Olympus OM-D E-M5, E-M1, E-M10 - Mk1, Mk2 & Mk3 Owners Thread

jakeblu said:
Great to see this thread still going strong. I've not been around for a while because because of losing a number of contracts at the end of last year due to covid I had to sell all my gear. I'm now in a position to buy something to get me going again. Unfortunately funds won't stretch to the EM1 MKII and 70-300mm I had but I was thinking maybe a EM5 MKII to get me back on the ladder so to speak. I'm going to open a wanted thread but I though I'd just put a heads up post in here first.
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.... Welcome back Steve! Glad to hear that you are recovering.
 
How's this for great service from the Olympus eShop!?

I ordered an Olympus 95mm Protection Filter for my 150-400mm TC Pro on Thursday 5th August and it arrived via UPS on Monday 9th August. And there was no wretched vat etc etc to pay < Sweeet! [And I was given a discount].

This Olympus multi-coated Protection filter is designed specifically for this lens and "Protects the lens from dust, sand and water droplets. As it is transparent and colorless, this filter does not affect visible light." Yeeeew!! I can't wait for the next "Surf's up! Robin" call for me to hit a beach! There's no local swell at the moment - We need an Atlantic storm to brew.

I also have an Olympus Protection Filter mounted on my ED 40-150mm Pro. When you are spending serious money on a lens, it's frankly a bit stupid in my not so humble opinion not to mount a matched filter - A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.

:olympus:
 
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Good idea Robin I know they cost a lot but best to be safe looking after that front element .

Rob.
 
Many people say that the beauty of taking the Oly 150-400mm TC Pro on walkabout is that you don't need to also carry a tripod / monopod because you can easily handhold the lens even when mounted on a M1X. This is true, and I have been out for as long as an 9 hour session and handheld it successfully with both the MC-14 and MC-20, BUT ....

This photo is a good example of why shooting on a monopod can make the difference between an image you keep or you bin. This mother Great Crested Grebe was holding station among the reeds while waiting for her youngster to resurface after its first attempts at underwater fishing (unsuccessful). The youngster was underwater for some time and the mother drifted fowards and backwards among the reeds swaying in the wind. This meant that I needed to avoid her eye at the very least being obscured by a reed and so I had to hold station too for what seemed like 5 minutes and certainly too long to comfortably maintain camera position if handheld - I am 74yo and don't go to the gym any more!

M1X + 150-400mm TC (engaged) + MC-14, zoomed @620mm (1240mm equivalent) on Gitzo Traveller GM4562 + RRS 2-way head with Quick Release lever.

This Gitzo monopod is carbon and the high quality RRS head is strong and so the combo easily lends itself to supporting the big white lens + M1X on my shoulder while walking. I have a long spike on the monopod foot which means that I can spear it into the ground vertically and leave it parked while I have quickly unmounted the camera for handheld shooting.

Each to their own of course when it comes to choice of gear and how you use it but this combo works best for me.

GREAT CRESTED GREBE by Robin Procter, on Flickr
 
trevorbray said:
Couple dog walk grabs
100-400

1
Peacock feeding.jpg by Trevor, on Flickr

2
Getting stuck in.jpg by Trevor, on Flickr
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.... Nice one! Butterflies are always trickier to photograph than you think because they so rarely keep absolutely still. There are a lot of spectacular Peacocks around at the moment I am glad to say.

A telephoto with 100-400mm reach is a great tool for getting successful shots. Wildlife always needs reach!
 
RedRobin said:
.... Nice one! Butterflies are always trickier to photograph than you think because they so rarely keep absolutely still. There are a lot of spectacular Peacocks around at the moment I am glad to say.

A telephoto with 100-400mm reach is a great tool for getting successful shots. Wildlife always needs reach!
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Thank you Robin. Very encouraging.
 
visiting family from the southland's meant a visit to the welsh mountain zoo yesterday , I also had a chance to try out my new to me .. four thirds 18-180 lens for family snapshots , but we stumbled on this peregrine flying display and took a few shots thinking they would be mundane . imagine my surprise when I looked at the pics this morning and most exceeded expectations not bad for a outdated lens that cost me just over £100 so first one peregrine fly past and these don't hang about
exceeded expectations by jeff and jan cohen, on Flickr
 
Handheld at 73m / 240ft Subject Distance (EXIF data). M1X + 150-400mm TC engaged + MC-14 @700mm (1400mm equivalent). F/8, 1/640s, ISO 640.

