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

Very concise and pithy comments, backed up by your shots.(y)
I was interested to see the last comment re the distance to the subject, something that I have often wondered about when seeing shots.
I tend to tell it as it is , I was definetly sat on the fence with this one thinking why am I spending good money to buy what I already have , but I went ahead and really glad I did .... luckily I have the experience of using a long lens already . New adopters might take a bit of a easing in period especially if using the tc with it .but rest assured the u.tube reviewers were for once being totally truthfull . And tbh I need a period of bad weather to catch up on p.p
 
another surprise shot from the weekends stash a black tailed ? godwit in flight , normally see godwits on the ground feeding so nice to catch one in flight
flight of the godwit copy by jeff and jan cohen, on Flickr
 
OK so I've got my EM1 2 and I've decided on the Oly lens. Now does anybody know where I can buy a steady hand and a keen eye?
You won’t need it with that lens point in the general direction of a bird and it just locks on . For info I’m nearly 75 with a dodgy ticker if I can do it anyone can
 
You won’t need it with that lens point in the general direction of a bird and it just locks on . For info I’m nearly 75 with a dodgy ticker if I can do it anyone can
Thats the easy bit, finding the lens in stock...now thats a whole new ball game.
 
Don’t know if anyone has noticed, but with the Photography Show on at the moment you can get an E-M1ii with 12-45mm for £1299 from Wex (£400 off), plus you can claim the f/1.2 lens. Code is TPSOLY400

_8110423-Edit.jpg
 
I only have one criticism of my new Olympus 100-400mm and that is I wish that the zoom ring would hurry up and bed in its weather sealing so it moves a little more freely like my ED 40-150mm Pro does.

I'm thinking of having it in my lap while I watch TV and to keep twisting the zoom!

I did a fast road trip to Cornwall yesterday for a dawn-til-dusk day with surfer friends. Nothing not to like about the optical performance of this lens.

ADRENALIN RUSH!! by Robin Procter, on Flickr

Data on Flickr.
I thought this might be Fistral beach but I don't remember the ends of the beach.. is it Fistral?
 
not a easy shot and one that makes me realise how good this lens is ,a curlew and a whimbrel in flight together but at either side of the frame and both in good focus .hence the pano crop. thats parkgate in the distance other side of the estuary
birds of a feather by jeff and jan cohen, on Flickr
 
not a easy shot and one that makes me realise how good this lens is ,a curlew and a whimbrel in flight together but at either side of the frame and both in good focus .hence the pano crop. thats parkgate in the distance other side of the estuary
birds of a feather by jeff and jan cohen, on Flickr
That’s great. What’s your technique for these - do you set a wide-area AF group and have it on CAF to track the birds?
 
That’s great. What’s your technique for these - do you set a wide-area AF group and have it on CAF to track the birds?
c.a.f and probably all focus points live . but been trying out various combos all weekend ,basically its like a different camera with this lens like it knows what you want before you do .the A/F has a life of its own . not had a lens like this since the old canon 400mm f5.6 on a 1D body
 
another shot from the week end ,redshank landing on the last available bit of land as the tide rises. Olympus 100-400 + 1.4 tc hand held
the descent by jeff and jan cohen, on Flickr
 
Last edited:
another shot from the week end ,redshank landing on the last available bit of land as the tide rises. Olympus 100-400 + 1.4 tc hand held
the descent by jeff and jan cohen, on Flickr

Jeff,
Ever since you've had the lens you've been shooting in good light conditions. The lens is slower than the PL 100-400, so come winter you are going to be shooting at higher ISO - how do you feel its going to cope?
 
Jeff,
Ever since you've had the lens you've been shooting in good light conditions. The lens is slower than the PL 100-400, so come winter you are going to be shooting at higher ISO - how do you feel its going to cope?
the 64000 dollar question ,Malcolm in all honesty I dont know ,but it seems to handle lower shutter speeds reasonably well I suppose its finding that critical lowest useable shutter speed . it'd definetly not going to be any worse than the PL and I got through last winter o.k with that , and my gut feeling is it will in use cope far far better due to the firmware updates on the camera and the added pitch and yaw i.s .. some of my shots have been in the local woodland reserve and it performed o.k there .

the main thing I need to find out is how it will perform on the local owls when you have to shoot into a low setting winter sun .

