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MF on EPL-1 back LCD
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PostPosted: Wed Dec 07, 2011 10:13 pm    Post subject: MF on EPL-1 back LCD Reply with quote

Hello !
I read it's a 230.000 dots screen . Is it difficult to manual focus on it?


PostPosted: Thu Dec 08, 2011 10:39 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

yinyangbt wrote:
Is it difficult to manual focus on it?


No, it is very easy to manually focus because you can get an instantly magnified view by pressing one button twice. (The first press gives a green box showing the area to be magnified which can be moved to the required area of the picture. The second press zooms in on that area). This allows very very precise focus to be achieved, albeit not especially quickly.

A point to note is that the magnification has settings of 7x, 10x and 13x only. This is fine for for shorter FL lenses, but with long focal lenses the camera needs to be held very stably to stop the magnified image jumping around so much that the focus can not be set. Trying to focus handheld with a 300mm lens is impossible (at least for me). A lower magnification option should be added IMHO.

I should also point out that I much prefer to use the VF-2 electronic viewfinder which is very good indeed.

The EPL1 is a nice camera, but should only be bought now at a very low price as it is 2 generations old. It's most significant limitations for me are 1) max shutter speed of 1/2000s makes ND filters necessary when shooting wide open with fast lenses in daylight and 2) no ability to remotely fire the shutter either wired or wireless.

Mark


PostPosted: Fri Dec 09, 2011 8:02 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thank you very much for your reply ,Mark .
I am aSony NEX3 shooter last time ,wich is a very fine camera. For the moments when i want to go only with a camera in the pocket I have a G9 that gives very good results at base ISO and useable up to 200 .But I'd like to go up to 1600 .The NEX system has no pancake lenses except 16mm ,wich is not a
I found the EP=L1 around 160 E body . I'd like it with a 14/17/20 set for AF camera .
The EVF2 is good but adds too much price.


PostPosted: Fri Dec 09, 2011 1:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

hi

i do not mean to be a naysayer, but i had the ep1 and i traded it in for ep2 for only one reason, the difficulty focusing legacy lenses on the lcd. now this is not an isuue only with olympus, it is a general issue of lcd focusing vs vf focusing, and there are two components to this issue: first is actual focus specific problems and second is camera shake problems.

for focus specific problems, just think logically, it is much more difficult to fine focus something that is one or two feet from your eye than to focus when the view is right up against your eye. also, it is almost impossible to focus in bright sunlight.

then, second, there is the related issue of camera shake, that also has two components. the first is focus related because with crop factor cameras even a 50mm lens acts like a 100mm lens. at 10x magnification with cam held at arms length, the picture is jumpy due to small vibrations caused by arm movement translating into big jumps on screen because of crop factor. obviously, that condition makes it very hard to fine focus. second issue is in actual picture taking, because you cannot brace cam against your head, crop factor will magnify natural cam shake at arms length, causing OOF or lack of sharpness look.

this is why when i got the ep2 with external vf my picture focus and sharpness increased 100%


PostPosted: Fri Dec 09, 2011 6:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

rbelyell wrote:
hi

i do not mean to be a naysayer, but i had the ep1 and i traded it in for ep2 for only one reason, the difficulty focusing legacy lenses on the lcd. now this is not an isuue only with olympus, it is a general issue of lcd focusing vs vf focusing, and there are two components to this issue: first is actual focus specific problems and second is camera shake problems.

for focus specific problems, just think logically, it is much more difficult to fine focus something that is one or two feet from your eye than to focus when the view is right up against your eye. also, it is almost impossible to focus in bright sunlight.

then, second, there is the related issue of camera shake, that also has two components. the first is focus related because with crop factor cameras even a 50mm lens acts like a 100mm lens. at 10x magnification with cam held at arms length, the picture is jumpy due to small vibrations caused by arm movement translating into big jumps on screen because of crop factor. obviously, that condition makes it very hard to fine focus. second issue is in actual picture taking, because you cannot brace cam against your head, crop factor will magnify natural cam shake at arms length, causing OOF or lack of sharpness look.

this is why when i got the ep2 with external vf my picture focus and sharpness increased 100%

Thank you, very informative . I tend to think this Pen system more as an AF small outfit to take everywhere maybe in a large pocket ,when I want a good low light but don't want a big DSLR ,or the nex + MF 17 to 35mm lens (I can't afford a Contax G 21 mm + 28mm wich would solve the problem of bulk). The Voigtlander rangefinder pancakes are also out of my reach.There are also moments when I tend to favour AF even if slow .
The EP-L2 + EVF2 is good , but I don't want to invest that much.


PostPosted: Fri Dec 09, 2011 6:39 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

oh, ok, certainly if you want to use it as AF system, that is different. in good light it will do well as AF compact cam. i thought your question was about using it as MF--for that purpose my above post would apply and i think you would be quite disappointed as i was without a vf.

i really like my ep2, but not for MF on lcd and not for lowlight, as high iso/low light is very disappointing, at really iso 800 and above. its very good AF/lcd in good light or MF/vf in good light. it is fine (as opposed to 'very good')in low light up to iso800. it is bad with MF/lcd and bad in lowlight/iso>800. if you are ok with its limitations you will not be disappointed.

if you want best low light compact AF, that is fuji x100 by far.


PostPosted: Fri Dec 09, 2011 7:13 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

thanks , rbelyell I am much apreciating your answers . The 800 + IS advantage would be OK for me if I can find a good deal , to replace my G9 as AF pocketable camera until somebody will give us a pancake for NEX in 18-30 mm range. The Hexanon 40/1.8 and Rokkor 45/2 are a little too long with the 1.5 crop and also a little too bulky with the adapter for a pocketable cam ( Ok, the EP-L 1 is also bigger than my Powershot G9)
The X100 is a very sexy alternative , but I doubt I can find the money for it Laughing


PostPosted: Fri Dec 09, 2011 7:24 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The only m4/3 AF lenses I have for my EPL1 are the Panasonic 14mm and 20mm Pancakes. They both work extremely well on the EL1 and are ideal for "compact tourism". I strongly recommend them.

With regard to high-ISO noise, this is a matter of personal taste. Some people will not tolerate any noise and want ISO 128000 to look like ISO100. Personally, I can live with some texture graining as the ISO increases, and have rarely found the need to shoot beyond ISO1600. I find the EPL1 very good even at ISO 1600. Take a look at the pictures I posted in this thread, taken with the EPL1 and Fujinon 50mm f1.4 c-mount. The 4 shots in my 1st reply to my original post were taken at ISO 640, 500, 500 and 640 repsectively. Below is a full size version of the night shot in the next reply which was taken at ISO1600. This is jpeg straight from the camera, no additional processing. Bad noise? I don't think so.



Returning to focusing by the rear LCD, I agree that there are issues and limitations. This is why i bought the VF2. I have never liked holding a camera at arms length to take a picture; even composing the picture that way feels odd to me. Maybe a NEX LCD is better than the Oly ones for viewing in bright light, but I doubt it will be so good that there is never a problem with seeing the screen. If the VF2 is not affordable, I would make a shade! For viewing the LCD of my E3 in bright light, I made a simple shade from cardboard covered in black felt. This folds flat when not in use and is very effective. Very Happy

Mark