Venid Vidi Vici: E-M5 remains on top of the mirrorless ranking since the day it was in Stock for the first time (Click here to see the rankings).
I really try hard to not overpost 43rumors with [shoplink 29074]Olympus E-M5[/shoplink] related news. But we just got many new reviews and one of them is from one of my favorite reviews…CameraLabs! I guess Panasonic has to hurry with the GH3 release otherwise we will all end buying the E-M5! 🙂
CameraLabs: “The OM-D E-M5 marks the beginning of a new strand in mirrorless CSC cameras that poses the strongest threat yet to the dominance of DSLRs in the higher-end of the consumer market. It cleverly combines a retro SLR design (which is still widely held in affection 40 years on) with the best that modern technology can offer.”
PDNgear: “Maybe, in the end, that’s the best thing I can say about the Olympus OM-D E-M5. It’s a cute-looking, retro-style camera that’s capable of taking some fantastic quality images and HD video but like its awkward-sounding model name, it just never felt comfortable to me.”
Rovingphotographer: “The E-M5 isn’t for everyone. There are die-hards, purists, and folks who just like their DSLRs. That’s fine. That’s why we have choices. I truly think this is the first step towards a new era of cameras. But even if it’s not, it’s a step forward for me.”
For our German readers: E5-M Einstellungsführer at System Kamera Blog.
The Black E-M5 ramins within the top 40 of all sold cameras at Amazon (Click here). pretty impressive if you consider that unlike Canon and Nikon camera sthe E-m5 gets splitted in two color versions (would eb ncie to see the sum of Black and Silver E-M5 sales).
New E-m5 and new lens (pre)orders:
E-M5 at Amazon, Adorama, B&H, Jessops, Amazon UK, Amazon Germany, Amazon France, Amazon Japan and Digitalrev.
Olympus 75mm lens at Amazon, Adorama, BHphoto, Amazon Germany and Amazon UK.
Panasonic 12-35mm X lens at Amazon, BHphoto, Adorama, Amazon Germany, Amazon UK, Amazon Japan and Digitalrev.
73 Responses
“first step”, “new strand”??
Where were these people in 2008?
It is amazing to me how many people go through life with their heads down, blinkers on, and oblivious to the dynamism that surrounds them.
“Take, for instance, holding the camera for long periods of time. If you have large hands, you’ll find having two fingers dangling off the side of the E-M5’s small, rubber textured grip will cause wrist strain. It’s sort of like holding a teacup full of Earl Grey for an hour.”
They got that correct!
“The buttons on the E-M5 are also tiny, hard to press and, in some cases, strangely configured. For instance, why are the miniscule Playback and Function 1 (Fn1) buttons placed side by side, at an angle, making them appear to be a zoom toggle? Why does pressing the shutter button also cause you to put pressure on the Function 2 (Fn2) button? But most of all, why is everything so dang small?”
All they needed was buttons like Panasonic has on the dial and others, its not a much the size but the design and material. They also need Panasonic strap lugs and all most of the issues would be resolved in this regard.
I find the buttons on the G1, G2, GH1 and GH2 far worse then those on th E-M5. No, it definitely should NOT have the same buttons, choice is good.
You can add a grip if you find the camera too small, but you can’tmake a gh2 smaller, again, choice is good.
And those strap lugs are only a problem when not holding the camera properly.
What you should do is buy a Panasonic
I’m part of a small self disciplined group that will wait for the next generation before upgrading, I have the E-P2 and yes the EM5 has some major advances but in the end I can take amazing pictures with the E-P2 still. If I wait another 2 years, I believe i’ll really get value for money.
But it’s hard, and I live in Japan where I could walk 5 mins and pick one up, in silver or black..
The E-M5 is light years ahead of all previous MFT cameras…and yes I still own a previous generation MFT camera. Definitely get the new E-M5 – it is awesome. (Not of fan of the EVF and the IS noise, but it is still worth the purchase.)
Lolz if that is called light years i already grew tired of mine, base iso is worse than e pl1, finder us same as G1. Where are the light years dxcept of rtero stlynig?