It was overcast but there is room for improvement such as setting a higher ISO to gain a faster shutter speed in order to freeze and sharpen the action.

CORMORANT TAKES A PIKE! by Robin Procter, on Flickr
 
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RedRobin said:
Handheld at 73m / 240ft Subject Distance (EXIF data). M1X + 150-400mm TC engaged + MC-14 @700mm (1400mm equivalent). F/8, 1/640s, ISO 640.

It was overcast but there is room for improvement such as setting a higher ISO to gain a faster shutter speed.

CORMORANT TAKES A PIKE! by Robin Procter, on Flickr
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Great shot. Your wildlife stuff never fails to impress Robin,
 
Can anyone advise me please? - I want to offer my Olympus ED 300mm F/4 Pro lens for sale and need to arrive at a sale price which is both fair to the buyer and to myself. To that end I have Searched in TP Classified but can find no record of this lens being sold as it may have provided a price guide.

I guess that undercutting a used lens price from retailers such as MPB would be a good idea?
 
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RedRobin said:
Can anyone advise me please? - I want to offer my ED 300mm F/4 Pro lens for sale and need to arrive at a sale price which is both fair to the buyer and to myself. To that end I have Searched in TP Classified but can find no record of this lens being sold as it may have provided a price guide.
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MPB have a selection between £1700 and £2000 with some warranty.

Used Olympus M.Zuiko ED 300mm f/4 IS PRO

www.mpb.com www.mpb.com
I might contact them for a quick quote as a stick in the sand of what it's worth then expect to get a bit more than their trade in and a bit less than their retail.

Usedlens shows a variety from a surprising £1400 at LCE
usedlens.co.uk

Used Cameras and Lenses

Search used cameras and lenses from over 60 UK retailers. Price comparison for used digital, film, lenses, medium and large format cameras
usedlens.co.uk usedlens.co.uk
 
RedRobin said:
Can anyone advise me please? - I want to offer my Olympus ED 300mm F/4 Pro lens for sale and need to arrive at a sale price which is both fair to the buyer and to myself. To that end I have Searched in TP Classified but can find no record of this lens being sold as it may have provided a price guide.

I guess that undercutting a used lens price from retailers such as MPB would be a good idea?
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I typically look at the prices that they are beong sold on MPB / Wex and offer it somewhat below that (but more that I would typically get from them)so it is a win / win for buyer and seller. If anything I werr on the cautious side so buyers typically get a good deal from me (I would have been crap in sales!!)
GLWS
John
 
Sootchucker said:
An amazing shot Jeff, but don't you know that micro four thirds can’t do birds in flight :D
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Cheers Andrew but this is not as advanced as MICRO 4/3 this is with a obscure four thirds lens that I didn’t know existed a month ago , and what’s more surprising given the speed of peregrines there are probably without counting at least 10 in focus shots in the burst
 
Having researched and read everything I could find about the Olympus 150-400mm TC Pro before and after pre-ordering one, I was a bit apprehensive about how it would perform with both the built-in 1.25x engaged and the MC-20 mounted, consequently offering 1000mm focal length (2000mm equivalent). The following image is the furthest distance I have shot a wildlife subject with this lens so far.

It was from a hide on Somerset Levels and mounted on a small Jobu gimbal head on a Skimmer base - E-M1X, Manual-mode, 1/500s, F/11, ISO 800 in the early morning of a very overcast cloudy part of the day.

I'll let you judge of course but I'll say that I'm not disappointed.

GREAT WHITE EGRET FISHING GROUNDS by Robin Procter, on Flickr

The EXIF Subject Distance states 164 m which is 538 ft.
 
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Stonking performance and "sharp as a sharp thing" :D
 
Really good Robin when you take into account at that distance heat haze should have affected it but doesn’t .. well done
 
the black fox said:
Really good Robin when you take into account at that distance heat haze should have affected it but doesn’t .. well done
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.... Cheers Jeff :)

The weather conditions, although August, were fresh and breezy with cloudy sky most of the day as can be seen in this photo of me, and so heat haze was not evident to the naked eye.

The Olympus Japanese designers have said that the glass elements in this lens have their latest advanced state-of-the-art coatings and also their Protection Filter (which hadn't arrived yet that day but now has) has coatings specifically matched. They have consciously done their very best to take atmospherics into account particularly because of this lens' very long distance reach. Of course they can only go so far in counteracting the planet's atmospherics. One of Olympus' historic strengths is in the world of glass lens production in various fields such as medical and microscope.

