Olympus PEN E-P5 review - just how mighty is the latest PEN?

Now, with all the spanners in the works for the E-P5, lets wait for the review on the E-M1.

It will be very interesting to know whether this "problem" will appear in the E-M1. Until then, everybody can hold on to their money for the time being.

It may be a good thing until things settle down. With the US budget shutdown still going on, the future seems bleak and may get worse.

Best to hang on to your money.

Very glad to finally see a review that mentions the sensor shake/shutter shock. Most just believe the hype that the new 5-axis IBIS is the best thing since sliced bread, but aren't looking closely at images (especially in the telephoto range). I tried two E-P5's (assuming the first one was poorly manufactured) and ultimately sent them both back because they were so horrible around shutter speeds below 1/250 or focal lengths above 200mm. I hope Olympus listens and does something to correct the issue before continuing to throw this new IBIS system in every camera from now on! For now I'm sticking with my E-PL5

Panasonic 14-42 power zoom lens had the same issue, right? Is it fixed?

hi,

its interesting to read about e shock shutter issue. Have you all checked with Olympus about it? Having double images/blurring from 1/80 to 1/200 is definitely serious enough for any user to seek compensation or demand rectification.

I've emailed Olympus and Panasonic about the issue, hope we will have clearer answers as so far the whole issue seems very murky with differing views.

After reading about the so-called shutter-shock problem here on DPR, I took a bunch of pictures with my E-P5 with shutter speeds between 1/100 - 1/160 and examined them closely - just to be sure, as I've had the camera for about a month now and I've never encountered the double-image problem. And the result is ... nothing, nada, not a single one of them had any double-image problems. Perfect focus and gorgeous colors in all of them. I am extremely happy with my E-P5. Though I purchased my E-P5 from Hong Kong. One possible explanation might be that DPR has encountered a bad batch - but this is only a guess.

In any case, there is an anti-shock option in E-P5 where you can dial in a 1/8 second delay (or 1/4 or 1/2 sec.), which I suspect would solve the problem.

Kudos to DPreview for dinging them on the video. The single frame rate and paltry bit-rate in a high-dollar camera with such capable hardware come down to nothing but neglect.

A better video codec would in no way sacrifice stills image quality or camera size, as cameras smaller and 1/3rd the price handily demonstrate.

i've forgotten one point. Thanks to dpreview for doing an awesome job investigating new cameras. I never read abuot EP5 problems in the press until yet!

i wasn't able to get perfectly sharp images in many situations and until now i was not deeply impressed about the image quality delivered by my EP5 and 17mm 1.8 combination. Even my Canon 40d by far does a better job. So i felt a litle bit unhappy with my new Olympus. After the shutter shock finding discovered by dpreview i'm wondering wether this could be the reason. But the shutter shock is described to be a problem with tele lenses and shutter speeds below 1/160. May be, i have to get used a bit longer with mey new camera. Meanwhile, i've stopped my plan to buy a 75mm 1.8 prime.

I don't get this...I've had my EP5 since early July here in the United Kingdom. Shot several thousand photos since then, and never seen this double image DPReview is talking about...Very odd...

Soooo, 78 for this stinkbomb, yet 79 for the unequalled RX100MII...

Yeah yeah, I know, I know. Apples, oranges, opinions and disclaimers, yada...

But Mom and Pop buy this and wonder why their precious photos of their grandchildren are spoiled. Yet their son buys the tiny Sony and the results awe everyone.

Perhaps it's time for DPR to take a long look into the mirror and ask why a more objective and less subjective scoring scale should not be introduced.

Now it DPR wasn't funded by advertising and commissions. it could be as subjective as it wants. The current model is deeply flawed, despite the best efforts of many decent, credible people to make it work.

As it stands, the credibility of test results is being questioned more often than not.

Perhaps 78 is the right score for this particular camera. But perhaps a final numerical score should be withheld, until the manufacturer addresses potential flaws.

Andy, there was no mention of shutter shock effecting image quality in DPR's reviews of the E-M5 and E-PM2 (in fact no discussion of the performance of IBIS at all in the latter). Can you comment on this now, and does DPR now have any plans to look for it?

