GF-1! I'm a new m4/3 user and I do compared both EP1 and GF1. Verdict; depends entirely on YOU(Buyer)! Why you choose a m4/3 rather than normal 4/3? As for me, my objective is to find a DSLR camera for traveling around, thus GF-1 (lighter/ easy to use/ built-in Flash) Although I hardly use the flash at all but its good to have just-in-case.
What Made you choose the Panasonic GF1 or Olympus Pen?
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It may be underpowered but it's just perfect for the occasional fill-flash. I would have lost some pretty good pix without the fill.
Personally, 5 reasons why i would choose the GF1 over the EP1..
1. the shutter speed of the Pan GF1 is much faster then the EP1 which i feel is very impt.
2. excellent built of the overall camera and handling, of course un-deniably the EP1 looks nicer in design.
3. built-in flash, regardless of how some commented that the GF1 flash is no good, to have one is better then none, you never know when you will need to rely on it.
4. the pancake lens is a 20mm f1.7!!!
5. i like panasonic's commitment to improving their firmware, they get better each time.
I am happy with my choice of the GF1 even thou i was "close" to getting an EP1 for it's white appealing design, practically... functionality/performance is more important then looks i must say...
1. the shutter speed of the Pan GF1 is much faster then the EP1 which i feel is very impt.
2. excellent built of the overall camera and handling, of course un-deniably the EP1 looks nicer in design.
3. built-in flash, regardless of how some commented that the GF1 flash is no good, to have one is better then none, you never know when you will need to rely on it.
4. the pancake lens is a 20mm f1.7!!!
5. i like panasonic's commitment to improving their firmware, they get better each time.
I am happy with my choice of the GF1 even thou i was "close" to getting an EP1 for it's white appealing design, practically... functionality/performance is more important then looks i must say...
For me... it must be Olympus because it is much easier to park my car at their service centre at Valley Point then at Panasonic's service centre at Jalan Kilang Barat. Real headache the last time I had to go there...
That's a good one.
That is valid as well. For the concept behind m43 is "travel light" and fixing an external flash would be "travel not so light". Do you have a picture to share as an example of usability of the GF1 flash for reference?
Any images to support that superiority? Just curious about the shutter speed thing and the flash being useful. As for build quality, I am totally not convinced. I have yet to meet a man strong enough to flex the body of the E-P1/2. Maybe you have met one.
I have to say this Pana Vs Oly is starting to make us look like the C Vs N goonies!!!!
BORING AND POINTLESS!!!!
BORING AND POINTLESS!!!!
It seems this thread has become a argumentive one to compare GF1 against EP-1, which has totally lost it's original purpose by TS to ask for opinions of m4/3 cameras against the rest of the cameras. (if anyone has actually understood the meaning of the subject posted)
Each camera has it's purpose and I believe GF1 and EP-1 each has their own merits.
Putting down one camera without having one is very unfair and TYPICAL fanboy doings.
I always thought everyone here in Clubsnap always SWORN by the belief that "it's always the man behind camera making good photos" but it seems fanboys nowadays compare specs and brand and ISO performance as the only criteria to choose their gear.
I got GF1 because I use it to take photos of my moving kids with ease. EP-1 might produce better pictures or have better branding but it does not meet my needs.
I got m4/3 camera because it's small and light enough to bring out with my kids on outings than to lug around a DSLR with lens. Even with a zoom lens, the overall weight and size is even smaller than a DSLR body alone while IQ is not far off and it's much better than normal PNS. So this is my answer to TS.
For this reason alone, I believe many others out there have their own needs and using that needs to select the camera they want. Bashing a particular camera without owning or used (for a reasonable period of time) one before is just a silly act IMO.
Each camera has it's purpose and I believe GF1 and EP-1 each has their own merits.
Putting down one camera without having one is very unfair and TYPICAL fanboy doings.
I always thought everyone here in Clubsnap always SWORN by the belief that "it's always the man behind camera making good photos" but it seems fanboys nowadays compare specs and brand and ISO performance as the only criteria to choose their gear.
I got GF1 because I use it to take photos of my moving kids with ease. EP-1 might produce better pictures or have better branding but it does not meet my needs.
I got m4/3 camera because it's small and light enough to bring out with my kids on outings than to lug around a DSLR with lens. Even with a zoom lens, the overall weight and size is even smaller than a DSLR body alone while IQ is not far off and it's much better than normal PNS. So this is my answer to TS.
For this reason alone, I believe many others out there have their own needs and using that needs to select the camera they want. Bashing a particular camera without owning or used (for a reasonable period of time) one before is just a silly act IMO.
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I chose G1 because I come from PnS group of users, and wanted an upgrade to low light handling at events, faster shooting. I found out since that DSLR cameras start up a lot faster than PnS; I can power on G1 and immediately start shooting what I see, instead of seeing that wait screen for PnS to start. I want faster focusing because when I see what I see, I want to shoot it already instead of waiting for lens to find focus. But I am not used to holding a DSLR, so I needed something light weight. I am used to shooting from "Liveview" of PnS so didn't know how I would take to using the viewfinder (am still not used to it). I have since found out I can compose a lot better with Liveview and still cannot get used to the limited view of viewfinder. I didn't think I'd be changing lens much, just needed something that can take better pictures than my Fujifilm, and at that time G1 only had 14-45 and 45-200 so that wasn't a concern then. I have since advanced to using more lenses and requiring better range of lenses; my favourite is 7-14mm. I need faster primes now, there's 20mm f1.7 available.
