Olympus EP-1 First Impressions from a store demo

[bherman]

I'm now shooting with a Leica M8.2, and for me, it's perfect (or as perfect as any camera can be) as every camera has it's trade-offs.
I found myself looking for a backup for the M8.2. Something a bit smaller, something that had more 'substance' than all of the 'technoplastic' point-and-shoots out there. It also, has to be able to shoot very clean images up to at least iso 400. I had an Olympus OM-1 in the 70's, and also an Olympus Pen F, and was always pleased with both the mechanics as well as the Zuiko optics.
When I heard about the Olympus EP-1, a Micro 4/3 format, interchangeable lens, all-metal body with 'SLR-brains', it definitely peaked my interest. One of the local camera shops here in MA (well, not so local, it took me an hour and a half to drive there), had one to demo, so I drove off to check it out.
Here were some of my impressions:


When I picked it up, I noticed that it felt very dense. Not necessarily heavy, but very solid. There must be more metal in this camera that just the exterior body panels. The top is made of aluminum, and the body panels are a brushed stainless steel. It may prove to be prone to scratches, but to someone who is just a little careful, it should be very durable. The Olympus 14-42 M.Zuiko Digital zoom lens felt a little 'light' when compared to the body, but it felt tight, no wobble, and featured some ED elements. Remember it is a kit lens, and can't be compared to the Olympus premium glass available for the E-3. All in all, it felt better than expected. The other thing that I noticed, it that it a manual zoom. The lens mount is stainless steel, and looks to be either polished or plated. The mounting/dismounting of the lens is very smooth, and the lens locked with a very perceptible 'click'.


The EP-1 is smaller and lighter than my M8.2, but a bit wider than say, a Canon G10. It is somewhat squared off around the edges, sort of like the Zeiss Ikon film body, but smaller. I wanted to bring it up towards my eye to look through a viewfilnder, but it was omitted by Olympus, probably to cut down on size. I've never found the optical viewfinders on digital cameras to be pretty good anyway. They aren't accurate, are somewhat out of focus, and generally not very useful. I don't see this as a 'negative'.
Some have observed or perceived that the menu system is a bit confusing or too 'deep', but I didn't find this the case. Remember, this camera has many of the features borrowed from Olympus SLRs, so to provide this sort of feature set, additional menus had to be put into place. I found them to be fairly intuitive, but a deeper menu system than say a Canon G10, which has quite a few external buttons and dials to select some of the functions.
It features the usual Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, Program, Full Auto and Manual, as well as other nifty items.


I took several photos around the store at iso 200 and 400 and zoomed in on the LCD. The images looked very clean. This site dpreview did a nice preliminary review, and this camera measures up and even exceeds many DSLRs in terms of lack of noise/grain. I didn't look on my 22' monitor or print any images, so I can't say whether the images have too much noise reduction which can reduce sharpness. What I can say is that all of the sample images taken my the numerous reviewers tend to look very good. The only negative is that the LCD is only (I believe 230,000 pixels), so it is just "ok". The Canon G10 features an LCD that is around 430,000 pixels, so the difference is like watching a ball game on a regular channel vs. Digital HD. I would rather put their $$ into the sensor, lens and build quality, which the apparently did.


I am certainly interested in the various adapters that are currently available as well as the ones that will be made available in the future. Since this is based on the 4/3 standard, Panasonic adapters which are currently available for the Lumix G1 will work fine. Olympus has also come out with a MMF-1, Micro 4/3 adapter, which will allow pretty much all 4/3 lenses to be mounted on the EP-1 and function properly. Additionally, there is also a MF-2 adapter, which will allow the legacy "OM" lenses to work on manual focus (of course), but also under manual exposure. I'm also particularly interested in a Leica M-Series adapter, which will be made by either Panasonic or Olympus. I've been told that Cosina/Voigtlander has also made an M-Series adapter for the Micro 4/3 format, and is available at Cameraquest.


Olympus seems to be sort of 'testing the waters' with this camera to determine its popularity. The BJP or British Journal of Photography mentioned that Olympus is already planning more professional updates and versions of this sort of camera utilizing the Micro 4/3 standard. Read more here:

http://newsletters.incisivemedia.com/q/14q7qmTBq57H8i/wv


I was pretty impressed with the EP-1. So much so that I pre-ordered one with the 14-42 zoom. I will also order the 17mm F/2.8 'pancake' lens and the flash when it comes in.
For me, this appears to be a very solid, viable camera with a growing system of lenses and accessories coming. I hope that Olympus does well with this model and sparks the 4/3 standard to introduce even more cameras and accessories.