I think a discussion of shutter shock in general is in order, clearly it's not limited to just the E-P5 based on numerous posts by others on the subject. I would recommend this be made a standard part of DPR's testing.

I just posted 29 pics regarding shutter shock here: http://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/52273869

Before one jumps into conclusion "shaken pictures" are due to "shutter shock" one needs to rule out possibility it is due to 5-axis IS system.

I have EP2 and EP3 and have had EM5. I have not conducted scientific side by side testing but my impression has always been that with EM5 I get "shaky pictures" at shutter speeds that I had no blurriness at with EP2 and EP3.

DPR, since apparently Olympus includes an 'anti-shock' feature (1/8 second delay before capture) to work around this problem, it would be useful for us normal users if you could comment on whether this works and what the downside is.
Thanks

Unless you bought this thing solely to mount a pancake lens and pocket it, it serves no purpose not done far better by the E-M5 or the M1. No EVF in a camera with its cost and sophistication is ridiculous. By that I mean buying it is ridiculous.

For those who find the E-P5 too expensive, its cost is "double" the cost of the E-PL5 because it takes double pictures...

I own the camera w/updated firmware. I am not really experiencing the problem. I wonder if it has something to do with the new "IS Auto" setting. That is a change from the E-M5.
I have read the DRP section on camera shake and I do not see what they have the mode set to????? The camera is set to "IS Auto" by default. Perhaps there is a problem with this new Mode. That could be suspect as the camera only does it in landscape mode..and it is an up-and-down vertical blur...perhaps there is glitch there that can be fixed with firmware..
...I have to say ....I am not really noticing any image problems with my camera but I am going to switch mine to Mode 1 which permanently puts all-axis IS on to be safe...
One would think that Olympus will respond to this issue. It is an occurring problem on one of there premiere cameras...so it should be address to the owners of a relatively expensive piece of hardware....Let's see what they do...
Thanks to DPR...it is really in everyone's face NOW!

Disregard the blur issue for a moment....this camera won't sell! It needs a good,A REALLY GOOD pricedrop.It's an OK stuff but not for this price.As far as the e-shutter is concerned,I think it'a a matter of time to be established ,common sense...

The main difficulty is that camera mass and/or support do NOT seem to be reliably correlated to the occurence (or magnitude) of "camera shake". Put another way, it seems as though no one can predict the magnitude of the problem on the basis of camera weight, shutter release action, maximum shutter speed, lens focal length, or any other camera/lens attribute. For every conclusion I've read, a contradictory interpretation by another tester seems equally credible (given the evidence at hand).
Anyway, I for one like a camera whose features are MODULAR. (I know I'm in the minority.) But I just don't like or trust stuff that's built-in: In my opinion, it just makes for a camera that's heavier, less versatile, less trustworthy and less long-lived.
So I'll keep using my E-P3 for now until the problem's dimensions are fully known.

I have tried to conceptualize a research model that could embrace ALL of the variables that must somehow be interacting to produce the vertical displacement that DPR has noted in images from the E-P5. I am too ignorant to even CONCEIVE of how such a model might be fully specified for test! There must be thousands of factors that are ultimtely involved! And even if they could be identified, how could they ALL be feasibly measured?
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I have just now cancelled my EP-5 order.
I believe I have read every word that's recently been written about mirrorless "camera shake" and also "shutter shock" -- two purportedly distinct phenomena -- and I still feel as if I haven't enough data. Or more precisely, I have read too many contradictory reports to know which observations should be dismissed and which are (demonstrably) relevant.
I'm no physicist, but I am a trained researcher and I've heard enough to be certain that the cause(s) of "camera shake" appear to be anything but 'prosaic.' (I should say however that I MUCH appreciate the efforts of Andy W., et al., and feel very grateful for DPR's candor -- especially given the many masters its testers are obliged to appease.)
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I have an E-PL2 and E-PL3. I always have IS switched off and have never, ever had blur at any shutter speed that was not attributable to me. In other words at very slow shutter speeds (say, < 1/100) I can expect the possibility of camera shake even if I can usually achieve sharp shots at slower speeds. I find this E-P5 phenomenon puzzling and still not fully explained.

