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Ken Rockwell is a lot of fun to read… but he rambles and rants a lot (which actually adds to the fun). I’ll take his word for how he arrives at some of the very nice pictures he makes, but I’ll never take his word on equipment beyond ‘a fun read’.

Google for “ken rockwell everything sucks” to see what I mean

The specs are pretty clear about it only locking focus on the first shot when using high speed continuous shooting. That it may suggest on the display/evf that it is still focus tracking/changing focus point is odd and shouldn’t happen, but don’t act as if it is not doing what promised here, that is totally silly.

As to ‘fastest AF’, that this concerned single AF has also been clear for a long time, as has been the fact that contrast detect AF systems are by far not as good at continuous focus and tracking as phase detect AF systems are. If YOU are failing to read and inform yourself, and then make wrong decisions based on it, you have yourself to blame, and noone else.

BEST MIRRORLESS CAMERA EVER!

isnt that like saying ‘best fake diamond ring ever’
STill not an SLR

First of all, Dave, that really hurts. You are just downright mean. Does your mother know you act like that? By the way, I haven’t been a dumbass my entire life, only for a few precious moments, here and there, about like everyone else.

Flags, I don’t know if you work for DPR or Olympus, or what, but you, my friend, are full of shit, best go relieve yourself. If you had actually held the camera in your hand and used it, for an hour, I suspect you would have a raw spot on you finger, from the strap lug. People that just wear it around their neck and don’t really take pictures much probably won’t notice it, for awhile.

Anyway, I was just trying to warn people about wasting a thousand bucks on a camera they may end up not wanting to use much, due to finger rubbing strap lug. Seems like a pretty decent camera, other than that, but shit, if you don’t want to hold it, then whats the point, might as well break out the 4×5, or 6×7, if I want to shoot with a tripod all the time. The whole point of M4/3 was to get a small camera to carry around with me.

Continuous AF and tracking are pretty big deals if you are shooting a moving subject. It might be easier for me to carry around a D7000 than convince my kid to stand still.

Unfortunately not. I really don’t understand why not. You have a clock in the camera it should be a pretty simple thing to implement.

Maybe they are holding back features for a pro version, the next model or an expensive accessory?

As it is, the E-M5 has so many great features about all they could add for their next offering would be an intervalometer and in-built flash.

Is there an built-in intervalometer or similar on OM-D?

I read the manual and dpreview test but I found none related. No biggie but I remember reading something about this during pre-release discussions.

Sorry for my miserable spelling!
I did not win the EP-3 unfortunately, I bought a twin kit set with the VF-2 EVF and the 45 mm F.1.8 and I haven’t looked back since then

But the Brits get the extra grip tossed in — contrary to most other countries…

I am an Olympus fan-boy (by accident) but I am not so blind that I cannoot recognize the advantges that Sony, Canon , Nikon etc. can offer compared to Four-thirds and micro four thirds.
I won an EP-3 which is indeed a great and versatile camera for travel, street and event serious portrait (with the 45 mm F.1.8),
it has almost replaced my E-30 DSLR.
But I cannot use it for bird in flight photography due to lack of reliable CF or 3D tracking.
I tried the Nikon V1 which is undoubtly vastly superior to the EP-3 when it comes to tracking and CF performance.
But I still prefer the EP-3 for handling, selection of lenses, colour rendition, general IQ up to ISO3200, build quality and joy of using.
The Nikon J1 and V1 deserves great credit for their great implementation of Phase and contrast detection and high sequentiail shooting performance.
But their very small sensors will probably be a huge disadvantage when Canon release their CSC with bigger sensor and M43 continues to used vastly improved sensors.
The Olumpys EM-5 is very tempting but it cannot repalce my E-30 due to lack of good Continious focusing, I am still waiting for a new Olympus camera that can support my fourthirds HG and SHG lenses.

I don’t know what is going on with y’all, but it seems like none of you (including the blog author) knows what the word “vie” means. Perhaps you should look it up?

It means it COMPETES for that title. It means that DPR thinks it is a CONTENDER for that title. It means that DPR DID NOT crown it “most capable mirrorless option,” but rather that it competes with the best of the mirrorless cams.

Notable, because there are other mirrorless cameras that DPR have scored higher.