Brad

[Sam N]

Great writeup Brad. I'm posting a link to it on my blog.

One question about zooming in on the images in playback mode:
Did it feel like you were able to zoom into the photo to "actual pixels" level? Many DSLRs embed a smaller (~2-4mp) JPEG preview into their RAW files, or do not let you zoom fully into the full-size JPEGs. This ability would nice for checking critical focus.

[bherman]

Sam;

I took a photo of the clerk, and then played it back. There is a vertical knurled thumbwheel on the top right rear of the camera. I rotated the wheel to zoom during playback. I zoomed and also toggled with the Rotating Dial and Arrow Keys to zoom in on the clerk's beard. It looked very sharp.

Brad

[Darkhorse]

But will it blend?

[bherman]

Not sure. But dpreview did a fairly comprehensive review of this aspect. If I understand what you're asking, it should be found here:

http://www.dpreview.com/previews/olympusep1/page10.asp

Thanks

Brad

[.ken]

What's your opinion on focusing speed? A lot of people are concerned about this. Was it fast enough that it could hurt someone when you focus on them? Thanks for the review!

[bherman]

I thought that it was comparable to my Canon G10, but certainly not like an SLR. Also, the focusing speed may vary depending on the lens that is mounted.

Brad

[sirius]

Here is a review of the camera in action...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJbLdGA-ZTE

[Pickett Wilson]

Reviews on AF speed are all over the scale. Some say fast as an SLR, some say slow, and some say it doesn't matter, they are going to zone focus the thing anyway. Have to wait until there are some in the wild for awhile, I guess.

[.ken]

Make of it what you will... e-p1 VS d3

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/re...hread=32227706

[Kevin]

Originally Posted by .ken

Make of it what you will... e-p1 VS d3

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/re...hread=32227706

Tests done by individuals can be manipulated. And in this particular case, manipulation is the name of this person's game.

There is no reason whatsoever that certain parts of the white napkin shot by the (supposed) D3 have selective blowout. Upon close examination I can only come to the conclusion that the manipulator selectively applied the dodge tool in photoshop in order to make it appear that the D3's sensor has less DR than the E-P1 sensor.

The lower visible part of the white napkin easily shows it. Comparing that area to the same section shot by the (supposed) E-P1, it is easy to spot where and how the manipulation took place.

Poor guy. He must have bought Olympus stock.

[Darkhorse]

I wanna see actual image samples. Yes the camera is pretty but all I want to know is what the photos look like.

[efftee]

I've heard many speak of using the EP1 as back-up to their M8s; I am personally considering the same thing. But I am thinking of using my Leica lenses on it. Has anyone posted any images taken with Leica glass on the EP1? I'm curious as to the quality compared with images taken on the M8?

[.ken]

CNET reviews it:
http://reviews.cnet.com/digital-came...-33704135.html

[capitalK]

I played with it a bit at Henry's Queen & Church location in Toronto today. I agree, it seems very solid. Focusing was hunting a lot until the clerk turned on face detection. I saw some full-size outdoor shots and they looked very nice. That was with the kit zoom lens.

If I was buying a digital I would look strongly at it.

[sirius]

Thanks for posting that CNET review. I find that shutter lag a concern. That's a deal-breaker issue for me. I don't really understand the difference between 0.3 and 1.4 in terms of working with the camera. Anyway, I am looking forward to fondling one of these and I hope they show-up in the regular camera stores soon.

capitalK, what a cool looking stereo camera you have...

[Sam N]

Brad, thanks for the info about the magnify. It looks like you can get down to pixel level or at least very close.

Originally Posted by sirius

Here is a review of the camera in action...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJbLdGA-ZTE

That's a promotional video put out by Olympus, not a review. It's still interesting though.

Originally Posted by Darkhorse

I wanna see actual image samples. Yes the camera is pretty but all I want to know is what the photos look like.

There are plenty of samples at all the major review sites (dpreview, etc.).

---

As for the CNET review, remember that actual shutter lag and "shot lag" / "shutter lag" (as CNET calls it) are not the same thing. CNET is measuring times including AF operation. Typically, shutter lag is only the time from pressing the shutter to taking the photo when prefocused (S1->S2 in dpreview parlance).

The long power-up times are inexcusable. There are no moving parts to extend and many DSLR shooters are used to any modern Canon/Nikon powering up faster than you can compose a shot.

[cidereye]

Originally Posted by Kevin

Tests done by individuals can be manipulated. And in this particular case, manipulation is the name of this person's game.

