Micro 4/3 Olympus EM-1

donlaw

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Don
I made a GAS influenced impulse buy on Ebay yesterday. Like new EM-1 for 1/2 the price of a new one.
I am not sure why I am drawn so much to this camera body. I could have gotten a OM-D E10 for much less. Anyone out there have the EM-1 can tell me why they like it? Or if you had one an got rid of why you didn't like it?
 
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I was curious so I went to Amazon, and they had 133 reviews averaging 4.5 of 5 - that's pretty amazing. I read the worst first, the usual stuff about failures and problems with customer service. Those comments reminded me how important it is to keep the camera clean and not drop it, not to mention buying from an authorized dealer for warranty purposes.
 
The EM1 is probably one of the most responsive mirrorless cameras on the market. It just functions and functions well. It is weather sealed, has great IBIS. I love the ergonomics of it. Once you get used to it, getting the images you want from it is second nature.
With the 3.0 firmware upgrade, the PDAF tracking AF is excellent, only failing on few occasions where we are looking at very erratic motion that would be hard for anything to track.

On the downside, and this is a very personal and minor thing - the EM1 feels like a tool. Much like my Nikon DSLRs (D300/D700). I find a much more emotional/artistic connection between my Nikon Df and the EM5 Mk II.
 
The EM1 is probably one of the most responsive mirrorless cameras on the market. It just functions and functions well. It is weather sealed, has great IBIS. I love the ergonomics of it. Once you get used to it, getting the images you want from it is second nature.
With the 3.0 firmware upgrade, the PDAF tracking AF is excellent, only failing on few occasions where we are looking at very erratic motion that would be hard for anything to track.

On the downside, and this is a very personal and minor thing - the EM1 feels like a tool. Much like my Nikon DSLRs (D300/D700). I find a much more emotional/artistic connection between my Nikon Df and the EM5 Mk II.
Thanks for the thoughts. A subjective attraction/feel for a camera body influences me too. That is why I really love the Nikon Df and Olympus EP-5. If it wasn't for the EP-5, I would have left the m43 system awhile back. But now I find that camera with a 25mm/45mm, and 75mm, is great for travel! I will probably watch for a good price for the 12-40 f2.8 to match with the EM-1.
 
I was curious so I went to Amazon, and they had 133 reviews averaging 4.5 of 5 - that's pretty amazing. I read the worst first, the usual stuff about failures and problems with customer service. Those comments reminded me how important it is to keep the camera clean and not drop it, not to mention buying from an authorized dealer for warranty purposes.
Thanks for checking Amazon. I didn't see that. But the dpreview.com review influenced me a bit.
 
I was a long-time (and many bodies) m43 user. I'd owned the EM5 for the better part of two years and considered it the pinnacle. When the EM1 came out, I didn't really want one, not seeing much to differentiate it from the EM5. But then I had a chance to shoot with one for a bit and I fell in love with it. There weren't any particular major features that distinguished it from the EM5, but it was one of those "the whole is greater than the sum of it's parts" cameras. Lots and lots of little, sometimes tiny details that they just improved in small ways that added up to a remarkably seamless shooting experience. I can't ever remember what most of them were, having moved on from m43 over a year ago, but I recall just being extremely happy with everything about that camera. I'd love to see it with the new firmware - I'm not a huge user of tracking AF, but now that I've gotten used to how incredibly good DSLR tracking is, I'd love to see a mirrorless camera approach that level of tracking performance...

I'm not in the market for ANYTHING these days, but there's an outside chance I could go back to m43 for a smaller travel system someday. Probably not, because the size of my DF setup isn't a problem in the least, but maybe. And, at least of today's cameras, the EM1 is where I'd start looking. The EM1 with the 12-40, one of the 7-14s, and the Pany 35-100 would be a pretty great travel system. With maybe the 75-300 held in reserve for special occasions. I don't like zooms for every day shooting, but I seem to like them a lot for tourist/scenic shooting...

-Ray
 
I can't imagine what would be better about the E-M1 than the E-M5, but it's been awhile since I shot with one. I never felt there was anything lacking from the E-M5 (like I do with almost every other camera out there that doesn't have a mirror in it).

Don, when you get it and have put it through it's paces, I'd love to hear how you think it differs from the E-P5.
 
The E-M1 is kind of the goldilocks-camera for me. Just the right size. Everytime I pick it up it feels "just right".
The grip and the viewfinder are the biggest advantage in my view over the E-M5. The E-M5 is "just right" with the smaller lenses (like the pancakes), but with the somewhat "heftier" lenses (like the 12-40mm, the 75mm, or the 75-300mm) the E-M1 balances very well.
You can get a grip for the E-M5 (I have a Fotodiox one) to make up for that when you need it, but the viewfinder in the E-M5 still feels "small", once you used an E-M1 :)

The fact the the E-M1 feels like a "tool" is something I personally appreciate (but I'm probably one of the very few who likes the feel of the rubberized four thirds lenses more than the "jewel-like" look/feel of the m43-pro lenses).
It reminds me in size of the Nikon D40, another old-time favourite of mine, only with better ergonomics and more direct controls.

