged shadows like the NEX viewfinders tend to. The standard refresh rate is already high enough on "normal" that I find no need to increase it to the High setting. I have not noted any lag issues at all, and sharpness is admirable.
As for the build this is like a little brick. There is NO flex to be had and everything is solid as can be. I have not yet received my grip yet, but since I'm already well aware of how it feels due to my hands on with a dealer's I have little doubt most of the time the entire grip will remain in place. I have fairly small hands so even the ungripped camera works for me. But with the grip it is very much like a small version of a DSLR. The fit and finish of it all is above reproach.
I've already noted after my 3rd charge the battery is lasting longer and I have not yet logged how many shots per battery, but an afternoon of shooting along with 4 video's did lower battery power more than 25%.
I feel that the kit 12-50 lens has received far too much criticism. It may not be a Zeiss but frankly if you're not printing posters you are not likely to see much difference. I just printed out 4 13x19's on my Epson Pro3880 and not only is the detail from corner to corner sharp as can be, but the colors are unreal and accurate. Exposures are dead on in Aperture Priority mode which is what I tend to use. The lens focuses with lightning speed and is accurate to do so and is noise free. It has a nice balance and once again the fit and finish are above reproach. I am officially getting hooked on the power zoom. I have not yet used the macro mode but hope to in the next few days.
The vast number of custom settings is as many know by now almost daunting. The postings on the internet of how to best set this camera help quite a bit to remove the work of figuring it all out, and once you file though the menu it's really a breeze. The customization possibilities are nearly endless, and I've set it up now so I pretty much don't have to enter a menu again to get where I'll wish to go.
Video is FAR better than I expected. From reports I thought it would not do well for what I typically use it for (a dance group) and was I surprised. I tend to shoot 720P HD and the colors were dead on rich and vibrant. Sharpness was superb and I stuck with single autofocus (not continuous). and it worked perfectly. The sound is quality Stereo PCM and I've ordered the external mics for this so perhaps that will be even better. No complaints on the video that's for sure. I shot in Program mode handheld and did not experience the shifting aperture I've seen on YOutube videos others have shot. It was very stable indeed. The IBIS is a huge asset and does the job..no jumpiness.
I did add a FL-600R flash and while I haven't worked with it extensively feel it is as effective as my previous D7000/SB-700 combo. No shortage of flash power in that little baby. Fast recycle times (2 sec) and good battery life.
The bottom line with the OMD-E-M5 is that it IS a camera that just gets out of your way once you've set it up correctly for your personal use. The autofocus speeds are intoxicating to the point where you just hit what you're aiming at and it's perfect. Exposures I've examined are dead on which thrills me as with so many cameras that is a stumbling point. NO plugged shadows here which are typical of the Mft format cameras I've worked with before. The build quality inspires confidence. I have YET to experience so much as ONE of the "bugs" being reported on the internet. IT has not locked up on me nor failed to perform any of it's functions I"ve gone through. All in all I'm not the least bit sorry I sold everything I had off to go this route. I"m using the stock 12-50 kit lens along with their 75-300 M Zuiko and have a 45mm f1.8 coming. I may add one fast wider lens later but otherwise have no plans other than that for additional lenses. I ordered my M5 and received it a week later. Highly recommended. I know of NO other camera on it's level at this time.
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Olympus OMD-E-M5 with HLD-6, 12-50mm zoom, 75-300 zoom, 45mm f1.8 prime, FL-600R Flash
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machineman
New to Mu-43
Registered: June 2012
Location: South Australia
Posts: 5
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Review Date: Mon June 4, 2012
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: None indicated
| Rating: 9
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Pros:
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Build, IQ, Size
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Cons:
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Too Many Functions!
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Four weeks into my Olympus OM-D EM-5 (ridiculously long name) I can say I'm very happy. There's one little fly in the ointment, but I'll get to that later.
