Thread: High ISO test by Steve Huff: OMD v. XP1 v. NEX7

Steve just published some test photos. Interesting results. Having owned both the NEX7 and XP1, I'm definitely looking forward to giving the OMD a run. Other than the X100, the OMD seems to me (big emphasis on the word "seems") to be the best combination of size, image quality and usability, but with the flexibility of interchangeable lenses.

Crazy Comparison High ISO and Exposure! Olympus OM-D E-M5 vs Fuji X-Pro 1 vs Sony NEX-7 – JPEG | STEVE HUFF PHOTOS

Originally Posted by Armanius

the OMD seems to me (big emphasis on the word "seems") to be the best combination of size, image quality and usability, but with the flexibility of interchangeable lenses.

It's not the camera for me, but I agree with you that it is the safest choice for most people (though that's mostly due to the lens lineup imho). The good thing is there's now several viable high end compact systems, and I think more to come (with Panasonic, and maybe Canon and Nikon later). Photokina 2012 will be exciting.

I'd have to agree: The OMD certainly ticks a long list of boxes for many people.

I'll certainly have a look at it, because I want to stay at least partly in M43. It likely won't be my main camera though, which right now is down to Nex 7 or the Fuji.

As an aside, I'm not too enamoured with Huff. He's always been driving at headlines for traffic, which I can live with if the content is good. But, in my view, his last few reviews have been a bit lightweight.

Pretty impressive results... E-M5 kept fairly close even when the other guys nailed focus. I did play around with the XPro1 at the camera shop yesterday and I liked it better in hand than I thought it would. It looks chunky, but feels way lighter than I thought it would (in a good way).

I am going to try to stick to my plan and wait it out for the new PENs to arrive. I am good with just the new sensor, but if they could somehow figure out how to implement a tilt screen without too much bulk, that would be a-okay with me.

In the meantime, still having fun with both my E-P3 (PL25 mostly) and using my K-01 a good deal. I know a lot of people wrote the Pentax off based on lack of viewfinder (and maybe because it is somewhat ugly), but I love using it and I think it would have nailed focus on Steve's high ISO shot. If not, it is pretty fun to flip the MF switch on the side and use focus peaking.

@Kyle

I did a double take on the K-01, because I know that the IQ on that thing should be on par with the K5, which is very close in terms of high ISO performance as the XP1 and X100. But the K-01 is just not growing on me ... Happy to see those nice photos you are getting with the K-01 though!

@Pelao

I put the OMD on the shopping basket, but was able to restrain myself for now! As for Steve, he has to drive the headlines. He makes a living out of his website. I thought the XP1 review was very good and fair. He had tons of good sample photos and wrote a fairly unbiased review. Sometimes, it's such a thankless job though. Having contributed a couple of pieces to his site, I've been flamed left and right for no good reason. Even wrote a lengthy response to a flamer, but fortunately, after calming down, I asked Steve to delete my response, and he did.

Originally Posted by Armanius

@Kyle

I did a double take on the K-01, because I know that the IQ on that thing should be on par with the K5, which is very close in terms of high ISO performance as the XP1 and X100. But the K-01 is just not growing on me ... Happy to see those nice photos you are getting with the K-01 though!

@Pelao

I put the OMD on the shopping basket, but was able to restrain myself for now! As for Steve, he has to drive the headlines. He makes a living out of his website. I thought the XP1 review was very good and fair. He had tons of good sample photos and wrote a fairly unbiased review. Sometimes, it's such a thankless job though. Having contributed a couple of pieces to his site, I've been flamed left and right for no good reason. Even wrote a lengthy response to a flamer, but fortunately, after calming down, I asked Steve to delete my response, and he did.

Yeah, I understand. I do feel though that if you compare his early reviews with more recent examples, they have become lighter and to me, less useful as a result. I know he needs to drive traffic, and it may be that he has become very busy. But in the long run, quality will serve him better.

I've made the mistake of reading some of the comments under his posts (and yours). Wow. Thankless is a severe understatement. Opinions and views I enjoy, and it's true that if you offer up an opinion online you can expect a response. But some of this stuff defies rational thought. I don't read them anymore.

Originally Posted by Pelao

Yeah, I understand. I do feel though that if you compare his early reviews with more recent examples, they have become lighter and to me, less useful as a result. I know he needs to drive traffic, and it may be that he has become very busy. But in the long run, quality will serve him better.

I've made the mistake of reading some of the comments under his posts (and yours). Wow. Thankless is a severe understatement. Opinions and views I enjoy, and it's true that if you offer up an opinion online you can expect a response. But some of this stuff defies rational thought. I don't read them anymore.

Steve has indeed gotten more gear in than he can review. I agree that quality is better than quantity. And not reading the comments sounds like a smart thing to do! :)

Back on topic, I've now convinced myself that I can hold off on getting an OMD, because I want a silver one, and I've only found a black one available ...

Back on topic, I've now convinced myself that I can hold off on getting an OMD, because I want a silver one, and I've only found a black one available ...

Ha! Good tactic for putting off the inevitable. Then when the silver one comes, and your newly acquired CFO sees it you can look sheepish, send it back and get a black one, 'cause no one will notice a new black camera...

I'm looking forward to handling an OMD. Going to have my first XP1 feel this weekend. Not taking any plastic.

Originally Posted by Armanius

@Kyle

I did a double take on the K-01, because I know that the IQ on that thing should be on par with the K5, which is very close in terms of high ISO performance as the XP1 and X100. But the K-01 is just not growing on me ... Happy to see those nice photos you are getting with the K-01 though!

I think Pentax should pay me to quit posting images - I think I am hurting the K-01's cause!

Seriously, I do wonder if I am missing something by not embracing the viewfinder. It seems like you would get accustomed to it and then it would be difficult to shoot without (would want all your cameras to have it built-in)?

Originally Posted by Armanius

Back on topic, I've now convinced myself that I can hold off on getting an OMD, because I want a silver one, and I've only found a black one available ...

I wouldn't post this statement on mu-43... predict your inbox would be filled with "where did you find the black E-M5?!?!?!"

Originally Posted by Pelao

I'm looking forward to handling an OMD. Going to have my first XP1 feel this weekend. Not taking any plastic.

A great idea not to take plastic! That is one of the issues with buying online... way too easy to pull the trigger.