In my opinion the E-M1 is very successful as an all-round camera. Giving the photographer a lot of options... You can go with a small setup, or a bigger one... and it's more than "good enough" for pretty much every photographic genre. :)
 
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I can't imagine what would be better about the E-M1 than the E-M5, but it's been awhile since I shot with one. I never felt there was anything lacking from the E-M5 (like I do with almost every other camera out there that doesn't have a mirror in it).
I had the same reaction you had before I used one Luke. And there's no single thing I could point to that's notably better (although the EVF sure felt huge and transparent in comparison), but there are just a lot of little details that they heard people out on from their EM5 experiences and responded to in the EM1. Just a little thing like programming the automatic EVF/LCD sensor so that if the screen is pulled out to a near horizontal viewing angle, it won't switch to the EVF because with the EM5 and other earlier cameras it would constantly switch over to the EVF thinking your body was your eye. That's a small thing I actually remember. There were a lot of other little details like that which wouldn't be make or break on their own, but taken together, it made for a really great overall package. It's not vastly better - the EM5 is so good it's not like it sucks in comparison to the EM1, but after using the EM1 for a while and then going back to the EM5, I knew I wanted an EM1 where I really didn't have any desire for one before I used it. Given that I got rid of all of my m43 gear less than a year later, it's an expense I wish I had forgone, but it was a camera I really liked for the several months I had it.

-Ray
 
I don't feel that the E-M1 was that much of an upgrade over the E-M5, and most of the smaller operational refinements made to the E-M1 in comparison to the E-M5 can also be found in any of the other newer and smaller Olympus bodies such as the E-P5, E-M10 and E-M5 II. The most useful that I found was the sensor on the tilting screen that over-rides the sensor on the eye-level EVF, however I find using eye-level viewfinders to be something of an anachronism nowadays so it's not a big deal. The E-M1 doesn't really feel to be much faster in it's operation but then again I never spray the continuous shutter so there may be some differences there that I won't ever see.

The grip on the E-M1 is quite deep and I found it to be invaluable whilst operating the camera one-handed during a camel safari in Morocco earlier this year, but the likelihood of more camel-mounted photography in my future is quite low. Aside from that particular example, I prefer a smaller form factor than the E-M1.

My favourite part of the E-M1 vis-à-vis the E-M5 is the Panasonic-based sensor which suffers less from the tendency to over-saturate colours. The E-M5 with it's combination of Sony sensor and Olympus colour profiles can be more problematic.

I'm not doing much photography at the moment and am thinking of selling a camera or two. If I had to choose to sell either the E-M5 or E-M1 it would be the E-M1. I've just never really bonded with it even though even though it is arguably the better camera of the two.
 
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If I had to choose to sell either the E-M5 or E-M1 it would be the E-M1. I've just never really bonded with it even though even though it is arguably the better camera of the two.

Arguably not for you, Nic.

I had forgotten about the built-in grip because I always used one with the E-M5. So that is a very real "upgrade"..... and I'm not riding any camels anytime soon (much to my chagrin).
 
Thanks to all for their welcome and thoughful comments. I too had and EM-5 which survived a complete drenching during a boat ride at Niagara Falls. Wonderful camera. Subsequently sold all the m43 gear after acquiring the Nikon Df. But my love for the retro design of the EP-5 got me back into the m43. So I will let you know how this EM-1 fits into my camera equation.
 
The E-M1 is a great camera. Last year I considered moving to m4/3 for some of my event work and picked one up. In the end I decided to just continue with my Nikon stuff for work and sold it simply because it didn't make sense for me to have that much money invested in it. At the time I also had an E-P5 and sold them both for an E-M10 and more glass.
 
The major difference i found between the M5 and the M1 was that the latter just felt better in the hand and I really liked the control layout. Both are great bodies but I just enjoy using the M1 a bit more. I sold the M5 but missed the OMD backup and replaced it with a refurb EM10.
 
I got the M1 this weekend and my initial impression is this camera has an amazing build quality. Without a doubt the finest quality m43 body I have held. It seems very intuitive to use based upon previous experience with and E-M5 and my current E-P5. Downloaded the manual to the iPad and was overwhelmed by the customization options.
The grip and balance are very comfortable. With a wrist strap it is a great size and weight for walking around. The balance is really nice with the incredible 75mm f1.8 (a lens that frequently amazes me!) attached. Brought it with me on a business trip this week, so I am hoping to find an opportunity to test it out later this week.
Here is my first image taken with the equally incredible Olympus 45mm: Clark the Beagle!
Darn it, I may just have to breakdown and get that 12mm lens that I have been resisting for years...
20805723614_dd89369d79.jpg
Beagle Eyes
by donlaw200, on Flickr
 
Here is an image heavy post. Showcasing my first week with the Olympus E-M1 Rare for me to post so many images at once, but I got to take quite a variety of images with my new used E-M1 this last week. Very impressed with this camera. All were taken using the Olympus 75mm f1.8 or 25mm f1.8.

Bookstore Crowd.jpg


Smiling.jpg


Bearplayer.jpg

Bear head was with the 25mm

White BIrd.jpg


Camera girl.jpg


Hairy People.jpg


conversation.jpg


Curve.jpg


Movie girls.jpg

Again Movie girls with the 25mm.
 
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