Amen

Rangefinders have beam-splitting (half)mirrors. I own three of them

I was at Michael’s Camera in Melbourne over the weekend and talked to a couple of Olympus reps who were there showing off the E-M5. I asked about frame rates and they said Olympus was “aware” of requests for 24/25p.

Needless to say, that doesn’t really mean anything, but from my first impressions playing with their cameras, the IBIS and the degree of customization possible in the picture profiles could make the E-M5 a real winner for video shooters if Olympus would upgrade the codec or at least implement proper frame rates.

Fwiw, they also said the E-M5 sensor was categorically not from Panasonic but wouldn’t say who it was from. “There’s only four companies that make camera sensors,” they said.

They also said Olympus was aware of complaints that the proximity sensor on the EVF that switches between that and the OLED could not be turned off, which struck me as likely to be the camera’s most annoying operational defect.

Absolutly – DPR never had a mension of 4/3 lenses!!!!

All it needs for camera nivana is :

HD 1080 24p/48p/50p/60p video,
Good tracking AF,
In camera CA removal,
Usable 4/3 lenses,
AC power,
USB PC control.

PERFECTION!

Dude, you criticize the DPR review citing the handling? DPR found no fault with it – YOU DID. I quote “Despite being pretty small, the E-M5 fits nicely in the hand and is made more comfortable by its grip’s rubber coating. We found the twin dials to be well-positioned, particularly for to-the-eye shooting.”

Who says it’s not comfortable to hold? Only you so don’t badmouth DPR. It’s your opinion.

Congrats on the Gold Award Olympus! We’ve waited a long time for something like the EM-5 to be made.

Now that that’s over….

Admin:
Where is all the juicy G5 and GH3 gossip? Ken Rockwell seems to imply that the GH3 is going to be something really special in one of his latest blogs. What will it bring?

BornOptimist… I can’t see how it is possible to interpret the dpreview in the way you do — your interpretation has zero basis in what the dpreviewer writes. Interpretation is fine when it is logically possible. Your interpretation appears to be pure invention.

The only place they say something remotely like your interpretation, is when they criticize the continuous focus in VIDEO mode; they suggest that the focus jogs back and forth in that case, and indicates that this is an inherent problem with CDAF. But that is not what I cited from their con list.

You also totally misunderstand my point about the Nikon V1. In fact your misunderstanding is quite funny, as it reveals that you are a V1 “believer”, and that you try to find in the review arguments against the Olympus claim of having faster AF than your pet V1.

My point about the V1 has nothing to do with the V1 and its AF speed to do. In fact I could have chosen any other camera brand; it was meant as an example. The point is this: dpreview lists as a con against the E-M5 something that is clearly listed in their spec sheet: they indicate that Olympus should have implemented an indicator to inform the user that there is no continuous AF at 9fps. But this is clear from the specs, and Olympus has not tried to hide it! My point is that they do not criticize e.g Nikon for lacking an indicator about mechanic shutter with max 5fps. I could just as well say: they do not criticize the Panasonic GX1 for lacking an indicator to tell the user that there is no focus peaking, etc.

The Nikon V1 — I seem to recall that it can shoot at 60fps or so when the AF gets locked at the first picture (using electronic shutter). My point is thus: they didn’t criticize Nikon for not installing a big flashlight and a loudspeaker telling the user that the V1 lacked continuous AF during the burst of 60fps. So why do they choose to raise this in the case of the E-M5???

Dont you see? Your shitty NEX 7′s “glorious” sensor is nothing without quality glass to take advantage of it. Dont harp about the APSC vs 43 debate like an idiot. Have some credible points to support ur POV.

Good for m43. But boy I would like to see your face if GH3 turns out to be disappointment like the GF series! We shall see. NEX 9 can have the same sensor used in D800 if it wants to, its system will still suck without lenses.

Give a camera that is not even comfortable to hold, an award? Try shooting a short two hour wedding with this camera, without the grip, and I suspect there will be more curse words than praise, coming from the photographer. Just goes to show you the true value of DPReview. Want a real opinion of a camera, ask a pro, not a money grubbing internet slacker. There are going to be some pissed off people, but I guess it serves them right, for not paying attention.

