Visiting the past in Virginia (Olympus/Panasonic m4/3 gear)

[Greg Beetham]

Yes I did see the thread on the NEX7 vs OM-D, but I had to go back and read it in detail, I tend to sort of struggle too pay attention when it comes to mirror-less cameras.
I have a friend who bought a Panasonic bridge camera a few years ago and the photos from that were very sharp I thought, I also thought though that the colour space was a bit too vivid or saturated for my taste but maybe that is adjustable. The colours in your photos look natural Henry and it is fascinating that IQ is on a par with the larger format APS-C system cameras/brands that’s something I didn’t suspect would be the case. One of the things or I should say more like three things that I’m really interested in is how well the system handles bird photography and macro photography, also lastly but most importantly daylight flash balance and fill. I will wait with interest for, if and when, you have an opportunity to have a little dabble with any of the former at some point, after you have had more time to really get to know the camera and lenses of course…no rush, tomorrow would be fine.
I’m not obsessed with IQ and viewing things at 100% (you can tell if you see any of my photos) but by the same token I don’t want to squander any IQ unnecessarily either, if there is now no visible difference between the 4/3rds format and APS-C format it would be a fairly easy decision to try one some time perhaps, just depends on how good the user interface is I guess.
Greg

[bakubo]

Very interesting pictures and equipment reviews Henry - you may have hit on the perfect thread - pictures and equipment at the same time!

You've got a point there.

Prisoners in the stocks in Colonial Williamsburg

[sury]

Good set Henry. I like your narratives. Always very enjoyable and often informative. Is the Oly as good as it was said for low light photography? Any experience? Examples, perhaps?

With best regards,
Sury

[bakubo]

Yes I did see the thread on the NEX7 vs OM-D, but I had to go back and read it in detail, I tend to sort of struggle too pay attention when it comes to mirror-less cameras.
I have a friend who bought a Panasonic bridge camera a few years ago and the photos from that were very sharp I thought, I also thought though that the colour space was a bit too vivid or saturated for my taste but maybe that is adjustable. The colours in your photos look natural Henry and it is fascinating that IQ is on a par with the larger format APS-C system cameras/brands that’s something I didn’t suspect would be the case.

I shoot in raw so I don't much care about what the jpeg colors look like. Shooting raw means that the raw processing raw profile I use, the color balance I choose, and any other PP I do mostly determine the color, I think.

One of the things or I should say more like three things that I’m really interested in is how well the system handles bird photography and macro photography, also lastly but most importantly daylight flash balance and fill. I will wait with interest for, if and when, you have an opportunity to have a little dabble with any of the former at some point, after you have had more time to really get to know the camera and lenses of course…no rush, tomorrow would be fine.

Macro should be no problem. At least I can't think of any. Can't say much about flash. I have the little flash that comes with the E-M5 and I have another larger external flash that is to be delivered tomorrow to Austin (where I am not at right now).

I would guess that BIF would not be a strong point for CDAF, even the fast E-M5 CDAF. Otherwise I don't see much reason that it would not work fine for birds as long as you have the lens you want. I think the longest lenses for it right now are the Panasonic 100-300mm f4-5.6 and Olympus 75-300mm f4.8-6.7. The Panasonic is just a bit bigger, but costs much less and has faster aperture. I have heard good things about both. I have the smaller Panasonic 45-200mm f4-5.6 so that is long enough for birds in many cases.

E-M5 + 100-300mm f4-5.6 vs. A77 + 70-400mm f4-5.6:

zz5.jpg

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E-M5 + 45-200mm f4-5.6 vs. A77 + 70-300mm f4.5-5.6:

zz6.jpg

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I’m not obsessed with IQ and viewing things at 100% (you can tell if you see any of my photos) but by the same token I don’t want to squander any IQ unnecessarily either, if there is now no visible difference between the 4/3rds format and APS-C format it would be a fairly easy decision to try one some time perhaps, just depends on how good the user interface is I guess.

It mostly depends on whether you value smaller size/less weight. It generally costs more for m4/3 than APS-C so if you don't care about size/weight then I can't think of much reason to buy m4/3. IQ with the E-M5 and lenses is very good, but a lot of the stuff costs more and the ergonomics are not as good as a larger APS-C DSLR camera system. If you are comparing the E-M5 to a NEX camera then that's a whole 'nother ballgame though. In that case you would need to consider other things.

[bakubo]

Good set Henry. I like your narratives. Always very enjoyable and often informative. Is the Oly as good as it was said for low light photography? Any experience? Examples, perhaps?

