The µ43 thread - welcome to the really dark side
- Thread starter King4aDay
- Start date
Panasonic 14mm F2.5 at about £250?
Really want 1. something in terms of aperture.
Hmmm, limited choices then! Unless you get an adapter an get a legacy lenses (no autofocus)
When you have looked at nothing but L glass for years, £270 is refreshingly cheap
Well, at Canon prices
Panasonic 42.5mm F1.2 ASPH Leica DG Noticron
http://www.wexphotographic.com/buy-...=22191576489&gclid=cp2h8niy-74cfsf3wgodzrqamg
Voigtlander Nokton 42.5mm f/0.95
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1000625-REG/voigtlander_ba425m_nokton_42_5mm_f_0_95_micro.html
So I properly used the E-PL5 all day yesterday and it gave me a chance to collect some thoughts on it rather than just 'initial impressions' - There was an all day Sci-Fi event on in Kent which I was working at and took the camera along for a ride.
At first it felt weird holding the camera and looking through a screen rather than a viewfinder. I felt like lots of people you see around with their P&S cameras carefully holding the camera. I didn't feel like a 'professional' at all. When I know in my own simple minded head that I'm 'alright' at taking photos with a DSLR
this will take some getting used to.
It's not necessarily a bad thing and obviously it doesn't make me any worse at taking photos it's just change, and change can be a little odd to adapt to. It's a bit like when everyone went to Windows 8 and claimed metro was the worst thing to happen to PC kind since Windows ME...when in fact it wasn't bad at all, it was just different to how everyone else has had Windows hard coded into them. When you're used to it, it's fine. But yes, this will take some time to adjust to, and obviously...Windows ME was a pile of turd
AF - The focus is nice and quick, even on the kit lens. The touch screen focus is funky but I found myself manually selecting focus points throughout. I found when using the touch screen my sausages fingers knocked the camera enough to not get the shot I wanted. I miss having a joystick from the 5D3 and it does feel a little basic using UP/DOWN/LEFT/RIGHT buttons, maybe a small roller ball would be effective, or a joystick. There is room on the back to fit one, I think that would be a good improvement.
Screen - The screen is nice and bright, although when zoomed out not the sharpest and it's difficult to see the real detail on the photos until you zoom in, on the 5D3 screen you can pretty much tell if its in focus properly with a quick glance, on this I zoomed to double check, but with the AF been as good as it is it was bang on every time, so maybe I need to learn to trust the camera a bit more here and not giving it enough credit from the get go!
Weight - I know I've mentioned the lightness of this thing so many times now but I really cannot emphasise just how nice it is to carry around such a small lightweight piece of kit. A friend of mine was working with his D70 + battery pack + flash + lens and I didn't envy him at all and he commented he was getting annoyed at carrying it around and working towards the end of the day. It really is very liberating to let it hang around your neck and not risk sore ribs the next day or get a neck ache from having it there
Battery - overall battery performance is good. I've charged it once since getting it so its' been used on/off most weekends for the odd snapshot and playing around. Then my girlfriend took it to Spain for a few days and used it a lot each day and I used it all day yesterday. Its now on its 3rd and final bar of battery, I've taken around 500 shots with it and a small amount of video and had it on a lot playing around in the menu/touch screen.
Kit Lens - while the lens itself is very sharp, what annoys me is the lack of depth. Its f/3.5-f/5.6 - now it being a kit lens I obviously wasn't expecting miracles and I'm pleased with the focus speed and the sharpness, but to get any real depth you have to be close enough to the subject to make them feel you're shoving the camera right in their face! This will be fixed soon with a few choice lens purchases me thinks.
- I'll then look to sell the kit lens off to replace it with an f/2.8 equivalent.
Handling - the cameras weight plays in a lot here as well, but I have noticed when handling it it can be a little...fiddly, sometimes. Only if you have someone patiently waiting for their photo to be taken and your sausage fingers accidentally hit another button to so you don't adjust the focus point but instead bring up a sub menu etc. It's a minor thing but it did happen once or twice to me yesterday.
Overall, I love it. I'm struggling to see a bad side to these m43 cameras. The handling issue won't be a problem when I'm using it for its primary function, IE underwater as it'll be in a housing which makes it as big as a DSLR again perfect for my stumpy hands!
I'll post up some images from yesterday tonight
At first it felt weird holding the camera and looking through a screen rather than a viewfinder. I felt like lots of people you see around with their P&S cameras carefully holding the camera. I didn't feel like a 'professional' at all. When I know in my own simple minded head that I'm 'alright' at taking photos with a DSLR
this will take some getting used to. It's not necessarily a bad thing and obviously it doesn't make me any worse at taking photos it's just change, and change can be a little odd to adapt to. It's a bit like when everyone went to Windows 8 and claimed metro was the worst thing to happen to PC kind since Windows ME...when in fact it wasn't bad at all, it was just different to how everyone else has had Windows hard coded into them. When you're used to it, it's fine. But yes, this will take some time to adjust to, and obviously...Windows ME was a pile of turd
AF - The focus is nice and quick, even on the kit lens. The touch screen focus is funky but I found myself manually selecting focus points throughout. I found when using the touch screen my sausages fingers knocked the camera enough to not get the shot I wanted. I miss having a joystick from the 5D3 and it does feel a little basic using UP/DOWN/LEFT/RIGHT buttons, maybe a small roller ball would be effective, or a joystick. There is room on the back to fit one, I think that would be a good improvement.