It’s not bad where it is – whitespace is the problem. There isn’t enough whitespace between the comments, so they blend in together. Another thing that would help immensely would be to color the background of the post once you hover over the Reply link.

I don’t believe that EM-5 is the best mirrorless option overall, maybe if you look only at stills (and even then only does better than GH2 at ISOs of 3200 and above, you will be hard pressed to find a significant difference at lower ISOs even if you pixel peep, although I think it easily beats GH2 for dynamic range), and once you add video, GH2 is still the best mirroless option overall. That’s my opinion, of course, for some people the looks matter and I guess EM-5 has a much uniquer look, still don’t think it is the best mirrorless option in terms of pure functionality. Still, it seems to be a fantastic camera and if video isn’t a big deal, I do believe the EM-5 is the best mirrorless option.

@BornOptimist: you are wrong! From dpreview: “Unhelpfully, the camera doesn’t indicate that Continuous Autofocus is not available in high-speed (9 fps) mode, and during shooting, you may never realize.”

Am I a “believer”? Perhaps, but I can read. This has been mentioned in every presentation I have seen so far. And still dpreview suggests that there should be a special notification of this. Did I see a complaint about the Nikon V1 that it can only shoot at 10fps with the electronic shutter? And “only” at 5fps with the mechanic shutter? And that it was a flaw that Nikon didn’t implement a special symbol about this? No.

Their other cons are probably ok, but this one is kind of ridiculous.

At least the NEX Fancrew makes a lot of noise. Here at FOUR THIRDS rumors.

As credible as claims of politicians that they work for the good of common people.

We will see how a D3200 (latest APS-C) an entry level DSLR with 35mm prime outperform the EM-5 in IQ. People don’t need to go to Full Frame.

Lack of phase detection ability can’t be corrected by any firmware.
Properly working continuous focus tracking needs Nikon 1 like hybrid AF.

http://www.sansmirror.com/newsviews/galapagos-focus-testing.html

How about taking your face out of Canikon’s butt and reading something else than their marketing.
At 210mm (420mm FOV equivalent) focal length it’s good for 4EVs and surely won’t crash to nothing immediately when increasing focal length.
http://www.pekkapotka.com/journal/2012/2/24/olympus-e-m5-5-axis-image-stabilization.html

Yes, NEX 7 has more noise.

So you think the APS-C has an incredibly better control of DOF? Or what exactly are you comparing with? Given that most m43 user put heavy weight on the size of the equipment and the fun of using it, it shouldn’t surprise you if most readers find your comments… boring?

That review is Amazon hilariously bad and sounds fake. Hmmm, check out the comments.

John, thanks for the link.

@ George – Actually DPreview have commented on this, the extra score for RAW image results is from the higher resolution, not IQ.

Quote from Andy Westlake at DPreview (http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/readflat.asp?forum=1041&thread=41375288&page=3)

“Go to the scoring widget, turn ‘Compare to…’ on and you can compare side-by-side.
The main areas where we rate the NEX-7 higher than the E-M5 are RAW resolution (24MP vs 16MP) and movie mode – the NEX-7 has just about the most controllable movie mode of any stills-orientated camera (with the possible exception of the GH2), and pretty good movie image quality too. The E-M5 beats the NEX-7 in other areas, e.g. weathersealing and in-body IS – and of course also has access to a much better native lens range at the moment.
Our formula happens to give a 1% higher score to the NEX-7, but that should really be considered insiginificant.”

oh and one more thing the NEX7 is a dust magnet, I need to clean the sensor every week or so if I shoot out with it.
but Oly/pana and Samsung do not seem to have this very annoying issue.

the fake Zeiss? who cares that lens(36mm is odd focal length) ,it is a Sony lens not a Zeiss.
and it is not as good as the real Zeiss such as T*1.4/35ZF2 and T*2/25ZF2 that I use with my Nikon D800.
any way, APS-C is really doomed as reviewer says in the review.
I am , btw, a NEX user but I think I will ditch my NEX7( and some Sony’s lousy lenses including you called Zeiss) for this MFT system with theEM5, MZD45mmf1.8, Pana25f1.4 and 9-18MZD.
I think the NEX is a very superficial system that only very patial and superficial people love. Sony does not seem to understand how important wide angle zooms are and some nice tiny 50mm equivalent primes are.
Sony is really forcing most of serious mirrorless shooters to ditch its system cause the NEX system lacks all serious primes and more importantly good but tiny wide zooms.

