That new Pen thingy...

Yes but I'd have to sell the rather nice... 14mm f2.5, 17mm f1.8, 20mm f1.7, 25 and 45mm f1.8 and the adequate 9-18mm, 14-42mm and 45-200mm and my two cameras.

I've stuck with MFT since almost day one (I bought a GF1 on line before they hit the shops) and it's so close to being a very very good system and it wasn't until I got my A7 that I realised how useful some of the Sony features are. They really have changed how I use the camera and have enabled me to get shots I would simply have missed while faffing about with my MFT cameras trying to get the settings somewhere near where I want them to be.

If time isn't an issue setting the camera isn't a problem but for casual stuff when other people are either the subject or patiently waiting the 20 seconds spent faffing about with a Panasonic can be an issue whereas with the Sony it's just a matter of presetting the camera aperture and shutter and then just turning the compo wheel a bit now and again while the ISO goes up and down. Simples and so much quicker than with a Panasonic which is stuck at too low a shutter speed in aperture mode and when switched to manual either wont implement auto ISO (old models) or wont allow compo to be dialled in (new models.)

Ah... frustration...
 
Sorry, I meant pick up an A6000 and run it alongside your M4/3rds kit to see which you prefer side by side. You have a lot of choice with your primes there don't you :0) Do you find that you use them all or just take a couple with you if you go out?
 
woof woof said:
... and also auto ISO in all model with the ability to dial in compensation..
Click to expand...
I haven't read or watched many reviews,
but it seems to me with having a physical exposure compensation dial
how could they not allow that to work in manual mode?
(Easy to check when it hits the shops...)
 
woof woof said:
I'm still mildly interested but would really like a camera with constant preview in all modes and also auto ISO in all model with the ability to dial in compensation.
Click to expand...

Ulfric M Douglas said:
I haven't read or watched many reviews,
but it seems to me with having a physical exposure compensation dial
how could they not allow that to work in manual mode?
(Easy to check when it hits the shops...)
Click to expand...

Looks like exposure comp is possible with auto-ISO in M mode on the Pen-F. Might tip the balance for me.

The manual says in the M mode section (page 29) ...
"When [AUTO] is selected for [ISO], exposure compensation can be adjusted using the exposure compensation dial."
 
Last edited:
I would have expected weather sealing at this price point. It's my only concern before pushing the button on a Fuji X100t, I saw this and nearly diverted to Pen, but I've seen the images coming out of the Fuji camp so think I'll stay there!
 
Ulfric M Douglas said:
I haven't read or watched many reviews,
but it seems to me with having a physical exposure compensation dial
how could they not allow that to work in manual mode?
(Easy to check when it hits the shops...)
Click to expand...
I think thd GX8 also has a compensation dial but I'm sure I read that auto ISO with compo isn't available in manual... should I be wrong it'd make me much more likely to buy. In fact I probably would.
 
paulcamcas said:
Looks like exposure comp is possible with auto-ISO in M mode on the Pen-F. Might tip the balance for me.

The manual says in the M mode section (page 29) ...
"When [AUTO] is selected for [ISO], exposure compensation can be adjusted using the exposure compensation dial."
Click to expand...
That would be very good news and if so I'd need to double check the GX8 as I'm sure some reviewer or other said it didn't.

Can anyone with a GX8 confirm?
 
stevelmx5 said:
I assume this exposure comp on your GX7 doesn't work in auto ISO?
Click to expand...

Auto ISO works in Aperture mode and pressing the rear dial allows you to dial in compensation and therefore the "nearly as well" function does work well enough but when the shutter speed drops too low I switch to manual mode and dial in more suitable aperture and shutter speed settings but unfortunately pressing the rear dial then does nothing and as auto ISO doesn't work in manual mode what you have to do is press the ISO button and then rotate the dial to change the setting thus effectively dialling in compensation. If exposure preview is set you will then see the scene lighten or darken. This sort of works and it's how I have my camera set up but it's a fiddle and not as good as the Sony system and there's the added irritation that when you switch back to Aperture priority you've lost the auto ISO setting and you're at whatever you last used in manual mode.

