[mike]

X-A series don't really have great AF. Maybe the latest one does (X-A3?) but my gf had picked one up and put it back down after trying one in the showroom. X-E and X-T series have much better AF. Even X-T10 has quite good AF if you need to stay within a tighter budget.

 

LOL, I didn't realize there was anything besides X-E and X-T series. B&H and Adorama only have the X-E and X-T models. It's the X-T20 which I do not see available anywhere (in the US). Even at Amazon they all say "ships in 2-4 weeks" or "Temporarily out of stock." Is it that new or selling faster than they thought? 

[obican]

No idea, I have plenty where I live (Turkey) and for cheaper too . They also ship usually a few days before the US sellers get their hands on new models.

[wim]

If you want something really small and light, and still would like good iQ, I am with thxbb12: MFT is the way to go.

 

E-M10 Mk I or II, or even E-M5 Mk 1 or II, depending on how far you can stretch your budget, or Panasonic GX80/85.

for the Oly I'd recommend the 14-42 EZ (pancake) with the 40-150 non-pro, plus a few 1.8 primes to your liking, for teh Panasonic the 12-32 pancake and 45-150 as per thxbb12, with a few 1.7 primes if you like.

 

All very compact, very light, and high IQ.

 

Personally I currently prefer Oly, basically because of th eincredibly good in-camera jpeg-engine, incredible IBIS, hi-res mode in the Mk II versions, and the user interface - you can make it as complicated or as easy as you like.

 

If you'd like something completely different, and the budget suffices, you could also consider the Oly Pen-F.

 

If you'd wanted, you could also get an adapter, or several, to use your Canon lenses with these cameras. Personally I'd recommend Metabones, as all functionality of Canon FF lenses still work and work well, but the Metabones adapters are not cheap, and EF-S lenses cannot be mounted, although 3rd party APS-C lenses can.

 

BTW, since your first real camera was an OM-2n, I reckon you will love the Oly OM-D cameras. They are actually slightly smaller, length and width, but slightly wider than the analog OMs.

 

HTH, kind regards, Wim

[mike]

If you want something really small and light, and still would like good iQ, I am with thxbb12: MFT is the way to go.

 

E-M10 Mk I or II, or even E-M5 Mk 1 or II, depending on how far you can stretch your budget, or Panasonic GX80/85.

for the Oly I'd recommend the 14-42 EZ (pancake) with the 40-150 non-pro, plus a few 1.8 primes to your liking, for teh Panasonic the 12-32 pancake and 45-150 as per thxbb12, with a few 1.7 primes if you like.

 

All very compact, very light, and high IQ.

 

Personally I currently prefer Oly, basically because of th eincredibly good in-camera jpeg-engine, incredible IBIS, hi-res mode in the Mk II versions, and the user interface - you can make it as complicated or as easy as you like.

 

If you'd like something completely different, and the budget suffices, you could also consider the Oly Pen-F.

 

If you'd wanted, you could also get an adapter, or several, to use your Canon lenses with these cameras. Personally I'd recommend Metabones, as all functionality of Canon FF lenses still work and work well, but the Metabones adapters are not cheap, and EF-S lenses cannot be mounted, although 3rd party APS-C lenses can.

 

BTW, since your first real camera was an OM-2n, I reckon you will love the Oly OM-D cameras. They are actually slightly smaller, length and width, but slightly wider than the analog OMs.

 

HTH, kind regards, Wim

 

Hi Wim, Are you the same Wim from ~15 years ago? I used to post here a lot back in the early 2K's.

 

The one thing I'm pretty floored about with all the new cameras is the high ISO performance. How does the Oly compare to the other mirrorless I'm looking at? I don't expect it to be better, but can you get usable results up to 1600?

 

Mike

[thxbb12]

Hi Wim, Are you the same Wim from ~15 years ago? I used to post here a lot back in the early 2K's.

 

The one thing I'm pretty floored about with all the new cameras is the high ISO performance. How does the Oly compare to the other mirrorless I'm looking at? I don't expect it to be better, but can you get usable results up to 1600?

 

Mike

 

Hi Mike,

 

Here you can see a comparison at ISO 1600 between:

• Olympus E-M5 II (same 16MP sensor found in almost all other current 16MP MFT cameras)
  
• Canon EOS M5
  
• Sony Alpha 6300
  
• Fuji X-T20
  

As you can see the difference is rather slight and will very likely be insignificant for most uses.