Oly hit really huge homerun with this EM5.

and the NEX7 sensor is nothing really amazing , not half as good as you guys (fanboys) say…….the NEX5n sensor is good but the body is really lousy.
I actually think it is between the Oly vs Samsung not Sony , Sony is doomed and losing many many users.

More iso noise?

60% yes that is a small sensor. No cropping no control of depth of field no big prints etc..

And yes the omd is a pretty good camera. Its the best 43 ever but remains a 43.

I am just curious who is making its sensor?
Is that really the same sensor in the GX1?
Any one can answer to my above questions?

“If you’re absolutely unwilling to compromise on image quality then spending twice the money and moving up to the bulk of a full-frame is the only way of gaining a significant step up from the E-M5.”

The title sounds like Dpreview said something like “Best mirrorless Camera Ever” I cant find such statement on their review.

Depends on focal length…Sensor shift stabilization struggles with long telephoto shooting.

I don’t know, after using my NEX-7 a bunch I really struggle to go back to my G3 (and I have much more/better glass for m43). I’ve certainly shot a ton on the G3, but responsiveness and polish are lacking. Sad that Panasonic hasn’t come out with anything even in the ballpark of the E-M5 and even the GH3 rumors are “yawn”.

I am on the fence with the E-M5. I might sell my G3 to a friend and upgrade. Here’s hoping that Olympus comes out with a rangefinder-style version of the E-M5 (with the viewfinder to one side, rather than the “SLR-style bump”.)

Well olympus did admit that they did not improve the focus speed of native 4/3 lenses.

The NEX-7 got 81%. however I think that the em5 is the coolest camera on the market, and by far one of the best cameras one can buy. especially with all the pancake lens options and portability of the system

Olympus really earns the gold with the E-M5. Hats off. Now, please, release those wonderful Zuikos primes in black too. Not a special offer just regular one. Thanks.

Yes and we can expect the same IQ improvements in the coming G5 if anything like the improved JPEG results seen in the GF5.

Yes, pity it does not have lenses to show it

Well said Adriaantie! You nailed it! E-M5 is just an iPhone without the phone. I can´t understand how people in DPreview and everybody else except you completely failed to notice the inevitable fact. I ordered the silver one … damn! I have to wait still about 4 weeks to get my 5-IBIS dust resistant gadget.

GX1 – way overpriced for a crippled G3… The other 3 indeed offer both great performance and value for the moeny…

The record button “checks” the photo, ands you can batch delete.

Well said! The E-M5 is truly not even a photo camera. Nothing to write home about. That’s surely the essence of dpreview’s versict

I get my black E-M5 today !! Here a picture of it with pana 20 mm f1.7:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/j-f_leguen/7128342435/
I feel that this combination is very sexy no ??
I was a GH1 user before and only tried GH1 on m43, my first impressions are the following:
- Beautiful design, I like it a lot !
- very solid and high quality feeling compared to GH1
- really smaller than GH1 but heavy (due to metal…)
- EVF is very good, better rendering, less “electronic” feeling compared to GH1
- Faster AF, my 20 mm becomes very decent in AF speed !
- I tried a shot with 20 mm at 1/6 s hand-held and…perfectly sharp !!!!
I didn’t have time to take pictures with it yet and it’s raining…

Well, to be fair, DPR’s overall message does sound like an endorsement of the Oly as the best mirrorless to date.

Makes me even more impatient to see how the GH3 and G5 fare indeed, as I’m feeling my GF1 is finally becoming kind of outdated

24p plizzzzz Oly!!!

Could be to an G5 as well, but I doubt the G5 will have EM-5 overall qualities.

I’m sure dpreview reputation is much better than you suggest. Come on don’t lampoon them. They did basically say the Oly the best mirrorless camera ever, didn’t they, isn’t that enough of a praise?

