Manila with the GM-1 and RX-10

Penfan2010

All-Pro
Location
NJ, USA
Name
Ed
I took along my new travel combo, the GM-1 and RX-10 on a week long trip to see friends and family in Manila. While I was hoping to avoid carrying extra lenses for the GM-1, I ended up bringing along the Panny 20 and Olympus 45 to complement the 12-32 kit zoom. In most cases I had only one camera with me, but when I had both, I found myself reaching for the RX-10 more often because of its wide range, fast aperture zoom. I thought I would find the RX-10 too cumbersome for all-day street shooting, but that was not the case at all. It is a solidly built camera with great handling, it is pretty responsive in terms of focus, and the control placements are almost as good as the GX-7 (arguably better since it also has a dedicated aperture ring on the lens). The weather-sealing was also a benefit as the rainy season had just started, and I found myself street shooting in the rain a couple of times. Lastly, its great video capabilities came in handy when I needed to shoot some footage of family events plus a few interviews for a personal project. The only downsides of the RX-10 are the standard JPEG colors are somewhat muted compared to what I am used to from my E-M5 and Panasonic cameras, and, since it is as big as a compact DSLR, it is less discrete for street shooting. The GM-1 was a great all around camera, but particularly superb in low light, especially with the 45 or the 20. The GM-1/GX-7 sensor is really great for such situations. All in all, a pretty good, light combo for travel. All in all, I am very pleased. Now I need to figure out whether to sell of a few more lenses and a body to streamline my kit further.

I posted some of these images already while on the road via Snapseed, but those below PPd with LR5.

RX-10

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GM-1​

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Very nice shots. Not sure why, but your GM1 images make a stronger impression on me than the RX10 ones - maybe coincidence, maybe not. I'll be there myself in a few weeks so this is a great 'whet the appetite' set.
 
Very nice shots. Not sure why, but your GM1 images make a stronger impression on me than the RX10 ones - maybe coincidence, maybe not. I'll be there myself in a few weeks so these is a great 'whet the appetite' set.

Thanks, Olli. I think part of what you're seeing with the GM-1 photos is a result of shooting much closer to my subjects with the 12-32 or one of the primes. With the RX-10's great zoom range, for the most part I could shoot from further away, although a number of the photos above were also shot close at the widest zoom setting. That said, I am convinced that different cameras impact shooting style, and as advanced as the RX-10 is, I suspect i go into "P&S" mode mentally and tend not to pre-visualize my photos as much as I do with my m43 and primes.

Have a great time in Manila!
 
Thanks, Olli. I think part of what you're seeing with the GM-1 photos is a result of shooting much closer to my subjects with the 12-32 or one of the primes. With the RX-10's great zoom range, for the most part I could shoot from further away, although a number of the photos above were also shot close at the widest zoom setting. That said, I am convinced that different cameras impact shooting style, and as advanced as the RX-10 is, I suspect i go into "P&S" mode mentally and tend not to pre-visualize my photos as much as I do with my m43 and primes.

Have a great time in Manila!

I would think that it might be less of a P&S mentality and rather that of carrying a larger and less discrete camera. From having travelled with DSLRs to now doing the same with mirrorless cameras I have been able to capture a lot more variety with the smaller cameras.

Regardless, this set of images gives us a wonderful window into life in Manila.
 
Thanks a lot, Nic. I see your point on the less discreet camera, but i guess my idea of the "PS mentality" stems from years of using a Minolta Z1, one of the first long-zoom small sensor cameras with a very grainy EVF. loved taking photos with that camera, and used it as my primary digital camera before finally upgrading to an Olympus E-500 (I was still shooting a lot of film concurrently with my "more serious" OM-1 and Pen-F). I generally found that I was less careful with composition and framing, and got somewhat lazy with the long zoom range compared to when using primes on my film cameras. The feeling persists to this day whenever I use any of the m43 long zooms (e.g. 14-140) or the RX-10. I guess it's less about P&S as it is spray and pray that something good turns up later. That said, I am always surprised by the number of images I do like even when shooting in this less deliberate mode.
 
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