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

When I picked up my GX8 recently, I knew I would need to sell either the EM1 or the EM5 II (as 3 M43 bodies just didn't make sense).

Well despite the EM5 II being newer, that was the one that went. There's just something about the EM1 that makes it a joy to shoot (and I do prefer a tilting LCD to a flip one anyway). However, if you plan on doing any long exposures, the EM1 is terrible above around 20-30 seconds with dark frame subtraction turned off, and in that respect the EM5 II is much better.
 
Sootchucker said:
When I picked up my GX8 recently, I knew I would need to sell either the EM1 or the EM5 II (as 3 M43 bodies just didn't make sense).

Well despite the EM5 II being newer, that was the one that went. There's just something about the EM1 that makes it a joy to shoot (and I do prefer a tilting LCD to a flip one anyway). However, if you plan on doing any long exposures, the EM1 is terrible above around 20-30 seconds with dark frame subtraction turned off, and in that respect the EM5 II is much better.
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I love the em1 but I bought the GX8 to cover all bases, both fit my needs perfectly both do most but there's times when the newer GX8 does better
 
justa1972 said:
That's 13 of the mk ii EM5......

Is the EM1 still worth looking at ?
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I am a little surprised that MPB have so many. They don't actually seem to pop up for sale in other places all that often. Strange one.

Hard to argue a strong case for going for EM1 over EM5ii or vice versa. I had that choice to make earlier this year and they pretty much came out evenly in my own informal evaluation. Seemed pretty tied on pricing too. EM1 is probably a better all rounder, better controls and better AF system. EM5ii is more compact and has some nice new features (though has firmware redressed the balance?). In the end it was hi-res mode and reported better noise control for long exposures that swayed me to the EM5ii. Those things seemed more relevant to what I like to photograph but it was a very close call.

I really don't think you can go wrong with either or in fact the Fuji for that matter.
 
Might seem odd but I'm tempted my the Olympus due to the 9-18mm - there isn't an equivalent with Fuji for that sort of money...
 
For me at least, about the only things that the EM5 II did better than the EM1, were as follows:

1. Better bundled flash and done away with the needless accessory port under the hotshoe on the EM1
2. Better long exposure noise control (EM1 is pretty poor in that regard, especially with long exposure noise reduction off).
3. HI Res shot........meh...tried it once and it's applications are quite limited to totally static shots. Now the rumored EM1 II with hand hold able High res - that's a different matter !
4. Apparently Movie modes are supposed to be better, but as I'm a crap video shooter, it isn't really that apparent for me.
5. Slightly better IBIS (although the one in the EM1 is no slouch).
6. Allegedly slightly better ISO performance, although I've yet to see it comparing both cameras side by side.

EM1 on the other hand for me is better because of the following:

1. Body grip. I just love the way the EM1 fits into my hands. With the EM5 II I needed to have half of the HLD-9 grip attached permanently to the camera, and even then, the ergonomics (shutter release button) wasn't as good.
2. I actually prefer the slightly more chunky body of the EM1 over the EM5 II (which without grip was just a little too small).
3. Accessory battery grip. This just fits the EM1 like a glove and turns it into a very professional tool, whereas the battery portion of the EM5 II grip just looked plain wrong and was much too thin on it's base.
4. Tilt screen - I just love the tilt screen of the EM1 much more than the fully articulated screen of the EM5 II (and my GX8 for that matter), however I guess that's as I don't do much video so other people's mileage may vary on that point.
5. Built in automatic focus stacking - just love this and it works very well.
6. Almost unlimited buffer (well not quite but much deeper than the EM5 II)
7. Better AF - my EM1 just seemed to lock on much quicker than my EM5 II, and track better, although M43 is still far from pro DSLR standards (my Nikon D500's AF is pure Voodoo magic !)
8. Button placement. Just a personal one but I much prefer the button placement on the EM1 to the EM5 II

At the end of the day it's horses for courses, and another person may prefer the EM5 II and that's fine. As gad-westy said above the final image quality between the two of them is very similar and difficult to tell apart and you can't really go wrong with either.
 
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For me, it had to be the E-M1 purely for the size of the grip, i have large hands and always struggled with the gripped E-M10, especially important for balance if you're using the heavier lenses from the M43 system.
 