“Base iso is worse than epl1”
Hahahaha !! I wonder were you got that ?
Finder same as the G1? It seems that you have never used both – even for a short time. The EM-5 finder is much better.
If you read the specs and dont try the cameras you might believe they are the same. The G1 one actually is slightly bigger, has the same resolution, things like refresh and blackout time is vastly improved on newer models.
And the g1 one is color sequential, causing nasty color effects on things that move, and produces a less stable, more tiring view. Actually use both for a few hours on non static subjects and you’ll see why it is totally wrong to suggest the g1 or g2 or even gh2 evf is better
yeah ep2 still gives me great files and its a joy to use. the only think that makes me uneasy is the somewhat limited dynamic range, especially in these sunny days.
Exactly! DR is THE major issue with the e-p2.
Good for you. The next version of it will most likely be better and have worked out any rough edges. Going with camera du jour is a great way to lose money and lose focus on photography (this should not be read as “bad on EM-5” and for those who really needing a new camera, bought it, but for the upgrader crowd that seems to have a subscription to buy whatever is new).
It has given me greater use out of my present 4/3’s glass (14-54 II, 70-300, 35 macro, OM 50mm, & also the largish Sigma 150 macro in MF) than on the E30 & given me a small body along with the small(ish) 12-50 lens when that is all that is needed. Along with the greater sensitivity & dynamic range with the even better IS, I can now get photos that I couldn’t before. That is helping my photography & it is also nice to play with a new toy too. 😉
Well having used the OMD for over a month now I’ve experienced none of those problems but there’s nothing like honing on on aspects of a negative review is there. I think the ergonomics of the camera are very good indeed and 99% of reviews support the view that the camera is a joy to use. By the way I have large hands, it’s not perfect, what is, I found the main thumb wheel a little bothersome at first, but hey I got used to it and it’s no problem now. The idea of wrist strain is risible, just learn how to hold a camera correctly.
+10
The first time I tried the EM5 I was looking to see what the fuss was about the strap lugs. A minor shift of my grip and there was no problem. The location of the power switch is baffling.
The thing I don’t like are all the unmarked external controls, which is the same issue I have with the NEX-7. Yes, programmability is a good thing, but if you’re in a situation where you’re distracted or forget what you programmed, or are forced to put labels on them, then what’s the point? Why not at least make one a dedicated Aperture/Exposure compensation dial? That’s a control you would use in every shooting mode except iAuto. I spent time programming a bunch all the C-1/2/3 sets on my GH2 and forgot what I’d done. I’m familiar enough with the UI, that it takes little time to tweak.
For me, the grip is oddly shaped and too small and I’ll be damned if I spend another $300 (or whatever) for an add-on to make the thing comfortable to hold. I think Oly really dropped the ball on that one. The replaceable grips for the EP3 are a great idea, if only their solution were more elegant and didn’t look like a kludge with the big, ugly exposed screw.
Regardless, that’s nothing but personal taste. At this point it doesn’t seem like I’m missing much with the EM5. More dynamic range and the cool long exposure preview thing would be great. I’m content with my GH2 and will wait to see what the GH3 brings to the table.
To help remove the mystery, the location of the power switch on the E-M5 is similar to that on the E-5. Oly didn’t just suddenly decide to put it there.
That does not make this stupid design decision anything better. The on/off switch is at one of the worst positions it could be. Camera designers should not it. They had more than 10 years time to learn it. It is a shame.
On the other hand… I would say it is perfect. You can feel if it is on or off and switch power on or off with your thumb without looking at the camera. With, say, E-P3 totally impossible.
-p-
Perfect? No! An on/off switch should be on your finger tips, which at the EM-5 is clearly not the case. A switch around the left dial, like on the GH2, would be the perfect solution, but unfortunately, for the camera designers, “retro” was more important than function. It is a pitty.
I have to agree with the …all of the unmarked (spongy..ick), controls comment….my GX-1 is the champion of well-labeled, low-profile buttons! I also think the my GX-1 is much more cutomizable than the Olympus, as well. ….but no camera being perfect…the OM-D definitely has plenty of charms to make up for those minor quibbles…still it could have shown more brightly…but I am not giving mine up any time soon!!!! 🙂
Why not at least make one a dedicated Aperture/Exposure compensation dial?
