Micro four thirds

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intel86

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Thought i would start a new thread on the subject.

Father in law likes the four thirds system and has asked me what i though of it all as he knows i love photography. Yea, me!! lol

So, i told him i knew of a place with loads of helpful people. Here!

Anyway, he has seen the Panasonic range but not sure what to go for. He likes the G2 having looked at one in Jessops. Someone recommended the Olympus PEN E-PL1 to me. What would you guys suggest he looks at?

He likes to take all types of pics of his family and holiday stuff. Plus he is a keen rambler so loves the countryside too.

Not 100% sure on his budget but probably around £350 going by what he has said in the past. I know he cant afford more than that.

Any help would be great. :thumbs:
 
I've got an epl-1 and kit lens which I use as the base got my underwater kit and for this its ok, no better no worse.
Inevitably it gets used out it's housing when we're away as the cheesy night-time camera and used this way it's absolutely rubbish. There's no focus assist so it point blank refuses to focus in poor light so whilst I get round this by various techniques and knowledge of depth of field ( read improvisation and guesswork ) it's not for a casual user.
So while I can't really suggest which model to get, if it's to be used in poor light avoid the epl-1 at all costs.
 
There's a massive thread on this that's worth looking at.

I have a G1 and GF1 and they give the same IQ. and can be used up to ISO 1600 easily and 3200 with loving care. The Panny G models have an inbuilt VF and the GF series don't but you can buy an add on VF.

My only real complaint is that the lenses don't have markings and look like they're designed just for AF use and are not really manual focus friendly. Also there are no Panny fast standard zooms, just a seamingly endless stream of f3.5-5.6's.

If you can access the for sale section here you might get a bargain as there seem to have been a few listed lately.
 
First he needs to decide wether he wants/needs a viewfinder or not, this will narrow down your choices. The G2 is a good camera though.
 
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woof woof said:
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My only real complaint is that the lenses don't have markings and look like they're designed just for AF use and are not really manual focus friendly....
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Yep, this is really annoying. I use manual focus for 99.9% of my photography so this is one of the things that puts me off MFT in general.
 
boliston said:
Yep, this is really annoying. I use manual focus for 99.9% of my photography so this is one of the things that puts me off MFT in general.
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Yup. Plus the fly by wire focus system doesn't have an end stop so you can't even set infinity or just before. I gave up and now use a manual lens on my G1. It's a PITA and I wish they'd bring out some quality wide aperture lenses with markings and manual focus friendly technology. Sony seems to be going the same way with their Nex lenses.
 
Still, the G2 is a good camera? Would you say the NX10/11 are better?
 
Does he want vid?

If he doesn't want vid a G1 might suit him, cheaper than a G2.

You should look at the big Panny thread and see the IQ that people are getting.
 
Quick update. Father in law went into Jessops today to look at the G2 etc and hated it!!

Anyway, he said he liked the Nikon d3100. So, he is going to think about that one!
 
woof woof said:
Yup. Plus the fly by wire focus system doesn't have an end stop so you can't even set infinity or just before. I gave up and now use a manual lens on my G1. It's a PITA and I wish they'd bring out some quality wide aperture lenses with markings and manual focus friendly technology. Sony seems to be going the same way with their Nex lenses.
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Yep another pet hate of mine is this lack of end stop on many lenses these days including "high end" nikkors!

With an end stop I can focus without even looking at the lens dial which is very useful in low light situations when I cannot easily read the scale.

I put it down to the "dumbing down" of modern photographic equipment where the photographer wants the camera to make all the decisions. I'd like to see a return to the days when the only controls were shutter speed (a proper physical dial) and aperture (a proper physical aperture ring) and focus ring (with a proper dial with physical stop). The only problem is I cannot afford a Leica M9.
 
Hmm, yes if he wants a viewfinder the mirrorless cameras aren't really made for him. They do have EVFs on a few models but to be honest they aren't that good yet - nothing like an optical view finder anyway. That said I've got used to mine on my G3, but I think if I was going to buy again I'd look at the models with EVF and train myself to get used to composing on the LCD. You can get some really nice sized mirrorless cameras that will match a D3100 for most things. The older models really come down in price, the GF2 can be found for under £300 with a 28mm (equiv) pancake lens for example. If he's set on a larger camera for an optical viewfinder and larger grip then makes sense not to look at mirrorless systems.
 
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