tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6938824791812834583.post2870767204431664671..comments2024-03-26T10:38:58.586-07:00Comments on PHOTOGRAPHIC CENTRAL: Olympus Pen E-PM2 ReviewCarl Garrardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01561256121516104816noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6938824791812834583.post-33628767190306966482016-05-14T21:00:16.441-07:002016-05-14T21:00:16.441-07:00I've been using one of these recently (a red o...I've been using one of these recently (a red one!) and it has impressed me also. Not exceptional perhaps but Plenty Good Enough for nearly all shooting I do. The few features that I miss are available on the em5, and a used one just hit my price point & will arrive next week. I'll enjoy the tip screen, VF and weather seals, and it should be a fairly simple step from the ePM2.. we'll see about that.JimR 'Longviewer'https://www.blogger.com/profile/06080132970316399941noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6938824791812834583.post-46978735291054947142015-09-13T13:59:18.925-07:002015-09-13T13:59:18.925-07:00And my fourth-biggest beef with these has to be th...And my fourth-biggest beef with these has to be the stabilisation system which, at most shutter speeds, dramatically INCREASES unsharpness. It can improve sharpness when shooting at a shutter speed of between about a third and half the reciprocal of focal length (eg I use it when shooting at 1/5 with a 14mm lens, or 1/15 with the 45mm). At normal daylight shooting speeds, it is necessary to remember to keep it turned off. Why on earth Olympus couldn't have been honest about this in the manual, I don't know...it caused me a lot of irritation and head-scratching until I worked both it and the shutter shock out.Mike Perlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02216907706442492212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6938824791812834583.post-35841398773735845412015-09-08T06:45:27.244-07:002015-09-08T06:45:27.244-07:00I own two E-PM2 cameras and can say that this is t...I own two E-PM2 cameras and can say that this is the best review of the camera I have seen on the internet. <br /><br />I myself have a love/hate relationship with these cameras. The small size and limited number of physical controls are great, the general image quality potential is quite good, and as a frequent low light JPEG shooter, the excellent auto white balance is a revelation compared to earlier m4/3 and DSLR cameras.<br /><br />As the review points out, the overstated ISO is a small-minded deception, and the banding in shadows a sometime annoyance. But my three biggest beefs with the camera are, in reverse priority order: <br /><br />3. that the camera produces very obvious banding when used with the Panasonic 20mm lens which would otherwise be its natural partner in my hands; some claim never to have seen it, but it was visible in most night time shots with a camera ISO setting of about 1000 or higher (ie a real ISO of only between 500 and 640 or so). The effect varied from shot to shot but was almost always there; increasing the ISO increased the incidence and severity of the effect. <br /><br />2. The poor physical quality of the main control interface, the four way button thing with the ring around it and button marked "OK" in the middle. This part is not just fiddly to use...its responsiveness varies so hugely that it almost always overshoots in use. One of my cameras was very poor in this regard from new; the other is deteriorating. The other buttons are not always reliable, either. <br /><br />1. The worst thing about this camera is that it delivers inconsistent levels of critical sharpness due to shutter shock. One of mine (the one with the more reliable control interface) is worse than the other in this respect, but with both cameras I find that even activating 1/8 sec antishock is insufficient. The problem occours with speeds as high as 1/500 when shooting with longish telephoto lenses, so eventually I sold my Olympus telephoto and bought another DSLR with 100-300 lens (a secondhand Sony A37...no shutter shock, ever). With the 45mm, the shock seems worst at what would normally be the lowest safe handholding speeds of 1/60, 1/100 etc. And it occours with every single lens I've used with these cameras. My old E-PL2 and E-P2 both did it sometimes, but my E-PM2s do it more often. This is a problem that simply doesn't exist with other camera systems I've used, and I've used many. I haven't shot extensively with Panasonic m4/3 cameras (because the JPEG processing pleased me so much less than that of Olympus), but in my experience they don't seem to do it. My el cheapo Sony A37 definitely doesn't do it. None of my many Canon or Nikon DSLRs did it, ever. My Olympus XZ-1 and XZ-2 cameras didn't do it. Nor did a whole string of others back to my original Nikon Coolpix 990 or film cameras. How Olympus could have made it possible totally escapes me. And I know how to hold a camera!Mikenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6938824791812834583.post-8306992146344835942014-10-17T14:00:46.409-07:002014-10-17T14:00:46.409-07:00ok i emailed olympus to request the ''0sec...<br />ok i emailed olympus to request the ''0sec antishock'' for e-pm2 and e-pl5 and this was their response, what a joke:<br /><br />Thank you for your e-mail enquiry regarding your E-pm2 and E-pl5.<br /><br />We have no reported issues with shutter shock on these models so they would not require the 0 second antishock fix.<br /><br />Should you require any further assistance, please do not hesitate to<br />contact me.<br /><br />Kind regards<br /><br />Chris Dale<br /><br />European Customer<br />Support Centre<br />siledevilhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05187373025842457679noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6938824791812834583.post-53397443323717866272014-07-27T00:57:54.748-07:002014-07-27T00:57:54.748-07:00Regarding SS (Shutter Shock) issue:
I own both the...Regarding SS (Shutter Shock) issue:<br />I own both the EP-3 and the EPM-2 and I have never experienced or noticed shutter shock problem with either of these cameras.<br />I always shoot hand held and often with shutter speeds between 1/50 and 1/200 second.with Image stabilisaiton on.<br />On the other hand i always take care ofusing a firm two hand grip, almost never single hand grip.<br />When changing from a heavy DSLR (Nikon D7000) to the Little Pens, I sometimes forget this and can end up with a few blurry shots.<br />I Wonder if the SS problem is caused by a combination of camera holding techniques and defective image stabilisation systems in some but not all Pen cameras ?<br />Overall I am perfectly happy with the RPM-2, a great travel camera.<br />I can have the EPM-2, the tiny flash and the 45 mm F.1.8 and pan 14 mm F.2.5 in a small camera bag attched to my belt.<br />Great value for moneyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6938824791812834583.post-86816371718250172702014-07-26T06:37:02.823-07:002014-07-26T06:37:02.823-07:00Hi Daniel, thanks for your comments! :)
On the SS...Hi Daniel, thanks for your comments! :)<br /><br />On the SS issue, I'm not experiencing the issue with this camera so I didn't mention it. That's not to say that I don't think the issue exists with Olympus cameras, because it certainly does! However, I can't mention what doesn't happen to me during trial periods/testing. I can shoot just fine all the way down to 1/2 second hand held (using both hands and being very steady) and have no issues with blurring above that shutter speed at all. <br /><br />I'm not sure just why I'm not having the issues with Shutter Shock, but I'm not. For this review I've used the 17mm f/2.8 and the Panasonic 14-42mm second generation kit lens, and have my IS setting to S-1 in the menu.<br /><br />CarlCarl Garrardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01561256121516104816noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6938824791812834583.post-18558064050818607462014-07-26T01:14:57.739-07:002014-07-26T01:14:57.739-07:00Great down to earth review! I bought it for a stea...Great down to earth review! I bought it for a steal with the 40-150mm included a few months ago, and I agree with almost everything you write. But Im curious of the banding you mention, Ive seen it but only when lifting shadows at around iso 4000-6400. And then I think you forget to write about one of this cameras greatest flaws, the horrible shutter-shock issue. My camera is not hand-holdable below 1/250. Anything slower than that and the image get blurry because the whole camera rattles around in my hand when the shutter goes off. This problem almost dissapears when using the Anti-shock setting set to 1/8. But the problem is that the shutter delay introduced by the anti-shock function makes me miss alot of shots as Im used to the shot being taken when I press the shutter, not a few moments after that.. Well well, all in all I am very pleased with the camera and the sensor performance, But REALLY looking forward to the M43 camera that is small and has Global Shutter, no more shutter-shock issues then :Daniel Högberghttp://flickr.com/hogbergphotographynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6938824791812834583.post-60685125333917157412014-07-23T07:57:57.425-07:002014-07-23T07:57:57.425-07:00fair review. I'd probably do it differently si...fair review. I'd probably do it differently since I have been buying Olympus, 7 in a row, so menus have become a second nature, Still I would like to have direct access to bracketing or other stuff, at least in the higher models.<br />Absolute ISO I don't care. There is no such thing. The Mftr. is free to choose among 5 (!) different definitions, and in Digital only brightness (amplification) is the value to watch. Starting from higher up is a necessity to reach higher sensitivities, keeping some DR.<br />You didn't express ysf. about IBIS, which i find pretty important for freestyle shooting. I'd love talso o hear you about the 17/2.8 which I keep on almost always for size.<br />I have no gripes with IQ, but perhaps because I could do with previous sensors, which were quite worse.<br />I didn't like the grip but solved by appllying a thin strip of hooked velcro on the front one. In fact I use the E-PM2 far more than the better E-M5. If Oly added a wheel for EV correction (On the PL7?) it would have everything I need in the Street. Thanks again!amalrichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04787357625026281058noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6938824791812834583.post-88690183614382067422014-07-23T06:18:14.100-07:002014-07-23T06:18:14.100-07:00The banding was with the 17mm f/2.8 mZuiko actuall...The banding was with the 17mm f/2.8 mZuiko actually. Doesn't seem to matter which lens. I do remember the issue with the 20mm as well.Carl Garrardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01561256121516104816noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6938824791812834583.post-31438413832367057002014-07-23T01:13:07.272-07:002014-07-23T01:13:07.272-07:00Nice way to describe the fine tools that are aroun...Nice way to describe the fine tools that are around us for not much money at all. ! And very personal too. <br />But: what's wrong with the banding. Did you only percieve it with the pana pancake? If so, that was stated in 2012 already. http://www.dpreview.com/articles/4199580748/olympus-acknowledges-om-d-e-m5-banding-with-panasonic-20mm-f1-7-lens<br />perryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05965137252027043519noreply@blogger.com