+1

On the same day this weekend I preordered the E-M5 I ended up canceling the order. I didn’t know if it would arrive on time for a trip, and tracking is an issue. I ended up ordering a Nikon V1 instead to go along with a E-PL3. For me, the poor tracking ability is a liability and the deciding factor. But I am excited Olympus is making strides.

I’m gonna wait for Panny to bring in a proper competitor. I’m holding out for for a flip-out swivel-screen instead of just tilting. I have no doubt they’ll make a camera that is at least as good if not better, and they’ll add the options I’m currently missing in the E-M5.

Yes the bulk of a “full-frame” makes a difference and I am on the waiting list for a D800E….
Maybe an upgrade from G3 to EM-5 and the Panaleica 25mm as walk-the-dog camerakit. A combination that will not disappoint.

Enjoy your Pentax K-01.

Embellishment from an over enthusiastic Admin.

Oly fans, rejoice!

It will be over thrown by the GH-3 or the NEX-9, until then..

It’s definitely better at noise handling at higher ISOs compared to the NEX7. (JPG or RAW)

Now the complainers will complain that until DXO rates it, they wont believe it. Such shenanigans!

@ Yun – the GH2 scored 79% 2 years ago and is still very close in IQ and performance… owners of this cam have been enjoying greatly better performance and quality for 2 years already.

The EM5 looks fantastic, but for me, I can afford to wait and see what else is released this year… bring on the GH3, if it has as much of a leap over other M43 cameras as the GH2 had when released 2 years ago then it will be a no brainer for most.

…focus is locked during high speed shooting…Please! This has been mentioned in every presentation about the camera that I have read: all the presentations that I have seen — both from Olympus and others EXPLICITLY state that for shooting at 9fps, the focus is locked at the first shot.

To me, this really is a non-issue.

Most of the CONS can be corrected by firmware update.

Focus tracking and IS with continous shooting should be improved by new firmware.

CA correction also can be added by new firmware.

Manu can be imporved by firmware.

Last cons ‘No warning given that focus is locked during high-speed shooting ‘ also could be corrected by firmware.

OLY, please do it!

If everyone likes something than I dont like it. So – booo OM-D

Now George…DPR does say ” the most likeable mirrorless model yet.”
I think the OLY should be 5 points higher than the Nex just due to the lens selection that MFT cameras offer over Sony. (no, I did not order one). Let’s not spoil the party here at 4/3′ Rumors.
I guess you own a Nex, huh?

This is an impressive quote:
” If you’re absolutely unwilling to compromise on image quality then spending twice the money and moving up to the bulk of a full-frame is the only way of gaining a significant step up from the E-M5.”
It will be interesting to compare this review to the Steve Huff take on the camera. …He did a preview already and it seems that everyone loves this camera…what’t not to like.

dpreview is saying that E-M5 is the best m4/3 camera. they are not saying “the best mirrorless camera” as you wrote on topic.

E-M5 got 80 points while Nex7 got 81.

If you compare raw image results with nex7 results you’ll that, Nex is still pretty ahead of EM5

Please make the correction
Thank you

it says” most accomplished” and “most capable mirrorless option yet” . That is pretty much “best” in DPR’s opinion.
Perhaps the Olympus camera division will show a profit for 2012, afterall!

You can have live histogram or blinkies in the EVF. This has been mentioned by users.

+1

I had somehow missed (until now) that it’s a capacitive touch screen rather than pressure-based. THANK GOD. I’m constantly accidentally changing settings on my GF3.

Any news about the new pen? cause i want to know if its going to have those two control dials from the em5

congrats Olympus! well done!

I’ve been pushing my newly arrived e-m5 for a whole week now. The only concern i’ve got to share so far is the battary drainage, that some other people has pointed out.

For a fully charged battary was not enough for me to fill a 8gb SD card (jpeg Normal + raw, roughly 400 pictures) under “normal” shooting condition. With normal I mean, i frequently changing between evf and lcd, and some but not awful alot playback of taken pictures. So my tips for you is get a spare battary (if you manage to get one), or turn off the 5-axis IS when it is not needed, it can be done throug quick meny or super control panel (scp).

Other than that, damn what a fun camera to shoot with! Shutter is quiet, 5-axis is much more useful than everyone thought it would be, it lets me take decent pictures upp to 1/3rd of second.

Score 80% with gold award!!