Micro 4/3 Finally got a E-M5..Why did I wait so long!?!!?!

Location
London UK
Name
Andy
On another thread I was pondering between an E-M1 and the GH4. The price was putting me off a bit but was seriously looking at getting one of these as serious body. On another forum someone was selling a mint E-M5 in silver (Yum!) for a really great price so before I knew it I had done the deed and it turned up today.I have always wanted a E-M5 but every time I used one in the shop I kinda could not get on with the small buttons and put it to one side. I felt I just had to try one and for the money I just had to try this one. I took a few test shots this evening in dull conditions and one word comes to mind.....Impressive!!! I took JPG's and had a look at the files in LR5. The colours and sharpness/detail were really very good and the IBIS is stunning!! I also love where it focuses. It got it spot on every time where as the GX7 can miss on occasions. SO having the GX7 and E-M5 I will be able to assess which I prefer and see about possible upgrade later...maybe.Here is a quick test shot using the Panasonic 25mm f1.4 & processed in LR5.4
14288973161_23194183fa_b.jpg
E-M5 test shot JPG by andywest1, on Flickr
 
Congrats Andy! I hope you get on with the Oly menus... These current m43 bodies, both Oly and Pany, are all so good it would be hard to go wrong. I was admiring this shot, clicked through to your flickr stream, and then saw that psychedelic rose in the shot next to it, taken with the GX7. There's just not a damn thing between them from a quality stanspoint. So I'm glad you got a deal on a great camera - use it well!

-Ray
 
So far I have had more miss on my em5 then the gx7.. Not sure why the difference.

I love the electronic shutter on the gx7. When using a non-ois lens plus electronic shutter, it is pretty close to what the 5 axis ibis can do until we start talking long focal lengths then the em5 wins. I have both camera, but I use them for different things. The em5 is setup for nature work (bird photo mainly).

I also dislike the Olympus menu system. Just too complicated... Once u set it up for your normal shooting, it is not a problem, but for that occasional something different, it is a pain sometimes to find what u are looking for.

Gary


Sent from my iPad using SeriousCompacts
 
I finally picked up a refurbed E-M5 a few months ago. and it's working out just fine. I am seriously thinking about paring all of my micro four-thirds gear down to that and the GX7, which would mean getting rid of the G5 and E-PM2.
 
You waited that long because yer silly and stubborn, but we still love you ;)

GREAT SHOT! The tones are so beautiful!




Eliot@iPad
 
LOL, Thanks Eliot.Love you guy's too :D

Really looking forward to shooting now. All I need is the Pan Leica 15mm f1.7 and I'm pretty much set. Roll on holidays and long weekends!!

Whoop!
 
Beautiful shot, great colours and processing.

I sometimes miss my e-m5, though I'm enjoying my e-p5 now instead. And can't wait to start using the 12-40 2.8 I picked up today.
 
I only just received a brand new E-M1 thanks to a discount + cash back offer, and I have to say that while it is an incredibly competent camera there just isn't the same wow factor as there was two years ago when I bought my E-M5. It's tough being the sequel to a classic.
 
I only just received a brand new E-M1 thanks to a discount + cash back offer, and I have to say that while it is an incredibly competent camera there just isn't the same wow factor as there was two years ago when I bought my E-M5. It's tough being the sequel to a classic.

Kind of interesting - I didn't have that reaction. When I first read about and saw the EM1, I felt like there was nothing compelling about it compared to the EM5. It's kind of ugly IMHO and there was nothing about the specs that sounded like more than a minor upgrade. I should have left it at that. But then I got a loaner and fell in love with it. It was still nothing to look at, but so many things about it worked just a little bit better than on the EM5, it seemed better thought out, and a more seamless shooting experience. It was a classic case of the whole being a lot more than the sum of the parts.

I wish I hadn't liked it so much because then I bought one. And I still really like it, but for the amount I end up using m43, I'd have been just as happy with the EM5 and several hundred dollars to the plus column.

-Ray
 
The EM-5 was my first m43 camera, and what tipped me into buying it was seeing demo models at the Melbourne PMA show. I was astounded by how nicely the camera handled and how fast it could focus and shoot. Dad was so impressed with mine that he bought one for himself. And one of his friends liked it enough to buy one for himself, too.

