tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2623751121983216722.post8937350232967675629..comments2024-03-26T23:10:21.741-04:00Comments on The Wandering Lensman: Comments and Comparisons About the Olympus E-M1 in Comparison to the FujiFilm X-T1The Wandering Lensmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04799177835610721560noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2623751121983216722.post-20342094786569276672014-04-08T15:02:47.757-04:002014-04-08T15:02:47.757-04:00The Fuji X-T1 design is SO appealing, BUT, in actu...The Fuji X-T1 design is SO appealing, BUT, in actual use, it just doesn't truly flow as well as say the E-M1 or other more modern DSLR styled controls. I think I read somewhere from someone that there is a reason why cameras have done away with all the manual dials in favor of DSLR style controls... Camera layout and design has evolved to this point where it's better to have multi buttons and multi functioning dials that can perform multiple tasks.. it works well and is a smarter design and streamlines the photographic process.<br /><br />That's just it about Fuji. As much as I love their IQ, most, if not all, of their X cameras seem to be missing something in one way or another. Not 1 X camera has everything I wanted in it. In the beginning it was mostly around AF & MF performance. It's been much improved since then, but I can't honestly say it's the world's fastest APS-C AF which I believe was part of the marketing hype.. just no way, the X-T1 may be the best of the X cameras to date, but not the world's fastest AF by a long shot. The new ISO dial, very cool, but a few things not very well thought out, I think. I'm fine with the locking button on the ISO, but why lock all positions? Why not just the "A" position like on the Shutter dial, and let all other settings outside of "A" be set freely sans-lock button pressing? And, regarding the ISO dial again, it seems they didn't design it with all the possible ISO settings in mind... ran out of space or just forgot?.. To specify, why not have H1, H2 & H3?.. I think Fuji design team working on it may not have talked to each other well.. oh, we have (for example) 9 ISO markings on the ISO dial.. but, oh?! we have 10 ISO settings! There shouldn't have been an option to choose which 2 of the 3 highest ISO settings should be set, should have had them all available. True, most people will probably never go up to those ridiculously high ISO settings anyways, but still, it was a useless option to occupy the user's mind with and just had every single ISO setting available on the ISO dial and that will require less pondering.. and say you decide you really wanted that 1 setting you decided not to assign to H1 or H2, then you have to go back into menu and reassign so you have access.. and menu diving is one of those things the Fuji X-T1 was suppose to be designed so well you didn't have to menu dive as much.<br /><br />Does it make sense the rear LCD cannot auto-rotate to match camera orientation like the EVF can?<br /><br />And being one of the weakest attributes to the X-T1, why have a dedicate movie rec button that cannot be reassigned to a more useful custom button?.. probably can change in future firmware update?<br /><br />I do like the less protrusive grip on the X-T1, but as much as I feel the grip on the E-M1 is the one slightly out of place design element that doesn't 100% merge with the more traditional retro-looking design of the camera, it does feel great and because that part is all metal with the rest of the body, the camera feels much more substantial and not so hollow as the X-T1 (and all other X cameras) can feel... the E-M1 is a DSLR element and it works very well in the hands... and after all, the E-M1 is suppose to be a professional mirrorless camera as a DSLR equal or replacement in most regards.<br /><br />Anyways, the E-M1 is the most solid feeling camera I've held in a long time. There's a lot of metal all around and there's no play. Coupled with some of the more substantially built lenses such as the 75mm, any one of the MFT Voigtlander Noktons, the new Pany-Leica 42.5 f1.2, etc.. the E-M1 just feels very confident and classy in the hands.. I've never held a Leica, but I imagine with the right setup, it could feel pretty darn close to one as far as build quality is concerned.<br /><br />Looking forward to what the upcoming X-Pro 2 might be like, hopefully it will be monumental.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11869762310113133313noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2623751121983216722.post-68394540933618005922014-04-08T12:34:56.793-04:002014-04-08T12:34:56.793-04:00I wish the xt1 was the em1 as far as the design go...I wish the xt1 was the em1 as far as the design goes, the em1 feels so much better in the hands.Nice write up!david6785https://www.blogger.com/profile/09977860501205056473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2623751121983216722.post-17720898701398770062014-04-07T22:02:22.100-04:002014-04-07T22:02:22.100-04:00You make several valid points, a couple of which I...You make several valid points, a couple of which I had forgotten. Thank you for commenting. As much as I think the X-T1 is a wonderful "photographer's" camera, I think the Olympus E-M1 is a better overall camera. I'll be writing more about that on Wednesday.The Wandering Lensmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04799177835610721560noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2623751121983216722.post-50896594811729176932014-04-07T17:27:55.000-04:002014-04-07T17:27:55.000-04:00Dennis,
