OzRay
Mu-43 Hall of Famer
I use the Olympus 4/3s system exclusively for my news/sports work; 2 x E3s, 7-14mm, 14-35mm, 35-100mm and 90-250mm and on rare ocassions an 8mm, plus the usual flash etc. There are three reasons I've stayed with Olympus, though I have sometimes toyed with getting some Nikon gear.
Firstly, there is no real equivalent to the 90-250mm lens in any other camera system that I've found and it's my workhorse sports lens coupled with the 1.4x converter. This provides me with flexibility that not one of my peers has on the sports field and is the main reason I always come home with a great range of keepers.
Secondly, this system is completely waterproof, not just water resistant as Olympus advertises. I have stood in bucketing rain where even the Canon users begin to shelter their gear and have not had one problem. Heck, I've even dropped some of my lenses into rivers and they have come out unscathed.
Thirdly, no other system is as relatively compact as the Olympus 4/3s system. While the camera body isn't the smallest, the lenses make up for it in spades. When I see my peers lugging their stuff at a football grand final, I just think of how lucky I am.
On the other hand, the Olympus bodies have always lagged the competition in terms of features and performance, but that hasn't really affected my ability to produce great results, it just requires a different approach. Considering the leap in capability from my E1 to my E3, I'm expecting great things from the E3 replacement. The m4/3s range is proof of what good things are ahead.
For my personal work I pretty much use m4/3s exclusively nowadays. However, I have used my m4/3s gear for some news work, more as a trial, and I may do so more often. The m4/3s system is simply so easy to take about; it's flexible, capable, produces high quality work and I just love using the manual lenses. This is completely opposite to my other gear, where I wouldn't think of using manual lenses. If Olympus brings out a m4/3s body aimed more at the pro user, I think it will become a much more regular work horse for my editorial work.
Firstly, there is no real equivalent to the 90-250mm lens in any other camera system that I've found and it's my workhorse sports lens coupled with the 1.4x converter. This provides me with flexibility that not one of my peers has on the sports field and is the main reason I always come home with a great range of keepers.
Secondly, this system is completely waterproof, not just water resistant as Olympus advertises. I have stood in bucketing rain where even the Canon users begin to shelter their gear and have not had one problem. Heck, I've even dropped some of my lenses into rivers and they have come out unscathed.
Thirdly, no other system is as relatively compact as the Olympus 4/3s system. While the camera body isn't the smallest, the lenses make up for it in spades. When I see my peers lugging their stuff at a football grand final, I just think of how lucky I am.
On the other hand, the Olympus bodies have always lagged the competition in terms of features and performance, but that hasn't really affected my ability to produce great results, it just requires a different approach. Considering the leap in capability from my E1 to my E3, I'm expecting great things from the E3 replacement. The m4/3s range is proof of what good things are ahead.
For my personal work I pretty much use m4/3s exclusively nowadays. However, I have used my m4/3s gear for some news work, more as a trial, and I may do so more often. The m4/3s system is simply so easy to take about; it's flexible, capable, produces high quality work and I just love using the manual lenses. This is completely opposite to my other gear, where I wouldn't think of using manual lenses. If Olympus brings out a m4/3s body aimed more at the pro user, I think it will become a much more regular work horse for my editorial work.