As a background, I was an OM shooter in the film days. I also had a couple of IS3000 All-In-Ones. Then I was an 'early adopter' in DSLR when I bought first an E-10 and then an E-20. I do love my Olympus gear.
I went pro (full-time, that is) as a photographer in 2004 and moved to Nikon, as Olympus began its downward slide (first the SmartMedia cards, then the xD cards, four-thirds..). Four-Thirds, by the way, as a concept wasn't a bad one, but by the time that Olympus started to get it right, APS-C and full-frame DSLRs were much better.
Me? I got sick of the Nikons missing focus and went back to basics. I bought a Leica M8. There's a camera with quirks. But I loved it because it did nothing other than what it was meant to do: meter, help me focus, record beautiful images. No AF, no 'P' mode, no video, no live view... You should try it!
A warning. I won't even touch on video. I know nothing and care nothing for it. It's a waste of a button on the camera for me. Maybe one day I'll see the point to it.
SO there's the backdrop to this review. Everything I say is coloured by my personal bigotry, my rather blueish blood and by that lovely Leica. In terms of needs/wants/ likes/dislikes, I'm probably far removed from the larger population of potential EM5 owners, but I hope what follows is of help to someone.
There are no end of reviews raving about the image quality of the EM5. Let's take it as read: it's great. Many of my pro colleagues (I'm not pro any more.. moved on to other things...) are shocked by how nice the images are straight from the camera. It's brilliant, but it's not really the reason you'd be considering the Olympus, as opposed to the numerous other cameras of excellent image quality available.
The Olympus' genius is in its size, its build quality, its viewfinder and the quality of its lenses and sensor - which then combine to give you the Image Quality. I bought the EM5 because I spend as much time as I can on a bicycle. This is a camera - much more than the (now sold) Leica - that can be carried pretty much everywhere with 3 gorgeous lenses in a bag with an internal capacity of 2 litres (that's 120 cubic inches in the old money). The EM5 needed to equal or better the Leica in as many aspects of image quality as possible (which it does), be lighter than the Leica (which it is, by quite a margin), and be smaller than the Leica when kitted with 3 appropriate lenses (which it is).
A big fat star to the Olympus for Size and Overall Design.
In use, the equation is a little more complex. There are 3 (or maybe 4?) different kinds of menus - or ways of selecting parameters on the camera. I do miss the simple dial on top of the Leica! Some of the menus are simple enough, and the little pop-up hints are OK (although annoying once you are used to them), but it's most definitely neither a simple nor an especially elegant interface. Olympus could take a leaf out of Nikon's book here (certain pro models), I think - or Sony's (on the Alpha 900, that is). Of course, it's never going to be as simple as a Leica M8 with all that extra functionality... but then I'd ask the question (purely selfishly, of course): Why do I have to have all those functions? It's a rhetorical question. Please don't flame me with answers about economics and mass markets and convergence. It's my review, I'll ask all the rhetorical questions I like.
In the end, though, after 4 weeks, I'm finding my way around quick enough. It's not as bad as I thought. I absolutely love the huge, hi-res, flip-out screen. I love the way the important buttons and dials fall to hand so nicely.
But the best thing, for this ex-Leica guy, is the viewfinder. If you've used a Leica M camera, you know what a good viewfinder is all about. For me, as a photographer, the viewfinder is the most important aspect of a camera's user interface. It's your connection with the reality which you are trying to record, or capture, or create (depending on your purpose). A bright viewfinder allows you to see everything as it should be. Of course, with a rangefinder, you can see outside your image frame, which is a real bonus, too. The EM5's electronic viewfinder outperforms, in my opinion, about 95% of the optical finders out there. It amplifies when it's dark, it's clear, it's brimming with useful information, and it's sharp enough to determine accurate focus. Really, it's a revelation when compared to the long, dark tunnels found on APS-C (and some full frame) DSLRs. And it gives 100% of the image. Most DSLRs do not. I'll happily trade a few pixels for an image I can see, thanks.
