Comparing OM-Ds

My much loved OM-D E-M1 is getting tired. The rubber skin is starting to peel. So I've taking my time looking around at further OM-D and comparing features.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1W2Tq_-AWRyvPdwCNIoHPDkz5rYOvP_vgXMDisvzoqtI/edit?usp=sharing

Why did Olympus call the new pro flagship E-M1x ?

The new pro flagship for the Olympus Micro Four Thirds line has just been launched. Youtubers, bloggers are having their initial impressions published.

After running through a few of these, the question that I came up with is, why did Olympus call the camera the X ? What's your guess?

• It's X for Xtra Large?
• It's X for eXperimantal test rig to develop all the new tech without size or energy constraints and let that trickle down later to the other cameras in the line?
• It's X for eXtended OMD-EM1?
• It's to balance with eXtra long lenses? 

Here are the initial impressions / videos so far.  Come to MeWe and join in the community for friendly chats on Olympus gear https://mewe.com/join/olympusfriendsaustralia

From Robin Wong 

https://robinwong.blogspot.com/2019/01/olympus-om-d-e-m1x.html

From DP Review

From Peter Forsgard

From Tony Northrup

From Joe Edelman

From Creative Island Photography
https://www.creativeislandphoto.com/blog/olympus-e-m1x?fbclid=IwAR1K-IXx5GlCuslNiuj3fbZsdQnz8-VBOEtZo12mGb_RTsn5ocraKrYJOT8


From Mirrorless Lessons
https://mirrorlesscomparison.com/olympus-vs-olympus/omd-em1x-vs-em1-ii/

From Young-Sun Teh

Being One with the OM-D EM-1

Preamble

Although I'm quite used to the Olympus line of E-series cameras, each time I buy into a new model (usually several years in-between), I'm pleasantly surprised with the modern conveniences and technology improvements give me.

This time, it's the OM-D E-M1 - the top of the line Olympus. I've not ever had a top of the line Olympus - I was too late to appreciate the E-1, the E-3 felt old, the E-5 I dreamed about but could not afford. There was no E-2 or E-4.

Two things I really like - the feature of having a creative Photo Studio within the camera, in the field. I shoot both raw and JPEG - I prefer the immediacy of the JPEG and I like the Olympus JPEG signature - warm, yellow friendly, nice blues in the skies, highish in contrast, fairly reliable automatic White Balance. I like having the raw for tough shots or shots that need creative post processing.

The Photo Studio

Olympus has been evolving their Photo Studio idea with a strength of purpose. 

One feature I like, is the ability to tailor the gamma transformation curve (a.k.a. The Curve) with several degrees of Highlight and Shadow Adjustment.  This feature first saw the light in the OM-D E-M5 and it has been implemented in all subsequent PEN and OM-D models. It's definitely available on the lowest model E-PM2 (although it took a non owner on G+ to tip me off).

The new feature, first implemented on the E-M1 is the Color Creator - it has been subsequently implemented on the E-M10, E-P5). 

Using the features

Note:

These adjustments only affect the standalone JPEG and/or the embedded JPEG in the raw file. The raw file will contain metadata about the adjustments you have chosen so that you can run Olympus Viewer software on the computer to cancel or further adjust.

This is a pink rose on a cold, overcast Melbourne winter's day. Yes, the highlights have a soft pink hue, but that empathic vibe, to me, complements the rose.

My +David Washington moment - the browns are anemic without some Color Creator warming.

You could throw more light on these leaves, to darken the background. Or you could post process a vignette and darken the background. Or just use the Shadows Curve Adjustment in the Camera.

 In closing

My early experiences with the combination of Color Creator and Shadows / Highlights Adjustment are simply that - early experiences. On the E-M1, there buttons and dials to access these two features without making Magnify and Depth of Field Preview difficult.

The amount of adjustment can be more dramatic or more subtle - there is a fair amount of control for most tastes.

