DPR Review of EM10

[MajorMagee]

It was easy to minimize because for most of the production run there has been no shutter shock problem with the E-P5. (IMHO)

My view on their bringing up the E-P5 again in this review is that they are still feeling a bit stung by the criticism they received for making such a big deal about it before when many users couldn't reproduce the issue with their production copies of the E-P5. Rather than admit they had come to a universal conclusion based on a pretty limited data set they just doubled down on their position of being infallible in their reviews.

(Sorry for the rant. I guess I'm just an E-P5 enthusiast...)

 

[T N Args]

BTW, did anyone notice the dig they gave the EP5 at the end? They went out of their way to point out that unlike the EP5, the EM10 did not suffer from shutter shock and that as a result "the image quality would more consistently be available." Wonder how they managed to minimize its effect with the new model.

Unfortunately, it doesn't mean a thing. DPR only review one sample of a camera, and from all the online reporting by owners it is apparent to me that shutter shock is not equally present in all samples of a model. So, DPR might have got a 'bad' E-P5 and a 'good' E-M10.

 

[budeny]

I guess this review will bring even more used E-P5 bodies on market and drop prices even further..
Though I can't complain about my E-P5 deal.

 

[dhazeghi]

Unfortunately, it doesn't mean a thing. DPR only review one sample of a camera, and from all the online reporting by owners it is apparent to me that shutter shock is not equally present in all samples of a model. So, DPR might have got a 'bad' E-P5 and a 'good' E-M10.

Maybe. But it seems to be a common enough problem that I really wish they'd make a stink about it for all models until Olympus implements an electronic shutter. I've seen clear examples of it on the E-M5 and E-M1, and I'd be very very surprised if the E-M10 is somehow immune.

 

[Luckypenguin]

If I had bought a camera that displayed shutter shock to the extent that DPRs test E-P5 did then I would be returning it under warranty rather than simply assuming that that is just "how it is". I have zero confidence based on DPR testing one camera that the E-M10 is immune from shutter shock.

 

[dornblaser]

Really? Many folks on this forum have been suggesting that for years. If so, hallelujah.

Yes, it is true.

 

[lightmonkey]

All this whining about Oly menus is stoked by reviewers who don't invest the time to properly understand them. Really, once you've dialled in settings that suit your shooting style, there's very little need to get into them on a regular basis since the SCP is very functional and easy to use. I don't buy this Oly menu bias as valid criticism.

Now, the Nex menus - that's an entirely different matter! I spent 15 mins in a store and even with the help of the sales assistant it took 10 mins to find how to change ISO (it was hidden in the 'brightness' menu).

Actually I haven't figured out how to set the EM's LCD brightness either even digging through the deep menu !

 

[Reesebass]

Maybe. But it seems to be a common enough problem that I really wish they'd make a stink about it for all models until Olympus implements an electronic shutter. I've seen clear examples of it on the E-M5 and E-M1, and I'd be very very surprised if the E-M10 is somehow immune.

Bought an E-P5 a few months ago, and sold my E-M5. At first i was really happy with the change because i prefer the form factor of a pen camera and at first the E-P5 seemed like a better camera overall. Initially didn't put much thought on the shutter shock issue. Had not much time to shoot with it until three weeks ago when i went on a trip to Thailand. There on day one i noticed from the back camera screen that some of the photos have strange blurriness all over. Then i checked the shutter speed and voilà. Did some tests and got blurry images from 1/60 to 1/320, with both 14mm and 45mm. Decided not to get frustrated over this and enjoy the trip. Back home i have yet to decide what to do with the camera. Very disappointed.

 

[SojiOkita]

Yeah, forget focus peaking, what I really want in a firmware update is the ability to assign mysets to mode dial positions like the E-M1 and a 2x2 mode toggle. And TAv mode. And a pony.

You can't assign a myset to a mode dial position?
The dpr review says you can...
I would be diappointed if you can't... I've always use cameras with custom mode positions and I don't want to have to go into menus ro do that...

 

[gugarci]

SLR Gear had a lot shutter shock issues when they recently tested the Panasonic 14-140 OIS with a GX1 body.
http://slrgear.com/reviews/showproduct.php?product=1611
The issue exists but not all users experience shutter shock nor do all E-P5 user either, I've never seen this issued mentioned in any other E-P5 reviewed I've read. I'm sure tolerances in the manufacturing of bodies and lenses will make this effect worse or a non factor. Especially if you using a camera and lens combo were both are little off. Best you can is test your gear thoroughly when you first received it.

 

[drd1135]

Yes, it is true.