I enjoyed your personal review and opinio...Dennis,<br /><br />I enjoyed your personal review and opinions about both cameras, the X-T1 & E-M1. I have the E-M1 and have been debating whether it would be worth changing over to the X-T1 for a long time (as I'm sure a lot of people interested in both camera systems have been trying to figure out which to go with if they had to choose just 1 camera & system of the two).<br /><br />I agree with most everything you compared except "Shutter Speeds/Flash Sync/ISO: Tie". I think the E-M1 has clear and better advantage here. Higher shutter speeds as well as longer exposure time while the E-M1 does not have a limit to producing RAW files, either.<br /><br />I would add to this Shutter Speeds/Flash Sync/ISO category by saying the E-M1 also has advantage here because it has the capability of high speed shutter sync with flash which I believe the X-T1 is incapable of. I understand that a lot of cameras don't go much higher than 1/250 in flash sync speed, but at least a good number also have the ability to exceed this limit by using HSS or Fast FP sync so you can go in the 1/1000's and higher. I'm surprised so little people have knowledge about this or utilize this feature. Personally speaking, I find it extremely useful to have HSS for the outdoor portrait work I do in bright sunlight. To balance exposures between bright background and a subject that will often be darker, you really must have a very high shutter speed and utilize HSS so the image will not be overexposed. I'm talking effect bare essentials photography where you have a capable camera and a flash and that's it... no assistant(s) or time or place to setup and need to quickly adapt to the harsh sunlit environment.<br /><br />With the exception of the Fuji X100/X100S which has a shutter leaf system, unless i'm missing something, it's sad Fuji has not bothered to not only improve their shutter performance since X camera day 1.. for their high(set) end cameras, they don't even have HSS capability is very strange and almost inexcusable. At best I'm hoping to experiment with a strong high quality variable ND filter to see if I can tone down the scene enough so that the low 1/180 flash sync speed can be used in the manner in which I would need to use it.<br /><br />Yes, the 3 frames bracketing mode is pretty lame on the X-T1, and even more disappointing (or more pointless) is it is only limited to +or-1EV only?!.<br /><br />And though I don't use Advanced Filters (or Art Filters in Oly terms) that much, they can be fun to use, but unfortunately the X-T1 is also incapable of simultaneously producing both a jpeg AND RAW at the same time when using the Advance Filter.. so, you're basically stuck with the jpeg with advance filter applied and no good original unaltered RAW file to work from if you wanted to redo the exact same image in another method that might be better than what the X-T1's advance filter can produce.<br /><br />Granted, the Olympus's menu system can seem a bit daunting and confusing until you've taken the time to familiarize with them better, isn't that the same with almost all new or different camera systems?.. but, nearly all commonly used (and uncommonly used) settings and controls are quickly accessible through the outside.. either by a quick dial turn or just a step away by a button press, switch or touch screen selection.<br /><br />Anyways, great review and I appreciate your POV's on both cameras.. I agree that both are essentially equal and it comes down to personal needs and likes that make one camera better suited for one person or another.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11869762310113133313noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2623751121983216722.post-41433845576633782282014-04-06T13:36:01.335-04:002014-04-06T13:36:01.335-04:00Add video as a category. Add video as a category. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2623751121983216722.post-42471100198291234132014-04-06T08:31:28.635-04:002014-04-06T08:31:28.635-04:00You make an interesting assertion. Unfortunately,...You make an interesting assertion. Unfortunately, it is very general and non-specific. Equal to what, for example? Can you elucidate on your comment by providing additional information on any direct testing and observations you have made. That would benefit all of us and allow us to have more and better information for future purchases. Thank you for your comment.The Wandering Lensmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04799177835610721560noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2623751121983216722.post-71022989166895061682014-04-06T07:39:48.621-04:002014-04-06T07:39:48.621-04:00Staggering that people believe the quarter sized s...Staggering that people believe the quarter sized sensor can produce equal images. Maybe equally acceptable for certain use cases, but not outrightly equal in colour depth and sharpness.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2623751121983216722.post-53047142917163087652014-04-03T17:51:43.532-04:002014-04-03T17:51:43.532-04:00Wow, very good comparison! I agree with almost all...Wow, very good comparison! I agree with almost all your points exactly! I have tried both cameras for a few days each through camera rental and am deciding in favor of Olympus, but I agree that both cameras are excellent and very close. Its just that the Olympus (or m 4/3 in general) do focus significantly quicker in S-AF and that is now my priority having a young kid who moves quite a bit.<br /><br />I also think that most people still obsess about image quality, when the actual difference is only visible at 100% magnification and then only marginally. Yes, the Fuji sensor is a little bit better than the Olympus m4/3, but the difference really is smaller than I had expected!<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2623751121983216722.post-74317086443880499382014-04-02T08:24:43.026-04:002014-04-02T08:24:43.026-04:00I found the X-T1 easier to manually focus than the...I found the X-T1 easier to manually focus than the E-M1, I think, due to less inherent depth of field. When focusing the E-M1 with focus peaking, a lot of the field is in focus and it is difficult for me to distinguish when my main point of focus in the sharpest. With the X-T1, and less depth of field, it is a bit easier to tell when your main subject is in the sharpest point of focus. Make sense? <br /><br />In both cameras the focusing aids work really well. I like how the E-M1 can be set for S-AF-M and C-AF-M, which means it focuses automatically until you touch the focus ring, then reverts to manual focus and at the same time the image magnifies greatly so you can really get exact focus on your subject.The Wandering Lensmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04799177835610721560noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2623751121983216722.post-37428666747587142962014-04-02T00:09:10.522-04:002014-04-02T00:09:10.522-04:00Excellent comparison! Any thoughts on using them ...Excellent comparison! Any thoughts on using them for manual focus / adapted lenses? (Such as how well the various focusing aides work, any limitations with auto ISO, etc). I have more than a few Nikon AI/AIS lenses that I'd be interested in using in addition to native mount lenses.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2623751121983216722.post-81658930183908256902014-03-31T19:41:35.938-04:002014-03-31T19:41:35.938-04:00Nicely done!Nicely done!Peter F.https://www.blogger.com/profile/15358240600634062387noreply@blogger.com