The Wonder of Pricing

I’m in the midst of engaging with a new camera. It’s the Olympus E- M1. Body only - I can barely afford just that. I’m amazed at the price level though. It was in 2007 when I purchased my first DSLR - the Olympus E-510 kit with two lenses. As I matured my perceptions, I would looked enviously (but could not aspire to attain) the pro level Olympus E-5.  It’s a wonder how much progress has allowed consumers to purchase the pro level EM-1 body at a price level similar to an entry level E-510 two kit lens of 2007 or the latest people’s OM-D, the E- M10.  Psst, if you are in Australia or New Zealand get onto the EOFY 2013-2014(End of Financial Year) Cash Back at Olympus.com.au in combination with major discounts by select volume retailers.)

There are also substantial retailer discounts and cashbacks on the OM-D E-M5 if you prefer that price/features balance.

Your chance to hands on OM-D E-M1 in Melbourne

The background behind the Olympus Micro Four Thirds cameras

Preamble

When you are more used to other brands (read Nikon or Canon) and decide to pick a camera from Olympus it can be initially confusing as to what model does what. It gets worse if you look at the older models (which are still on sale but production has ceased). Here're my insights.

Before the Beginning

Before the beginning of the Micro Four Thirds Standard, there was the Four Thirds Standard for DSLRs. Although this was grandly called a Standard, only a few brands sat at the Committee table. Olympus was the lead, Panasonic, co-leader. Sigma promised third party lenses, Kodak made a sensor or two (the E-1, E-500 had a Kodak CCD sensor), Panasonic made NMOS sensors and in collaboration with Leica, made some Lumix/Leica (affectionately called Panaleica). I think Samyang made manual focus lenses as well.

Olympus was keen on embracing Live View and competent Auto Focus in Live View. For that, they innovated the E-330 that offered two Auto Focus mechanisms - Live View A and Live View B.

The whole idea of Four Thirds with that infamously small sensor was that the lenses could be designed smaller, the body could be smaller and the sensor technology would advance to the stage that the difference between APS-C size vs Four Thirds size would not be significant to cause pain to the camera owner. The lens mount was brand new, all the lenses would be focus-by-wire instead of clunky mechanical coupling (since Olympus did not have a legacy of autofocus lenses) and this would offer brand differentiation and advantages over the other brands - at that time, Canon, Nikon, Pentax, Minolta.

Sadly, the idea was ahead of its time.  Financial year after financial year, there were losses - it's hard to take on the near duopoly of the big two. Although Olympus made a 3 tier model structure - Pro level, Enthusiast level and Entry level, all three levels failed to make inroads in the market. Technical handicaps were immature sensor technology, zoom lenses that refused to shrink and were not able to compete on price because of lower volume sales, bodies that lacked the AF finesse of the competition.

So the Micro Four Thirds Standard was born

Olympus finally decided to give up the Four Thirds DSLR line (including lenses) and embarked on niche market, knowing that it would eventually grow. This is Micro Four Thirds. It does not have a mirror box and the body shrinks considerably.

When they built and sold the Four Thirds DSLR lenses, they could not foresee the motor and mechanical performance needed to work fast with the Micro Four Thirds adoption of Contrast Detect Auto Focus (DSLRs use Phase Detect Auto Focus). For that reason, they had to build and sell all new lenses again. And amateur home movies had not become popular - newbies want movies that are Auto Focus, Auto Exposure, no sounds from lens motors during zoom and focus, no jumping of the image during zooming in the movie.

Note that with an electronically coupled Olympus or Panasonic lens adapter, Four Thirds DSLR lenses will drive and shoot on Micro Four Thirds bodies, but AF will be slow. And with the plethora of third party adapters, legacy manual everything film lenses can be fit onto Olympus cameras - exposure control can be set to Manual with metering or Aperture Priority.

Olympus decided not to tackle the Pro segment of the market because that is a high cost, low volume market requiring high performance, bright, fast AF lenses and high performance, robust, fast AF bodies. They knew their first Micro Four Thirds models would not have fast enough AF and they still produced the E-5, their last Four Thirds DSLR which was the best Pro level body they could make.