Screen - The screen is nice and bright, although when zoomed out not the sharpest and it's difficult to see the real detail on the photos until you zoom in, on the 5D3 screen you can pretty much tell if its in focus properly with a quick glance, on this I zoomed to double check, but with the AF been as good as it is it was bang on every time, so maybe I need to learn to trust the camera a bit more here and not giving it enough credit from the get go!
Weight - I know I've mentioned the lightness of this thing so many times now but I really cannot emphasise just how nice it is to carry around such a small lightweight piece of kit. A friend of mine was working with his D70 + battery pack + flash + lens and I didn't envy him at all and he commented he was getting annoyed at carrying it around and working towards the end of the day. It really is very liberating to let it hang around your neck and not risk sore ribs the next day or get a neck ache from having it there
Battery - overall battery performance is good. I've charged it once since getting it so its' been used on/off most weekends for the odd snapshot and playing around. Then my girlfriend took it to Spain for a few days and used it a lot each day and I used it all day yesterday. Its now on its 3rd and final bar of battery, I've taken around 500 shots with it and a small amount of video and had it on a lot playing around in the menu/touch screen.
Kit Lens - while the lens itself is very sharp, what annoys me is the lack of depth. Its f/3.5-f/5.6 - now it being a kit lens I obviously wasn't expecting miracles and I'm pleased with the focus speed and the sharpness, but to get any real depth you have to be close enough to the subject to make them feel you're shoving the camera right in their face! This will be fixed soon with a few choice lens purchases me thinks.
- I'll then look to sell the kit lens off to replace it with an f/2.8 equivalent. Handling - the cameras weight plays in a lot here as well, but I have noticed when handling it it can be a little...fiddly, sometimes. Only if you have someone patiently waiting for their photo to be taken and your sausage fingers accidentally hit another button to so you don't adjust the focus point but instead bring up a sub menu etc. It's a minor thing but it did happen once or twice to me yesterday.
Overall, I love it. I'm struggling to see a bad side to these m43 cameras. The handling issue won't be a problem when I'm using it for its primary function, IE underwater as it'll be in a housing which makes it as big as a DSLR again
perfect for my stumpy hands! I'll post up some images from yesterday tonight
Yeah it feels a litle weird, I may get the viewfinder attachment, but tbh I need to get used to it as thats how I'll roll when 130ft below sea level
Some images from yesterday, it was a Sci-Fi event, so was full of costumers, random people and things. Was very fun!
You can see what I mean about the depth on the kit lens, all of those were shot at f/3.5
Also heres a sample of noise from the camera, shot at ISO3200 - no noise reduction.
You can see what I mean about the depth on the kit lens, all of those were shot at f/3.5
Also heres a sample of noise from the camera, shot at ISO3200 - no noise reduction.
Good to see an m43 official thread!
I brought a om-d em5 with the 12-50 kit lens a while back which served me well but decided to upgrade my glass...
I went to the USA on a business trip and couldn't help to treat myself to the following :
Olympus M. Zuiko Digital ED 12-40mm f/2.8 PRO Lens
Panasonic Lumix G Vario 100-300mm F/4.0-5.6 OIS Lens
Olympus M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 60mm f/2.8 Macro Lens
Olympus M.ZUIKO Digital 17mm f/1.8 Lens (Black)
Olympus M. Zuiko Digital ED 45mm f/1.8 Lens (Black)
Bower 7.5mm f/3.5 Fisheye Lens for Micro 4/3 Cameras (Black)
Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 40-150mm f/4.0-5.6 R Lens (Black)
I will be going to go on holiday to morocco in a week, where I hope to use them all in anger!
I brought a om-d em5 with the 12-50 kit lens a while back which served me well but decided to upgrade my glass...
I went to the USA on a business trip and couldn't help to treat myself to the following
:Olympus M. Zuiko Digital ED 12-40mm f/2.8 PRO Lens
Panasonic Lumix G Vario 100-300mm F/4.0-5.6 OIS Lens
Olympus M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 60mm f/2.8 Macro Lens
Olympus M.ZUIKO Digital 17mm f/1.8 Lens (Black)
Olympus M. Zuiko Digital ED 45mm f/1.8 Lens (Black)
Bower 7.5mm f/3.5 Fisheye Lens for Micro 4/3 Cameras (Black)
Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 40-150mm f/4.0-5.6 R Lens (Black)
I will be going to go on holiday to morocco in a week, where I hope to use them all in anger!
Soldato
- Joined
- 28 Jun 2006
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- Newcastle upon Tyne
I have to admit, those who said I would replace the 14-42 with the 20mm 1.7 were spot on. It's an amazing lens and I can see it being my general use lens from now on. Yes, I'd love something with a little more reach, but these will do for now - plus I'd be a dead man if I spent more money on myself right about now....