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

Been seeing reports on the interwebby thing that the latest updates on the EM1X. Are tending to drain the batteries quickly . Any users noticed this at all ?
 
Just a heads up ,although Efinity show the EM1X in stock there not in stock I ask when my order would be sent out apparently the 1 they had for me has a fault ( don't know how they know that ) so it would be a few weeks or a refund

I went for the refund and found another one a little dearer but in stock .

Rob.
 
I think others with the M1X and the firmware v2.0..................Bird AF AI reported that it will also detect other creatures (the others Airplane etc also can 'see' other subjects) but of note this post here at DPReview E-M1X FW2.0 BIF first impressions - it makes me look good!: Micro Four Thirds Talk Forum: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com) mentions it locking onto windsurfers ( @Lez325 ~ something to try next time in Cornwall ???)

FWIW having sold my unused Canon gear and the mk2 I am now awaiting the delivery of the M1X ordered at the Olympus webshop :D
 
the black fox said:
Been seeing reports on the interwebby thing that the latest updates on the EM1X. Are tending to drain the batteries quickly . Any users noticed this at all ?
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.... Yes, I reported my direct experience of battery thirstiness here a couple of pages back.

I continue to experience it but it's really not much of problem because the M1X has 2 batteries in its chamber and I carry 4 more - 2 spare and 2 in my second M1X body.

This was when I was using the Bird D&T option nearly all the time but I find that although it works extremely well on birds in flight it is often unreliable in the real world of branches when perched. If a twig in the foreground is out of the focus field it still gets picked up and interferes. That's why being able to instantly switch between S-AF and C-AF[TR] using the #1/2 Fn-Lever adjacent to the Back Button Focus is so valuable.
 
Box Brownie said:
I think others with the M1X and the firmware v2.0..................Bird AF AI reported that it will also detect other creatures (the others Airplane etc also can 'see' other subjects) but of note this post here at DPReview E-M1X FW2.0 BIF first impressions - it makes me look good!: Micro Four Thirds Talk Forum: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com) mentions it locking onto windsurfers ( @Lez325 ~ something to try next time in Cornwall ???)
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.... I have been using AF Airplane AI on surfers in Dorset, Devon and Cornwall for a while now but not since updating to Firmware v2.0 so I can then try the AF Bird AI. Am waiting for the shout that Surf's Up from the guys I know but no swell at the moment.

Bude MilesLH_M1X4354.jpg
 
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RedRobin said:
.... Yes, I reported my direct experience of battery thirstiness here a couple of pages back.

I continue to experience it but it's really not much of problem because the M1X has 2 batteries in its chamber and I carry 4 more - 2 spare and 2 in my second M1X body.

This was when I was using the Bird D&T option nearly all the time but I find that although it works extremely well on birds in flight it is often unreliable in the real world of branches when perched. If a twig in the foreground is out of the focus field it still gets picked up and interferes. That's why being able to instantly switch between S-AF and C-AF[TR] using the #1/2 Fn-Lever adjacent to the Back Button Focus is so valuable.
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I know when I have GPS turned on with mine, it goes through batteries pretty quickly so I usually have it turned off.
 
Something is starting to annoy me a little bit on the Olympus 100-400 lens , when I’m shooting from the car hide , I’m finding that the zoom has a tendency to work it’s way back giving a shorter range .. on the Panasonic you could lock it into position .. .. I can’t see why the lock switch couldn’t have been enabled for open and closed use
Rant over got some cracking shots in poor light today pics to follow
 
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the black fox said:
Something is starting to annoy me a little bit on the Olympus 100-400 lens , when I’m shooting from the car hide , I’m finding that the zoom has a tendency to work it’s way back giving a shorter range .. on the Panasonic you could lock it into position .. .. I can’t see why the lock switch couldn’t have been enabled for open and closed use
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.... Then you need an Olympus 150-400mm Jeff :ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO:

But joking apart, you may remember me reporting how stiff the zoom ring is on the Olympus 100-400mm and then later learning it is due to the weatherproofing seals on a physically extending zoom. Mine has got slightly looser but you still have to use your hand to move it at all.

Lock switch clutches cost more to produce and so do 90 degree click points (on the lens tripod collar).

Olympus have focussed on producing a relatively low cost 100-400mm lens and adding these luxuries would have bumped up the cost. But I bet that lots of photographers would still have bought it at just under £2k rather than just over £1k, don't you? Then it might have had these very practical features. It's still a great lens though, as you know.
 
the black fox said:
some female stonechat shots in poor late afternoon light . but the pair of obliging birds made my day and lifted my spirits and increased my shutter count by a few hundred shots :LOL: :LOL:
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.... Personally I prefer birds lit like this rather than harsh direct sunlight.
 
RedRobin said:
.... Personally I prefer birds lit like this rather than harsh direct sunlight.
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I heard your preferences were those without feathers :LOL: :LOL: :LOL: :LOL:
 
A Wren resident in my wildlife garden. Certainly very loud for such a small bird!

