Anyone have experience with micro 4/3rds format cameras?

Anyone have experience with micro 4/3rds format cameras?

I've tested a Fuji X100 this week end, now I'm thinking about selling my GH1 (too big, I don't use it) and the two kit zooms that came with my E-PL2 to pick up that beauty :-9


Am I mad?

Nope it's a good camera
 
I'll probably go test it again at the end of the week. I'm kind of afraid that it will overshadow my E-PL2 / 20mm f/1.7 combo being around the same range and speed. If it's as good as people say it is, I might just sell the 20mm as well ^^
 
Anyone have experience with micro 4/3rds format cameras?

I'll probably go test it again at the end of the week. I'm kind of afraid that it will overshadow my E-PL2 / 20mm f/1.7 combo being around the same range and speed. If it's as good as people say it is, I might just sell the 20mm as well ^^

It probably will outperform your EPL-2+20mm combo
 
The one weakness of the X100 is apparently the AF speed, but the E-PL2/20mm combo isn't really a speed demon in that arena either.
 
Anyone have experience with micro 4/3rds format cameras?

Yeah plus I'm not doing any sports photography so that should be ok ^^

Perfect, give us your user impressions of the X100 once you buy it
 
I got the X100 yesterday, this is one neat little camera!

I ended up paying 2200RMB (~$350) for it after selling my GH1 and the two olympus kit zooms. Came with the Fuji lens hood, which is apparently made of solid silver since Fuji sells it for $99 new, so that was a welcomed addition. No lens cap though, I found one online and will order it during the week :)

Now for the camera in itself, it's one sexy beast that everybody confuses for a film camera, I guess Fuji did a good job on the retro feel!
The body just feels awesome in hand, it just gives that feeling of quality that's missing from the E-PL2, everything is perfectly fitted, nothing rattles or squeaks. Thumbs up to Fuji for build quality.

I've been using it yesterday with the Firmware in version 1.11 (quite early then) and while it was definitely a bit sluggish at times, I didn't find it as annoying to use as most people say, especially in terms of AF speed, but I think most of the people that were complaining about it came from DSLRs, not from the not-that-quick E-PL2. The firmware v1.30 does speed up everything though, AF is snappy -still not DSLR quick, but really quick enough- and the UI feels quick and responsive pretty much all the time.

IQ is awesome, colours are quite different from the Olympus but they are really quite pleasing and the lens is really sharp, even at f/2. Low-light performance is terrific up until ISO 3200, ISO 6400 is quite noisy, but I think more usable that the E-PL2 at 1600 with a quick cleanup. It's so good that I ended up setting up Auto ISO at 3200 when the shutter speed drops under 1/15s, so I don't have to worry about getting the shot in pretty much any conditions :)

I've been mainly using it at night (lazy sunday FTW) so I can't comment too much on the daylight handling. I did try to get a few shots from my window and there will be a slight learning curve I think: While the camera is capable of 1/4000s shutter speeds, it can do it at every apertures, for instance f/2 is limited to 1/1000s of a second, f/2.8 is limited to 1/1300s I believe, etc. Thankfully Fuji put a ND filter in that thing, so that should help quite a bit in really bright days :)

The OVF is awesome, the info overlay is really brillant and can be setup pretty much any way you want. It's quite dim in lowlight though, so the EVF is definitely a welcomed addition. I feel like the EVF is slightly inferior the Oly's VF2, more on par with the one from the GH1. Colours don't look that accurate in it and there's quite a lot of grain when used in low light.

The "macro" mode is kinda useless, because of the parallax error when used very close it switch to the EVF by default, it doesn't focuses very close too (~10 or 20cm I believe). In short, the E-PL2 with my Nikkor 55mm macro lens still has the upper hand there. Not a big deal since I didn't buy it for that purpose :)

The battery charger is also a joke, somehow Fuji thinks it's OK to sell a camera with a charger in which the battery doesn't actually fit. The battery is too short so Fuji bundled a small piece of plastic with it, that piece is not attached to the charger or battery so of course it got lost in the guy's shop. Right now I'm using a button to hold the battery in place. I'll glue a small piece of plastic in it so no big deal, but it still seems weird to me that they would do such a thing.