on the very big plus side is the fact that you get sharp shots with it wide open ,whereas the PL to get sharp shots needed stopping down to f7.1 or f 8 so theres a extra stop already . till I try in a real life situation I cant comment further
 
the 64000 dollar question ,Malcolm in all honesty I dont know ,but it seems to handle lower shutter speeds reasonably well I suppose its finding that critical lowest useable shutter speed . it'd definetly not going to be any worse than the PL and I got through last winter o.k with that , and my gut feeling is it will in use cope far far better due to the firmware updates on the camera and the added pitch and yaw i.s .. some of my shots have been in the local woodland reserve and it performed o.k there .

the main thing I need to find out is how it will perform on the local owls when you have to shoot into a low setting winter sun .

on the very big plus side is the fact that you get sharp shots with it wide open ,whereas the PL to get sharp shots needed stopping down to f7.1 or f 8 so theres a extra stop already . till I try in a real life situation I cant comment further

Sensible reasoning, Jeff.
I've got one on order anyway. I've had a brief affair with the Sony mirrorless system, but now putting all my eggs back into the Olympus basket
 
managed this on jan1st with the P/L lens I really cant see the new olympus being any worse . thats a 100% certainty
the pose by jeff and jan cohen, on Flickr
 
Hi Jeff @the black fox

I know you are on this other forum too...............someone expressed concern about the 100-400mm having a loose fit 'issue'


Perhaps your insight will calm his nerves? :)
 
Hi Jeff @the black fox

I know you are on this other forum too...............someone expressed concern about the 100-400mm having a loose fit 'issue'


Perhaps your insight will calm his nerves? :)
already done :runaway: :runaway: :runaway: :runaway:
 
I thought this might be Fistral beach but I don't remember the ends of the beach.. is it Fistral?

.... It's a spot which local surfers have asked me to keep hush about.

Do you surf?
 
Jeff,
Ever since you've had the lens you've been shooting in good light conditions. The lens is slower than the PL 100-400, so come winter you are going to be shooting at higher ISO - how do you feel its going to cope?

.... I realise you are asking Jeff but if you look at my shots posted earlier of Greenfinches in my wildlife garden you'll see that they were shot very early in the morning in low light and also with the 1.4x mounted.

I don't think that the Olympus 100-400mm performance in low light is going to be made to look shabby by the PL equivalent just because of the widest aperture F/stop, especially if you shoot RAW.

Low light performance comparisons depend on a number of factors which you have some control over not just ISO. It depends on the target subject too. Sure, there will be limitations but I doubt very much to be such as to make the PL a better buy than the Olympus 100-400mm.

I think it's Robin Wong who has published a good comparison between these two lenses on YouTube.
 
Last edited:
.... It's a spot which local surfers have asked me to keep hush about.

Do you surf?
No... but I do like to shoot the kite surfers, surfers and wind surfers when we are at the coast. Got my best surfers at Fistral.
 
HEADS-UP TO ALL OLYMPUS 100-400mm USERS :

After noticing a very very minor amount of movement between body and lens in the rotary plane (same plane as the focus/zoom rings) when mounted, I have been in contact with Olympus UK who have informed me that lots of users had already raised the same question.

Consequently this was all fed back to Olympus HQ in Japan and after they investigated it further, Japan came back with strong reassurances that there was absolutely no detrimental effect to either the captured image or the weather sealing. It's just a minor aspect of this lens' design. At my request my phone conversations with them have been recorded.

I have also been assured that any stiffness in the zoom ring action is due to the weather sealing and will gradually ease through use as the seal beds in. As I recall, the same occurred with my ED 40-150mm Pro lens. It will always remain firm rather than loose but just easier to change zoom.
 
No... but I do like to shoot the kite surfers, surfers and wind surfers when we are at the coast. Got my best surfers at Fistral.

.... Do you have a Flickr or similar page with your surfer images please? I am always curious to see other photographers shots of surfers.
 
Last edited:
had the chance to try out the close focus ability with the 1.4 tc fitted today , ,this photo has been turned 45 degrees there actually on a wall and I was hanging over a fence above a lake taking them . but the sheer amount of fine detail gathered has blown me away . olympus only made one mistake in my books releasing the lens to late in the u.k season.
judge for yourselves
last dance of the summer by jeff and jan cohen, on Flickr
 
No, I don't ... but my two favourites are on this gallery page from a couple of years ago. http://www.beaconcameraclub.co.uk/phpBB3/gallery/album.php?album_id=223. Hope you like them. Same guy; he was the best on the beach that day.

.... Oooh! Both very nice indeed! Great shots and so very crisp. Hats off to you! These are images I would aspire to.

It does take a very good surfer to offer the best photo opportunities. The Ripping second image is my favourite of the two.
 