It will be interesting to see how this lens deals with images shot on a hot day where heat haze is visible to the naked eye.

RP 150-400 #1 by Robin Procter, on Flickr

^ ^ ^ This pic of me was taken on the path to the hide where I shot the Great White Egret. I was trying to capture a shot of a Roe Deer buck but windblown swaying foliage was getting in the way - I got something and it was sharp on the deer's head but a 'record' pic rather than anything to be pleased about. My buddy Dave alongside me on a Canon D-SLR had the same problem (he took the pic of me on my Olympus TG-6).

Note the position of my fingers which are simultaneously on the zoom ring and manual focus ring - The ergonomics of this lens are brilliant and very tactile and I don't understand photographers who cover up all their lens controls with neoprene covers. I generally shoot AF via Back Button Focus but with MF override enabled in the M1X body.
 
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HAVE ANY OLYMPUS SHOOTERS HERE SHOT IN-CAMERA FOCUS STACKING?

What are your opinions about it please? Any tips to share?

A couple of examples of Olympus in-camera handheld Photo Stacking - One is shot on my TG-6 Tough pocket camera and the other on my M1X + ED 60mm Macro. It's much easier to hold the M1X rig steady than the smaller lighter TG-6 and perhaps Image Stabilisation plays a part but the subject must remain dead still. The Lobster was very dead! And was tasty!

The Olympus in-camera Photo Stacking option always converts the combined set of RAW images into a final JPEG but Capture One edits JPEGs very well.

A LOBSTER&#x27;S GUNS! by Robin Procter, on Flickr

LOBSTER FOR DINNER! by Robin Procter, on Flickr

I had been exploring Oly's Focus Bracketing and merging the image slices in Affinity in post production but doing it all in-camera saves time and effort.
 
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I did have a good play when I owned the 60mm macro , usually on a tripod or table top variant .. tried a few outdoor shots handheld but even a slight breeze can upset results .
I have been thinking about trying indoor setups again using the 100-400 as that accepts in camera stacking

Love the one with the shell Robin WD
 
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I have done quite a few stack with my 40-150. I have a custom mode set to a 10 shot stack and I have used it for larger subjects like dragonflies, butterflies, lzards and adders. All handheld.
 
the black fox said:
I did have a good play when I owned the 60mm macro , usually on a tripod or table top variant .. tried a few outdoor shots handheld but even a slight breeze can upset results .
I have been thinking about trying indoor setups again using the 100-400 as that accepts in camera stacking

Love the one with the shell Robin WD
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.... You're right - The slightest movement of anything in your frame results in horrible halo-type artifacts in the merged result. The trick is to choose your subjects with this in mind as Image Stabilisation stabilises the camera but not the subject (as you already know). I shot the pic with the shell on the Oly 60mm Macro.

It's a bit long but this is by far the best tutorial I have seen about Oly Focus Stacking - He starts about 8:00mins in :

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=874840976418117
View: https://www.facebook.com/OlympusUK/videos/874840976418117


Next time my fishmonger friend offers me a lobster I plan to have a photo session with more marine props - I have quite a few. I'm hoping that mermaid Ariel will help me set it up. That big shell came home with me from the Indian Ocean many years ago before it was non-PC or became illegal. Back in those days it was much easier to get anything through Customs ;) .
 
RedRobin said:
.... You're right - The slightest movement of anything in your frame results in horrible halo-type artifacts in the merged result. The trick is to choose your subjects with this in mind as Image Stabilisation stabilises the camera but not the subject (as you already know). I shot the pic with the shell on the Oly 60mm Macro.

It's a bit long but this is by far the best tutorial I have seen about Oly Focus Stacking - He starts about 8:00mins in :

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=874840976418117
View: https://www.facebook.com/OlympusUK/videos/874840976418117


Next time my fishmonger friend offers me a lobster I plan to have a photo session with more marine props - I have quite a few. I'm hoping that mermaid Ariel will help me set it up. That big shell came home with me from the Indian Ocean many years ago before it was non-PC or became illegal. Back in those days it was much easier to get anything through Customs ;) .
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My chat with him in a local shop left me unimpressed on the subject of macro
 
alfbranch said:
I have done quite a few stack with my 40-150. I have a custom mode set to a 10 shot stack and I have used it for larger subjects like dragonflies, butterflies, lzards and adders. All handheld.
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.... Yes the Oly 40-150mm Pro is a superb lens and mounting the MC-20 increases the zoom reach without changing the 28-inch Minimum Focus Distance. On this F/2.8 lens the smaller aperture value is not usually an issue when the MC-20 is mounted.