Sootchucker said:
For me at least, about the only things that the EM5 II did better than the EM1, were as follows:

1. Better bundled flash and done away with the needless accessory port under the hotshoe on the EM1
2. Better long exposure noise control (EM1 is pretty poor in that regard, especially with long exposure noise reduction off).
3. HI Res shot........meh...tried it once and it's applications are quite limited to totally static shots. Now the rumored EM1 II with hand hold able High res - that's a different matter !
4. Apparently Movie modes are supposed to be better, but as I'm a crap video shooter, it isn't really that apparent for me.
5. Slightly better IBIS (although the one in the EM1 is no slouch).
6. Allegedly slightly better ISO performance, although I've yet to see it comparing both cameras side by side.

EM1 on the other hand for me is better because of the following:

1. Body grip. I just love the way the EM1 fits into my hands. With the EM5 II I needed to have half of the HLD-9 grip attached permanently to the camera, and even then, the ergonomics (shutter release button) wasn't as good.
2. I actually prefer the slightly more chunky body of the EM1 over the EM5 II (which without grip was just a little too small).
3. Accessory battery grip. This just fits the EM1 like a glove and turns it into a very professional tool, whereas the battery portion of the EM5 II grip just looked plain wrong and was much too thin on it's base.
4. Tilt screen - I just love the tilt screen of the EM1 much more than the fully articulated screen of the EM5 II (and my GX8 for that matter), however I guess that's as I don't do much video so other people's mileage may vary on that point.
5. Built in automatic focus stacking - just love this and it works very well.
6. Almost unlimited buffer (well not quite but much deeper than the EM5 II)
7. Better AF - my EM1 just seemed to lock on much quicker than my EM5 II, and track better, although M43 is still far from pro DSLR standards (my Nikon D500's AF is pure Voodoo magic !)
8. Button placement. Just a personal one but I much prefer the button placement on the EM1 to the EM5 II

At the end of the day it's horses for courses, and another person may prefer the EM5 II and that's fine. As gad-westy said above the final image quality between the two of them is very similar and difficult to tell apart and you can't really go wrong with either.
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Absolutely agree with 90% of this, the other 10% isn't worth arguing about!
My E-m1 satisfies all my needs ATM, maybe it's because my photography is 90% wildlife with me not having artistic bone in my body! The in-body focus stacking alone for macro on the E-M1 is enough to put it ahead of my 5ii. In hindsight I shouldn't really have bought the 5ii, sweet little thing though that it is.
When the E-m1ii comes out I'll sell my E-m5ii and have the 2 E-m1's.
 
Right, total change of tack - telephoto lenses. Been looking for a while now at both the Olympus 300mm F4 Pro and the Panasonic 100-400 lenses, and keep going backwards and forwards with pros and cons between either. The Panny has a longer native reach but the Olympus with the 1.4TC is not only a 1/3 of a stop brighter (at f5.6) but also marginally longer at 840mm effective.

However the Panny has the convenience of being a zoom lens, whereas obviously the Olympus is a fixed prime, however typically with these long zoom lenses, they tend to be used most of the time at their longest focal length.

I think it all boils down to these questions:

1. Is the Olympus lens worth £1k more than the Panasonic
2. Is the extra stop (at 600mm) on the Olympus at F4 rather than F6.3 on the Panny a deal breaker (it could potentially be the difference between ISO3200 and ISO1600 shooting, and on M4'/3 every stop is quite critical.
3. Anyone handled both and can comment on the weight / handling on both say an Olympus EM1 with grip and a Panny GX8 ?
4. Will the OIS in the lens on either unit work on both cameras (and vice versa) ?
 
Sootchucker said:
Right, total change of tack - telephoto lenses. Been looking for a while now at both the Olympus 300mm F4 Pro and the Panasonic 100-400 lenses, and keep going backwards and forwards with pros and cons between either. The Panny has a longer native reach but the Olympus with the 1.4TC is not only a 1/3 of a stop brighter (at f5.6) but also marginally longer at 840mm effective.

However the Panny has the convenience of being a zoom lens, whereas obviously the Olympus is a fixed prime, however typically with these long zoom lenses, they tend to be used most of the time at their longest focal length.

I think it all boils down to these questions:

1. Is the Olympus lens worth £1k more than the Panasonic
2. Is the extra stop (at 600mm) on the Olympus at F4 rather than F6.3 on the Panny a deal breaker (it could potentially be the difference between ISO3200 and ISO1600 shooting, and on M4'/3 every stop is quite critical.
3. Anyone handled both and can comment on the weight / handling on both say an Olympus EM1 with grip and a Panny GX8 ?
4. Will the OIS in the lens on either unit work on both cameras (and vice versa) ?
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I have the Panasonic as (aside from availability at the time) for me the size and ability to zoom outweighs the extra speed and sharpness (bokeh is nicer on the Panny too) as I mainly use my camera gear when I'm travelling. I've just been to Alaska with an EM1, EM5ii, 12-40, 40-150+TC, 100-400, a Samyang fisheye, a Macbook, batteries and chargers and it all fitted in a little Lowepro Photosport 200 backpack along with a coat/jumper/book/binoculars. Amazing really.