After getting the GH3, I thought that if I had bought the GH3 first, I would probably not have bought the EM-5. But now, I find myself shooting photos with the EM-5 in preference to the GH3. It's a smaller, neater camera, and I like the tilt screen more than a hinged flip for straight photography. The in-body IS works wonderfully well, and I love being able to build it up with a grip for larger lenses, or make it virtually a compact camera if I'm using pancakes.

Really, even today it is still a great camera. Congrats on your new acquisition!
 
I have always wanted a E-M5 but every time I used one in the shop I kinda could not get on with the small buttons and put it to one side. I felt I just had to try one and for the money I just had to try this one.

When I bought mine one year ago I said the same: Why didn't I buy it earlier!

Congrats Andy! I hope you get on with the Oly menus...

I love the Oly menus, I really love them and don't understand why so many people complain. Of course, they are many, but they allow the photographer to configure the camera exactly to his taste. I suspect that people just are afraid of doing something wrong which eventually makes the camera explode or something like that.
 
After getting the GH3, I thought that if I had bought the GH3 first, I would probably not have bought the EM-5. But now, I find myself shooting photos with the EM-5 in preference to the GH3.

I'm so glad you wrote this! I have also been thinking of getting the GH3 as they are giving away a free 25mm f1.4, battery and grip. Not gonna buy one now! :D I'm loving the E-M5 and now have the grip and spare battery. It's brilliant!! Funny thing is that I prefer shooting RAW with the Panasonic cameras but the E-M5 I think does a better job shooting Jpg's. So the camera is set to Jpg's only and so far I have been more than happy. Our Lexar distributor gave me a free 16gb 600x Pro SD card when he was last in the shop so that I have put in the E-M5 and all is well with the world :)
 
I'm so glad you wrote this! I have also been thinking of getting the GH3 as they are giving away a free 25mm f1.4, battery and grip. Not gonna buy one now! :D I'm loving the E-M5 and now have the grip and spare battery. It's brilliant!! Funny thing is that I prefer shooting RAW with the Panasonic cameras but the E-M5 I think does a better job shooting Jpg's. So the camera is set to Jpg's only and so far I have been more than happy. Our Lexar distributor gave me a free 16gb 600x Pro SD card when he was last in the shop so that I have put in the E-M5 and all is well with the world :)

As far as taking photos goes, I prefer the EM-5 to the GH3. The battery grip for the EM-5 makes it incredibly comfortable to hold and shoot, and the camera has a sense of density and solidity that the GH3 somehow doesn't have. I think it is literally a more dense camera, with all the inside being packed full of electronics, whereas there seems to be a feeling of more 'space' inside the GH3.

The EM-5 is better at tracking AF, too. With some practice - and luck - you can shoot runners on a track more accurately than with the GH3. As a video camera, I love the GH3 and I'm going to get a GH4 when prices come down and bugs have been worked out. But I have to say that I pick up the EM-5 when I want to shoot photos.

As for raw vs jpeg:

For quite a while, Lightroom did a pretty poor job with EM-5 raw. Particularly with skin tones, which always looked brown and sallow in Lightroom. And there is a really annoying 'pointillist speckling' in the shadows and blacks. It is present in many cameras with Lightroom, but it's particularly present with the EM-5. It gives the impression of the image being 'dirty' somehow. This speckling becomes more apparent when increasing the Clarity slider.

The latest version of Lightroom has EM-5 camera profiles, but I still don't think they have captured what the Oly firmware and software actually does. If you want the most Olympic colours from your EM-5 in raw, I highly recommend using Olympus Viewer 3. The colours are wonderful and there is no black speckling. While it lacks the more advanced controls of Lightroom, OV3 produces just gorgeous colours from the EM-5 raws. And you can always tweak it up and export a TIFF to LR or PS for further work. You'll get some of the sharpest and most colourific jpegs from your EM-5 with OV3.
 
Ooh that's interesting, I'll give OV3 a go.

Mind you I kinda always think that company's own RAW converters are the same as what's already in the camera? I'll give it a go never the less and report back :)

Thanks
 
I'm going to chime in for the other side. I've had the em5 (with grip) and the em10. Both very competent cameras. Now I have been trying the GH3. I am preferring the Panasonic . Even though the VF isn't as good.
I find the handling better and the more simple menus get my vote.
I'm also embracing the GH3's jpeg's over the raw files, but to be fair I've only tried the raw's in aperture .

I've found even at this early stage I'm getting a higher success rate with continuous focus than I did with the olympus .
I've only touched on the GH3 video but WOW!
"Dad, can I use your PC ? It's more powerful than mine "!
 
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