Olympus - OM-D E-M10 Mark II Mirrorless Camera with 14-42mm Lens - Silver

I was looking to upgrade my camera from a Nikon Coolpix P600. The Nikon worked, but I wanted more. More definition, better editing (RAW), more clarity, more options. I did my research and kept coming back to the OM-D E-M10 Mk II. I am sure glad I bought it. Positives: Lightweight - I use the same bag for this camera but have added a great 25mm prime lens. I can hike all day with this around my neck ready to shoot and not realize its there. Fantastic features - the built in Image Stabilization (IS) has paid off in spades already. Shutter say 1/40 no problem, clear as a bell no flash, Less? steady yourself a bit, you're probably okay. Drawback: Menus go on forever - There are some shortcuts, but I am not sure I will ever figure out all the menus. Not a serious issue, since I have have also gotten into post processing, so I shoot everything in RAW and JPEG - which you have to dig into the menus to turn on. But I bet if I mastered the settings my straight JPEGs would be even better, and I could share more without editing. Not weather sealed - In the pacific Northwest you need to be careful to not destroy your camera in the weather. Overall -- . A great camera and a good value. The kit lens has a pretty high minimum f stop, and you can find some pretty good 25 mm primes, with a 1.7 f stop for really good narrow depth of field shots and low light shots. But it is very serviceable, I leave it on most of time. The photos I attached were taken on my first and second hikes with the camera. Its easy to get comfortable with.

DSLRS are great except in bright sunlight. I plan to take this to the Grand Canyon. I have been rehearsing the use of manual focus, reasign a back button for magnify, the front wheel for tweaking the +/- exposure. I can view the scene in the viewfinder in the bright sunlight with assistance of a histogram. It also has dynamic range adjustment. CONS: Difficult menu. Had to modify a spreadsheet from another OMD model to track the Mysets. Created a Gdrive cheat sheet to access from my phone for the Mysets. Retrieving Myset configurations gives different results when retrieved from the menu VS an association on the function wheel. My Myst config summary: OMD E10 ii Mysets Myset 1: Factory Reset Myset 2: Outdoor still. Magnify, HDR, MF, Exp +/- on Front knob Shoot Menu1>Drive Mode>Single CM>TabA>AF Mode>S-af+mf CM>TabA>MFassist>Peaking>On CM>TabA>HomePosition>Center Point CM>TabC>RlsPrioriy>On CM>TabC>Image Stabile Still>S-I.S. Auto CM>TabD>Peaking Color>Red CM>TabE>Metering>CtrWht Myset 3: Outdoor action. AEL/AFL, MULT-F, HDR, REC Shoot Menu1>Drive Mode>Single CM>TabA>AF Mode>C-af CM>TabA>MFassist>Peaking>On CM>TabA>HomePosition>Center Region CM>TabC>RlsPrioriy>On CM>TabC>Image Stabile Still>S-I.S. Auto CM>TabC>Image Stabilization>On CM>TabD>Peaking Color>Red CM>TabE>Metering>CtrWht Myset 4: Indoor. Magnify, Multi-F, 1shotWB, MF Shoot Menu1>Drive Mode>Single CM>TabA>AF Mode>S-af+mf CM>TabA>MFassist>Peaking>On CM>TabA>HomePosition>All Screen CM>TabC>RlsPrioriy>On CM>TabC>Image Stabile Still>S-I.S. Auto CM>TabD>Peaking Color>Red CM>TabE>Metering>dig esp

I have been shooting with Nikons and Cannon both in Full Frame and dSLR format for the past 9 years. Suffice to say, it becomes cumbersome carrying a large body camera and lens when trying to capture candid moments at events... or even Burning Man. I made the switch to Mirrorless before attending Burning Man this year. Partly because I did not want to sacrifice my "good" camera but I definitely did not want to sacrifice quality shooting. I cannot express how overwhelmingly impressed I am with the quality of photos I gather with the Olympus. I. Am. Sold. #1. The fact it shoots in RAW is great for post edit (watch out LR5 users. the format requires a plugin". #2. It's so unbelievably small and light! I was able to carry it on me without any issues. It's the perfect fusion of point and shoot and SLR when it comes to compactness and features. #3. I'm considering using this over dSLR for all my non-commercial/professional events. I'm shooting at the same level of quality with the Olympus. I've only tried 3 of the Olympus lenses, none of the ones I've used are equal to my 24-70 Nikkor Lens- but who cares when you are just trying to capture the moment without having to lug the big gear! #4. This price point is BETTER THAN BUYING AN ENTRY LEVEL DSLR! Why spend $500 on an "entry level" dslr when this will supercede that. I never thought I'd endorse a mirrorless as a starter camera- but you can do some great work with this Olympus. If it can survive 2 weeks in Black Rock Desert --- this is a solid quality camera.

When debating on getting a new DSLR camera, the mirrorless system was great because of the portability, exchangeable lenses, and updated technology compared with previous mirrorless systems. The Olympus looks very vintage, and has three programmable function buttons on the body which are easy to reach. It also has two dials that can be assigned functions (changing aperture, shutter speed, etc.). The touchscreen is a nice touch, although I do not find myself using it that much. I love how the LCD screen can be re-positioned for low shots. There is a wide variety of shooting modes as well. The stock 14-42mm f/5.6 lens is decent enough to get started. I will say though that the menu can be a little overwhelming if you are new to photography. If you have some experience, there are a lot of options for customization, and I highly recommend reading through the manual to see just how much you can customize the camera.

This was a gift for my daughter for traveling and in college to support her school work. Bought the Mark II over the G85 ($400 more). Saved the $400 and only gave up microphone jack and a fully articulated rear screen (may regret this one). The Mark II is 20% lighter, has better ISO & shutter speed range, and said to have slightly better image quality. I have a T4i which my daughter learned on; she's figuring out the differences (brand, mirror -vs- mirrorless, etc.) so far she's commented on loving the Mark II for the image stabilization, wireless ability, programmable buttons, size & feel, and the retro look. She hasn't put it down for two days, so I think it's a winner.

I got this camera for two major reasons: One, when I was small, we had these olympus camera but we lost it and growing up, I always wanted one. The other reason, I was looking to buy a mirrorless camera and was looking for Sony and Nikon options. I compared them and my priority was good value with the best price and Olympus was on sale and I also got a price match for this. These camera look beautiiful and they do take beautiful shots. I like the art filter features in them and the EVF is convenient (although, if you have the backlight on the EVF turned on, it flickers, which is solvavble). All in all, a good camera for the price and the lenses were on sale, so everything worked out well enough for me.

I am New to MFT (Micro 4 3rds) and so far PROS: is easy to use and carry, has a great traditional look, takes great pictures with lots of creative options in camera and some pretty decent inexpensive lenses to get you started. Note you can use any MFT lens on any MFT camera Lumix on Olympus or Olympus on Lumix etc....pretty cool. CONS: So far - battery life is shorter than what one may be use to compared to point and shoot, APS-C, or Full Frame and I its due to electronic view finder use vs optical VF. I like it so far and enjoying it.....the best camera is the one you have with you.

The Olympus - OM-D E-M10 Mark II is replacing my older DSLR cameras that I find are too bulky and heavy for comfort. This mega-feature camera does everything my original SLR and two subsequent DSLRs can do, and more. Great image stabilization! The electronic view finder is so sharp and clear that I can distinguish the effect of rotating the polarizer while setting up a shot. The centered view finder makes the camera suitable for lefties, and the rest of the world. The control knobs are well positioned and easy to adjust. I wish I had found this camera when it first came out.