I have one of my C-Mode dials set to Bracketing/Stacking too but have customised one button to toggle the whole C-Mode On/Off. There is 'BKT' button recessed on the lefthand side of the top plate but I want it at the second fingertip of my right hand while my first finger is on the shutter/front wheel and thumb on the Back Button AF or back wheel. I'm using my left hand for all my lens controls and support.
 
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alfbranch said:
My chat with him in a local shop left me unimpressed on the subject of macro
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.... Re Lewis Speight, I skipped straight to the Focus Stacking in this long video and found his teaching on that aspect of photography very clear and effective. I haven't watched the macro part. I would say that just chatting to someone in a shop might not be the best environment for them and also their skills may be better when worked out in presentation via video, live or produced.

Most macro photographers go on about Heath Robinson flash rigs and that's not practical for me because I don't specialise within shooting wildlife. I'm more into 'macro' as close-up rather than micro and I don't care two figs whether something is termed '1:1' or whatever. It's simply a case of whether I like the final image or or not.

I love your Focus Stacked photo just posted of a sunbathing lizard!

I have yet to be impressed by anyone's tutorial on Macro photography on Olympus! And I include Olympus' own clown Geraint Radford who takes superb macro pics but is irritating to listen to and who doesn't really teach beyond a bit of general insect fieldcraft.

Too many tutorial makers seem to be either very over-friendly and desperate to entertain or extremely dull and boring < In my opinion.
 
RedRobin said:
.... and so I had to hold station too for what seemed like 5 minutes and certainly too long to comfortably maintain camera position if handheld - I am 74yo and don't go to the gym any more!
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I think this is the thing with wildlife - you sometimes have to stay very still and I find it hard hand holding and staying in position. I find it especially hard with the extender on the 300mm.

I once ended up half crouched holding my Oly kit whilst photographing a hare. I had been about to get low on the floor when it turned my way. I stayed in that position, half squatting, whilst it fed and I photographed.... everything was twitching and wobbling in the end as I tried to maintain my position :LOL: and this is light compared to your lens (which I am very envious of!)

20200920-BCO31238-Edit.jpg
 
Bebop said:
I think this is the thing with wildlife - you sometimes have to stay very still and I find it hard hand holding and staying in position. I find it especially hard with the extender on the 300mm.

I once ended up half crouched holding my Oly kit whilst photographing a hare. I had been about to get low on the floor when it turned my way. I stayed in that position, half squatting, whilst it fed and I photographed.... everything was twitching and wobbling in the end as I tried to maintain my position :LOL: and this is light compared to your lens (which I am very envious of!)

View attachment 327316
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.... Nice behavioural Hare shot - I have yet to photograph a Hare! Not your pet Hare with a red collar is it? :D

Exactly as you say about straining to hold a fixed position and my solution is to carry a lightweight, although substantial, carbon Gitzo GM4562 telescopic monopod with long spike foot. I mount on the monopod quite often just to steady a long reach shot or to steady a close-up. The monopod also works very well with my unmentionable bright white big envy lens to carry on my shoulder sometimes - It just depends what subjects I am looking for.

You mention the Oly 300mm Pro being much lighter weight than the big white one and it is significantly so on paper. But, on Saturday Jeff @the black fox asked me to do a test for him between the Oly 300mm prime and my big white zoom set at 300mm and I was very surprised by the feeling of an insignificant weight different in the hand. This is because the big zoom is extremely well physically balanced with the M1X by conscious design. I better shut up or you'll be feeling even more envious!

Btw, Jeff asked for the test because some keyboard warrior on the hyperinterwebbynet was claiming that 300mm on a prime had a larger image area than on a zoom. This is certainly not the case on these two Olympus lenses when compared on a locked down tripod on the same subject.
 
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GOOD MORNING!!

Good Morning from a Grasshopper and yet another photo taken on my Star Wars Warrior Weapon (yesterday). This lens delivers results whether at 1.7m (this one) or at 73m subject distance (my furthest to date). This close-up was shot handheld at 700mm (1400mm equivalent) with TC engaged and MC-14 mounted. Sorry if I am boring anyone by repeating my enthusiastic praise for this lens. I have had it since August 1st and am still on honeymoon with it.

