Micro 4/3 My First Impression - PEN-F

gryphon1911

Hall of Famer
Location
Central Ohio, USA
Name
Andrew
Yes, I know...call me what you will...hypocrite, lucky, stupid, smart....whatever....I have an Olympus PEN-F in my possession.

Long story short, some gear trades ended me here.

Got a call yesterday from my local camera shop. PEN-F was in. Silver model.

Made my way down to the store today on my lunch hour.

Most of the guys that I talked to that handled the demo were impressed with it. They are mostly Sony and Fuji users in the mirrorless sector, but found the PEN-F intriguing.

I've only had the thing in my hands for the last 30 minutes, so I'll just address what I can for now and get into more details later.

Front Dial:
I've heard from others on the internet that the front dial is sharp and cut into their hands. I'm a big guy with large hands and my fingers do not even come close to the front dial. Like the NikonDf, the PEN-F needs to be held with a slightly different grip. I'm not going to hold it like an EM1 or a D700.
Yes, the edges of the front dial have some bite to them, but nothing I would consider "sharp". However, that is a subjective matter and each person should decide that for themselves with a hands on.

Grip (or lack there of):
The thumb indent on the back seems adequate for me. The front is of a grippy like material. I had no issues holding the camera one handed. It will most likely be an issue with the larger lenses like the PRO lenses or the 75-300/4.8-6.7 II.

My primary intention of using this camera is going to be with primes, so I don't consider that much of an issue.

"Rangefinder-esque" Styling:
I've never been one to prefer an "OVF hump" or side set EVF. I just require there to BE an EVF. For those that like built in EVF, this one does not disappoint.

LCD Rear Screen AF Point Selection:
One of the things that I envied of some of the Panasonic bodies was having the EVF be used as a way to select the AF point while looking through the EVF. We have that now and it makes for quick selection. After getting used to it, I can see where this would be great for quick changes while doing street photography.

That's about all I had time to get to at the moment, and did not have a lens in which to test it outside the camera store.

Aesthetically it is pleasing and I look forward to getting to know it better.

More updates to this thread as I am able. I've got a 4 day sunrise to sunset event to shoot starting tomorrow, so it could be a few days before I have anything to report.
 
I'm interested to see if the new Sony sensor is an improvement.
The current crop leave me wanting.

I suppose its a bit presumptive on my part not knowing exactly what you find lacking, but I'd expect to still be wanting. By all reports I've seen, while there is indeed an improvement it is by no means revolutionary.
 
Some images from this weekend. I decided to be stupid and take an untested and unknown camera into the field with me. Turned out OK. :D

These were shot with the Olympus 17/1.8 prime in Mono Mode 2. I might have fiddled with the settings, but I like the images I got. But I like high contrast and grainy pictures. May not be for everyone.

I still have some experimentation to do!! :D

03-04-2016_PENF_arnold_P3040006.jpg
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03-05-2016_PENF_arnold_P3050102.jpg
03-06-2016_PENF_arnold_P3060127.jpg
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03-06-2016_PENF_arnold_P3060144.jpg
 
Quick update. I just got back from my 4 day event and images/video are downloading.

EM1 and PENF for stills and the EM5 Mk II for video.

I've about 2000 images and around 40 video clips to wrestle with.

Still shooting performance wise, the PENF seems as capable as the EM5 Mk II, but with the added bonus of the mono/color mode. As some have predicted, the Mono2 is a dandy of a setting for me. I was tinkering with it before hand and I think I accidentally set the film grain setting to high, as you'll see what effect that has on images in the samples above.

Further experiments with that mode will be shared once I can get into them.
I suspect that in the future, +-6 on the tone curve in mode 2 might be too aggressive, even for me. I think I'll be more happy in the +-3 or 4 area and perhaps pop a little of the mid tones as well.

The power switch was a lot nicer to deal with than I thought. Easy to flick on with the left hand, just slightly beating out the EM1/EM5Mk II power lever.

I had the Oly 17/1.8 on the PENF for the whole weekend.
 
One of the things that hasn't changed, along with the tripod screw and flash sync socket.

Mind, I'm (nearly) old enough to remember when the "hotshoe" was cold, and was known as the "accessory shoe", intended for rangefinders and the like... ;)
 
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