I was looking to add a small walk around camera to my kit. I have an om-d e-m5 ii right now and a few m43 lenses. I’ve been really happy with that, but I want something a little more slim and with a flip up screen (as opposed to flip out screen). IBIS is a must have for me. Other than that, I’ve just been looking to not spend a ton.

So in that vein I’ve been looking at used m43 cameras in the less than $400usd range (preferably less than 200, but I’m considering more to add features). Ones that have gotten my attention have been:

  • lumix gx7
  • lumix gx80/85
  • olympus e-pl6 (and successors)
  • olympus e-p5
  • exciting mystery option (your suggestion goes here)

I’m mostly wondering if people have used these and have any experience or advice on which is best. If there are other things to consider I don’t know about that would be helpful.

The lumix gx7 seems like a really solid choice but I’ve never used a lumix camera before so IDK how they stack up against some of those olympus ones. I’d be buying from mpb, upp, or keh so it had some kind of warranty at least (avoiding ebay et al)… but that does bump the initial price up just a little bit.

Also, my lenses are primarily olympus lenses… which should work but I know sometimes there are quirks with putting them on lumix and vice versa. 🤷

Anyway… if anyone has suggestions or insights it would be much appreciated. 😊

Thanks.

  • LibbEnglish
    1·
    24 days ago

    any experience or advice on which is best

    Depends a lot what you want to with it, aka where you will ‘walk around’ with your camera ;)

    And also it depends a lot how you like to take pictures, and what is your level of expertise.

    I’ve quit photography almost completely (I’m sketching now) but was mostly doing street and wildlife. The last camera I ever purchased was an used OM-d 5 MK II (I would have to get it out of the closet to be sure of the exact model, the one that’s weather-sealed but not top of the line from 2015 or 2016) and I could not be happier. It was to the point that I stopped being interested in new gear.

    (for context: I have been using almost anything you can think of since the late 70s, from your standard 35mm to large format chambers, from fully automatic cameras to full manual ones with nothing but the sunny 16 (not even a portable light-meter). And I started fiddling with digital starting in the late 90s)

    Yeah:

    • Lightweight and not bulky. Those two things alone make it a blessing if you carry the camera all day long on the streets, and even more so when hiking in the wilderness.
    • Edit: It’s also much less intrusive than a bulky DSLR for street. And a tad less of a thieve magnet than, say, a Leica.
    • Image stabilization works great.
    • Fully articulated screen is so useful in so many situations.
    • Silent (if you want it to be).
    • Excellent lenses. Even basic kit lenses are decent (unlike so many other brands kit lenses). I mean they’re not amazing but anyone should be able to use the 14-42 from Olympus or from Panasonic and get decent shots. Which is great considering how cheap they can be found used. Much better lenses will be, well, much better but it’s hard to beat the 14-42 price used (I paid something like 25€ for the first one I got, and got a second one new for free by someone that refused to use nothing but the most expensive lenses to take snapshots (which was more than by me). Not my favorite lens by any means but one I would never hesitate to pick in many common situations.
    • Very niche, but this OM camera has a very usable focus stacking mode.
    • Did I mention it was so fucking not bulky with great image quality (given enough light)?
    • Edit: dirt cheap, used.

    BTW, I also own a Lumix GH5 that I mostly use(d) for video. It’s great for that but I prefer the OM for photography.

    Meh:

    • Poor low light perfs compared to larger sensors. I never cared that much about my images being noisier I cared a lot more about my gear being too bulky and too heavy to easily carry around ;)
    • In-lens stabilization doesn’t work between Lumix<>Olympus (depending the type of photos, it will work wonder within each specific brand) but the in camera does work cross-brands.
    • Weak battery life. I carried 2 spares on a standard day, to be on the safe side. Still less than the 4 I used to carry with my Fuji X100 and the 6 or 8 I had to carry with the now long forgotten but still beloved Epson RD-1s.
    • Menus are a mess. It’s even worse with the Olympus than with the Pana but one gets used to them and since one seldom need to access more than handful of those menus. Plus, all buttons are configurable for quick access to whatever you often use.