E-M1 and M.Zuiko 12-40mm/F2.8 - My Notes

FYI: I am just another amateur photographer, not that interested so much in the technical side of things, just rambling on about my experiences with this new Olympus camera and lens.

I plan to post shots with the following lenses: Lumix 35-100, Lumix 100-300, Lumix 20mm, Macro 45, Lumix 25mm, M.Zuiko 45mm, M.Zuiko 17mm and the M.Zuiko 60mm Macro.

 

Well retirement has it's downsides such as sticking to budgets, and more specifically my annual allowance for this hobby. I mention this because having pre-ordered both the E-M1 and the 12-40 PRO lens, I will be in the hole to 2015! Some kit will be sold no doubt about that.

I actually ordered before I read Robin Wong's hands on review, but having read Dpreview's review. Expect to have the cam in time for an early December trip, but the lens will more than likely arrive while I am away :(

 

23.10.13: Living in Canada I am used to new kit coming in after US outlets are already shipping, so sometimes being an early adopter, I have located and purchased kit from them (i.e.: OM-D E-M5). Last night I located a US E-M1 in stock but resisted the temptation only because the combo price here is better than in the US (so far) - one has only to search the net.

 

Is it me or is the Olympus rebate offer confusing (as usual). I have asked my camera dealer for clarification and he will be asking the Oly rep. 8.03.14 note: $200.00 cheque received last month from Olympus!

 

27.10.13: Tracking reports by various new owners of the cam (in the forums) there are the usual claims of DOA or other small issues. Either I have been very lucky over the years, but I have as yet never had a camera or lens problem. I just recently had a problem with the FL600r out of the warranty period (it was little used) = $130.00 for repairs.

This evening I snagged a HDL-7 grip at Amazon.ca, last one in stock. I will get the grip before the camera, but been there, done that before.

 

29.10.13: Checked with my Edmonton camera store and found that I was 14th out of 31 pre-orders for the E-M1 and aprox. the same for the lens. A Calgary shop placed me at 7th if ordered today, and they were receiving about 5 units per week. I decided to check with London Drugs web sales and found that they had 4 units in stock at their lower mainland wharehouse (B.C.). I ordered one and pre-ordered the lens with them because I think I will stand a better chance to get one sooner than later.

No 'deals' with LD but a bird in the hand......:) Now the wait begins as they will take about 48 hours to process the order, but the shipment will only take a day in transit.

 

30.10.13: Thought about this overnight and called LD re matching a better price in town, and they would not so cancelled both orders. Spoke to the rebates people and they assured me that Olympus was delivering both cameras and lenses to all shops in Canada this week, so plenty of time before the December 2nd deadline - we shall see ( I do not think that even she could interpret the rebate language.

 

1.11.13: HLD-7 Grip arrives.

 

2.11.13: Just posting a shot on Flickr with the 12-35 on the E-M5. Interesting to see

how the latter compares to the 12-40, especially in view of the user reviews filtering in.

 

5.11.13: Just got a call from McBain Camera confirming that that both the E-M1 and

12-40 were on the way! I did not expect the camera to be shipped for another week or so, and the lens (if I was lucky) by the end of the month, hopefully in time for my

travel plans.

 

7.11.13: Out for Delivery! And of course rain and clouds for the next week. Delivered at 11:40, unpacked (the packaging is new and I am thinking in line with Oly's Pro designation) and shots taken. Noticed the difference in size next to the GH3, the E-M1 is smaller but around the same weight. The lens reminds me of the Zuiko 12-60 - it very well built, but it is heavy by comparison to the Pany 12-35 (combined with the E-M1, it reminds me somewhat of the E-5 and 12-60 in terms of weight, but less so! The built-in grip is a must for the new lens (for me at least), and I am considering whether it will feel more confortable with the HLD-7 attached.

Focusing is fast, and while I normally use a tripod when indoors with a new cam, today I shot handheld and I think that they will satisfy me once viewed on the iMac.

Off to take some more shots, and dare I say, who cares if it is raining.