I didn't need the 1.4x TC for this shot but it was mounted on my camera to cover other more distant photo opportunities in my garden.

THE SMALLEST BIRD WITH THE LOUDEST VOICE! by Robin Procter, on Flickr
 
Some really great images from both yourself Robin & Jeff!

I have realised that something I need to do, is train my arm so it’s more steady so I can use lower shutter speeds & get a sharp image :)
 
Joe94 said:
Some really great images from both yourself Robin & Jeff!

I have realised that something I need to do, is train my arm so it’s more steady so I can use lower shutter speeds & get a sharp image :)
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Mine were both fairly high speeds joe .but very high I.S.O due to poor light ,in fact it was drizzling at the time . Check EXIF data on Flickr .every shot will be different in its needs
 
the black fox said:
Mine were both fairly high speeds joe .but very high I.S.O due to poor light ,in fact it was drizzling at the time . Check EXIF data on Flickr .every shot will be different in its needs
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Ahhh okay, yeah I didn’t thing of doing that aha but good tip :) Nevertheless though brilliant images, just shows you can use high ISO even with MFT despite what many say :)

But I do need to train my arms lol thin and weak
 
Joe94 said:
Ahhh okay, yeah I didn’t thing of doing that aha but good tip :) Nevertheless though brilliant images, just shows you can use high ISO even with MFT despite what many say :)

But I do need to train my arms lol thin and weak
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Silly question, how are you holding your camera...... especially important when using longer lenses. As I have gotten older my muscle mass & tone has reduced but I can still hold 'well' to good effect at lower shutter speeds ;)
 
Box Brownie said:
Silly question, how are you holding your camera...... especially important when using longer lenses. As I have gotten older my muscle mass & tone has reduced but I can still hold 'well' to good effect at lower shutter speeds ;)
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Not silly question at all... But best I can explain is the EM1.3 grip with my right hand then the bottom of the 100-400 with my left & I have the tripod collar round to the top of the lens rather than bottom to offer a better grip to the lens.

Trouble is being 26, small for my age & not able to go to gyms due to medical, I’m not the strongest of people aha :) Hence why Oly camera gear is perfect for me ;)
 
Joe94 said:
Not silly question at all... But best I can explain is the EM1.3 grip with my right hand then the bottom of the 100-400 with my left & I have the tripod collar round to the top of the lens rather than bottom to offer a better grip to the lens.

Trouble is being 26, small for my age & not able to go to gyms due to medical, I’m not the strongest of people aha :) Hence why Oly camera gear is perfect for me ;)
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Are you dominant right or left eyed?
 
The reason I asked..................

When you say "grip" with your right hand ~ the aim to hold and balance with the right hand rather than 'gripping' as that implies some force being used which creates strain and loss of fine motor control.

The weight is taken with the left hand & arm as you are doing........and the right hand holds it all in balance ready to use the shutter and other controls. Thus to my question re: eye dominance. Though I have not normally felt the need, if rather than holding it in front of your body if you keep your left arm at your side, bend the elbow up to your shoulder and makes you turn your head to the left, in other words you are more relaxed though turned to the left.

Then main aim to that is reduce the strain on the left arm becuase the upper arm is resting against your side......and left eye usage 'helps' though right usage is not a bar to trying that.

Easy to show than to put into words but hopefully you can see what I mean and maybe worth trying a different posture that is more relaxed and makes holding the camera a bit more comfortable?
 
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Box Brownie said:
The reason I asked..................

When you say "grip" with your right hand ~ the aim to hold and balance with the right hand rather than 'gripping' as that implies some force being used which creates strain and loss of fine motor control.

The weight is taken with the left hand & arm as you are doing........and the right hand holds it all in balance ready to use the shutter and other controls. Thus to my question re: eye dominance. Though I have not normally felt the need, if rather than holding it in front of your body if you keep your left arm at your side, bend the elbow up to your shoulder and makes you turn your head to the left, in other words you are more relaxed though turned to the left.

Then main aim to that is reduce the strain on the left arm becuase the upper arm is resting against your side......and left eye usage 'helps' though right usage is not a bar to trying that.

Easy to show than to put into words but hopefully you can see what I mean and maybe worth trying a different posture that is more relaxed and makes holding the camera a bit more comfortable?
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Thank you very much for this!

It does make sense actually & I can definitely see where your coming from, for sure.

I will give this a try over the next few days & as you say try some other posture to see. Trouble is I think since having the kit, I have just used it in what I think is the usual standard way (which I’m sure I’m not the only one), but without giving the actual posture any thought, in relation to the actual photography.

So yeah thank you, definitely given me something to think about :)
 
Joe94 said:
Thank you very much for this!

It does make sense actually & I can definitely see where your coming from, for sure.