Panasonic decided that they would build all three tiers - Entry level, Enthusiast level and Professional level Micro Four Thirds bodies. Panasonic did not have a Pro level DSLR to keep alive nor did they have a sizeable DSLR owner base.

The Olympus model tiering

There have been several generations of Olympus Micro Four Thirds cameras. Olympus uses the phrase Olympus PEN to invoke nostalgia driven sentiment (they produced a legendary innovative half frame film camera called the Olympus PEN F) and styling clues.

There are three levels of PEN. The three levels are differentiated thus:

1. The top PEN - the E-P model. This has enough buttons and dials, should exude some luxury feel in the hand and be the most styled cosmetically. It is not aimed at the Pro level of photographers.
2. The middle PEN - the E-PL model. This body does not have the strong style emphasis. The body does not have to be especially thin. There will be less dials or buttons to distinguish it from the E-P model.
3. The entry level PEN - the E-PM model. This body has markedly fewer buttons and dials - in fact, just one dial. It is assumed that price would be the major imperative with this model and owners would not normally be that keen to change camera settings between shots.

In the OM-D. Olympus decided that the technology had matured enough to aim for Enthusiast / Pro level market. This series has these features that the PEN range are not designed to have:

1. Built in eye level Electronic Viewfinder
2. Optional battery grips to allow longer sessions without needing to swap batteries, better ergonomics with larger lenses,  sometimes incorporating second shutter release button for portrait orientation shooting

Launch Dates and Reviews

Generation 1	E-620 DSLR March 2009	E-P1 June 2009 DPR	E-PL1 Feb 2010 DPR
Generation 2	E-5 DSLR Sept 2010	E-P2 Nov 2010 DPR  CL	E-PL2 Jan 2011 DPR   CL IR
Generation 3		E-P3 July 2011 DPR   CL  IR	E-PL3 July 2011 DPR  IR	E-PM1 July 2011 DPR   CL  IR
Generation 5		E-P5 May 2013 DPR  IR	E-PL5 Sept 2012 DPR  CL  IR	E-PM2 Sept 2012 DPR   IR
Current PEN			E-PL7 Sept 2014
Current OM-D		EM-1 Oct 2013 DPR  CL IR	E-M5 Feb 2012 DPR  CL  IR	E-M10 March 2014 DPR CL IR

Note: Dates generally from DP Review

Generation 1 - had sloooow AF. The sensor is a Panasonic sourced sensor.

Generation 2 - Quite improved AF. Accessory Port introduced.

Generation 3 - Very fast AF. Touch Screen for AF and control.

Current Generation PEN and E-M5 - First generation with Sony sourced sensor.  Very fast AF. Considerably better dynamic range, low noise high ISO performance. Fast stills frame rate.

New  Generation EM-1 - Phase Detect Elements on Image Sensor - Dual Fast AF system. AF that can handle legacy Four Thirds DSLR lenses comfortably.

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Olympus LIVE TIME How-To

Updated: 13th July 2013

Live Bulb / Live Time - What is it?

With digital cameras, for dim scenes, you hold open the shutter and let the light stream through to the sensor. At some point in time, you decide that you have collected enough light so you close the shutter then, hit the Preview button so that you can expect the LCD for correct brightness of the image.

Live Bulb / Live Time enables you to peek at how the image is progressing so that you can decide when that the image is just right in terms of brightness so that you can close the shutter without wasting the current  shot and trying again. If there are light trails or variable motion in the scene, Live Bulb / Live Time allows you to examine the scene as you are waiting for the long exposure shot to complete - you can then continue or abort if something is not what you want, early.

Any modern digital camera should be able to do this, but most designers haven't got round to it. Live Bulb / Live Time was first implemented by Olympus on the E-M5/OM-D, then subsequently the E-PL5, E-PM2 and further models.