Last edited:
had the chance to try out the close focus ability with the 1.4 tc fitted today , ,this photo has been turned 45 degrees there actually on a wall and I was hanging over a fence above a lake taking them . but the sheer amount of fine detail gathered has blown me away . olympus only made one mistake in my books releasing the lens to late in the u.k season.
judge for yourselves
last dance of the summer by jeff and jan cohen, on Flickr

.... Great shot and detail as ever Jeff!

However, at the risk of you telling me to sod off (or similar) in a friendly way, you should have presented it either 90 degrees so they are vertical. This is because the female is not supporting herself in this orientation as if on the ground. This pair is hanging.

I think you know that I may be described (among other things!) as an expert on dragonflies as I have created and admin a group with over 7,500 members 'UK Dragonflies & Damselflies'.

They are a pair of Common Darters ( Sympetrum striolatum ).
 
aaah but these are welsh dragons robin :wave: :wave: :wave: :wave:
 
Finally some pics from my trip to the Isle of White last week, where I got to use the Oly 100-400 in the real world, aside from the garden aha!

All @ 400mm but using different apertures, speeds etc as was testing different things out. All were also lightly processed in Lr & run through Topaz DeNoise. Hope you like...

P9170371-Edit by Joe Booth, on Flickr

P9170372-DeNoiseAI-denoise by Joe Booth, on Flickr

P9170392-DeNoiseAI-denoise by Joe Booth, on Flickr

P9170360-DeNoiseAI-denoise by Joe Booth, on Flickr

P9170356-DeNoiseAI-denoise by Joe Booth, on Flickr

P9170345-DeNoiseAI-denoise by Joe Booth, on Flickr

P9170394-DeNoiseAI-denoise by Joe Booth, on Flickr
 
Nothing wrong with any of them joe
 
Hi I am considering moving from Nikon set up to Olympus, I mainly shooting wildlife. After watching Andy Rouse at the photography show then looking at the fantastic images on this forum my interest has progressed. Hopefully someone can answer some of my questions/concerns as I know nothing about Olympus cameras and lenses. My nikon gear is D500 with the 200-500 which is fairly weighty to walk long distances with so the lighter Olympus appeals.

1 Should I be worried about Olympus selling its photography side of the business ?
2 Cameras I have been looking at are the OM-D E-M1 MarkII , Mark III and the M1X. What are the pros and cons?
3 The lens I think would be the new Olympus 100-400 F5.6-6.3 IS. It looks like it takes the 1.4 teleconverter ok, does anybody use the lens with the x2 ? Recommendation for a landscape/general travel lens would be appreciated.

Many Thanks Chris
 
Hi I am considering moving from Nikon set up to Olympus, I mainly shooting wildlife. After watching Andy Rouse at the photography show then looking at the fantastic images on this forum my interest has progressed. Hopefully someone can answer some of my questions/concerns as I know nothing about Olympus cameras and lenses. My nikon gear is D500 with the 200-500 which is fairly weighty to walk long distances with so the lighter Olympus appeals.

1 Should I be worried about Olympus selling its photography side of the business ?

2 Cameras I have been looking at are the OM-D E-M1 MarkII , Mark III and the M1X. What are the pros and cons?

3 The lens I think would be the new Olympus 100-400 F5.6-6.3 IS. It looks like it takes the 1.4 teleconverter ok, does anybody use the lens with the x2 ? Recommendation for a landscape/general travel lens would be appreciated.

Many Thanks Chris

Morning Chris,

1) I personally would not be worried at all about selling, in a recent interview with the buyers they have said that they re committed to the brand & keeping Micro 4/3 camera on the high street as it were :)

2) I can only speak for the EM 1 Mk3, which personally I thing is excellent! it works fine for wildlife photograph, birds and all & for me personally the MX is just a bit too big and cumbersome but I’m just a fairly newbie hobbiest so for some the Mx may suit, but as far as I know the spec difference between the MK3 & the MX is minimal apart from the extra size & battery...

3) Again I can on,y talk for myself but the Oly 100-400 is brilliant & works really well with the 1.4 tele... I personally haven’t had hands on experience with the 2x but, again personally I find the 1.4 plenty as even without the converter your getting 200-800 effective focal range!

General/travel I use the 12-40 pro lens which is also very good quality, build and sharp & compliments the Mk3 well.

Hope this helps,
Joe :)
 
Last edited:
The 12-100 zoom is very well-thought of as an all-purpose zoom but I have found that on certain types of subject matter - for example distant tree foliage and grassland - it produces "clumpy" detail when sharpened and subject to noise reduction. I'm sticking with it for now but in my opinion your technique needs to be absolutely spot-on for the best results. (It could be my particular lens or technique, of course.....)
 
