Author Topic: Who will buy this just because it has an EVF? (Read 3804 times)

voyager · « **on:** November 07, 2009, 07:41:28 PM »

Is the EVF worth it?

Streetshooter · « **Reply #1 on:** November 07, 2009, 07:59:34 PM »

We doin' need no stinkin' EVF thinggys 'round here.

veryoldcat · « **Reply #2 on:** November 07, 2009, 08:19:31 PM »

Well, for those folks that really NEED/MUST have an EVF, I'm delighted Olympus is offering it, and any other tweak that keeps up interest. Anything that promotes the m43 format is inherently interesting, as it hopefully points to aggressive lens development on the part of Olympus, Panasonic and others 8~)

It means little to me, though. The part of photography I've always hated was pasting my big brown eye into a foul little vf opening. Love looking into that big lcd instead...

Cheers,
Karl

Streetshooter · « **Reply #3 on:** November 07, 2009, 09:18:17 PM »

That's right ....
We still doin' need no stinkin' EVF's round here....

cosinaphile · « **Reply #4 on:** November 07, 2009, 09:26:43 PM »

id probably love to have that stinkin 1.44 mpixel high eyepoint thingamajig but as i have 2 m4\3 bodies , one with a soso evf, the ep-2 is a black ep-1 w a evf in the kit

the question becomes , would like to buy an evf for 1100 dollars , ?prob not

laptoprob · « **Reply #5 on:** November 07, 2009, 11:51:57 PM »

Don't know about the price, but the Panny one wasn't cheap either. But I am happy having it.
If I had waited for this new model to get into m4/3 and if Oly would have improved issues like AF and optics, I would have gone for this periscope.
However, I would have mounted it only if needed. The Panny EVF almost never comes off.

Ian Tindale · « **Reply #6 on:** November 08, 2009, 05:28:22 AM »

I can't imagine the EVF will be better than the existing screen for fine-detail focusing. If it turns out to be ideal for critical focusing, I'd be very surprised. I can imagine it's okay as a viewfinder - ie, seeing what you're getting in the picture. But that's a big difference - a totally different usage - viewfinding and rangefinding, if you like.

Personally, I'd like to keep my hotshoe for flash use. Imagine using the E-P2 at night, and having to decide: do I use the EVF and attempt to focus and compose through it, or do I put a flashgun on the camera?

The lack of something to hold up to my eye isn't the drawback it first seemed on paper, but that's probably something that only applies to me and others who shoot like myself. On many of my smaller cameras, rangefinders, compacts*, etc, I tend to aim and shoot by hand, never bringing it anywhere near my face, and only knowing what's going to be in the frame by experience with that particular lens. Admittedly I'm not there yet with the E-P1 - I keep missing the subject (or more accurately, the E-P1 keeps erasing the subject and preserving only the background, because by the time it shoots the subject has moved left (or right)). Either way, I'm not looking at the screen on the back of the camera at all when I shoot candid snapshots - I'm just aiming - so an EVF will not help me here.

I'd like the crosspro effect, though.

* among which are: my superbly-lensed (35mm f2.

Olympus Âµ[mju:]-II and my not as impressive Yashica T5.

joebee · « **Reply #7 on:** November 08, 2009, 11:02:21 AM »

A built-in viewfinder would be great. This big external thing is just too exposed and makes the camera bulky.

dpexpert · « **Reply #8 on:** November 13, 2009, 05:17:30 PM »

EVFs are indeed horrible things. But... Won't it make it easier to use manual focus legacy lenses? I find my OM+adapter lenses hard to focus when I'm holding the camera at arm's length, even with the image enlarged. In fact particularly when the image is enlarged because shake is amplified. Oly should have offered an EVF option from the outset.

ratobuhler · « **Reply #9 on:** November 16, 2009, 12:22:57 PM »

Trading off the E-P1's relatively poor AF performance and the lower quality of the initially available lenses against it's very desirable "in camera image stabilization" made me favor the GF1 over the E-P1. it is because of the EVF offered with the E-P2 that I am now changing my mind in favor of the Olympus product. I intend to do a lot of manual focusing (legacy lenses). A 1.4 MP screen is great. That is substantially sharper than a HDTV screen.

