Olympus OM-D E-M5, E-M1, E-M10 - Mk1, Mk2 & Mk3 Owners Thread

Ajf350d said:
Woohoo.
Finally get to post in this thread :D
Got my bonus at work so splashed out and upgraded my E-PL7.
It's not new but hardly has a mark. Bought from MPB and their service was good so hopefully won't regret it!
Already had the lens, but bought the additional grip(s) as an addon.

A lot of features to go through!
Compared to the E-PL7 it feels so much more solid and I love the standard quietness of the shutter.

Couple of questions, how do people use the focus bracketing option and what stacking software?
I tried Helicon, but it doesn't seem to like native Olympus RAW which makes it a faff converting to DNG in Lightroom first.
Any easier routes available?

Secondly, found a few 'experts' guides on Amazon for this body.
Are they worth it, any really useful tweaks or info that you would not otherwise know about?

Olympus OM-D E-M5 II by -ajf.350d-
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Nice work!

When I bought my EM5ii I was pretty bewildered by all the menu options but determined to get it all working how I wanted it. Pondered buying a book or two (though can't remember there being any decent ones at the time) but in the end I just watched several youtube tutorials on it. There are plenty of useful ones on there.

Afraid I can't answer the focus stacking question, still not used it.
 
gad-westy said:
Nice work!

When I bought my EM5ii I was pretty bewildered by all the menu options but determined to get it all working how I wanted it. Pondered buying a book or two (though can't remember there being any decent ones at the time) but in the end I just watched several youtube tutorials on it. There are plenty of useful ones on there.

Afraid I can't answer the focus stacking question, still not used it.
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Thanks for thr Youtube links. I shall spend some time watching them. Spent all weekend fiddling :)
Really loving the focus stacking option though, even if it does require a middle conversion to DNG first for Helicon.
I take lots of flower photos so really suits this.
One thing I found with this though, the slightest breeze shows up!

Had a go with the Hi Res mode, but not convinced I could see much difference in Lightroom between this and normal mode... maybe more testing needed.

Also finally found out how to turn off the instant sleep. Every time I looked way from the EVF for a few seconds it went to sleep.


Oh, and re thr above post, what is Livecomp then?! :p
 
dcash29 said:
Is there a live histogram when using Livecomp remotely?
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Edit misread the original post.
Not sure I have not used live composite mode.
 
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Ajf350d said:
Thanks for thr Youtube links. I shall spend some time watching them. Spent all weekend fiddling :)
Really loving the focus stacking option though, even if it does require a middle conversion to DNG first for Helicon.
I take lots of flower photos so really suits this.
One thing I found with this though, the slightest breeze shows up!

Had a go with the Hi Res mode, but not convinced I could see much difference in Lightroom between this and normal mode... maybe more testing needed.

Also finally found out how to turn off the instant sleep. Every time I looked way from the EVF for a few seconds it went to sleep.

Oh, and re thr above post, what is Livecomp then?! :p
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Olympus have two live bulb modes. Live comp is brilliant for anything with light rails etc.. Basically it works like this, you take a normal exposure, say 5 seconds and the camera records that exposure as normal. But it then keeps the shutter open for as long as you like but only changes the image if any pixel record brighter values than those recorded in the first instance. So if you image a dark scene with traffic moving. You record your 5 second exposure, and there'll be a bit of light trailing but then you could leave the sensor 'observing' the same scene for another 10 minutes so you record every light that passes through in that time without over exposing,

This was an example I posted a couple of pages back. It's a 5 second base exposure but with the live composite active for at least 2 minutes in total. Clever stuff.

Rush Hour.jpg by G.A.D, on Flickr


Live bulb is pretty cool too. This is when the camera will flash up a preview image during long exposures at pre defined intervals, say every 10 seconds. You can then simply stop the exposure when you're happy with the preview.
 
