Over the last month I’ve used the OM-D E-M5
to shoot a wedding, football and some cityscapes.
I mentioned the poor battery life at the
wedding in my last report. On reflection this was probably because I was
shooting candids and spent long periods peering through the viewfinder waiting
for decisive moments. Unlike optical viewfinders on DSLRs, which consume no
power, EVFs like the OM-D’s do, which is a drawback I hadn’t thought much about
before. The combination of that, the low light and the new battery conspired
against me that day but battery life is still nowhere near what I’d expect to
get with a DSLR.
Olympus
OM-D
The weeding was shot in low light
necessitating the use of ISO 3200 and 6400 most of the time. Thankfully I had
the 45mm f/1.8 and 12mm f/2 lenses which, used wide open, were fast enough to
give me hand holdable shutter speeds. Not surprisingly the images were noisy,
but this wasn’t such an issue as the bride wanted sepia-toned black and white
images, so the noise was less obtrusive.
If
you prefer, you can just use the smaller grip and leave the heavier battery
pack behind - which I’d be tempted to do if I was going on a long walk
I recently took delivery of the battery
grip (HLD-6), which has transformed the way that tie E-M5 handles. It’s a great
design, and not only because of its retro I970's looks that reflect those of
the camera. It comes in two parts: the HLD-6G "landscape grip” gives you a
handgrip at the front with a second shutter release and input dial. The HLD-6P
battery pack screws into the grip and contains a second Li-Ion battery, plus a
mirror of the plate controls for portrait shooting. As well as doubling the
battery life the HLD-6 improves the OK-D's overall handling, in my opinion,
especially if you have big hands. If you prefer, you can just use the smaller
grip and leave the heavier battery pack behind - which I’d be tempted to do if
I was going on a long walk.
It’s
a great design, and not only because of its retro I970's looks that reflect
those of the camera.
|
Specifications
§ 16MP
MOS Four Thirds format sensor
§ Weather-sealed
body
§ Twin
control dials
§ New,
'5-axis' image stabilization
§ Shoot
at up to ISO 25,600
§ Up
to 9fps shooting (4.2 fps with continuous AF)
§ 800x600
pixel (1.44M dot) LCD electronic viewfinder
§ VGA-equivalent
3" OLED touchscreen display - tilts 80° upwards and 50° downwards
§ Latest
TruePic VI processor
§ Improved
C-AF autofocus with 3D tracking
§ Flash
sync speed up to 1/250th sec
|