Ray

cosinaphile · « **Reply #10 on:** November 29, 2009, 02:08:06 PM »

im annoyed that they rasised the hot shoe for the ep-2 and then made the evf very tall , they should have amde the damn thing smaller and lower, the hingy thing in plastic adds excessive millimeters , a metal bodied unit and hinge im sure could have been 20% smaller

no 1, its too big , and it really unfair that olympus didnt include a data port below the hotshoe on the ep-1 even if they had no product ready, anticipating a future product they knew they would develop
they could have sold 100s of thousands of evfs to ep-1 fans worldwide at 300 usd a pop turning a tidy profit [1\3 the price of a whole camera ! ] instead of making olympus loyalists fell like the latest consumer sucker

a slap in the face of early adopters

voyager · « **Reply #11 on:** November 29, 2009, 02:14:20 PM »

It doesn't look that much bigger to me.

cosinaphile · « **Reply #12 on:** November 29, 2009, 05:06:13 PM »

as far as the camera is concerned it isnt , though the top plate is less elegant with the hot shoe above rather than embedded in the top plate like tyhe e-p1

the size of the evf is whats daunting and the raised hot shoe only make the height issue worse

brachiopod · « **Reply #13 on:** November 30, 2009, 07:19:01 PM »

I was pretty enthused about getting one, but now I'm having second thoughts. My main goal would be to use the EVF to focus manual lenses easier than on the E-P1. Sounds like it might be possible to get better focus without having to use the magnify mode due to the higher resolution. That's good. Also sounds like Olympus won't or can't or isn't interested in fixing the manual focus problem; it needs to come out of magnify mode when you half press the shutter so that you don't have to feel around for the OK button while you are using the viewfinder. That's bad. I'll have to see what the users say now about how easy it is to focus with just the EVF. And, if it is true that you can't preview your actual exposure in the EVF on the E-P2 as you can on the LCD, then it is going to be worthless regardless of how high the resolution is; I'm not going to keep switching back and forth to check my exposure. I had one on pre-order, but I've canceled it and I'm going to wait and let someone else buy the first one.

cosinaphile · « **Reply #14 on:** November 30, 2009, 10:30:38 PM »

sannin

thanks for the link , it was an interesting read

Ian Tindale · « **Reply #15 on:** December 01, 2009, 01:57:21 AM »

Typical example of sloppy amateur journalism.

brachiopod · « **Reply #16 on:** December 01, 2009, 06:46:48 AM »

Quote from: sannin on November 30, 2009, 09:25:29 PM

When using the VF-2, with the camera near your face, the angle of your thumb will be different from when it is far from your face. I.E. It is now easier/more comfortable to press "OK" with the thumb. Furthermore, with your eye on the VF-2, you have to do preferred adjustments using your thumb on the dials anyway, which is easier too, by feel now rather than sight. So in this regard, pressing "ok" is more ok now than before .

And yes, you can manual focus better without magnify mode, due to the high res, I've tried it. Of course, if the subject is very small, you'll still want to magnify it, or if you really want to be more critical.

As for exposure checking, that is a bummer, unless there is a way somehow to adjust brightness ? At any rate, only way I can think of at the moment is to compensate assuming degree of brightness is consistent.

Exposure checking is definitely important, especially with the way the E-P1 clips highlights too early.

This is still fine than my GF1, where on occasion the image taken is not the same as on the LCD, grrr. One has to press Shutter Speed/DOF Preview to see the correct exposure.

That does sound encouraging. I tried pretending, and it does look like I can hold and focus the lens with my left hand, then keep my right index finger on the shutter and the right thumb on the OK button. I'd still prefer the half press to magnify/demagnify. I'm taking that article/review with a grain of salt, maybe they had the menu choice to brighten the display turned on? I've used a camera with an EVF that does not completely reflect the brightness, the Minolta D7 series was like that. The EVF view was sort of brighter than the result, but after a while you could get used to it, the darker areas were sort of more saturated vs. darker; it is hard to explain. Maybe this is like that. There is a store about an hour away that carries Olympus, if they get one in I'll go try it out. My mom really wants my E-P1 ha.

cosinaphile · « **Reply #17 on:** December 01, 2009, 07:49:52 AM »

soppy but raised important questions about the evf, i read every comment left on the forum , or try to

swandy · « **Reply #18 on:** December 01, 2009, 12:25:06 PM »

Quote from: brachiopod on November 30, 2009, 07:19:01 PM

Also sounds like Olympus won't or can't or isn't interested in fixing the manual focus problem; it needs to come out of magnify mode when you half press the shutter so that you don't have to feel around for the OK button while you are using the viewfinder. That's bad.

Actually I think they did resolve this "problem" (really more of a major annoyance than a problem, but I agree with you). In a discussion over at DPReview, someone that had some time with the EP2 said that the magnification for MF will turn itself off about 1 second after you stop moving the MF ring on the lens. (I would assume that this only occurs using a m4/3 or regular 4/3 lens, not with older MF legacy lenses - but it is still an improvement.)
Steve

brachiopod · « **Reply #19 on:** December 01, 2009, 02:45:37 PM »

Quote from: swandy on December 01, 2009, 12:25:06 PM

Quote from: brachiopod on November 30, 2009, 07:19:01 PM
Also sounds like Olympus won't or can't or isn't interested in fixing the manual focus problem; it needs to come out of magnify mode when you half press the shutter so that you don't have to feel around for the OK button while you are using the viewfinder. That's bad.

