Having owned an E-P1 for all of one day, went into a 'well known camera shop chain' today to buy a bag to put it in. I enthused about the camera to the assistant who looked sniffy and said 'there are far better cameras for the money' and proceeded to go on about the Sony NEX series. Charming... Not that it particularly bothered me... :smile:
I was using a Nikon F at a playground and one of the other Dad's told me "Still living in the Stone Age, Huh". I looked at his DSLR and told him one big EMP and his camera was finished. He looked at mine and said- "yeah, but the electronics on yours will go out too"... He obviosly knew nothing about cameras.
No one has passed disparaging comments. Ask the shop assistant to produce some photographs that demonstrate his opinion, they should speak much louder than words. Oh and remind him that he's there to assist you, not criticise you. Barrie
well he is right... I mean who does not want less functionality, more chromatic aberration, slower, larger and more expensive lenses on top of an insanely unbalanced body? /end sarcasm
Actually I had a very similar experience while looking at lenses for my E-PL1 at a camera store. The salesperson also informed me I was looking at the wrong websites when I told him which ones I like to read
It was kind of amusing. I would have understood if he were actually trying to sell me a different camera, but given that he should have been trying to sell me accessories, perhaps enthusing about my WONDERFUL camera might have been a better course of action... It did take the wind out of his sails somewhat when I told him what I'd paid for the Pen.
not the same one as the one mentioned here https://www.mu-43.com/f42/e-p1-just-fashion-accessory-rant-3993/ by any chance?
Funnily enough, yes it was... Anyhow - for a 'fashion accessory' I'm finding the Pen doubles up as a rather good camera. That's a bonus!
Was it really? I guess it's difficult to get knowledgeable and professional salespeople there. I'm just amazed. We need to send Mr. Brian Mosely down there for a little visit.
What a wasted opportunity, it's no wonder that people have such a low opinion of sales here in the UK... they really don't have a clue Cheers Brian
Never happened to me. Our local-ish proper camera shop only has helpful or vacant staff, and most photographers I meet don't care a fig about what brand camera is used. I cannot imagine discussing my favourite websites with a salesperson : whatever that is!
Not exactly but, Back in March I went to a well known Chicago Camera store on Wabash and asked the manager about the Panasonic/Olympus "larger sensor" cameras. I wasn't buying anything that day and he knew that. It was just an information question from me. He said he decided not to carry those cameras because he felt they didn't offer enough for the money and said he would direct his customers to a regular DSLR because the sensor was even larger. He said he didn't think he could sell them to hois customers "in good conscience because you could get much better picture quality for the same or less money. John
Ahh the "J" word, a tetchy subject. Dylan Thomas said it best "Keep me off [subject] last time it cost us a plate glass window and ten pints for the Sergeant"
Unfortunately Olympus has lacked support from the retail community for a long time. That's despite Oly continuing to be an innovator. I do all my shopping online and trust my own judgement.
The topic came up because he asked how I could have ever picked the E-PL1 over a Sony NEX. I told him it was because of reviews I had read and sample images from the cameras I had seen on the internet. He asked which sites I had read to come this conclusion. I responded with a few sites (one of which was dpreview.com) and he told me "you are reading the wrong websites". He then went on a rant about how dpreview only gives good reviews to cameras with a high profit margin for amazon.com because amazon.com owns dpreview. I don't know if amazon actually owns dpreview or not and I don't care really, but there you go. I did not tell him this, but if you want the truth, I mainly used flickr to decide on the camera. After hours of looking at other peoples photos I thought the E-PL1 had better overall output.
I have recently gone through the E-PL1 vs. NEX5 debate myself. I just ordered the E-PL1. Actually I could have gotten the NEX5 with the 18-55 and 16/2.8 for less than I am going to end up paying for the E-PL1 with 14-42 and the 20/1.7 so money had absolutely nothing to do with my decision. My decision in favor of the E-PL1 was based on: * In body IS * Superior quality of MFT lenses over the Sonys * Flash hotshoe * Easier to use legacy MF lenses with the Oly * Availability of adapters for just about any lens out there * Excellent EVF available for the Oly * Better UI for changing settings (the NEX5 is supposedly a complete nightmare) Yes the NEX is a very good camera that takes great pictures for the auto mode types. But if you are one to stray from auto, the NEX is quite a handful. I feel like the MFT cameras are more for photographers whereas the NEX are more for soccer moms and those who don't want to be bothered with actually thinking about their photography.
ARGHHHHHH... Every time I make the mistake of going to a chain store (I'm looking at YOU Best Buy) I realize that I'd be better off asking photographic advice from the crazy bag lady near the highway on ramp. At the only "real" camera shop in town they are equipment agnostic and the subject never comes up. I guess that was a round about way of saying "not from anyone that matters".
I did this too. Plus I like the Olympus UI having spent the last few years with an E500. It surprises me that people have such strong opinions. I have friends with Sonys, Fujis, Pentaxs and practically everything else. They all produce excellent photos and have their own foibles. It's just personal preference at the end of the day. For me the E-P1 makes me want to hold it and take photos in a way my old film cameras do. That is all...
I couldn't agree more, in my case the Panasonic G1 and GF1, but who cares, it's the photographs that count. Barrie
This 'strong personal opinion' thing reminds me why I don't even try to follow football here in the UK. Everyone who does follow football seems to be a world class expert... it's a big turn off for anyone mildly interested to get involved... I guess there must be people out there who have abandoned the idea of photography due to coming across some bonehead trying to ' educate' them Cheers Brian
