A little help with 4/3rds, please.

Huey Slick

Huey Slick

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OK, I've scoured the site for help but after a head injury I get severe headaches from looking at a PC screen for too long.
So, I thought, if I ask the question then maybe I'll get all the help in one thread.....hopefully.

At the moment I use a (Pentax) K200D and a (Canon) G12 but I really want to add a Micro 4/3rds camera to my line-up.

What I want:

Camera body, viewfinder and a pancake lens (to start with).

Short List:

Olympus EPL2 and Panasonic GF2.

What I want to do:

Street photography mainly but also anything that takes my fancy.

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Now, I love the look of the Olympus Pen range but I used to have a Panasonic LX3 and I thought that was a lovely camera so there is no real brand loyalty at the moment.

I did see (somewhere) that there was an adapter for the Panasonic that allowed Pentax lenses to be used; I have a number of such lenses in both AF and manual versions.

Thought: If Panasonic lenses can be used on Pens then would this adaptor be the same?

I'm really not sure which one to go for and a little advice would be great.

Thank you very much :D​
 
First note that the G1 (as mentioned by sonofdanang) has an excellent EVF built-in which is COMPLETELY different from the EVF attachment for the GF1 and GF2.

IMO, Olympus cameras are better suited for adaptation of vintage lenses. The in body image stabilization means that all your lenses will also be stabilized. Furthermore, the removable Panasonic LVF1 viewfinder for the GF series is aweful compared to the Olympus's EVF attachment. The Olympus add-on EVF is on par with the Panasonic G's Both of these was the reason why I chose the Olympus E-PL1. The same Olympus advanatges exist between the E-PL2 versus the GF2.

On the otherhand, I feel that the Panasonic cameras (G# and GH#) are overall better when used with native lenses. The shutter is more responsive and the AF is quicker. For Video, GH's are far better. I feel that the E-PL1's shutter response improves a bit when IS is turned off which leads me to believe there is moment just after trip of the shutter used to "stabilize" the sensor just prior. Panasonic implements the IS within their lenses which has inherent advantages but its not really an advantage as you can mount these same lenses to Olympus bodies as well.

I currently shoot with G1 and E-PL1 w/ Olympus 9-18mm, Olympus 14-42mm, and Panny 45-200mm. I adapt a collection of M-mount, M42 Takumars, and K-mount lenses.
 
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As for adapters...

* All adapters between some mount type to micro43 work on either Panny or Olympus.
* Except for adapters that have the proper elecrontic contacts for 4/3 (non-micro) Olympus lenses, all adapted lenses will operate WITHOUT AF nor auto aperture stop down. You will meter with the lens stopped down which has some inherent disadvantages.
* If the adapted lens does not allow you to set the aperture and stop it down manually, ie Canon EOS, you may be stuck shooting wide open. Your older K-mount (non_af) should be fine. I don't recall if the latest AF lenses from pentax have aperture rings.

There are cheap and expensive adapters out there. The biggest differences I see are in quality and tolerances. More specifically the springs that apply tension between the lens mount and the adapter's mount. The more expensive ones use "leaf" springs while the cheaper ones use bent metal clips. My recommendation is the more complex the mount, the more you should spend on a better quality. Its a no brainer to machine an M42 screwmount adapter.
 
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I went with the EP-2. Brian had two of them, so I took one from him.
It is a very well built elegant camera with a very nice and useful EVF.
The internal IS system makes it a winner for use with legacy lenses.
Using legacy lenses was the main reason for getting a digital camera.
Lower contrast lenses with high resolution, when matched to a good digital camera, give beautiful images.
 
Thank you all very much for the advice along with pros & cons; your answers certainly have given me some food for thought.
I'm leaning towards the Olympus because of the built in IS and, I think, that when my redundancy payment comes in then I will be heading towards the EPL2.

Shane - No, don't have a Bell product (nowhere to park on our drive, sadly). After 20+ years of studying WW! I've added the Vietnam War to my interests and I love the old Huey Slicks.....hence the name.
 
The OP asks if Panasonic m4/3ds lenses can be used on Oly Pen m4/3ds camera bodies, and the answer is resounding yes. The lens mount is the same; no adapter is needed. I have an Oly E-PL1, and very happily use a Panasonic 20/1.7 m4/3ds lens on it. It's a great shooting combination for street and other photography. With this configuration, the Oly Pen is about the same size as a Leica CL.
 
Shane - Thanks very much mate. You've really sold me on the Olys and as soon as my redundancy comes through my 1st purchase will be EPL1 (or 2) along with the EVF and a fast pancake.
I bet the feeling of the 212 was amazing! I've only been in a copter once and that was a Chinook many years ago in another life.