Actually I think they did resolve this "problem" (really more of a major annoyance than a problem, but I agree with you). In a discussion over at DPReview, someone that had some time with the EP2 said that the magnification for MF will turn itself off about 1 second after you stop moving the MF ring on the lens. (I would assume that this only occurs using a m4/3 or regular 4/3 lens, not with older MF legacy lenses - but it is still an improvement.)
Steve

The problem isn't when you are using a smart lens in manual focus mode, it is when you are using a fully manual lens in "green box" mode (i.e. any non 4/3 or MFT lens). With a smart lens, and with MF assist turned on, the camera (even the E-P1) will leave the magnify mode after a few seconds after you stop moving the focus ring, or when you half press the shutter. That is as is should be. We just want the half press to leave magnify feature when you are using a fully manual lens too. When using a fully manual lens, since the camera cannot sense you focusing, you have to be in "green box" mode and have to press the "OK" button to get into magnify mode. Then, unlike the focus assist mode with a smart lens, you can't half press to leave the focus mode and compose, you have to press "OK" again. A small thing I know, but it would really help if this mode worked just like the focus assist mode with a smart lens as far as the half press goes. I'm not sure that anyone at Olympus understands what the problem is, but I understand that Panasonic gets it and the GF1 allows half press to leave the assist mode.

cosinaphile · « **Reply #20 on:** December 01, 2009, 09:09:31 PM »

yes the gf-1 has a much more elegant and logical solution to the focusing of older legacy lenses

firstly you dont need hunt for the green box mode with the gf-1 secondly you exit magnify mode to compose with a 1\2 press of the shutter, the ep-1 is clumsy by comparison in this regard , the
ep-1s in body stab. for any lens IS its saving grace[ pun intended]

mijonju · « **Reply #21 on:** December 04, 2009, 12:01:42 PM »

Quote from: Ian Tindale on November 08, 2009, 05:28:22 AM

I can't imagine the EVF will be better than the existing screen for fine-detail focusing. If it turns out to be ideal for critical focusing, I'd be very surprised. I can imagine it's okay as a viewfinder - ie, seeing what you're getting in the picture. But that's a big difference - a totally different usage - viewfinding and rangefinding, if you like.

Personally, I'd like to keep my hotshoe for flash use. Imagine using the E-P2 at night, and having to decide: do I use the EVF and attempt to focus and compose through it, or do I put a flashgun on the camera?

The lack of something to hold up to my eye isn't the drawback it first seemed on paper, but that's probably something that only applies to me and others who shoot like myself. On many of my smaller cameras, rangefinders, compacts*, etc, I tend to aim and shoot by hand, never bringing it anywhere near my face, and only knowing what's going to be in the frame by experience with that particular lens. Admittedly I'm not there yet with the E-P1 - I keep missing the subject (or more accurately, the E-P1 keeps erasing the subject and preserving only the background, because by the time it shoots the subject has moved left (or right)). Either way, I'm not looking at the screen on the back of the camera at all when I shoot candid snapshots - I'm just aiming - so an EVF will not help me here.

I'd like the crosspro effect, though.

* among which are: my superbly-lensed (35mm f2. Olympus Âµ[mju:]-II and my not as impressive Yashica T5.

I JUST TESTED THE EVF IT IS BEAUTIFUL!

shep · « **Reply #22 on:** January 13, 2010, 08:47:56 AM »

EVF's are the wave of the future. The one on the E-P2 is one of the best in the world at the moment, and I find it is very good. And for many of us eye-level viewing beats the wobble needed to view an LCD at arm's length--especially anyone over 40.

For quick/casual photos, an LCD is fine. When precise composition is needed for a serious picture, a viewfinder allows a complete and detailed examination, providing a far more detailed view than one can get from viewing a large postage stamp at one to two feet. Already, the EVF in the E-P2 provides a larger image than most Olympus DSLR's--although still not as large as in an OM, one of the best-ever OVF's.

There is no doubt that EVF's will continue to improve. Pretty soon they will spell the end of the mirror in entry-level and mid-level interchangeable lens cameras (formerly called SLR's). Some pros will want ultra-high resolution in full-frame sensor cameras, which will probably retain a mirror. Otherwise the EVF will take over!

cosinaphile · « **Reply #23 on:** January 13, 2010, 09:23:02 AM »

i had a few minutes with the ep2 evf at b&h photo and its astoundingly good, high eyepoint relief ,and superb detail one could only dream of for an 3 inch lcd , its true what the above poster said , its probably among the best out there right now

BBW · « **Reply #24 on:** January 14, 2010, 10:06:19 AM »

Great thread, timely post cosinaphile and very helpful for me. Many thanks to all who've added their first hand reports using this EVF and to those who share my concerns and issues about not so great eyesight and old OM lenses.

I should be placing my order soon and look forward to using the camera with and without its electronic eyepiece.

Author Topic: Who will buy this just because it has an EVF? (Read 3804 times)

Ian Tindale

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