Seems pretty good to me. Please take a look at the dpreview link I provided. It is an interactive tool that allows you to look at various raw ISO settings and compare it to up to 3 other cameras. I chose three 16mp APS-C cameras to compare to the 16mp E-M5. I have only made a few offhand test shots indoors at high ISO and they looked to me to be good. I don't have many examples to post at the moment, but I am sure I will later when I have a chance to use the camera more in real world situations. Here are a couple at ISO 6400, 1/50, f5.6, 150mm (300mm equivalent -- IBIS worked great) of an actor/historian portraying President George Washington at the end of his second term in office in 1796 delivering his Farewell Address:





The actual Farewell Address was a letter he wrote and not a speech he delivered. This man was really excellent and afterwards spent about 30 minutes answering audience questions about his presidency and the country while staying perfectly in character. Here is some info about the address:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Was ... ll_Address

Here is the address and it is well worth reading:

http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Washingto ... ll_Address

[bakubo]

Sury, I found another ISO 6400 photo taken inside the Magazine (built in 1715) in Colonial Williamsburg:



Here is some info about the Magazine:

http://www.history.org/almanack/places/hb/hbmag.cfm

[Greg Beetham]

It mostly depends on whether you value smaller size/less weight. It generally costs more for m4/3 than APS-C so if you don't care about size/weight then I can't think of much reason to buy m4/3. IQ with the E-M5 and lenses is very good, but a lot of the stuff costs more and the ergonomics are not as good as a larger APS-C DSLR camera system. If you are comparing the E-M5 to a NEX camera then that's a whole 'nother ballgame though. In that case you would need to consider other things.

No, no BIF necessary Henry, I can’t do bif to save myself anyway, it doesn’t matter what bird it is, a chook or a sparrow would do, it was just to get an idea about detail, but no biggie. The thing about small mirror-less cameras that I look askance at is the part in the review where one gets too when the reviewer says you get better performance if you bolt this or that extra item on, be it a power grip or a special adaptor or such, too me that’s when I begin to question the whole thing.
If one has to bulk it up with add-ons and still not get to DSLR performance/ergonomics even then I’d have to be buying it on an ‘as is’ basis I think if I were wanting that weight and size saving, and if it still didn’t measure up ‘as is’ I’d be moving on…back to a DSLR. The one thing I do like about mirror less cameras so far is the usage of old but good legacy lenses that would not see the light of day if not for them, but then of course they become even more handicapped in response times and ergonomics and not suitable for snapshots or candids and more for ‘set-piece’ type photography.
Greg

Ps. Although for the MFT cameras it seems that at least they have a decent set of dedicated lenses too choose from.

[Greg Beetham]

It seems you're having fun re-discovering the USA Henry, Colonial Williamsburg looks like a great place too visit.
Greg

[bakubo]

It seems you're having fun re-discovering the USA Henry, Colonial Williamsburg looks like a great place too visit.

Usually our road trips are through the West or the Southeast and into Florida. This time we decided to go in other areas.

[bakubo]

The IBIS in the E-M5 allows for a stabilized view so that is nice to have once the effective FL gets to 200mm+. Works well.

[bakubo]

Here are some of the old armaments at the Yorktown battlefield.







By the way, I read yesterday that the Olympus CEO said the E-M5 16mp sensor is made by Sony. There has been lots of talk in reviews and among owners that the sensor is a pretty big step forward for m4/3. I have been very happy with the quality I am getting, even at high ISO and DR seems good too.

[aster]

Neat thread, Henry. : )

Lately, lots of historical guns and places in your shots. I love the impersonations of the people who lived in those times.

Great to see so many fine details from the events.

Thanks for sharing,

Yildiz

[bakubo]

Neat thread, Henry. : )

Lately, lots of historical guns and places in your shots. I love the impersonations of the people who lived in those times.

Great to see so many fine details from the events.

At Yorktown they fired one of the cannons after first explaining the whole procedure. They told us to cover our ears with our hands, but if I did that I couldn't take a photo. A young woman standing next to me with a Canon 550D and I talked it over a bit and decided we would sacrifice our ears in order to try and get a photo. I quickly searched my pockets hoping I would find a tissue or something to stuff in my ears, but I had nothing and she didn't either. Boy, it was loud! The resulting photo (second one) was not worth the risk to my ears.

[bakubo]

Is the Oly as good as it was said for low light photography? Any experience? Examples, perhaps?

This is a pretty well done comparison that you might find interesting.

Head to Head Review: Olympus OM-D E-M5 v Nikon D7000

http://www.photographyblog.com/articles ... kon_d7000/

[Greg Beetham]

I've only ever heard one cannon go off, the day the Endeavour sailed into the harbour and that was LOUD, so I sympathize with your ears Henry.
Greg
Ps You got the shot at the right moment and its good, that's the main thing.
Pps there wasn't much difference between the cameras in that review although I think the Nikon had better resolution, (white building crop) but it's mostly down to user preference in the end I reckon.