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Looks like Brexit has had an effect on Olympus lens prices. 17mm f1.8 which has been £349 new for a while, is now £429.99 at Jessops, £449 at WEX and Harrisons. 9-18mm which has was £362 for some time has now gone to £549. Similar increases on other lenses. Some dealers are still showing pre-increase prices; http://www.camerapricebuster.co.uk/Olympus/Olympus-Micro-43-System-Lenses.

Typical that I've just sold both my 'standard' lenses and have been pratting about for a month or so wondering whether to replace with primes or 12-40mm f2.8. Can't jump in yet until pay day!

I wonder if it will affect second-hand prices soon. MPB stock of Olympus lenses changes really rapidly at the moment.
 
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I got a bargain 9-18 at just over £200 used then :)

MPB are usually accurate with their descriptions so if you can find a good used one, it may be worth it
 
Cloudforest said:
Looks like Brexit has had an effect on Olympus lens prices.
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Or just jumping on the bandwagon. We had a quote for some high end network kit done before Brexit, about £12k's worth. Supplier said we had better order it quick because it was likely to go up in price, which we were not ready to do.

Post Brexit quote was only £200 more.
 
Cloudforest said:
Looks like Brexit has had an effect on Olympus lens prices. 17mm f1.8 which has been £349 new for a while, is now £429.99 at Jessops, £449 at WEX and Harrisons. 9-18mm which has was £362 for some time has now gone to £549. Similar increases on other lenses. Some dealers are still showing pre-increase prices; http://www.camerapricebuster.co.uk/Olympus/Olympus-Micro-43-System-Lenses.

Typical that I've just sold both my 'standard' lenses and have been pratting about for a month or so wondering whether to replace with primes or 12-40mm f2.8. Can't jump in yet until pay day!

I wonder if it will affect second-hand prices soon. MPB stock of Olympus lenses changes really rapidly at the moment.
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Pete, where are you gathering you information? An Olympus 17mm f1.8 is still available for £349 and an Olympus 9-18 is still available for £362
 
gad-westy said:
Olympus have two live bulb modes. Live comp is brilliant for anything with light rails etc.. Basically it works like this, you take a normal exposure, say 5 seconds and the camera records that exposure as normal. But it then keeps the shutter open for as long as you like but only changes the image if any pixel record brighter values than those recorded in the first instance. So if you image a dark scene with traffic moving. You record your 5 second exposure, and there'll be a bit of light trailing but then you could leave the sensor 'observing' the same scene for another 10 minutes so you record every light that passes through in that time without over exposing,

This was an example I posted a couple of pages back. It's a 5 second base exposure but with the live composite active for at least 2 minutes in total. Clever stuff.

Rush Hour.jpg by G.A.D, on Flickr


Live bulb is pretty cool too. This is when the camera will flash up a preview image during long exposures at pre defined intervals, say every 10 seconds. You can then simply stop the exposure when you're happy with the preview.
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Fantastic shot.......love it!
JohnyT
 
dcash29 said:
Pete, where are you gathering you information? An Olympus 17mm f1.8 is still available for £349 and an Olympus 9-18 is still available for £362
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Some of the web sites are showing those prices but others like WEX, Jessops, Park Cameras and such have increased theirs in the last day or so.
 
I came close to buying a s/h 17mm from MPB last week but by the time l'd thought about it, it had gone.
 
thanks Graham - am in need of inspiration really as i'm just taking snapshots with little attention to what i'm doing :snaphappy:
 
gad-westy said:
Great results there Richard. First one in particular has real atmosphere.
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Thanks Graham.
I found I likes the shots from closer with the 25mm more - but that's not surprising because live shots from down the front are always better!
 