As far as stabilisation goes, the lens OIS is better than IBIS at this focal length and I can easily get down into movement blur speeds handheld (around 4 stops) which is as good as I need it to be.
 
Absolutely true that a 100-400 gives greater flexibility and the Panny is reputed to be sharp. However, as I am primarily a bird photographer I'd always be using it at the long end. The 300 F4 with the 1.4x TC I have found to be incredibly sharp, when needed I switch to the 40-150 on a E-M5ii in my bag which I agree is more cumbersome.
 
Sootchucker said:
Right, total change of tack - telephoto lenses. Been looking for a while now at both the Olympus 300mm F4 Pro and the Panasonic 100-400 lenses, and keep going backwards and forwards with pros and cons between either. The Panny has a longer native reach but the Olympus with the 1.4TC is not only a 1/3 of a stop brighter (at f5.6) but also marginally longer at 840mm effective.

However the Panny has the convenience of being a zoom lens, whereas obviously the Olympus is a fixed prime, however typically with these long zoom lenses, they tend to be used most of the time at their longest focal length.

I think it all boils down to these questions:

1. Is the Olympus lens worth £1k more than the Panasonic
2. Is the extra stop (at 600mm) on the Olympus at F4 rather than F6.3 on the Panny a deal breaker (it could potentially be the difference between ISO3200 and ISO1600 shooting, and on M4'/3 every stop is quite critical.
3. Anyone handled both and can comment on the weight / handling on both say an Olympus EM1 with grip and a Panny GX8 ?
4. Will the OIS in the lens on either unit work on both cameras (and vice versa) ?
Click to expand...
I'm sure the prime is a great lens but it's dam expensive when you consider the Nikon 300 F4 is half the price ......, I'll be getting the 100-400 at some point
 
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Sootchucker said:
Right, total change of tack - telephoto lenses. Been looking for a while now at both the Olympus 300mm F4 Pro and the Panasonic 100-400 lenses, and keep going backwards and forwards with pros and cons between either. The Panny has a longer native reach but the Olympus with the 1.4TC is not only a 1/3 of a stop brighter (at f5.6) but also marginally longer at 840mm effective.

However the Panny has the convenience of being a zoom lens, whereas obviously the Olympus is a fixed prime, however typically with these long zoom lenses, they tend to be used most of the time at their longest focal length.

I think it all boils down to these questions:

1. Is the Olympus lens worth £1k more than the Panasonic
2. Is the extra stop (at 600mm) on the Olympus at F4 rather than F6.3 on the Panny a deal breaker (it could potentially be the difference between ISO3200 and ISO1600 shooting, and on M4'/3 every stop is quite critical.
3. Anyone handled both and can comment on the weight / handling on both say an Olympus EM1 with grip and a Panny GX8 ?
4. Will the OIS in the lens on either unit work on both cameras (and vice versa) ?
Click to expand...


Just a thought, I believe someone on this thread uses a Tokina 300mm f2.8 lens with M4/3 and gets excellent results. They can be picked up new from Ffordes for £549 and with this and a P100-400mm you would still have spare change from the cost of the Oly 300mm f4. You can also get a TC for them................http://www.ffordes.com/product/12100813035881

I used a Tokina 100-300mm f4 and 1.4 TC with my then XT1 and I found it to be an excellent lens, my shoulder/elbow problems resulted in me selling it for AF lenses, otherwise I would have kept.
 
justa1972 said:
Jessops seem to have a good deal on the em10 mk ii - http://www.jessops.com/online.store/categories/Compact System Cameras/products/Olympus/OM-D E-M10 Mark II Compact System Camera in Silver 14-42mm 40-150mm Lenses-99226/Show.html

Are those lenses worth getting ? If a body is £450 and your getting both lenses for £520 thats £70 for the pair ?
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I would rather have the 14-42 EZbut for that mnoney it is a no brainer to get such small and light lenses for that camera and then buy what other glass you need.

here are some shots with the camera

https://www.flickr.com/cameras/olympus/e-m10markii/

Here is a shot with mine at 22mm on an E-M5 MkI at 1/6 sec handheld in one hand.

the-aproaching-sea by Alf Branch, on Flickr
 
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I had a question recently about why I use high f stop values in my landscape shots and I control Dof for front to back focus.