It may sound as if I'm nit picking minor faults and I do do that but when used alongside the Sony system the Sony seems very elegant and the Panasonic seems slow and clumsy in comparison.

GX8...
Page 167 on "compensating the exposure" details the applicable modes and M isn't one of them.
A silly decision/omission IMHO.
 
Last edited:
Here is another Pen-F hands on video from my colleague Mike at our London store...

 
That paints the Pen in a better light and to be honest as I almost certainly wouldn't use the features and abilities that the Camera store criticise it's more relevant to me :D
 
"The Pen F is a camera you carry around with you, it's not meant to be be classed as a Professional camera" - Seems expensive for a point and shoot then?

I also found his comment about the viewfinder quite funny, "It's quite port-holey, like an ancient camera"...
 
It's not a point and shoot camera. Although in the US they frequently confuse the term compact camera with point 'n' shoot camera.
 
Last edited:
I spent my spare time today Googling various reviews of both the Pen and GX8 and in my innocence the conclusions for me seem to be...

- There's little if any improvement in image quality over my GX7.
- Auto ISO now available in manual mode.
- Exposure compensation in manual mode is possible with Pen but not with the GX8.
- The GX8 is widely said to be better built than the GX7 but some are a bit wary of past Olympus quality.
- Both have the fully articulated screen that I like because I tend to turn it to the body :D
- Both almost certainly have a better EVF than the awful one (IMO) fitted to my GX7.

All in all I think the better build, better EVF and fully articulated screens interest me but the lack of any significant improvement in image quality over the GX7 worries me. I think I've now decided that I wont go out of my way to try either of these cameras but if I'm in York or Newcastle and passing a shop that has them I'll take a look :D as the idea of having a GX7 with an articulated screen, a better EVF, auto IS in manual mode and the ability of dialling in compensation is what I'm looking for even if there is no increase in image quality. Or I could just wait a year to 18 months and see if things move on a bit more with the GX9 and next Pen F II or whatever it may be called.

Anyone more enthused and definitely interested in getting a Pen F?
 
Last edited:
woof woof said:
I spent my spare time today Googling various reviews of both the Pen and GX8 and in my innocence the conclusions for me seem to be...

- There's little if any improvement in image quality over my GX7.
- Auto ISO now available in manual mode.
- Exposure compensation in manual mode is possible with Pen but not with the GX8.
- The GX8 is widely said to be better built than the GX7 but some are a bit wary of past Olympus quality.
- Both have the fully articulated screen that I like because I tend to turn it to the body :D
- Both almost certainly have a better EVF than the awful one (IMO) fitted to my GX7.

All in all I think the better build, better EVF and fully articulated screens interest me but the lack of any significant improvement in image quality over the GX7 worries me. I think I've now decided that I wont go out of my way to try either of these cameras but if I'm in York or Newcastle and passing a shop that has them I'll take a look :D as the idea of having a GX7 with an articulated screen, a better EVF, auto IS in manual mode and the ability of dialling in compensation is what I'm looking for even if there is no increase in image quality. Or I could just wait a year to 18 months and see if things move on a bit more with the GX9 and next Pen F II or whatever it may be called.

Anyone more enthused and definitely interested in getting a Pen F?
Click to expand...

Or you could pick up an E-M5 II at Hdew for a close to half the price ;)
 
Last edited:
Greytop said:
Or you could pick up an E-M5 II at Hdew for a close to half the price ;)
Click to expand...
I've not really looked too closely at the Oly mini SLR style camera specifications and reviews but I might... I was really hoping to get a smaller RF style camera to replace my worthy but unloved GX7 as it would make a nice companion to my A7 when I want something even smaller and even less conspicuous. My worry with an Olympus mini SLR camera would be that it doesn't really offer any bulk saving over the A7 and would be about as conspicuous.

