EM-5 vs. Fuji XE-2 or XT-1?

[mbbinvt]

I've been using an EM-5 for about 2 years and am basically happy with it. Love the size, the flip down or up LCD and the choice of lenses. But I'm really bugged by the delay in the EVF. It makes it really hard to capture the decisive moment in sports or even photographing people giving talks.

That's led me to wonder whether I should opt for a Fuji x-series camera. The XT-1 looks great and the XE-2 with the new firmware looks like its EVF might basically keep pace with it. (I realize that I would need to bring along my point and shoot for the occasional good-quality HD videoing since the Fujis don't seem to match the EM-5's video quality.)

I've got an X100s and love the responsiveness (and silent shutter), so the Fujis intrigue me. (I do realize that these other X-series bodies don't have the same stealthiness.) And the X100s produces some lovely files. I really appreciate the feel of the images it produces.

So will I be happier with the responsiveness of one of the Fujis? I'm only shooting things like HS soccer from the sidelines. This isn't for work; just personal stuff. I'm just tired of not getting what I'm seeing in the viewfinder. It's the only time I miss my old Nikons DSLRs.

Thanks in advance for your insights and opinions.

 

[OzRay]

I'm a bit confused, what's the delay that you're talking about?

 

[mattia]

Viewfinder blackout. And I really doubt you'll see an improvement with the Fuji. The E-M1 is slightly better.

 

[OzRay]

I just compared my E-3 with the E-M1 and there is stuff all difference between the two, other than that the E-3 viewfinder is abysmally dim compared to the E-M1 (I had to turn the exposure compensation to -4 to emulate the E-3 viewfinder dimness).

 

[fransglans]

If u go fuji you may end up missing the ibis.fast af.small body and lenses etc...

Whats most important? Minor delay in em5 evf or minor delay in fuji af?

 

[pdk42]

I think the E-M5 isn't that far behind the state-of-the-art on EVF performance (where probably the E-M1 is king). The Fujis won't be better. If you need effectively zero lag, then you'll need an optical VF (i.e. a DSLR).

 

[Deleted member 20897]

I went through a similar process and ended up with the EM5.

The Fuji cameras are great, but the EM5 just works better for the way I shoot.

That being said....I'm not happy with the EVF in any cameras we have right now in regards to refresh or shooting sports. I always revert back to my DSLRs. I found the Fuji EVF's about the same as the Olympus ones

I blogged about it here:
http://bestlightphoto.blogspot.com/2014/03/fuji-x100s-fuji-x-t1-olympus-om-d-em-5.html

 

[yakky]

For high speed anything, a real DSLR is still king, both in viewfinder and AF performance. A smaller DSLR like a D5200 is as light as an EM-5 anyway, but the lenses are quite a bit bigger.

 

[mbbinvt]

Yeah, I suppose I could always get a bargain DSLR just for shooting sports (but that seems like a step backwards since I switched to the more compact 4/3s cameras). Or I could just do what I do now, try to shoot a moment before I think something interesting is about to happen and run off a few photos. Harder to do than it might sound.

Sounds like maybe I should stick with my kit, using the em5 for its versatility and the x100s when I'm willing to limit my options in exchange for that lovely film-like look.

Thanks for the replies!

 

[mbbinvt]

One more question. If I do break down and get a cheap DSLR for shooting sports, is there anything worthwhile out there for $400-$500 for body and tele-zoom?

 

[yakky]

You can grab a Nikon D3200 with a two lens kit and lightroom for $400 if you are patient for the deal to pop up and don't mind refurb. If you want to go cheaper, any Nikon model that has the CAM-1000 focusing module is plenty fast enough for most sports. Older models actually have focus trapping which is super cool for action, you set focus, hold shutter and the camera takes a picture when an object moves into the focus area.

Canon has some great stuff too but I'm unfamiliar with their models.

 

[OzRay]

I used to shoot pro Aussie Rules football and soccer with an E-1 in the early days, so I can't for the life of me see why you can't shoot high school football with an E-M5 and an appropriate lens. If I were you, I'd try things out first, before spending money on a second camera just for HS soccer.

 

[Deleted member 20897]

An EM5 has contrast detect AF only and compared to any DSLR out there, the tracking is pretty rubbish.

Sent from my XT1060 using Tapatalk

 

[yakky]

I used to shoot pro Aussie Rules football and soccer with an E-1 in the early days, so I can't for the life of me see why you can't shoot high school football with an E-M5 and an appropriate lens. If I were you, I'd try things out first, before spending money on a second camera just for HS soccer.

People used to travel across continents on foot. Going by plane is a lot faster these days. I wish my hit rate on my E-M5 was close to my $100 D3000.

 

[OzRay]

My understanding was that with m4/3 lenses, the contrast detect AF worked fine, at least in S-AF mode. No Olympus camera yet, has an effective C-AF mode.

 

[Deleted member 20897]

My understanding was that with m4/3 lenses, the contrast detect AF worked fine, at least in S-AF mode. No Olympus camera yet, has an effective C-AF mode.

This is my experience.

 

[OzRay]

People used to travel across continents on foot. Going by plane is a lot faster these days. I wish my hit rate on my E-M5 was close to my $100 D3000.

And look what people miss out on nowadays because of air travel, everything in-between is an unknown and the journey is so impersonal. The journey also is cramped and boring; whereas, a car, train or ocean liner journey, with stops at towns or ports along the way affords comfort, the ability to relax, do what you want, meet new people, see places that you never knew existed and so on. Airline travel is the equivalent of fast food, convenient, but crap.

 

[yekimrd]

I've owned an E-M5, X-E2 and X-T1. The EVF refresh rate in the X-E2 after firmware update is great but the upgrade is really only significantly noticeable in low light situations. The large EVF in the X-T1 is glorious (manual focusing is a joy with a smaller screen showing up with focus peaking or digital split focus) and while I haven't owned an E-M1, the X-T1 is touted as the best EVF out there.

I do miss the 5-axis IBIS and being able to handhold night shots for up to 1.6 secs. I also miss the smaller lenses. Conversely, every single Fuji lens is excellent to say the least (except maybe the 18/2). As for AF, I can't complain about it on the newest Fuji bodies. Still not as fast as Olympus but it's arguably similar in real-world situations (with the exception being the first 3 lenses with their older AF motor designs). The bodies are no different in size with the X-T1 supposedly being smaller than the E-M1 with the bulkier grip. The lenses are notably bigger but still smaller than their APS-C counterparts.

Hope this helps

 

[mbbinvt]

I just want to be clear that I don't have complaints about the EM-5's AF. My complaint is that I don't get what I see when I hit the shutter release. Not really even close. For example, during a soccer game I'll hit the shutter release just as a jumping player is about to head the ball. What I actually get is an image of the player almost back on the ground again and the ball sailing away from him. The focus is sharp, but the image is really not what I was shooting for, so to speak.

I chalk this up to the delay in the EVF. Isn't that what makes this not a WYSIWYG situation? It's frustrating that the EVF is essentially showing me the past and my camera can only shoot in the present, if you know what I mean. I just haven't learned to predict what will happen and fire the shutter before I see it happening.

 

[OzRay]

The E-M1 has a shutter delay (anti-shock), as well as a release lag time, option after pressing the shutter button, I assume the E-M5 is similar, so perhaps the delay is set for too long.