Upgrade G1 to OM-D E-M10/A6000 and keep shooting manual or keep G1 and get best μ4/3 lens?

[voltcontrol]

Hi folks,

I'm at a crossroads.

I love my G1+ manual lenses (mainly a Minolta MD 50mm 1.4)
And like the Panny 14mm.
But feel like the capabilities of the combo are somewhat limited.

Shall I:

1. Upgrade G1 to OM-D E-M10/A6000 and 'upgrade' the performance I can get out of my manuals?
Especially when I'm shooting my kids or are in a dynamic street situation, the G1/50mm can easily show their limits.
Do you think the IBIS of the Oly shall benefit me more or the fantastic tracking/focus abilities of the Sony?
I am not sure if and how the Sony's capabilites work with manuals, if someone can direct me to info about that, I'd be thankful.

or

2. Keep the G1 and get best μ4/3 lens?
So, keep using the G1 with 50mm if the situation allows it and spend on a lens/lenses.

I have a thing for WA/UWA and portrait length.
Normals don't usually take my fancy.

I am thinking about:
-Oly 9-18 since I cannot justify the cost of the Pana 7-14 to myself + Oly 60 macro (can be fantastic in normal mode too imo, but what about using it on a non-IBIS body?
(I'd get the 9-18 first)
or
-Oly 75mm 1.8. Still the best Image quality in μ4/3? Your thoughts on using it on a non-IBIS body are welcome. + just forget that other lenses exist for a while (whilst saving up)

3. If there's an obvious third or better choice to you somewhere in here, please let me know.

 

[GFFPhoto]

Nocticron has better image quality than the O75, and its also a much more versatile focal length.

 

[Ulfric M Douglas]

... or the fantastic tracking/focus abilities of the Sony?

With which large autofocus Sony lens were you expecting fantastic stuff?

 

[voltcontrol]

With which large autofocus Sony lens were you expecting fantastic stuff?

If I choose to buy a new body, I'd keep shooting manual lenses (at first). So: A6000 or E-M10 with a bunch of MD mount lenses.

I get a sense of a certain disposition towards the Sony lenses from your post btw?

 

[DennisC]

The G1 is a delight to use and handle. I rarely take it out now but Panasonic started out impressively by creating a great body allied to a great kit lens - 14-45mm.
My latest m 4/3 is the EM10 - a tiny body jammed with options including shutter shake and fitted with a miserable kit lens. It works well enough and has its place but will never be awarded favourite status in my eyes.

Personally I would consider the Sony as the IQ can be better than m4/3. Even my tiny Sony Rx100 1" sensor and Zeiss lens whips the Olympus E M10 and EZ kit lens.

 

[GFFPhoto]

I get a sense of a certain disposition towards the Sony lenses from your post btw?

Some are good, they just don't have enough. They have three a7 bodies and four lenses for that mount, and that is kind of typical for Sony. They create really innovative camera bodies, but are really really slow in making lenses. If you want an actual system with a good lens lineup, stick with m43 or Fuji.



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[Ulfric M Douglas]

I get a sense of a certain disposition towards the Sony lenses from your post btw?

or you could answer my question
"With which large autofocus Sony lens were you expecting fantastic stuff?"

For example I recently read a great thread on the A6000 tracking using an old minolta AF 200mmF2.8 with maybe LEA4 adapter ... excellent performance but a rare large lens.
Stick on the NEX kit zoom and get what?

 

[MichaelShea]

The handling of the G1 for stills photography is exceptional and you may only fully come to realise it if you replace it with something else. I own two copies of the camera, as well as other far more modern models by the likes of Olympus, Pentax and Fuji (as well as Panasonic). When it comes to legacy lenses, for me the G1 is the best bar none. The chief limitation of it is dynamic range and if that's genuinely an issue for you then by all means get rid of it altogether. The truth about legacy lenses is that none of them really function as well as digital lenses on modern cameras and I've got three pretty good Minolta MD lenses myself. I can assure you that the bigger the sensor and larger the format, the worse any given Minolta lens will look. I seriously considered buying a Sony A7 to partner my much-loved Minolta prime trio, but having tested them on a Fuji X-Pro1, the results were pretty awful.

My advice would be to keep your G1 to use with Minolta, but add a new MFT camera with a decent wide-angle when you can afford one. Either the Olympus 12-40mm or Panasonic 12-35mm, depending on the actual camera you choose. The E-M10 would in my opinion suit you well, but forget about sticking legacy lenses on it, because their flaws will simply be magnified and you might end up not liking them quite as much.

 

[ean10775]

Upgrade G1 to OM-D E-M10/A6000 and keep shooting manual or keep G1 and get be...

3. If there's an obvious third or better choice to you somewhere in here, please let me know.

I don't know that it's obvious or better, but the Sigma 60mm f2.8 DN is quite a nice lens especially when you factor in the relatively low cost (compared to the 75mm f1.8). I just picked one up to use for portraits on my E-PL1 and I've been very impressed. As a point of reference my previous portrait rig was a 5D Mark II + 85mm f1.8 and 200mm f2.8 all of which I sold as I just tired of the size/bulk of the system. Like you I'm also considering upgrading to a body with a newer sensor, but I've been quite pleased with the results even on the 12MP sensor of the E-PL1.


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[budeny]

I will agree with above - for price of 75mm you can get Oly 9-18 + Sigma 60