New to m4/3's...recommendations for travel camera, please?

E-PM1 will be one of the smallest bodies you can get. If you're shooting for a budget, I'd say stick with the kit lens (14-42mm). It won't fit in a pant's pocket, but it'll be a pretty small and light kit.

For low light, and on a budget, I'd say either the Panasonic 14mm f/2.5, or the Olympus 17mm f/2.8. Both are small lenses, and might give you that "pocketable" camera. Also, you can have either of those lenses for ~$150 used.

 

For price, it's going to be tough to beat the E-PL1. You can pair it with a Panasonic 14mm f/2.5 lens for around $300. You'll have a small camera, but it's really more "jacket-pocket pocketable", and I doubt you're going to be wanting to wear a jacket in the summer in D.C. Even the E-PM1 with a pancake lens is not going to be something I would want to try to shove into a pants pocket.

You'll also be limited in what you can do with only the wide-angle prime lens. If you expect to capture anything on the field at the baseball game you'll need to have some something like the Olympus 40-150 or Panasonic 45-200 neither of which will be pocketable in any real sense.

In short, as much as it pains me to steer you away from :43: (which I feel occupies a true "sweet spot" of size and performance), if you really can't be burdened with a bag or even a neck strap and want to shoot such a wide range of situations, you'll probably be happier with a point-and-shoot "compact travel zoom" (something like the Panasonic ZS20 or the Canon SX260. You'll sacrifice image quality and low-light performance with the P&S, but they're really the only option if you expect to have a long zoom in a pocketable form factor.

 

I'd recommend testing the camera and lens in your pockets before buying. Friction can roll a body cap off. Lenses don't come off as easily.

 

Bill, that sounds like a great combo. Just got the 9-18; will try pairing it up with E-PM1. Thanks!

 

The Olympus 14-42 is collapsible and folds down to be only a little thicker than one of the primes, so it would be a good candidate for your use. $100 isn't an incredible deal on that lens, so I wouldn't let that "bargain" skew my decision. While it might fit your needs at the monuments and museums, I think you'll find that the zoom is a little short for trying to capture much on the field action at the ballgame (unless you happen to have very good seats).

As for removing the lens from the camera for transport, that seems to me like much more hassle than it's worth. I think if I was committed to a :43: system and needed to "pocket" it, I'd probably opt to wear something with very large pockets (e.g. cargo shorts or pants) that could accommodate the camera and a pancake lens together. The idea of disassembling and reassembling my kit several times a day just doesn't sound appealing to me. Not to mention that you tempt the possibility of introducing dust/dirt to the interior of the camera and the sensor each time.

 

I'd definitely recommend a wrist strap if you don't want to use a neck strap

That definitely does make a difference as that version is better and more valuable than the first version (which makes more noise while focusing and zooming). $100 is in the range of what that lens should be worth, it's just not the type of screaming bargain that you need to rush out to grab.

If you need a body as well, then your best deal is generally going to be buying a kit. Cameta Camera has the E-PL1+14-42 kit for $240 and the E-PM1+14-42 kit for $300. As far as buying used take a look at the Buy & Sell forum here or try Craigslist or eBay (though true bargains on either site can be hard to come by).

 

Well, they wouldn't fit in my pockets. A small bag bag slung diagonally across your body is pretty comfortable and secure. I know I'd find it a lot more comfortable than any thing bigger than a phone stuffed in my pants.

Fred

 

Fred, I'm with you. The only truly pocketable serious compact I've owned is the Canon S-90 - and I kept that in a small Olympus neoprene sport case on my belt. Pockets are for keys, combs, change...but not expensive cameras!

 

I'm not sure which Nikon you have or what you generally use it for, but if you consider it too big to take on vacation, then you might want to think about trading it for a :43: system. As has often been said, the best camera is the one you have with you.

While a :43: system may not allow you to forgo a bag altogether (particularly in the summer when you are unlikely to have pockets large enough to accommodate it), it's certainly smaller and lighter than a DSLR. I think you will find the results you can achieve with :43: are comparable to what you can get with a DSLR with the exception of a few scenarios (fast action/sports, extremely shallow DOF, etc.).