You do know that when the mode dial is on A, you can change the aperture with the right thumb wheel? And the same deal for shutter when on S? And when on M, the thumb wheel is for aperture and the index finger (both for right hand) controls shutter speed?
People change cameras so often that they never learn to use any of them. I think of camera as a tool. You just have to learn to use it so that your hands/fingers know what to do before you even have to think about it. It only takes a few minutes of practice evey day…
-p-
Thanks for E-M5, launch of GF5 is like happened never. Couple of reviews appeared – but still no review by site which provides decent IQ comparison with peers.
The thing holding Micro Four Thirds back right now is lenses: if they really want it to be “here is a camera system that you can do anything with”, they need to get busy improving their lens range, especially on the tele end. If they made a high quality 300 f/4 with matching 1.4 teleconverter (or AF support for the EC-14), I’d buy an E-M5 tomorrow.
There is nothing better than f/4-5.6 zooms past 75mm, and as good as those may be, they’re hardly what you want to be using on the Four Thirds format. Olympus has shown that they are among the best lensmakers in the world — it’s time to start making some nice m4/3 glass. Instead we get a 75-300 f/4.8-6.7 for $800 … huh?
Totally agreed. The format’s 2x crop factor is a huge benefit to telephoto that so far has not been taken advantage of.
300mm/f4 is 300mm/f4, regardless what you put it on.
With an objective diameter of 75mm (3 inches) it is a big lens,
especially if it is to come with AF. At this magnification (12x)
you should be shooting from a tripod anyway, so much cheaper to get a FF legacy lens and an adapter. The native m43 lens manufacturers know this so until the m43 market is much bigger they are not going to wade in with long telephotos, especially fast ones.
No, with the cropped sensor, a 300mm f4 lens is equivalent to a 600mm lens on FF – like having a 2x teleconverter but with no penalty to image quality and no loss of light, ie, it is still f4. That is something that telephoto shooters could have only dreamed of years ago! That, and the increased depth of field for macro shooting are two huge benefits of this format should be capitalized on more.
I am no longer interested in using a mf telephoto on m4/3, and its not like I havent done it (300mm f4 canon fd and a 300mm tamron f2.8) I am currently using the adapted 70-300mm zd lens, even handheld despite what I “should” be doing, and I would be happy to share the results with you.
I never asked for a 300mm pancake lens, I am well aware of the size constraints. What I want is a prime lens with better IQ than my zuiko zoom, that is built for, not just compatible with, CDAF.
@Fish – you are confusing yourself. Put a FF 300mm lens on an m43 camera and what you see in the picture you make is exactly the same as what you see with the Panasonic 100-300mm zoomed out to 300mm. It is still 12x magnification for both lenses on m43. F4 is F4. Divide the focal length of 300mm by 4 and the lens objective has to be 75mm, regardless of the size of the image circle projected out the back end.
What are you talking about???
Of course a FF 300m lens is the same on mf/3 as any 300mm lens on m4/3. I never claimed otherwise.??
The point that you are obviously missing is that ANY 300mm lens is twice the effective focal length on m4/3 than it would have been if you put that same lens on a FF body. I’m not talking about one 300mm lens vs another. I’m talking about one sensor size verses another and the advantages that brings.
I don’t think I could have been any more clear in stating that it is because of the 2x crop factor of the sensor. Due to this crop factor – m4/3 could/should be THE system of choice for birders or other telephoto shooters. But Olympus hasn’t capitalized on it yet because there isn’t an acceptable AF lens option for m4/3 yet.
Of course, a FF 300mm lens, once placed on a m4/3 body ALSO becomes a 600mm equivalent lens; however, you are not going to convert a lot of DSLR owners, or wow current m4/3 users, with the allure of having to use 30 year-old MF-only lenses. We really need a 21st century telephoto for this format. And my whole point was that this is especially important because this format has inherent benefits to telephoto already.