There is no reason whatsoever that certain parts of the white napkin shot by the (supposed) D3 have selective blowout. Upon close examination I can only come to the conclusion that the manipulator selectively applied the dodge tool in photoshop in order to make it appear that the D3's sensor has less DR than the E-P1 sensor.

The lower visible part of the white napkin easily shows it. Comparing that area to the same section shot by the (supposed) E-P1, it is easy to spot where and how the manipulation took place.

Poor guy. He must have bought Olympus stock.

Kevin, how dare you speak out against the EP-1 ! j/k

After examining that thread it should be obvious to anyone as you say, napkin lower gives that away - was either posted by the Olympus MD or Mr I M A Liar. Comparing the results of a "micro" 4/3 sensor to a FF sensor?!? Hmmm, we all know who the winner will be and maybe like comparing a Bugatti Veyron to a VW Golf. Both good cars for sure but hey come on, we all know which is far superior so no kiddy games in trying to make out the family hatchback is a supercar eh?

@ bherman - Many thanks for the hands on experience you posted. Nice to see from someone who has acdtually now handled the camera and had a play around with it. The focus hunt and the shutter lag are the two things that seem to keep croping up so there must be a fair bit of truth regarding those two weak aspects. And yes it does have that squared off shape like the Zeiss Ikon doesn't it?

[fdigital]

The longer power up times are because the SuperSonicWaveFilter is doing it's thing. It's the most effective dust eliminator on the market - to put it quite simply, olympus DSLRS very very very rarely get dust on their sensors - my 5d has to be cleaned every few weeks, my dads olympus e-410 has never been cleaned in 2 years and has no dust on the sensor.

It's worth the extra second in startup time.

[historicist]

I went to a shop which had one and they let me put my sd card in it. So here are some completely unartistic full size samples with the 17mm lens:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/3682229...7620625425672/

*EDIT* well, apparently my free flickr account won't allow full size viewing, and I don't want to clutter up my normal flickr account with these.

I'll leave them up there (only viewable downsized) but if anyone wants to see them full size send me a pm and I'll email one over.

*BTW* the focus does hunt, but that makes it sound worse than it is. It doesn't seem to hunt like a SLR, where it cannot find the focus, but rather rapidly focus near and far, before settling on a point in the middle. I get the impression this is just how it works, rather than slrs where it will go direct to the correct focus point, unless it can't find it and then will hunt.

Focus speed seemed fairly comparable to entry level slrs, bit slower maybe but in the ballpark. It definitely focusses quicker than my e420 does in liveview.

[250swb]

Originally Posted by Kevin

Tests done by individuals can be manipulated. And in this particular case, manipulation is the name of this person's game.

There is no reason whatsoever that certain parts of the white napkin shot by the (supposed) D3 have selective blowout. Upon close examination I can only come to the conclusion that the manipulator selectively applied the dodge tool in photoshop in order to make it appear that the D3's sensor has less DR than the E-P1 sensor.

The lower visible part of the white napkin easily shows it. Comparing that area to the same section shot by the (supposed) E-P1, it is easy to spot where and how the manipulation took place.

Poor guy. He must have bought Olympus stock.

Tests by individuals can be manipulated, but in this case I think all he is doing is recreating the tests done by Amateur Photographer magazine April 11th 2009 issue. In this controlled magazine test they found the Panasonic G1 (same sensor) had a higher resolution when compared to the D3 and D700, and did so with either a common non telecentric test lens, or the Pana kit lens.

The audacity that Olympus or Panasonic with their m4/3 sensor can achieve a small victory over the Nikon D3 does annoy people. Some say it is tantamount to creating a 'myth', but considering how many genuinely unfounded myths people like to put about regarding 4/3 sensors it is hardly scratching the surface in balancing the discussion.


Steve

[Dante_Stella]

Micro 4/3 dust... don't breathe it!

Originally Posted by Darkhorse

But will it blend?

[flip]

Saw a lady in Nara walking around with this camera today. Surprised. Did look good, though.

[ReeRay]

Sorry to be a "dumbo" about this but I'm quite new to RF type cameras and their various lens adaptations.

I have a Contax G2 with various Contax lenses.

With the appropriate adaptor, would I be able to fit my lenses to the EP-1 and would the camera automatically recognise the focal length?

Also, what about focusing - no "in house" focusing on a G2 lens!

If the above is dumb please excuse my ignorance.

Thanks

[Pickett Wilson]

250swb, if the results AP got were, in fact, practically valid, don't you think Canon and Nikon would be falling all over themselves putting 4/3's sensors in their professional cameras to make them smaller and lighter (and more profitable to make). And pros would be snapping up G1's to replace their $8,000 cameras.

Some times we need to apply common sense, I think.