I will give this a try over the next few days & as you say try some other posture to see. Trouble is I think since having the kit, I have just used it in what I think is the usual standard way (which I’m sure I’m not the only one), but without giving the actual posture any thought, in relation to the actual photography.

So yeah thank you, definitely given me something to think about :)
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.... Box Brownie's suggested method is well proven to help.

Another way to approach this technique is to imagine your camera is a rifle or shotgun - You stand slightly sideways and with your left elbow tucked tight against your body... Aim... Fire!

Also, some photographers feel they give more support to a telephoto lens rig by having the lens collar foot in the palm of their hand (I do). The controls layout of the Olympus telephoto lenses still allow easy reach to the lens controls.

The best method is simply the one you are most comfortable with to achieve steadiness.

Small birds move their heads very quickly, especially Blue Tits, and so a faster shutter speed helps freeze that motion which in turn can help sharp focus.

Practice Makes Perfect.

[I'm bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and waiting for a Surf's Up confirmation at dawn]
 
RedRobin said:
.... Box Brownie's suggested method is well proven to help.

Another way to approach this technique is to imagine your camera is a rifle or shotgun - You stand slightly sideways and with your left elbow tucked tight against your body... Aim... Fire!

Also, some photographers feel they give more support to a telephoto lens rig by having the lens collar foot in the palm of their hand (I do). The controls layout of the Olympus telephoto lenses still allow easy reach to the lens controls.

The best method is simply the one you are most comfortable with to achieve steadiness.

Small birds move their heads very quickly, especially Blue Tits, and so a faster shutter speed helps freeze that motion which in turn can help sharp focus.

Practice Makes Perfect.

[I'm bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and waiting for a Surf's Up confirmation at dawn]
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Thank you Robin, for your endorsement of this & the extra tips :)

They weather looks good today, so hopefully will give some things a try and will update later on if I do :)
 
Oh an by the way, Jeff & Robin.... I totally blame you for my new found interest in bird photography :LOL::LOL::LOL::LOL:

I was thinking this last night, that when I got my Olympus kit I thought I would be doing lots of macro (which I still enjoy in the summer), but also lots of indoor creative table top photography type thing. But no I am full invested in Birding now haha!

Of course im pleased, but yeah still blame you guys :LOL:

But all jokes aside thank you both for all your help with everything and to everyone else who has also contributed, im really pleased I chose a kit which has such a friendly following :)
 
Okay so not what I thought I was going to get today over the garden.... but it meant I could try BIF for the first time.

Setting were quick set as wasn't expecting to take this aha but - 400mm, 9 Square AF grid, C-AF, Centre start & priority were all off....

1/1600th sec @ f/6.3, ISO 800 (this could have been lower), +0.7EV, AP Mode

Need some more practice I know, and as always any crit, hint & tips very welcome on setting ect.. But quite happy with this for a starter :)

PC120825 by Joe Booth, on Flickr
 
Nice one in good light , as before it could take a bit more of a crop for impact , I tend to crop in till I start to see i.q dropping then ease it out a bit
 
the black fox said:
Nice one in good light , as before it could take a bit more of a crop for impact , I tend to crop in till I start to see i.q dropping then ease it out a bit
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Cheers Mate, unfortunately nothing on it was in focus, however keeping it at this crop I was able to produce something viewable using De Noise & Sharpen AI :)

Also If I had planed to do a BIF shot I would have set the settings up a bit more, following your previous tips :)
 
It took me 5 goes to load the new bird detect firmware but it did it after trying different USB Ports rather annoying as i know i was doing it right.

I did have 10 mins in the garden too dark and misty but the AF did find Seagal's as a few flew over, the white boxes picked them up instantly I just need to know how to tell the AF which bird to pick . anyone know ?

Rob.
 
Ok folks with the impending arrival of my E-M1X I have worked out that I may need to get a new bag because....:-

My Flipside 300AW is going to be a squeeze when the 1X is dropped in, not by much but a slightly bulging fit. OK for storage but perhaps not for lugging about with the bulge digging into my back?

So just looking for ideas and insights a to what other M1X users put their gear in? Here I am talking the max length of the M1X, 300mm f4 & x2 TC.

Oh the other thing that struck me was that with the mk2 or mk3 and a long lens the combo sits in the Flipside 300 on its base but because the M1X has its built-in grip the lens mount is offset so reduce strain on the mount in a back it seems to make sense to lay in the bag on its LHS i.e. with the primary grip uppermost! Unless the bag is something like the Toploader Pro Lowepro 75

All insights and user experiences welcome :)
 
Bobsyeruncle said:
Flipside 400?
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It may come to that but I was hoping for a smaller bag to take limited kit out i.e. just one long lens with a TC attached? Though I mentioned the Lowepro 75, nothing that Lowepro make in the toploader style can take that length........................nor do ThinkTank :thinking:

The the Flipside 400 or similar will........but??? Oh, for times when I would want to take more gear e.g. foreign holidays, just how aircraft overhead locker friendly is the Flipside 400???
 
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