I don’t know how to post full size images but here are a couple 300mm shots (handheld – whoops):
Tamron 300mm f2.8 – http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e91/honda919/100723119.jpg
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e91/honda919/100723116.jpg
Olympus 4/3 70-300mm f4-5.6 –
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e91/honda919/110525764.jpg
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e91/honda919/110525772.jpg
MF telephoto was interesting and fun at times, but I got rid of my legacy telephoto because the ability to autofocus (even as poorly as the 70-300mm ZD) was way better! I am ready to get rid of the 4/3 zoom in favor of a dedicated m4/3 telephoto.
OK Fish, understand you now.
For birding on m43 I use a Nikkor 300/f2.8 AF, with TC301, giving
me 24x magnification with maximum aperture of f5.6. The gimbal mount is a Jobu Black Widow on a Benro 457 tripod. The lens cost me $1100 – they were about $7000 new. I doubt that a newly minted native m43 lens would be any sharper (and with the FF lens I’m only using the middle of the image cast on the sensor). For birding I would not want a shorter focal length than 600mm, and I often need full aperture (f5.6). I can’t see a native m43 lens of this length and speed appearing anytime soon, especially if it is AF. Now, if I could get my hands on the Nikkor 1200-1700mm ….!
Thanks pdc, sorry for overreacting.
The m4/3 market is much bigger now than the DSLR market was when Olympus made the 300 f/2.8.
Yes, it’ll be a pretty big lens, but not unreasonably so — no heavier than stuff people climb mountains with all the time. Check out Nikon, Pentax, and Minolta’s 300 f/4 models for examples.
If you want to say that a 300 f/4 lens has those specifications no matter what it’s in front of, that’s true. What you *can* say, though, is that the E-M5 has a very high pixel density, allowing a photographer to resolve finer details with a 300mm lens than someone shooting a larger format.
The difference between a modern 300 f/4 and a legacy lens is sharpness and autofocus. Are there any legacy 300’s that will be sharp and aberration-free with a 1.4x converter used on a sensor with the pixel density of the EM-5?
Note that the Nikon crowd frets over whether their lenses are good enough for the D800’s pixel-dense sensor — well, the E-M5 is even *more* demanding. This is why there are lenses designed specially for the smaller sensor.
I don’t know about holding M4/3 back, but long prime telephotos would be the next logical step in lens devopment for the system.
I agree about the 300mm f4. Instead of waiting, I bought a used Nikon 300mm f4.5 EDIF AI-S lens. I already have a Nikon TC-201 2x teleconverter (bought it new around 1990) and it’s a good combo on a tripod. The 300mm alone is excellent, but again, on a tripod.
I own the Sony NEX-7 and 5N and both are slated for the chopping block because of the E-M5.
Is it the DSLR killer? Nope!
The E-M5 still can’t do it all, but it can do most of it.
I’ve used the E-M5 on three paying gigs and one personal excursion to Niagara Falls and on each occasion: I brought home the keepers.
I hope Oly brings out a black version of their 12mm f2—that is next on my purchase list for this system.
I have been using the EM5 for over a month now. lets get the bad out of the way, battery life blows compared to a DSLR! I have taken close to a 1000 of pics on the 5D without a recharge!
Without the battery grip any long lens is very hard to hold, i dont have big hands but with a top heavy lens the grip is not sufficient!
add the battery grip and the whole things gets much much better! I still love shooting with DSLR as the size just fits but the weight of carrying it around is a bummer!
The buttons are small, but i really do enjoying shooting with this camera! and i really like the IQ too very nice indeed!
Em5 was yesterday, any Gh3 or lx6 news?
Panny wants user feedback!
http://fourthirds-user.com/2012/06/suggestions_for_panasonic_lets_hear_them.php
Yes, the smallishness is the only weak side of the EM5. However Oly must be pleased not only with the camera but also of the introduction and reception among media and fans.
The GH3 will be weighted against this and if it isn’t really an improvement will hardly be noted. (Not least because it is presented close to Photokina with many other novelties.)
