OMD-EM5 is a crazy camera!

I have owned this camera since June 7. Frustration after frustration have followed until I had to reset the camera settings to default and start again. I read suggestions from various experts to little or no avail. Some of the settings don't work. Like the magnified view. Now the camera takes photos by itself without touching the shutter or just pressing it halfway!  Lately the camera won't keep taking photos and will freeze and a blue light comes on. I have to turn it off then on before it will focus and let me take a photo. Absolutely crazy camera and totally user unfriendly.  To add insult to injury I bought an NEX7 on the same day and that one is also bizarre but tameable. Not the OMD! A lunatic of a camera for sure. Olympus should copy how Canon set up their cameras.

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Everyone is an expert on dpreview!

Time to return or repair, this isn't normal.

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Bird Nerd

. . . . after reading OvinceZ's post, I have concluded that it's NOT his camera that needs repair !!

Hava good . . .

Paul
Vancouver, WA
http://www.pbase.com/spdavis/a_few_nifty_galleries

Sounds like you might be right.  The OM-D is complicated with many options that take time to figure out.  It's "crazy" as in very cool.

I usually shoot in A mode. The OMD changes the aperture which is annoying. It's as if the camera has a mind of its own. I fully accept that I must be doing something wrong but my experience with this camera is one of continual frustration and disappointment. It doesn't do what I want it to do. And it changes settings at will for no reason that I can figure out.

The flash is inadequate, too. Not enough power for birthday party group photos.

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Everyone is an expert on dpreview!

Thanks for the personal attack. My Olympus is still nuts independent of me because others experience the same bizarre behaviour from the camera.

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Everyone is an expert on dpreview!

You talk as if your experience with the E-M5 is identical to everyone else's experience, and there's probably not another example of the E-M5 in the world that is as screwed up as yours. Return that defective hunk of junk for a new one and stop blaming the E-M5 as if everyone else must be putting up with the same irrational behavior.

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Frank Paris

References please.

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Frank Paris

Not a personal attack at all.  Sorry you took it that way.    What I mean is the OM-D is a crazy complicated camera with tons of options.  I'm still pouring through the new OM-D book.  Much better then all trial and error learning.  If you think yours is really  broken just  exchange it.

Get it fixed.

You think a camera that changes settings by itself and freezes sporadically is by design???

I'd also check that the touch screen is turned off, and that it is not a potential source of confusion (eg: RTFM).

I rented one for a weekend project and, aside from some perfectly normal issues figuring out a couple of the settings, it behaved exactly as I'd expect it too -- honestly, it was pretty easy to use.

Yours is probably screwy...

Well, my experience on this forum is that it is easy to get things wrong and therefore users should enquire about problems in the hope that others who had similar problems can offer a solution. Since no solutions have been offered perhaps it is time to seek help from Olympus.

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Everyone is an expert on dpreview!

Maybe the thread title could have been My OM-D must be broken, because the first thought reading it,  was not that you have a broken camera. but that you may have goofed up your settings.  I say that from my own experience of goofing up my own settings and being frustrated.

Yes call Olympus they'll probably replace it.

Funniest criticism of the OM-D I've read in a long time. What were you expecting from that little flash?

Because of erratic behaviour of the camera I keep checking the settings as I shoot. However, when the camera keeps refusing to take a photo that is beyond reasonable. Maybe it relates to one of the lenses I use? Haven't tested this idea yet. This occurs with the 12-60.

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Everyone is an expert on dpreview!

All my Canon powershots handled groups easily and they had smaller flashes. My NEX7 will take a group flash photo no worries at all.

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Everyone is an expert on dpreview!

Just call Olympus and get it over with.  It's not you and it's not the settings.

I use my everyday and have shot about 5000 shots with it and not experienced anything that you describe.

I'm sorry this has happened but call a lemon a lemon.

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Dan

What lens and what ISO?

Well, I'm not sure what you're on about camera choosing apertures on it's own in A mode, but considering that you have not figured out that you can increase the power of the flash makes me think there is a lot of user error/lack of knowledge at play here.

I love this.  As far as Canon set up, the Panasonic GH-3 has that same dial on the rear of the body.

This is why I picked Panasonic three years ago or so. This is why I do not mix & match body and lens. Maybe Panasonic is a better option given a choice.

No complaints about anything Panasonic and this is another user not happy with Olympus. It seems more Olympus complaints even small ones I see.

And yes, everyone is an expert, if your not an Olympus user your on the outside for what ever reason.

If the forum was split Panasonic users would not see this thread about the Olympus issue.