 

8.11.13: An Oly lens with a hood? I stopped at London Drugs for a screen protector and for the first time that I can remember, there were three of us that were Olympus shooters, in the same room. Trying to sell Olympus gear in this city is not easy - Canon and Nikon no problem, but times are changing. E-M1 with the grip on feels good but reminds me of the D700 in terms of weight, but less so. Some of the test jpgs with intermittent sun today also remind me of the D700. There will be a learning curve with some of the differences with respect to the E-M5 and the GH3, for example, the off on switch location and the Fn2 button which I have hit instead of the shutter button. I will use age as an excuse.

 

11.11.13: Shot some sample shots yesterday, indoors, available light from a small window, of my Colombian hand hammered copper tray - tripod mounted IS off. All of my lenses except for the 100-300 and 12-50. I am not convinced that LR5.3RC is doing a good job with the raw files, but they are not bad to my eye. The 12-40 is living up to the various reviews I have read, and so is the E-M1, now for some half decent good weather.

 

12.11.13: Aperture does not support this camera, LR5.3RC does, Photo Mechanic does (but I am not sure how since I have not upgraded lately), and Capture One has not been updated for Apple 10.9 Mavericks.

I did review yesterday's shots of our 10 month old twin grand-daughters and all I can say is wow! Does this cam and lens make me look good. Reminiscent of my D300 and D700 days.

 

15.11.13: Very happy with the cell tower shot (E-M1 + 12-40 ). I think the best of the tower shots yet. Sold the DMC-GH3 and the 20mm/F1.7. My wife now has the 12-35, so I am back on budget :) Have already pre-ordered the new M.Zuiko Digital ED 40-150mm/F2.8 for next year.

 

23.11.13: Sunny but cold (at least it is for us) and better photo ops for me. Not worried about coming indoors afterwards without keeping the cam in a bag, and when it has rained, I have actually ventured out. Now to see how it does in the tropics with A/C and outdoor humidity. Deciding what lenses to take besides the 12-40 and the 25/F1.4 (100-300 and/or the 35-100). I am biased, but this is one great looking camera and lens!

Photo Mechanic 5 and Iridient Developer both have had the raw E-M1 support for a few weeks now - whats up with Aperture, DXO and C1?

 

24.11.13: Trying out Lyn 1.3.4 app and it supports E-M1 raw and the rendering(skin colour) is very good to my eye, better than Aperture (E-M5) and LR5.3RC IMO. Will have to check this app with my landscape shots as well. 12.03.14 Update: This app crashing and slow so put on hold, and using Photo Mechanic to review on cards before ingesting.

 

15.12.13: Notes at 34000 feet winging our way home. Very pleased with the E-M1 and 12-40. Photos as viewed on the iPad Air are sharp to my eye, but we shall see on the iMac. I found that I kept the grip on most of the time.

 

30.12.13: Very happy with this cam. Continue to have some problems with the FL 600R which is picky about which batteries I use (for instance you get blinking auto check test charge lights if you use 1.2V InfiniCell, but do not if you use Energizer 2300 mAh or above). My son the wedding photographer (Canon 6D) remarked on how much lighter my combo [ E-M1, grip and 12-40 ] was by comparison. I may yet see the day that he will agree to shoot a wedding with Olympus gear.

 

31.12.13: theonlinephotographer.typepad.com/the_online_photographer...

 

8.01.14: The holiday season, for me, was a great opportunity to test the E-M1,12-40/F2.8 and FL600R combo with family photos, both setup or grandkids on the move. I missed the Canon or Nikon combos because I never had to worry about the flash, now I need not with this kit.

 

I continue to use DxO 9 for my processing, although my workflow takes a littly more time than it did with LR ( do not like the rendition of colours with E-M1 Raw), or Aperture (which I continue to use for family shots only).

 

8.03.14: Waiting for part 2 of Robin Wong's review of the new Oly 25/f1.8, as well as his comparison to the Lumix 25/F1.4 which I have. The 17mm is being used most often for indoors shooting of fast moving grand-kids in low light, where confined space preclude's use of the 25/F1.4 ( good mounted on the EM-5, but excellent on the EM-1 ). 20.03.14: Keeping this lens and will not be tempted by the Oly.... for now:)

 

I am looking forward to landscape shooting with the EM-1 + 12-40/F2.8 while Rving in the B.C. interior ( As compared to the EM-5 + 12-35/F2.8 combo used last year ).