Panasonic’s EM5 competitors are the G line, not the GH.
Yes and no.
Definitely no, as OM–D and GH series are the weather sealed ones.
You are saying this as if weather proofing suddenly became the key defining feature of a camera; I don’t think it ever did in general, but in those cases where it’s important the GH3 is going to be the only alternative to EM5 indeed.
I bought a GH for the higher image quality in stills. It’s easily the closest m43 competitor to the EM5.
This but may change with G5 / GH3.
+10 Exactly.
The GH2 is an excellent camera for stills, contrary to popular mis-conception. I bought my GH2 for stills. Video is just a bonus feature,.
However good the E-M5 is ( and judging by the reviews it is exceptional ), Olympus is not going to rival a 650 USD Canon Rebel with any 1300 USD camera. So Oly, if you want an even bigger piece of the pie, you need to make something a bit more affordable with most of the E-M5 features. Waiting impatiently for that PEN revolution…
The Canon Rebel also won’t shoot 9fps, survive a downpour, or give you superb IS.
This isn’t to say that it should do these things, of course, but once this new sensor and IS mechanism find their way into a cheaper body then the Rebel will have something to watch out for.
I bought an E-510 over a Canon Rebel when I bought my first SLR, and I think I definitely got the better end of the deal. (My father, who shot a Rebel, borrowed mine and agreed).
That’s exactly the point: drop weather sealing, one control wheel, 9fps, use lower-res EVF and LCD and make an E-P5 that’s going to rival both Nikon D3200 and the newest Canon Rebel. But you can’t beat a camera with VF, decent flash and grip with a P&S styled ILC. Olympus needs a G3 or NEX-7 styled body in 600-700 USD price range.
IS is one of the things I chose Oly for and I also think I couldn’t find a better camera-lens combo elsewhere.
BTW, new Pentax K-30 has IBIS and weather sealing and yet is 500 dollars cheaper than E-M5.
Did you notice that Cameralabs gave the same score (88%) to the G3 as it did to the E-M5? What’s up with that? I think they need to take a closer look at how they critically evaluate cameras. The G3 is very good, but not on a par with the E-M5.
@caver3d – Different price levels / markets for the two cameras you mention. You are comparing apples to oranges.
The EM5 video is a disappointment. Wish Oly would get a clue when it comes to video. Otherwise, remarkable camera.
Yeah… I finally got my E-M5 today. After setting it up (which took like an hour or two) I noticed a strange thing.
When using the EVF (Mode 1 or 2) and you change the Aperture or Shutterspeed etc. it superimposes additional information in the EVF. I find that kind of annoying. Is there any way to prevent it from doing that?
Try going through, pressing the Info button?
Or look through the manual. I’m sure there’ll be something there.
Yeah… that’s pretty much what I did. Nothing in there.
Cycling thru info gets rid of these additional information. However, as soon as you adjust an Aperture or Shutter Value… it crops back in for a couple of seconds.
But well… no biggy… and thx anyway!
You need to set up what options are displayed from the [Info] button & the EVF can be set differently to the main (3″) display. By consecutively pressing [Info], it will cycle through the different options you have set.
What stands for CSC?
@Zetton – Compact System Camera
Thank you.
A camera maker who is not able to design eyecups that do not brake and lens hoods that do not fall off does not and will not make new strands in photography.
I got the EP-11 eyecup and it broke apart within 5 days of usage. All lens hoods, except the one for the 12mm, fall off regularly.
Olympus is the worst accessory maker I know of.
I never had an eyecup that broke. The EP-11 and normal eyecup are made of a cheap plastic frame. Camera engineers should get this things done right, especially from a company which is so “traditional” in photography. Apparantly, this is of no use. Even an electronics company like Panasonic can do this better.
No, with all this bad design decisions, the EM-5 is not a breakthrough camera. It has too many practical issues and not working parts.
I don’t think a faulty eyecup negates all of the excellent innovation that has gone into the E-M5, but I agree with you that Olympus needs to get its act together with “accessories”.