Of course an almighty corporation like Olympus will never lower itself to talk to customers here and try to help find the source of the problem, admit mistakes and offer a solution.

Their pampered leaders prefer golden parachutes, paid reviews and lawyers stonewalling until the bitter end.

DPR: "In a way, this isn't entirely the camera's fault ..."

What an odd statement. Does this mean it's the user's fault? Or that perhaps it's an "act of God"?

DPR: "... it's not some kind of mechanical malfunction that actively causes blurring"

Continuing oddity: Does this mean DPR thinks the blurring is from "passive" causes? Or that it's working as designed and so not a malfunction?

It's certainly the camera's fault and it's certainly a design flaw. It may be either significant or insignificant depending on workarounds and type of shooting. Some additional shots showing what the visible difference is when using the rear LCD or a tripod would have been more useful than these odd statements which appear intended more to palliate brand zealots than refine the issue.

i really dont understand all the pandering over the retro design.. who cares what it looks like as long as its not offensive.

Seems very odd that 'What digital Camera' gave the E-P5 a rating of 90% and a 'Gold Award' and with absolutely no mention of blurred images at shutter speeds of 1/160. Olympus has the best image stabilisation system around - bar none. Are you sure that the sample used for the test wasn't just a faulty unit as I just cannot believe that Olympus would release a camera with such an issue.

'Camera labs' also gave the E-P5 a score rating of 86% and again with out any mention of blurred images at the fore mentioned speeds.

'Techradar.com' Gave the E-P5 a 5 out of 5 star rating and guess what? No mention again of blurred images at the stated shutter speeds?!!

About as mighty as crippled mouse..

Im looking forward towards that "we might do FF in future", dear Olympus.

Tho Im sure, it makes hipsters really happy, cause its expensive, with brand name and it looks good (which is pretty much everything positive about it). :D

Question for the reviewers:

Has your test lens or anything else in the setup changed since the review of the E-M5 ?

A comparison of the lower right of the image (the water paint tubes) shows a significant loss of sharpness on both the E-P5 and the E-M1 versus the E-M5. Same on the eyes on the portraits.

Yet, I am sure that they can not be worse than the E-M5. With the lesser AA filter on the E-M1, it they should actually be sharper.

Setup differences ? Lens problem ?

Thanks in advance for your answer

The EP5 sits in the same marketing spot as my E30 did.

"Not the best... but costs almost as much as the best"

Yes, the EP5 has a few nice features, but certainly not enough to justify selling it for exactly twice the price of an EPL5. If you can't stand the DSLR look, and just love using optional clip on EVFs, then the EPL5 is the obvious choice.

The EPL5 offers you an awful lot, for half the price of the EP5
The EM5 offers you more, at the same price.
The GX7 offers you more, at around the same price.
The GH3 and the EM1 offer you a LOT more, for just a little more money.

I suppose someone will want the EP5, and be willing to pay the high price for it. But it won't be me.

The EP5 is surely stuck between a rock and hard place... the EM1 body is about the same price as the EP5/VF4/17 bundle and the EM5 is dropping in price.

There's things to like such as 8000th sec, 'low' ISO and VF4 but so many missed opportunities... limiting WiFi to only iAuto mode was surely a marketing decision just so they could give those privileges to the EM1, same as limiting timelapse to 99 frames. If the EP5 was a cheaper camera I could accept these compromises but it's supposed to be a premium camera.

On top of these they've removed the option to use the larger grip, a must have for my EP3 as far as I'm concerned. Surely they could have placed the WiFi antenna behind the plastic AV door??

I still don't get this thing about blurred images. Why the E-P5 and not all the other cameras out there (especially mirrorless or compact cameras)?

If it was shutter shock, it could be said that the E-P5 has one of the most refined shutters in all the mirrorless cameras, so if should suffer less than others from this. If it's not shutter shock, as it seems from the testing they did, and just because of pressing the shutter... why don't cameras like the Fuji X-M1 or the Panasonic GF1/GF2/...GF5/GX1, Sony NEX5, etc... suffer it even more (since they don't have IS as the E-P5 has, which reduces this shake according to the tests)?

More testing seems to be needed to determine why this is occurring (especially comparing with other mirrorless cameras).