I wasn't questioning you.:smile: It was more an expression of surprise,

 

[pdk42]

Shutter shock on the e-p5 is a conundrum. I've tried controlled tests (using a variety of lenses) and failed to find any clear evidence; but then I'll suddenly I'll get a bunch of shots in the field that exhibit double images. This always happens at around 1/150 to 1/250s. I haven't noticed it on my e-m5. Very odd...

I have a suspicion that it's an IBIS issue rather than shutter-induced vibrations; this would explain the inconsistency perhaps.

 

[Djarum]

Which sensor is in this camera, the Sony from EM5 or the Panasonic from the EM1?

 

[mattia]

Shutter shock on the e-p5 is a conundrum. I've tried controlled tests (using a variety of lenses) and failed to find any clear evidence; but then I'll suddenly I'll get a bunch of shots in the field that exhibit double images. This always happens at around 1/150 to 1/250s. I haven't noticed it on my e-m5. Very odd...

I have a suspicion that it's an IBIS issue rather than shutter-induced vibrations; this would explain the inconsistency perhaps.

Which begs the quesiton: do you leave the IBIS on if you're shooting at those kinds of shutter speeds (assuming you're not using a telephoto lens, anyway)? I tend to turn mine off if I don't need it, particularly with wide to normal focal lengths, although I admit I occasionally forget and just shoot with it on. It's not necessary (haven't had any double image stuff happen, or at least I've never noticed it), but I figure why leave it on if I don't need to...

 

[dhazeghi]

I have a suspicion that it's an IBIS issue rather than shutter-induced vibrations; this would explain the inconsistency perhaps.

Well it does appear to happen on cameras with 5-axis IBIS (i.e. floating sensor), 2 axis IBIS (i.e. fixed sensor) and even in cameras with no IBIS (Panasonic bodies). It's possible that there are different causes giving similar results (i.e. IBIS in some cases, shutter in others), but that's certainly not the consensus.

 

[bassman]

I have the E-M1, now having sold my E-M5. So I'm a fan. I'm pretty geeky, having spent my whole professional life in IT.

So I'm not scared of manuals (which I do read) or configuration menus. But truly, the Olympus menus and restrictions on customization stink. My biggest peeve with the E-M5, and to a lessor extent with the E-M1, is that some engineer/designer apparently went out of their way to restrict which features you can put on which buttons. It would have been so much simpler to allow any programmable feature to go onto any programmable button (or dial). But no, they had to place arbitrary restrictions.

So while I've figured out most of what I want to do on the camera, it took longer than it needed. And that's not excellence in design.

I contrast that with the menu system and overall UI on the GX7. IMHO, it's far superior (let's not get into an overall comparison between the GX7 and OM-D, I'm just talking about menus, buttons and UI). I was initially excited by the superior programmability of the buttons and dials compared to the E-M5, but I found that I actually didn't need to do very much customization. Most of the standard assignments work for me. I use the soft function keys for the few features not covered, and moved both WiFi and Movie Record off of hard buttons, as I rarely use them and found myself hitting them accidentally too often. Panasonic just did a better job of meeting my needs here than Olympus has.

The E-M1 obviously has a better UI overall than the E-M5 or E-M10 - more and better placed buttons, more flexible function assignment, programmable mode dial. But the same stinkin' menu system. Including some clear errors: when you go to program the mode dial, you come in at the end of the list - the display only shows the last two positions on the dial. You have to scroll up to see all the other positions. Talk about bad menus!

That being said, these are all great cameras and exceed my needs by a meaningful margin.

 

[HarryS]

Which sensor is in this camera, the Sony from EM5 or the Panasonic from the EM1?

As I understood it, the EM1 has on chip PDAF sensors, which would be not needed on the EM10. Those PDAF sites also take up pixel space and that has to be interpolated. So I would think it uses the same sensor as the EM5, EPL5, and EPM2, but I didn't read the review which probably has the answer.

EDIT: DPR review says it inherits "the E-M5's image sensor and the E-M1's TruePic VII image processor"

 

[budeny]

Well it does appear to happen on cameras with 5-axis IBIS (i.e. floating sensor), 2 axis IBIS (i.e. fixed sensor) and even in cameras with no IBIS (Panasonic bodies)...

Then by Occam's razor that is motion blur, isn't it?

 

[dhazeghi]

Then by Occam's razor that is motion blur, isn't it?

Motion blur that's almost entirely on one axis and goes away when you use an electronic shutter?

 

[Djarum]

I find it interesting that this camera is priced lower than the E-P5. While not having every feature the E-P5 has, it has others that the E-P5 doesn't. The E-M10 is looking like a bargain.

For once, I think Oly nailed it in the value department(well, aside from the minis).