 

12.03.14 - www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/content/pro-photographer-who... I am considering upgrading my 6 old computer gear to present technology ( 27" iMac and travel edti/view options. - After reading many opinions in the various forums regarding the pros and cons on using an Apple MBAir for photo editing while travelling the most convincing for me was the blogger at the link provided above. I currently travel with a iPad Air and backup drive (the cards are with me and the drive secured on site). I do not normally edit on the road, but usually end up with 1500+ shots and would like to delete the shots I am not interested in. Deleting on the iPad still leaves the card shots to deal with when I get home ( no access to the card from the iPad ). A MBAir would allow for reviewing, deleting, but not for editing so much as it would with a Retina display which for me is a must at my age. Is there an iPad Air with a Retina display planned for the near future? Net rumours are for an iPad Pro whatever that means, but I do not think that Apple will impact on their MacBook Pro sales, although the Air maybe. More to review and consider, but I do know that I will replace my iMac with an up-to-date Apple 27" Thunderbolt Display or iMac 27".

 

17.03.14: I am going to wait and see if Apple is going to offer a MacB Air (or iPad Pro), with similar upgrade options sometime this year.

 

20.03.14: My wedding shooting family member's older iMac 27" died the other day so they will be getting my 2009 vintage iMac which has precipitated my decision. Apple 27" Thunderbolt Display ordered as well as an all options (including 512 gb flash storage) MacBook Air, Superdrive and a LaCie 2TB Rugged Thunderbolt/USB 3.0 Series Hard Drive. I am hopping that I will see no less performance than that which I have with the iMac, and maybe better, although I am betting that the flash memory will help compensate for the max 8gb of ram.

 

22.03.14: Well, I gave up after the initial request for a refund ( 24 hours after downloading and then waiting for 3 days as per Adobe instructions) and two Adobe (Offshore) chats, deactivating, re-downloading, installing and uninstalling (3 times), promises that Adobe sales would contact me by email (they did, only to offer advice on how to use the software), but no credit back. Elements 12 for my wife (returned as bloated and slow) and Premier for videos ( returned as it is bloated, unstable, and slow IMO). As long time users of PS, LR and Elements, no more upgrades for us from this vendor. ...................................................................................30.03.14: Workflow due to grand children babysitting duties is now possible with the MBAir. Finding that the battery is not lasting anywhere near that advertised or in forums. Downloaded coconutBattery app to monitor the battery and will have to tinker with the brightness, etc. Fan a bit noisy, but overall way faster than my vintage 2009 27" iMac, and the new 27" Thunderbolt Display is perfect. Aperture is working just fine and seamlessly with photoFXlab. If I am looking for a bit more processing I export to DXO Optics Pro 9. ......................................................................................................................................................3.05.14: Decided to sell my Panasonic 25F/1.4 (to be replaced by the Oly 25/F1.8) and 45/F2.8 Macro (I have the 60mm). Considering also selling the 45/F1.8 as it sits in the bag most of the time. 10.05.14: Did I go over to the dark side? Since days of the Sony Clie PDA, and their short manufacturing and support period, I have not bought a Sony product since. They seem to have stayed the course with their camera division and I had been looking at the RX100M2 as a pocketable camera (as opposed to the XZ-2). Well, I bit the bullet and bought one this week (also ordered the 'Tru-Finer' (20% off) and a spare battery from Sony as well as a grip from Richard Franiec. Personally I have always favoured Oly's Live SCP to quickly change settings, so the Sony way is going to be a learning curve for me. So far the Sony 'SteadyShot' has left me with far more out of focus shots that say the XZ-2 ( grandkids = E-M1 ) - Have I come to rely on Oly's IS system too much?, The sensor, however, is living up to the on-line consensus, and I am looking forward to shooting landscapes this Summer and Fall.