Steve - Thanks for the info, which I could afford a Leica but unless my 6 numbers come up in the lottery that is a pipe-dream!!
 
Per dpreview.com (and I'm paraphrasing):

The Panasonic offering has a much faster autofocus than the Olympus, regardless of the lens used.

The IS on the sensor was found to not have that much of an impact.


My experience with the Panasonic cameras, however is that their menus are difficult to navigate when time is short. I don't know about the Olympus side.


And, a pseudo-objective comparison (meaning, handling isn't considered): http://snapsort.com/compare/Olympus_PEN_E-P2-vs-Panasonic_Lumix_DMC-GF2
 
Another vote of confidence for the Panasonic 20 / 1.7. It's an incredibly useful lens, for all types of shooting.

I have tried many adapted lenses on the Panasonic GH-1, but usually it's the 20/1.7 that gives the best results.
 
Best Out Of Camera JPG Image Quality...

Best Out Of Camera JPG Image Quality...

Of all the micro 4/3... both Olympus and Panasonic, the E-PL1 and E-PL2 have the best OOC Image Quality (sharpness)

That was my reason for buying the E-PL1, and will probably get the E-PL2 or it's successor (waiting for the Pro M43). That decisions was made after reviews of the E-PL1 and previous ownership of at least a half dozen Oly DSLR (still have 2).

It appears that in the interest of attracting more of the P/S crowd to the Interchangeable lens mirrorless cameras, Oly weakened the AA filter in their budget E-PL1, since that's common in P/S. Going after people who are more likely to want a ready to use image out of the camera, and not so inclined to do mega post processing.

With my E-PL1, I found that to be quite true over all my previous Oly's, which I considered a little soft, hence so many acquisitions.

I read the E-PL2 has even a bit more resolution, which I take to mean sharpness, since they are the same sensor. Perhaps a tweak more weaking of the AA filter is in play on the 2.

Anyway, I would think street would benefit from this, as well as a large increase in sensor size over the PointnShoot camera sensors.

Furthermore, the E-PL1 outshoots the Pany GF! and 2 for sharpness of OOC jpegs. It's documented in reviews at Dpreview when both of those cameras hit the streets.

I typically don't shoot RAW, and I have worked on PC computers for over 20 years, maintaining and consulting. The last thing I want to do is spend hours in front of a PC screen post processing images more than just a tiny bit. The E-PL1 has been a major factor in meeting these goals.
 
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Stunning photo. Nice work.
sonofdanang said:
ianadams_2011.jpg

Author and screenwriter Ian Adams (left).
Click to expand...
 
Well, when I posted my question I certainly didn't expect this level of assistance, advice and thoughts; thank you all very much.

I think I'm leaning towards the EPL2, with either the 17mm or 20mm lens to start with before looking at other lenses or adaptors to use my old Nikon lenses.

So, once again, thank you eversomuch; I'm really grateful. :)
 
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I spent some hours on this exact same thing. Seems the E-PL2 is the camera to get. But the 20/1.7 is the lens to get (perhaps add the 14/2.5 later). Thing is, this is also a quite expensive road to take (compared to a kit), which is what's stalling me.
 
I've been quite happy with a used G1, the kit zoom lens, and a 20/1.7. It does the things my M8 doesn't do so well. And when I want to play "Let's try this old lens," I can mount any of my Leica or OM lenses on it with an adapter.

I liked the idea of having a real viewfinder, which is why I got the G1 rather than the GF1 or an Olympus EP-??.

Buying used takes the sting out of the short digital life cycle. Cameras have been good enough for a few years that this is a viable way to go.
 
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I got the Olympus 17mm/2.8,which may be slightly inferior to the Panasonic 20mm/1.7.
I will wait for a fast wide angle lens.
 
Now you guys have me all confused. I was set to buy a refurbed EP-2 with the 17mm lens and now I'm thinking I might want the EPL-2 (although for some reason I can't seem to find it with the 17mm instead of the zoom).
 
I'm very interested in the new Panasonic 14mm lens for m4/3ds. It's even smaller than the 20, and I find 28mm a useful focal length for indoors.
 
Big +1 for the f1.7/20mm lumix lens. I use this on my GF1 95% of the time. The kit 14/45 rarely gets a look in. I also have to admit that I got a bit caught up in the whole legacy lens / adapter trend but even though owning various primes which I seldom use like the oly f1.4/50 and f1.8/50, oly macro 50mm and three others which never get used I find I always gravitate back to the Lumix pancake 20mm lens. I shoot JPEG for the moment and that gives away my intent that my images require little PP work due to lack of time. I also like to have the exif data on the images cause I'm still learning my way and referring back to it often.
 
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