I need help. I've got a lens decision problem.
I do a lot of street photography with my OMD and the 75mm lens but sometimes I can't get far enough away from my subject so that they are unaware of my presence. Then I have to ask of it's OK and the spontaneity disappears.
I was thinking of buying a longer lens either the75-300mm f/4.8-6.7 or the more expensive and wallet wrecking M40-150 f/2.8.
Anyone have any advice please
 
Jeff Edington said:
I need help. I've got a lens decision problem.
I do a lot of street photography with my OMD and the 75mm lens but sometimes I can't get far enough away from my subject so that they are unaware of my presence. Then I have to ask of it's OK and the spontaneity disappears.
I was thinking of buying a longer lens either the75-300mm f/4.8-6.7 or the more expensive and wallet wrecking M40-150 f/2.8.
Anyone have any advice please
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How will your shots look if you need to ramp up iso to cope with the small aperture of the 75-300? On FF it wouldn't be a problem, but M43 doesn't seem to cope well in that scenario.
 
The 40-150 f/2.8 is a fantastic piece of glass, I would go that route and lose the hood so it looks a little less intimidating (in the street).
 
I used to have the 40-150 2.8 and now have the 75-300. The 40-150 is a fine lens. It really does ooze quality and not just in terms of IQ but just general build and user experience too. But it is big. Compared to a 70-200 on full frame it's pretty small but when attached to my EM5ii it felt quite clumsy to me. I can't imagine doing street type stuff with it.

The 75-300 is nice enough but doesn't necessarily have any wow factor other than the extreme range. It's a little slow to focus sometimes and a little on the slow side aperture wise too.

Have you considered also the boggo 40-150 lens? It's very plasticky but works nicely and a little more subtle than the other options.
 
Thanks Toni
it's a concern. I shoot in daylight but I reckon I will have to go to 1600 ISO at least which I haven't done before
Greytop said:
The 40-150 f/2.8 is a fantastic piece of glass, I would go that route and lose the hood so it looks a little less intimidating (in the street).
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Thanks Huw You're right about the hood drawing attention. Maybe that's the solution. Does the lens feel heavy on the camera? Mine's an EM1
 
Don't you think all the above lenses are to long for street work, I did quite a bit of street photography and only ever used 3 cameras all with the same focal length 35mm the X100, X100S & X100T. If I was to use my Olympus for street my 1st choice would be the 17mm f/1.8
 
Billy said:
Don't you think all the above lenses are to long for street work, I did quite a bit of street photography and only ever used 3 cameras all with the same focal length 35mm the X100, X100S & X100T. If I was to use my Olympus for street my 1st choice would be the 17mm f/1.8
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Thanks Billy. I just can't get in tight enough for my style of photography with these
 
I have a 75-300mm and I only tried it last weekend I wasn't impressed with the results but I think I was treating it all wrong as I was shooting at 300mm (600mm FX) hand held with low ISO, I need to go out and use it as I would a 600mm lens and hopefully my images won't just end up in the recycle bin.
 
Billy said:
I have a 75-300mm and I only tried it last weekend I wasn't impressed with the results but I think I was treating it all wrong as I was shooting at 300mm (600mm FX) hand held with low ISO, I need to go out and use it as I would a 600mm lens and hopefully my images won't just end up in the recycle bin.
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Thanks. Please let me know how you get on. I don't think I will need the full 300mm. About 150 should be good enough. Hand held is essential for me though so based on what you and others have said I have 2 limitations, ISO and hand held stability even with image stabiliser
 
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Jeff Edington said:
This is good advice. Thanks. Removing the tripod mount and replacing it with the protector makes sense.
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I was in Park cameras yesterday and discovered Olympus has a test Drive programme with selected stockists that enables potential buyers to test drive a lens for 2 or 3 days. That is what I am going to do starting with the 40-150.
By the way I notice that you have two Olympus bodies. If you don't mind me asking, what do you use them for and how do they compare?
 
Jeff Edington said:
This is good advice. Thanks. Removing the tripod mount and replacing it with the protector makes sense.
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HuwI screwed this up and sent it to myself when I meant it for you( I'm a beginner here). I'm posting it again.

I was in Park cameras yesterday and discovered Olympus has a test Drive programme with selected stockists that enables potential buyers to test drive a lens for 2 or 3 days. That is what I am going to do starting with the 40-150.
By the way I notice that you have two Olympus bodies. If you don't mind me asking, what do you use them for and how do they compare?
 
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