All in all, very impressive camera, I already love shooting with it!


Edit: I just ordered a lens cap (looks legit) and a cheap lens hood since the shitty UV filter that was bundled with it is currently tightly screwed and stuck on it :-(
 
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Three words: Sticky Aperture Blades.


I'm going to try and call a Fuji repair center later today, the camera should be under warranty but I very much doubt they'll honour it since I don't have any invoices, second hand FTL. Hopefully it falls into some sort of silent recall that might make it easier.

I also doubt the seller would actually take it back so I'm pretty sure I'm stuck with it.

Two solutions if it's not fixed by Fuji:
1 - Pay for a repair, which is going to be expensive since apparently it requires an complete lens assembly replacement.
2 - Find the part and repair it myself, which could be a cheaper option but the part might have the same issue on the long term.
3 - Use a ND filter in addition to the one already in it so that f/2 is usable even in bright sunlight.

To be honest, I like the camera so much that I'm actually contemplating all the options :)
 
I got to borrow a 60/2.8 from Olympus Norway for a photo workshop at the Oslo Reptile Park yesterday. All of them are used on an E-M5, and most of them lit with the FL-50R. I couldn't trigger it wirelessly as everyone else's flash triggered and emptied my flash when used off camera. I see a dedicated macro flash would have been nice to remove those strong flash shadows. That said, I think the results look very good:

First some pics of a Boa Constrictor, first some at f2.8:
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I shot most of them at f8 to get sufficient DOF:

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With this one, focus missed slightly, a bit of a shame, as I liked the profile...
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Now to some sort of lizard, this one was shot with no flash, as there was a strong light above it. Shot at f5, ISO 200
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A tree boa, at f8:
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A poisonous frog, at f8, shot trough glass
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Chameleon at f8:
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Then finally, something with fur, shot at f2.8:
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Over all, a very nice Macro lens, I have to say I'm actually considering getting this, as the price is reasonable as well, especially for a fully weather sealed dedicated macro lens as good as this one...
 
Very impressive shots, thanks for sharing. I bet that 60mm macro would make a nifty portrait lens as well, do you agree?
 
Very impressive shots, thanks for sharing. I bet that 60mm macro would make a nifty portrait lens as well, do you agree?
While it is very sharp and fast enough for that, I'm not so sure it would make a nifty portrait lens, actually...

Having used the 45/1,8 on a few occasions, I'd say that's a more suited portrait lens. First of all the 60/2.8 is larger, as in longer than the 45, though not substantially wider in diameter. Secondly, I find it a bit "surgical" as it highlights all kinds of details in the picture, so not always desirable for portraits. It's also a very "transparent" lens, as it leaves little or no traits on the picture, typical for a macro lens. However, focal length and aperture is nice, any larger than f2.8 and you will struggle to get the entire face in focus. (sharp nose, blurry ears) So, if you do macro work that requires as much as 1:1 magnification, I would definitely recommend this lens. It's also weather sealed, like the 12-50 kit, which is nice if you like shooting in wet environments. If not, the 45/1.8 does a better job at being a portrait lens, and the 12-50 kit zoom is also good for lesser macro work (1:2 magnification, no bigger aperture than f6.0, thus needing flash or some other kind of lighting)

Or if you want a slightly longer portrait lens, then go for the 75/1.8, it's just beautiful... thats all... :drool:

Also, there was a Panasonic rep at FotoVideo in Oslo this week, showing off the GH3 and 35-100/2.8, both were pre-production, so no memory cards were allowed near them. The ergonomics of the GH3 was nice, substantially bigger than the E-M5 with the horisontal grip. The menus though, were completely strange to me as I have never used a Panasonic camera before.
 
While it is very sharp and fast enough for that, I'm not so sure it would make a nifty portrait lens, actually...