After more than a year of G1, I have taken tens of thousands of lovely pictures in all my trips and locally, as well as sporting events which I am involved in (those generally account for the tens of thousands of pictures). No regrets.
I am however contemplating a newer system at the moment due to low light limitations of 4/3 sensors and lack of lens choices after such a long time, to see if a Nikon is, for example, better.
After more than a year of G1, I have taken tens of thousands of lovely pictures in all my trips and locally, as well as sporting events which I am involved in (those generally account for the tens of thousands of pictures). No regrets.
I am however contemplating a newer system at the moment due to low light limitations of 4/3 sensors and lack of lens choices after such a long time, to see if a Nikon is, for example, better.
No matter how u try to hide it, the nature of this thread by the TS will bring about this kind of responses. Why? Because this is the way we make our decisions....by being judgemental. Even if a fault is not directly mentioned, the implication of it, will be there in the statement. U can see it in every post. Let me give an example using cars eg Audi and VW. I chose Audi because it is more powerful. What is the implication? VW less powerful. I choose Audi because it is more refined. What is the implication? VW is less refined. To some people, they may agree with my statements, but there are others who disagree, or may even feel slighted that their VW cars are not as refined or as powerful.
And moving on, because, most of the reasons for choice, are personal, with no objective comparisons, it is again open to disagreements by others who do not feel the same about that point. Some more, he is asking people who have already owned and bought the cameras. These owners have already made their choice, and also their stand, by putting their money down on the equipment after weighing the pros and cons. Obviously, there will be an argument. The way I see it, so far it is good, cos it appears that we are agreeing to disagree.
I am not sure if I read it correctly, but I see that those who go for PEN are mostly Olympus fan, and will accept PEN more because it is an Olympus, and have no problem with its auto focus speed, have a lower resolution screen, and does not have flash built in. They are mostly already experienced owner of dslr, and are very knowledgeable about dslr photography, and thus can work out how to overcome those issues and take very good picts with the PEN.
For those who bought GF1 (including me), they bought it for the flexibility (interchangeable lens for various ocassions) plus portability (almost pocketable, comes with flash, and can leave home without any accessories), and still able to take very good picts compared to a normal PnS (in the hand of a good photograher). They include first time buyer (me) as well as experience dslr photographers too.
So I think both GF1 and PEN share the same advantages of the m4/3 format, and would in the end comes down to your own preferences.
For those who bought GF1 (including me), they bought it for the flexibility (interchangeable lens for various ocassions) plus portability (almost pocketable, comes with flash, and can leave home without any accessories), and still able to take very good picts compared to a normal PnS (in the hand of a good photograher). They include first time buyer (me) as well as experience dslr photographers too.
So I think both GF1 and PEN share the same advantages of the m4/3 format, and would in the end comes down to your own preferences.
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hmmm, actually if you did a count of the confirmed Olympus DSLR users who have shared their views here about their purchase decisions for EP1/2 or GF1 camera...
confirmed Olympus DSLR users in this thread:
1) microcosm - none. the EP1 and EP2 are loaners from Olympus
2) drakon09 - none.
3) Oly5050 - EP1
4) headfonz - GF1
there's uncle tomcat too with a EP1...but he owns cameras and lenses from every brand...
so its not only olympus fans who chose the EP1 for whatever reasons. i don't know if the others who chose the EP1 are all dslr owners, i don't think that owning a dslr is material to their preference. some, like mad armour mentioned...style, style, style....
I find this thread very informative to those wanting to buy a m4/3. It's not a pointless thread, from the replies I get the know more in depth on the problems and ways to overcome it or if it's ever a problem to me. When say about the cons about other brand, as long as it comes with a valid reason, I find it ok.
End of the day, I get to know what are the things that matters to me more and I can make a wise decision. All of us weigh things differently, what matters to me may not apply to others. I would say both are good cameras.
End of the day, I get to know what are the things that matters to me more and I can make a wise decision. All of us weigh things differently, what matters to me may not apply to others. I would say both are good cameras.
I like both E-P1/P2 & GF1. In fact I love the E-P1!
Despite being a Canon DSLR/SLR user for years, I've also owned E-10/E-20 before & IMHO, they were ahead of their time. Olympus is really an innovative company, but overshadowed by the big 2.
Anyway, I went for GF1 due to the following reasons:
- EVF (its not fantastic, but it does its job)
- good experience with LX3 (in term of IQ & UI)
- slightly faster AF (compared to E-P1)
But since Oly addresses some of E-P1's shortcomings with E-P2, I'm leaning more towards it now. Besides I'm mostly using MF lenses, so its kinda perfect.
- EVF (big bright & hi res)
- black body (as much as I love E-P1 retro silver, I'll still prefer black camera)
Flash & IBIS dun matter for me. So for me, this is a very close race.
Despite being a Canon DSLR/SLR user for years, I've also owned E-10/E-20 before & IMHO, they were ahead of their time. Olympus is really an innovative company, but overshadowed by the big 2.
Anyway, I went for GF1 due to the following reasons:
- EVF (its not fantastic, but it does its job)
- good experience with LX3 (in term of IQ & UI)
- slightly faster AF (compared to E-P1)
But since Oly addresses some of E-P1's shortcomings with E-P2, I'm leaning more towards it now. Besides I'm mostly using MF lenses, so its kinda perfect.
- EVF (big bright & hi res)
- black body (as much as I love E-P1 retro silver, I'll still prefer black camera)
Flash & IBIS dun matter for me. So for me, this is a very close race.
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