 

11.05.14: Spent Mother's Day shooting (with the RX100M2) 3 generations of mother's, kids & grand-kids @ Beacon Hill Park. Sunny day. Got a better understanding of this cam and very happy with the results! Very hard composing a shot with the LCD in the bright sunlight, even with the tilt option. Focusing in a crowd of adults, children and goats ( petting zoo ) was good, but not as good as the E-M1 which I was also using. Based on experience so far, I have decided to sell my E-M5. This cam will do for travel ( along with the E-M1/35-100 ) and day to day in the pocket.

 

2.06.14: At my daughters request we spent several hours @ Beacon Hill Park for her family's annual shoot. The E-M1+ 12-40 was in use for the most part, but the RX100M2 was used often and in particular in multiple shots mode. Although no match against the E-M1 with respect to the latter, I was pleasantly surprised at the keepers. The VF was in use (Mid-day sun) and I am glad that I had it. We shall see how the M3's VF compares. I do not often use my FL600r flash but I used a number of times and it worked flawlessly. Selling all of my primes with the exception of the 17mm/f1.8, as the 12-40 is on my cam most of the time, while the 35-100 is used for travel (along with the RX100M3 - 24-70,1.8-2.8.) I sold the 100-300 (although my wife thinks it is better than the 75-300) as I seldom shoot long anymore.

 

19.06.14: My E-M1 has seen little use lately, and probably less so with the M3 coming next week, but it is still número uno for me.

 

16.08.14: RX100M3 in my pocket every day, RX10 for video(with Sony stereo microphone), and the E-M1 for serious shooting and wet weast coast weather.

 

18.08.14: Some more shooting with the grand-kids yesterday. RX100M3 was by far the best cam indoors (1.8) than than the RX10 (2.8) (shooting Raw). The M3 flash pulled back for bounce works well depending on the height of the ceiling, but obviously not as well as a proper flash unit. I just plain got frustrated with the noise with the RX10 ( I know I was shooting raw and could/will deal with it in PP, however, Olympus (E-M5 and especially the E-M1 produce far better raw, which most of the time do not require PP). Net result is that the E-M1 goes back to primary, while the M3 will be day to day. Under similar conditions today, the E-M1 (pixel peeping in camera) the E-M1 shots are better (less noise), but wether or not it would make a difference when traveling (use the RX10 for outdoors and the M3 for indoors, etc. is my question to ponder.

 

17.09.14: Back from 11 day road trip (2500k) around the Provinces of B.C. and Alberta. I left the E-M1 at home and used the RX10 and RX100M3 for all my shooting. I duplicated shots with both cams for caparison purposes, but used the M3 for mostly for interior shots and the RX10 for landscape. I was very happy with the combo and was able to review shots while on the road, with my Macbook Air, but preliminary views on my Apple 27" screen (pixel peeping, what can I say) ingested by Aperture and Photo Mechanic, appeared to me to be noisier than I would have expected if using the E-M1 and 35-100 /f2.8.

More later as I review and PP.

 

21.09.13: Posted 3 shots so far with marginally more PP than the E-M1 might have, but Topaz was used for landscape shots as my typical workflow. I will more than likely opt for the E-M1 + 35-100 /f2.8 and RX100M3 combo for local and traveling shooting, and turn the RX10 over to my wife who, while she has the E-M5+12-35 /f2.8 and the RX100M2, she misses the range of the C8080 for travelling. The E-M1+ 17mm /f1.8 is my go to combo for indoor grandchildren shots, although the M3 is no slouch.

 

25.11.14: Pulled the plug today and passed this cam and lens onto my wife, an OM shooter from way back. I am now 100% over to Sony in that the replacement will be a RX1 - I expect it to take me back to the days of shooting landscapes with the D700.

 

22.02.19: Update - Now shooting with the ILCE-7M2, 24-105 f/4.0 and 35mm f/1.4, RX1 f/2.0, and RX100M5. The RX10M4 is now being used by my wife, and the OMD-EM1 + 70-300 will serve me for long shots (the 12-40 for damp weather?).

 

1.03.24: Update - Have been shooting with the ILCE-7M3 & the Tamron 70-300 since last year. Day to day shots with an iPhone 15 Pro Max. Recently shooting now and then with the OMD-EM1!

Done