I’m surprised that you didn’t mention how much the eyecup or lens hoods have cost you, because that is a problem too. These things shouldn’t be accessories in the first place. Including them in the box would cost hardly anything but would improve the customer experience immensely. If you used those items, you would feel like you were getting a complete product. And even if you didn’t need them, you would feel like you got some “extras” with your purchase. That perception of value for money is worth more than the cost of the “accessories”.
The problem isn’t cost. I am on a four weeks holiday trip and from day five, I have to photograph without any eyecup, because there is no way to find any replacement, where I am. I haven’t used any camera without eyecup in my life. I is a big failure of a key part of the camera. That Olympus tries to get away with such an important piece of the camera in such a cheap, inappropriate way (the original eyecup isn’t anything better), is. big shame and a big issue for that camera. I would advice people to refrain buying the EM-5 until Olympus offers a solution, which is appropriate.
It is a big shame that Olympus offers a camera at his price point with so much design failures at important functional aspect, like breaking eyecup. This thing is not minor, it is a major deal breaker !
I have also problems with the EP-11, glue needed…
You do seem one unlucky hombre Mahler, I’ve never had an eye cup break or a lens hood fall off an Olympus lens in over 30 years of using Olympus cameras both analogue or digital. I did have a rivet go on my OM1 eye cup but that was after 20 years and I just glued it back together. I do love how people take isolated incidents though and extrapolate them into generic issues without any empirical evidence! On the matter of hoods, lens manufacturers should always include a basic hood no matter what the price of the lens and Olympus has been guilty of failing to do this for many of its m43 lenses, it seems to have redressed this with the upcoming 75mm lens offering a basic hood as part of the kit with an option for a “deluxe” version at a price, this seems the way to go though any hood should reflect the price of the lens in terms of quality.
Uh oh, bad news Paul. The 75mm does not come with any hood, you have to buy it separately.
I think what you are referring to is that while the lens does come with a lens cap, but there is a deluxe metal lens cap you can buy separately.
The eyecup fall off is not a single issue, reported by an unlucky user. It has been reported already a lot of times and still Olympus has not taken any measures. The original eyecup has fallen off within the first three hours of usage and has done so repeatedly since then. Only with luck, it hasn’t broken yet, as opposed to the EP-11 eyecup.
Lol,
Oly fans are in love with this camera with little controle dof and starting iso at 200. It is à nice p&s camera for Facebook etc. Please do not compare with dslr or the nex system. Thats just desperate.
Except for that even Pros love it and fail to see the difference in print or on screen when there is no metadata to look at. Besides… it pretty much IS a DSLR. Sve for the mirror that is not in there.
The E-5 HAS the mirror… but worse IQ. A beginner’s Canon or Nikon DSLR has a mirror, but WAY worse IQ with most of its cheap lenses.
Oww and… your FF DSLR ? Well… that’s really crappy I gotta say. Really poor quality and almost no control over DOF compared to my medium-format Hasselblad.
I think the professionals about which you write are not professionals if they can not see the difference. And which Canon and Nikon are you talking about? I have the EM5, NEX7 and D700 and I can easily see, with the naked eye, the difference. The EM5 is nice but is really still a few steps down the stairs when you talk about picture quality. Oh and I am not a professional.
All system has their merits. You can dislike other brand just fine. But “a nice p&s”? Come on. Have you checked all the reviews around? See what they said? Why most of them said differently? Or you are the only smart guy in photography?
“I have the EM5, NEX7 and D700 … and I am not a professional.”
Wow, you really have a waist of money :D.
About the eyecup : I also lost mine after one week. A pity.
No lens cap coming with a 600€ lens like the 12mm F2.0 : unbelievable…
About the IQ : this is probably the best IQ/size compromise. It’s incredible that you can take with you a camera, a zoom, 2 prime lenses, a flash and other stuff in a such small package..
Which means that you always have your camera with you and take photos instead of leaving it on a shelf.
i also have two Sonys (a55 & a700), a GH1, and my new Oly is on par, even better in some situations, less fine in others. And much smaller.
Of course, a Nikon D4 will be better in low light. But will I have it with me when I need to ?