Looking at buying M 4/3

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SimonUK

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Simon
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Hello all!

I'm looking at getting a M 4/3 as a smal digital kit that i can carry around, i will be shifting round my kit and stuff to do this.

I'm looking at the Olympus EP1 or Panny GF1. I also want to get a EVF and the little 20/17mm prime.

Out of those cameras which would you recommend? Or are there different cameras i should look at? Im aware that they arn't the newest, but they should still be perfectly fine :) I do however want to stick with that style body, rather than the 'Mini SLR' style.

I'm also interested in playing around with the video features in some of them, not to do anything major, but i reckon i could get some decent footage if i set them up right.

Thanks

Simon
 
Out of those 2 i would go for the GF1 with the 20.f1.7....great set up! The EVF is pretty poor but ok for composition.
 
AndyWest said:
Out of those 2 i would go for the GF1 with the 20.f1.7....great set up! The EVF is pretty poor but ok for composition.
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In what way is the EVF poor? Is it not just optical finder?
 
An EVF and an OVF are two completely different things. The OVF is just an optical viewfinder whereas an EVF is like a smaller version of what you see on rear screen.
 
It obviously depends on what your budget is, but the GF2 has been pretty cheap recently. It was only £199 on the Dixons website a couple of weeks back with the 17mm lens so there are a few of those knocking about second hand for around £150.
The 20mm lens is a great piece of kit, you're looking at around £220-250 for it, I think. I don't have one in my kit as I can't afford it at the moment, but the 17mm is a reasonable substitute for around £100.
Not sure on the EVF's though as I use a G2. I personally hate EVF's as I don't like the way they go black when the shutter closes. It makes panning really hard and it can sometimes be a bit harder to tell if the composition is in focus. An EVF is better than no VF at all though.
 
I had a GF1 but soon realised that rear screen shooting wasn't for me. I did consider getting and add on VF but decided against it as it adds bulk and makes the package bulkier than the mini DSLR type G series cameras and I was worried about robustness in pockets and bags, I thought I might snap the VF off.

So, I sadly gave it up as a bad job and went for a G series and as well as an integral EVF another big plus is the articulated screen.
 
ernesto said:
An EVF and an OVF are two completely different things. The OVF is just an optical viewfinder whereas an EVF is like a smaller version of what you see on rear screen.
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Exactly, and the GF-1 one is so low res that it's just a complete waste of time. The only thing I'd consider is a cheap 35mm OVF, which would be "near enough" for use with the 20mm lens.
 
Flash In The Pan said:
Exactly, and the GF-1 one is so low res that it's just a complete waste of time. The only thing I'd consider is a cheap 35mm OVF, which would be "near enough" for use with the 20mm lens.
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The Olympus VF1 is an optical one though i think. So i guess i could get that and put it on the hot shoe instead? its built for the 17mm so it would be close enough..

Simon
 
They do 2 viewfinders for the olympus. There is the evf and they do a 17mm optical finder for there 17mm pancake.
 
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