What is the difference between Live Bulb / Live Time ?

Live Bulb means you open the shutter by squeezing the shutter release button and hold it down until you want to close it. It's best to use a remote shutter release rather than press the button on the camera body as you might introduce handshake motion.

Live Time means you squeeze down on the shutter release button and can remove your hand. When you want to close the shutter, you squeeze again.

How do you get to the menu(s)?

1. Set the camera to M - for Manual Exposure (that's the M in the P A S M dial / menu)
2. Set the Shutter Speed slower and slower - as I change the setting on my E-PM2, it goes 1" then 2" then it continues to 60" - it then goes to LIVEBULB and then to LIVETIME - I prefer to use LIVETIME because I don't normally have a remote control and don't want to stand there holding down the shutter release button.

Optional Settings

Noise Reduction 

Setup . Gear . E (Exp/ISO) . Noise Reduction
I set this to OFF. This carries out Dark Frame Subtraction - if you expose for 20 seconds, the camera does that task and then shoots another exposure ignoring light for 20 seconds further - This Dark Frame represents the background noise of the sensor at that temperature. The camera then subtracts that noise from the real image and hopefully produces a cleaner JPEG. The issue is that if I shoot for 60 seconds, I can't use the camera for another 60 seconds. It does not affect your raw image file if you are shooting raw.

Live Bulb / Live Time display refresh frequency

Setup . Gear . E (Exp/ISO) . Live BULB 
or
Setup . Gear . E (Exp/ISO) . Live TIME

You can choose  between 0.5 seconds to 60 seconds.

The refresh display time does not affect the exposure of your final image, it just means that if you choose too brief a refresh time, you will not be able see the last moments of your shot. If you choose too long a refresh time, you may miss that crucial moment when the brightness for the image is just right - and cause a bleached out image.

	IS0 100	ISO 400	ISO 800	ISO 1600
Samples	24	19	14	9
LiveTime	Total Visible	Total Visible	Total Visible	Total Visible
Intervals (secs)	Time (secs)	Time (secs)	Time (secs)	Time (secs)
0.5	12	9.5	7	4.5
1	24	19	14	9
2	48	38	28	18
4	96	76	56	36
8	192	152	112	72
15	360	285	210	135
30	720	570	420	270
60	1440	1140	840	540

Let us work out a case for ISO 200, whatever you set, the display will only refresh for a maximum of 24 times. For half a second intervals, that means you can only see the screen refreshed for 12 seconds. For some fireworks, light painting or dimly lit cityscapes using ISO 200 f/16, you might need 30 seconds or even 60 seconds of light gathering. In that case you might consider 1, 2 or 4 second intervals. In a recent shoot, I found 2 seconds interval, worthwhile.

(One reason some of us are using f/16 is to accentuate the starburst of street lights and other point light sources.)

Live View Boost

Setup . Gear . D Display/Audio/PC . Live View Boost . On

Normally, I prefer my LCD or EVF to simulate exposure darkness / brightness display - this is one of the differences between an Optical View Finder in a DSLR and electronic displays in mirrorless cameras. However, for long exposures, at night /f16, the electronic display becomes so dark that you cannot see clearly. Set the Live View Boost to On so that the camera does not attempt to simulate real conditions - the display remains bright all the time during Liveview for you to carry out focussing, aiming, framing activities.

When you start the actual exposure, then it LiveTime works normally.

Manual Focus

Super Control Panel . MF

When you are shooting in the dark, the Auto Focus system may not stay steady at one focus plane or may fail to settle on the object that you want. You might want to set Focus Mode to Manual Focus - MF.

Image Stabilisation

Super Control Panel . IS - Off

When you are shooting on a long exposure, it is likely you will not be hand holding and be placing the camera on the tripod. Image Stabilisation instead of reducing handshake, may actually create sensor shake. Switch it off.

Want to see some videos demonstrating this feature? Click on YouTube Videos

Also see  Peter Mlekuž 's article

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