 

I own a Fuji X-T1 as well as tiny Panasonic GM5.

You can find many examples of both in my flickr stream here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/thxbb12/

I've printed large posters (90 cm x 70 cm) of my MFT shots and I'm very happy with the IQ. At normal viewing distance it's easily good enough (who looks at a poster with their nose touching the paper?).

[Brightcolours]

Equivalent ISO settings for MFT:

ISO 1600 on FF is equivalent to ISO 400 on MFT with equivalent lenses. So it is not that important as it may seem how well MFT does at very high IS numbers, unless you have small aperture lenses.

[mike]

Hi Mike,

 

Here you can see a comparison at ISO 1600 between:

• Olympus E-M5 II (same 16MP sensor found in almost all other current 16MP MFT cameras)
  
• Canon EOS M5
  
• Sony Alpha 6300
  
• Fuji X-T20
  

As you can see the difference is rather slight and will very likely be insignificant for most uses.

 

I own a Fuji X-T1 as well as tiny Panasonic GM5.

You can find many examples of both in my flickr stream here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/thxbb12/

I've printed large posters (90 cm x 70 cm) of my MFT shots and I'm very happy with the IQ. At normal viewing distance it's easily good enough (who looks at a poster with their nose touching the paper?).

 

Thanks! A lens that looks interesting to me is the Panasonic 12-60mm f/3.5-5.6. Klaus' review seem fair with it. Just curious, is there any reason neither you or Wim mention it?


 

[Guest]

fyi: right now the x-t1 is $500 off and x-t10 is $200 off at usual usa places (b&h, amazon, ...). Not cheap but cheaper than yesterday.


imho 12-60 is not that great and too slow; but it is cheap compared to the better lenses. 

 

 

Thanks! A lens that looks interesting to me is the Panasonic 12-60mm f/3.5-5.6. Klaus' review seem fair with it. Just curious, is there any reason neither you or Wim mention it?

 
 

[wim]

Hi Wim, Are you the same Wim from ~15 years ago? I used to post here a lot back in the early 2K's.

 

The one thing I'm pretty floored about with all the new cameras is the high ISO performance. How does the Oly compare to the other mirrorless I'm looking at? I don't expect it to be better, but can you get usable results up to 1600?

 

Mike

 

Hi Mike,

 

Not 15 years ago, but close enough I guess , and yes, I am the same. I also used to post a lot in the early days.

 

1600 iso is no problem with MFT. With the newer bodies even 3200 iso is very usable, especially the E-M1 Mk II, but that is a somewhat more expensive camera .

 

Personally, I shoot with MFT at 1600 iso without a second thought, slightly more careful at 3200 iso, except with teh E-M1 Mk II. Compared to the 5D Mk II I also still have, this means that I reckon there si approximately a stop difference, except with the E-M1 Mk II. I have shot/used/owned the M10, M10 II, M5 II, Pen F, and M1 Mk I, all with great pleasure, and still own the latter two, and absolutely intend to keep them.

 

FYI, in order to improve things on the FF front, I plan on replacing my 5D Mk II with a 5DsR later this year. Effectively that means that my FF camera becomes a MF type of camera, while MFT has become my new "FF", especially with some of the new lpro) lenses Oly and Panasonic have released lately.

 

Having said that, even the "premium" lenses tend to be very good (1.7/1.8 primes, etc.).

 

The nice thing is that I carry two bodies and 11 lenses with me most of the time, and these weigh less than my 5D II with 3 or 4 lenses.

 

As to your question regarding the Panny 12-60: I do not know that lens personally, but I reckon, based on what I have read, that it is not that great even though it is not a bad lens - it dpeends a bit on what you plan to do with it. You're probably better off with a Panny 12-32 or Oly 14-42 EZ and an appropriate 35-100 or 45-140. The advantage is that both 12-32 and 14-42 are pancake lenses, and therefore make for a very compact package.

You could also consider the 14-140/150, if you don't mind a bigger lens; the Panny was always quite good, the recent Oly incarnation is quite good too. Personally I would prefer two smaller zoom lenses, but as it is I am spoilt for choice anyway.

 

HTH, kind regards, Wim

[marco]

I travel much and prefer compact cameras like Sony RX, Ricoh GR or Panasonic FZ. Have you looked at the Sony RX 10 or the Panasonic FZ 2500. The sensor is a little bit smaller than MFT but the lens is brighter. And they are sharp. The biggest plus is the convenience.