Hi I am considering moving from Nikon set up to Olympus, I mainly shooting wildlife. After watching Andy Rouse at the photography show then looking at the fantastic images on this forum my interest has progressed. Hopefully someone can answer some of my questions/concerns as I know nothing about Olympus cameras and lenses. My nikon gear is D500 with the 200-500 which is fairly weighty to walk long distances with so the lighter Olympus appeals.

1 Should I be worried about Olympus selling its photography side of the business ?
2 Cameras I have been looking at are the OM-D E-M1 MarkII , Mark III and the M1X. What are the pros and cons?
3 The lens I think would be the new Olympus 100-400 F5.6-6.3 IS. It looks like it takes the 1.4 teleconverter ok, does anybody use the lens with the x2 ? Recommendation for a landscape/general travel lens would be appreciated.

Many Thanks Chris

Consider keeping the D500 and getting the Nikon 300pf lens.
 
Hi I am considering moving from Nikon set up to Olympus, I mainly shooting wildlife. After watching Andy Rouse at the photography show then looking at the fantastic images on this forum my interest has progressed. Hopefully someone can answer some of my questions/concerns as I know nothing about Olympus cameras and lenses. My nikon gear is D500 with the 200-500 which is fairly weighty to walk long distances with so the lighter Olympus appeals.

1 Should I be worried about Olympus selling its photography side of the business ?
2 Cameras I have been looking at are the OM-D E-M1 MarkII , Mark III and the M1X. What are the pros and cons?
3 The lens I think would be the new Olympus 100-400 F5.6-6.3 IS. It looks like it takes the 1.4 teleconverter ok, does anybody use the lens with the x2 ? Recommendation for a landscape/general travel lens would be appreciated.

Many Thanks Chris

Hi Chris

1 Should I be worried about Olympus selling its photography side of the business ? No as many users think Olympus will continue all be it under new ownership
2 Cameras I have been looking at are the OM-D E-M1 MarkII , Mark III and the M1X. What are the pros and cons? Each of the bodies has benefits some features maybe more benefit Olympus do a lot of work on firmware updates during the life cycle of the camera bodies adding features here's a link to Peter Forsgard an Olympus visionary who post weekly topics on all things Olympus
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nYMXkgFAEY


3 The lens I think would be the new Olympus 100-400 F5.6-6.3 IS. It looks like it takes the 1.4 teleconverter ok, does anybody use the lens with the x2 ? Recommendation for a landscape/general travel lens would be appreciated. Lots of views on new Olympus 100-400 but not many users have posted anything with regard to using the 2x TC. As to a landscape travel lens some recommend the 12-40-12-45-12-100 I have the 12-100 and have happy with the quality and find it wide enough for landscape plus the effective zoom range of 200 based on FF

I have been very impressed with diminutive size and the range of features on the camera. The menus are initially confusing but once you spend time reading and you tubing the menus become less confusing. As you may of read 4/3 sensors get bashed a bit by other camera users one bit of software which creates a more level playing field regarding the FF sensor performance in terms of high ISO performance vs 4/3 sensor is Topaz denoise which works really well.

The range of lenses is really good particular the pro lenses which have a really good build quality. One of the best features is the weatherproofing of both body and lens having IPX rated weatherproofing I have been out in a few wet days and the camera has performed fine.
 
right from the weight p.o.v it would be a good move the 1-mkiii being the newest and probably best choice . but the mkii is still good with some killer deals on at the moment .. the 100-400 lens is in short supply worldwide at the moment so you might not get one this side of xmas ,it really is a stunning lens and as you surmised takes both t.c's .
you still have the slightly smaller sensor to overcome but as a lot of us have found topaz de-noise AI overcomes noise easily ..
I weighed mine last night and 1-mkii plus zuiko 100-400 comes in at 2kg add a couple of ounces to that for a t.c .. the olympus i.s system leaves any others I have ever used standing and I can state that in a year of ownership I have never yet had to use my tripod and gimbal , b.i.f is no problem with fast a.f and good lock on .. the menu system initially seems alien but offers far my choices than any Competion and you soon get used to it

olympus have stated they fully intend to carry on .the Portugal repair facility are still up and running and offer a quicker turnaround than sending anything to a u.k repair centre

and at the end of the day the results are what counts so choose a body and a lens then do a online search for photos ..

and BTW dont get bogged down by online fanboy quotes from other brands if you read the photographic ALL companies are in trouble due to the rise of phones and now covid
 
Back
Top