And that's really all I wanted in a camera. A good viewfinder, small size, high build quality (which it seems to have), low weight, great glass and great image quality. It's a winner.
Is there other stuff to like? You bet. I love the 16:9 and 1:1 aspect ratios (Old 6x6 Rollei user...). You still get the whole frame when you shoot RAW but it's marked in the viewfinder to aid with composition, and Aperture and Lightroom recognise this. Nice.
I love the styling. Takes me back to my old OMs. The external slide-on flash that comes in the box is a nice touch, from my point of view, as well. It allows Olympus to build a solid, strong casting for the top of the camera, with no compromises for poppy-uppy flash bits. But, the flash is there - and it's small to boot - if you need it. Lovely. (Yes, it also fits in the bike bag).
There's only a couple of improvements I could suggest. Actually, there are plenty (like 'get rid of everything except M, A and basic camera functions...'), but only one or two which are realistic.
First, the placement of the strap eyelet on the right. Perhaps Olympus could have made this a camera that hangs only on its left end (à la Leica M5)? The right-hand eyelet gets in the way of one's right hand. This camera is seriously small, and that eyelet gets in the way right where you're trying to grab hold!
Second, the little plastic covers for the flash shoe, the little electronic port behind the flash shoe, and the external flash. Seriously, they are going to get lost. As they are (particularly the port cover), they are not design solutions. They are simply afterthoughts. A company as innovative as Olympus should have realised better solutions.
Neither of these are deal breakers. Just annoyances. What *was* almost a deal breaker (or at least a deal-postponer) was the Olympus software. It was awful back in the old days with the E10 et al, and it's just as bad now. I nearly put off buying the camera knowing that neither Aperture nor Lightroom could deal with the RAW files (sorry, no JPGs here..) and I'd be forced to use the Olympus software. I bought it anyway, believing the software might be OK. Wrong. It's rubbish. Slow, clunky, and unintuitive. If Olympus didn't insist on running its updates through it (instead of making them downloadable to a card like everyone else), I'd uninstall it. When will camera companies accept that they are good at making cameras, and not software? Leica worked this out, mercifully, a few years ago. They gave away Capture One - more or less the industry benchmark in RAW processing quality - with their cameras.
So there you are. Only 3 negatives. Not bad, really, I'd say. I love this camera. Like any creative medium, it's really just a vehicle for my own expression. But it makes that expression easy. It doesn't get in the way. It lets me be the photographer I want to be. What more could I ask for?
Go out and buy one. You will love it.
And support your local camera store: the one that gives you good advice and supports you when things go wrong.
......
P.S. I did mention a fly in the ointment... I've just found this evening that the hotshoe does't want to work with an old single pin flash. I do hope it's an isolated problem to do with the flash's voltage or some such thing. I'd hate to think my new baby has an actual flaw!
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entropicremnants
Mu-43 Top Veteran
Registered: July 2012
Location: Kennett Square, PA
Posts: 564
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Review Date: Thu February 21, 2013
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: $1,299.00
| Rating: 9
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Pros:
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AMAZING stabilizer,image quality,ergonomics/control,size,evf,af speed,reliability,toughness,weather sealing,touchscreen
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Cons:
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menu system,limited bracketing,mode dial too easily changed
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The best compliment I can pay this camera: once I bought it I went and sold my Nikon D7000's, lenses, and flashes and built up an Olympus based micro four thirds kit to replace it. That's how much I like it.
I can carry what used to be 25 pounds of kit in a backpack in a shoulder bag now and it's MUCH lighter -- and I'm not getting younger.
I did a review on my blog which has more detail if you want to know more about what I think about it:
No Regrets -- Living Small in a Big Camera World: My Olympus E-M5 Review
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john griggs - entropic remnants photography -- my blog -- my facebook artists page
My prints for sale on eBay:
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