Having used the 45/1,8 on a few occasions, I'd say that's a more suited portrait lens. First of all the 60/2.8 is larger, as in longer than the 45, though not substantially wider in diameter. Secondly, I find it a bit "surgical" as it highlights all kinds of details in the picture, so not always desirable for portraits. It's also a very "transparent" lens, as it leaves little or no traits on the picture, typical for a macro lens. However, focal length and aperture is nice, any larger than f2.8 and you will struggle to get the entire face in focus. (sharp nose, blurry ears) So, if you do macro work that requires as much as 1:1 magnification, I would definitely recommend this lens. It's also weather sealed, like the 12-50 kit, which is nice if you like shooting in wet environments. .

I agree that both the 45mm f1.8 (which I own) and 75mm f1.8 (which i want) both make excellent and dedicated portrait lenses. But my question about the 60mm macro comes from the fact that Nikon's 105mm f2.8 and Canon's 100mm f2.8 micro lenses often find double uses as portrait lenses for shooters who don't spend all their time photographing insects. I'm wondering the the Olympus lens will find a similar double duty, since 120mm equivalent FL will be close to the 135mm classic Nikon and Canon portrait telephoto lenses.
 
I agree that both the 45mm f1.8 (which I own) and 75mm f1.8 (which i want) both make excellent and dedicated portrait lenses. But my question about the 60mm macro comes from the fact that Nikon's 105mm f2.8 and Canon's 100mm f2.8 micro lenses often find double uses as portrait lenses for shooters who don't spend all their time photographing insects. I'm wondering the the Olympus lens will find a similar double duty, since 120mm equivalent FL will be close to the 135mm classic Nikon and Canon portrait telephoto lenses.
It will most likely do that job just nice, but I didn't quite try it for portrait duty, so this is guesswork from me. It's not as compact as the 45/1.8, and it's slower to focus. However, it's weather sealed and 2.8 should be sufficient for portrait uses (Also comfortable as you can push ISO fairly well on the E-M5) or generally being outdoor. I'd reckon it will do that job similarly well as the Canon 100/2.8L and Nikkor 105/2.8 Micro does on their respective camera bodies for a substantially lower price (this is $500, the others cost almost twice as much) :)
 
I got my X100 back yesterday!

They ended up fixing a part inside the lens rather than changing the whole lens assembly, which has saved me a buttload of money.
In the process of fixing the lens, they broke the viewfinder assembly, which they replaced with a brand new one at no cost, and it looks like they've also replaced the top plate as it's not longer scratched ^^
 
Olympus is going pro with mFT... In a little over a week they will show the E-M1 which will sit above the E-M5 in the range. It's pretty much the same size, but it has a substantial grip, larger buttons and even more options for customization, will also come with a horizontal battery grip. The most significant addition will be PDAF-support for fast and accurate C-AF and operation of the old FT DSLR-lenses. They will also launch a 12-40mm f2.8 zoom to go with it, additionally there are rumors of a 40-150mm f2.8 telephoto zoom.

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Edit, picture (screen grab) with said grip and FT 14-35/2 attached:
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^ that's a fine looking followup to the EM-5, will be interested to read more about it.
 
^ that's a fine looking followup to the EM-5, will be interested to read more about it.
Yes, I'm very interested in how this turns out. If they fix the C-AF problem on mirrorless cameras, then that's one less thing to knock them for. That said, I won't be first in line this time around, the E-M5 serves me just fine as of now, I have put over 20000 exposures on it...
 
Yes, I'm very interested in how this turns out. If they fix the C-AF problem on mirrorless cameras, then that's one less thing to knock them for. That said, I won't be first in line this time around, the E-M5 serves me just fine as of now, I have put over 20000 exposures on it...

Im the same as you, I'm kind of glad I don't feel the pull to automatically upgrade bodies as soon as it's released but all the incremental upgrades appear to be exactly what the camera needs, if something unfortunate were to happen with my OM-D I know what to replace it with
 
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