I read on an Olympus forum that someone who pre-ordered the ED 150-400mm TC Pro on 21st December 2020 from WEX has been told not to expect it until next year! I can't vouch for how true that is.

GOOD MORNING GRASSHOPPER! by Robin Procter, on Flickr
 
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RedRobin said:
GOOD MORNING!!

Good Morning from a Grasshopper and yet another photo taken on my Star Wars Warrior Weapon (yesterday). This lens delivers results whether at 1.7m (this one) or at 73m subject distance (my furthest to date). This close-up was shot handheld at 700mm (1400mm equivalent) with TC engaged and MC-14 mounted. Sorry if I am boring anyone by repeating my enthusiastic praise for this lens. I have had it since August 1st and am still on honeymoon with it.

I read on an Olympus forum that someone who pre-ordered the ED 150-400mm TC Pro on 21st December 2020 from WEX has been told not to expect it until next year! I can't vouch for how true that is.

GOOD MORNING GRASSHOPPER! by Robin Procter, on Flickr
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Wow...if that was any sharper it would cut you.
 
Sootchucker said:
Wow...if that was any sharper it would cut you.
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.... As should be expected as Olympus's flagship lens, it is very sharp indeed like all the Pro lenses seem to be and especially the ED 300mm Pro prime.

I do not have any sharpness adjustment enabled in-camera (M1X) - It is set to 'Normal'.

Neither do I use the popular Topaz Sharpen AI (nor Topaz DeNoise AI) but I use the somewhat aged Piccure+ as a Filter plug-in in Photoshop CS6 which I find very satisfactory and I don't even adjust its settings as it does a great job by default. I don't even sharpen my images in Capture One.

In retrospect I would have liked just a tad more DoF in this shot but I didn't want to push the ISO for a macro image (it's not a full-frame sensor!) - It was set to ISO 500 and the shutter to 1/320s which is pretty slow for a handheld big rig and with the subject and grasses moving. Aperture was F/9. Although I have shot several thousand images in the fortnight I have had the lens, there is still a learning curve relating to different subjects and scenarios and I'm going to make mistakes anyway and hopefully learn by them.

The most difficult thing I find with wildlife photography is not knowing what is going to present itself next and so not being ready with the best camera settings for it. I can adjust them on the fly (I only shoot Manual-Mode) but often the opportunity time is limited - The grasshopper wanted to hide from me even though I was 1.7m subject distance.
 
Sharps said:
Just after some advice please, I'm after buying my wife either the om-d e m1 iii or the Panasonic S5, she does a lot of macro and product photography, what are your thoughts?

​

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How does she work in macro?
Is it flowers on a tripod?
Is it handheld invertebrates with flash and MF or is it AF.
Does she want to focus stack in camera?

What is she using now and has she held an OMD?

An OMD E-M1iii will work well but what lens to use?
They are of course very different cameras you are comparing the OMD has a much smaller sensor

I manage fine with my E-M1ii handheld with flash using MF

Large red damselfly by Alf Branch, on Flickr
 
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Sharps said:
Just after some advice please, I'm after buying my wife either the om-d e m1 iii or the Panasonic S5, she does a lot of macro and product photography, what are your thoughts?

​

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.... As Alf @alfbranch asks in his reply to you, your wife needs to ask herself what sort of macro she wants to shoot. But you have said that she already "does a lot of macro..." and so this tells me that she is not a beginner.

You don't say whether you are wanting to buy her a camera as a surprise or not such as for her birthday or an anniversary etc. If you want it to be a surprise then I very strongly recommend you give her a card on day which states you are buying her a camera and then ask which she would like. This way you avoid choosing the wrong camera!

I don't know what a Panasonic S5 is like other than it is full-frame?

If you go Olympus E-M1 Pro series then there are several lens options and the Pro lenses will Focus Stack which can be valuable for macro.
 
RedRobin said:
You don't say whether you are wanting to buy her a camera as a surprise or not such as for her birthday or an anniversary etc. If you want it to be a surprise then I very strongly recommend you give her a card on day which states you are buying her a camera and then ask which she would like. This way you avoid choosing the wrong camera!


If you go Olympus E-M1 Pro series then there are several lens options and the Pro lenses will Focus Stack which can be valuable for macro.
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:agree:
 
In an email update about Olympus day there was a link to a Tesni Ward movie about Olympus bodies re: use in wildlife photography.

One thing that caught my attention was about the EM1X, she called the Bird Detection AI "birds in flight AF"

View: https://youtu.be/3Xc0Ym1HAww
 
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