If I use a f stop higher than f8 it is to create the shutter speed I want my max ND filter at present is 6 stop and I resort to using ISO 100 (200 is recomended) and up to f22 to get a shutter speed I want. I am buying a 10 stop filter but also need some other smaller value filters.

You can get front to back focus at f8 at wideangle at 12mm set the focus 1 metre away in MF on focus scale on the 12-40 for example.

With the 9-18mm I use MF and focus peaking to again focus about 1m away at f8 works well wou always use the Dof preview button too.
I hope this helps.

For any calculations look here

http://www.dofmaster.com/dofjs.html
 
Hi Guys,

Question needs answering please.

Does the HLD-8G Landscape Grip or the HLD-8 Battery Grip make holding the OM-D EM-5 MKii a lot easier?

The price of the battery grip at nearly £200 is putting me off slightly, the landscape grip at £120 seems the better option....

All thoughts and experience welcome.

Cheers

Andy
 
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Gandalf said:
Hi Guys,

Question needs answering please.

Does the HLD-8G Landscape Grip or the HLD-8 Battery Grip make holding the OM-D EM-5 MKii a lot easier?

The price of the battery grip at nearly £200 is putting me off slightly, the landscape grip at £120 seems the better option....

All thoughts and experience welcome.

Cheers

Andy
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Tough one to answer. Personally I find battery grips cumbersome and for me it adds unnecessary bulk to a camera that's big appeal is it's small size. For others who spend a lot of time switching between portrait and landscape or who need to balance long lenses, maybe a different story.

Do you feel you need the extra control wheel? I only ask because, with a normal 'dumb' grip attached, like the egc-2 you get the benefit of improved security in your hand and also built in tripod mount plate. I have a cheap copy for my Em-5ii and it does work well. Unlike the EM-5i I never feel and extra control wheel is needed as the normal one is very easy to reach. Ideally you'd go and try some combinations but suspect it's not easy to find somewhere to do that these days.
 
Gandalf said:
Hi Guys,

Question needs answering please.

Does the HLD-8G Landscape Grip or the HLD-8 Battery Grip make holding the OM-D EM-5 MKii a lot easier?

The price of the battery grip at nearly £200 is putting me off slightly, the landscape grip at £120 seems the better option....

All thoughts and experience welcome.

Cheers

Andy
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In an nutshell yes it will make a big difference though I do not have either part for my EM-5II it will make about the same size as the E-M1 which I use with a grip. Ilike to keep things small with the EM-5II.

1 & 5 comparison 2 by Alf Branch, on Flickr

Here is an E-M5 to E-M1 comparsion

No-grip-3 by Alf Branch, on Flickr

No-grip-2 by Alf Branch, on Flickr
 
I found the EM5 II difficult to hold properly without at least the upper part of the grip attached and it never felt secure (especially with F2.8 glass), but maybe I was to used to my EM1 or DSLR's with their much greater grip sizes.
 
I was in John Lewis this morning and got to have a play with EM5ii and the EM1, the EMI feels better in my large hands but in my opinion the electronic viewfinder does hold par with that of the EM5ii. On a slightly different point I also played around with the Panny GX8 and I absolutely love the size and the viewfinder on the left of the body. It's a lot easier to hold so I maybe looking at a second body( just don't tell the partner).....
 
I have the em1 and GX8, find them a great combo both really nice to hold, both evfs are excellent, love the touch screen of the GX8 although I keep the touch AF off as it's so easy to move where you don't want it
 
Finally got the 40-150 2.8 mint condition Inc tc £650 bit of a bargain as I already have a tc so one sell
[emoji4]
 
First attempt at the Milky Way in Sardinia. Obviously far from ideal location due to the town across the water, the lighthouse, the light from behind me etc So much to learn about PP too.

Bit disappointed with the amount of noise from the e-m1 - this was with LENR on, and some NR in LR too

nightime picnic by damianmkv, on Flickr
 
3200 for 20s. Maybe I should've gone for 1600 for 30s ( not sure of the maths here )
 
Question for you EM-10ii owners please?

When you zoom in on an image in Playback, can you then scroll through your other images whilst zoomed? Eg to select the image with the sharpest focus out of a group of the same subject.
Also, is there a one touch zoom in/out facility eg 100%?
Thanks in anticipation.
 
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damianmkv said:
3200 for 20s. Maybe I should've gone for 1600 for 30s ( not sure of the maths here )
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TBH it probably wouldn't make too much difference, though it would have helped a bit. Did you lift exposure much on this, or is that pretty much SOOC in terms of density? I've found that pushing contrast up a little and black point darker can help hide noise from a small sensor. DXO Optics pro prime has a special noise reducing option that might help.
 
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