If I decide that neither the Pen nor GX8 are for me the next generations may be and they'll probably be here in less than two years. Maybe. So not too long to wait.
 
The body is a bit smaller than your A7 as well as being extremely well constructed and solid feeling. The Pen F and E-M5 II are pretty similar in overall dimns.
Then of course your m4/3rds primes are quite a bit more compact than the Sony primes (for the same FOV).
 
Historically, I don't have much faith in Oympus's quality control (or Sigma's either, as another random example) - whereas my experience of Panasonic products is radically better. Ok - nothing is set in stone, but experience rings hard. So I won't be buying one of these.

For functional flair, though, I might consider a Fuji ...
 
Conversely my experience with Olympus quality has always been excellent.
YMMV of course.
 
droj said:
Historically, I don't have much faith in Oympus's quality control (or Sigma's either, as another random example) - whereas my experience of Panasonic products is radically better. Ok - nothing is set in stone, but experience rings hard. So I won't be buying one of these.

For functional flair, though, I might consider a Fuji ...
Click to expand...

You'd not buy a Oly because of quality concerns but you'd buy a Fuji? :D Hmmm, I'm sure I've read quite a few Fuji horror stories but I don't think I'd let that put me off a new model and instead I think if I was interested but concerned I'd wait and see if any issues arise. It wont be long before any issues are all over the net.

Greytop said:
The body is a bit smaller than your A7 as well as being extremely well constructed and solid feeling. The Pen F and E-M5 II are pretty similar in overall dimns.
Then of course your m4/3rds primes are quite a bit more compact than the Sony primes (for the same FOV).
Click to expand...

The amount of attention I and my camera attract is something that I do think about and the GX7 does seem to be a little less attention grabbing than my A7 and of course me and my A7 are next to invisible compared to me and my (now sold) 5D and lens.

I do like having two different quality cameras and I'd like to continue with the A7 for maximum quality and for when I'm off by myself and having a photography day and something a touch smaller and even less noticeable for occasions when even the A7+35mm f2.8 is too much. I agree about some of the lenses, the A7 + 35mm f2.8 is ok for lots of non purely photography orientated occasions but an A7 + 85mm would be a bit too much for many occasions for me but a GX7 type camera with 45mm f1.8 is ok :D and I think I'd like to stay with the RF style for the this is not a DSLR look :D
 
Alan in my opinion the best-performing and least conspicuous m4/3rds camera is currently a black e-pL7, but has no built-in viewfinder.
 
I'm sure it's a very nice camera but my days with my GF1 taught me that I'm not happy with back screen shooting and much prefer an integrated VF.

Been out with the GX7 this morning and the niggles I have with it do matter to me but it'll do for now until something else comes along :D which I'm sure will only be a year to 18 months :D
 
Swissy said:
Yeah he pretty much slams the constant af, put me right off.
Click to expand...

Yeah, the AF situation is extremely disappointing for me. That was THE missing feature of m43 format, never mind the camera adjustable colour curves and dials for art filters... Thus, the brightest point of that Pen-F review, was the comparison with e the GX8 at the end, when they said that GX8's continuous AF is actually pretty good (@ 16:52). So maybe not all is lost for the m43 just yet, but Oly seems to have lost the plot somewhat :(
 
I wouldn't say it's missing from micro 43rds (C-AF) it's just not cutting edge.
The E-M1 has half decent C-AF with the latest firmware, I don't have too much of a problem getting results with it.
 
According to Oly the C-AF issue was on the test cameras that didn't have the final firmware on them and should be improved on the ones we're getting now.
Not that its an issue for me as its a feature I've never used on cameras.

I bit, I needed something lighter than my current rig so I could continue shooting hand held and mainly shoot in B&W & jpg, so it seems to tick all the right boxes for me for a day to day camera.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top