E-PL6 (or E-PL5) as a pocket camera?

TimoK wrote:

After your suggestions I read a few more reviews, especially of the GM1 vs. RX100 and tested both at a local store. I decided in favor of the GM1 and bought it at the store for 299 eur with the kit lens, which I think was a great bargain.

That was a really fantastic value for money indeed! Welcome to the GM1 club.

I also picked up the Panny 20 mm f/1.7 II for another 299 eur. Of course on the GM1 the non-stabilized 1.7 doesn't offer much more low light capability than the kit zoom but it still seemed like a good addition and will of course be a much more versatile tool on the E-M1.

The 20/1.7 is really compact yet sharp and offers that shallow DOF that works great with people. And even though the IS on the kit lens will offset the slower aperture for low light work when shooting static landscapes, keeping the shutter speed up is more important when photographing people indoors, so the 20/1.7 is really useful too.

Having now set up the GM1 for my use (i.e. switched the mode dial to 'A' and figured out how to adjust exposure compensation, ISO and focus behavior) I find no other fault with the ergonomy besides the obvious: the lack of a view finder and a tilting screen.

So, I am sure you noticed the double-duty of the trashcan button, to also bring up the quick menu. Makes it very easy to quickly adjust settings with the touch screen. I normally shooting RAW + reduced JPEG (for online sharing, since there's no in-camera RAW development), but have C1 set for HDR JPEG shooting.

The lack of a tilt screen when doing shooting on the ground etc can be compensated for by using WiFi and a smartphone in such situations, so unless you are shooting such things for every shot, it's not really a problem, IMHO. Note that long-pressing the Wifi button (even if assigning it to a soft screen touch button) will kickstart the last connection type without any further prompts or choices required, making it very quick and easy to use.

Both the lenses seem quite sharp at least in the center. More tests of image quality will have to wait until I get some decent light again.

I find no problem shooting wide open with both the 12-32 and the 20/1.7. The 14-140 II I try to stop down a little, by comparison. They are very fine lenses.

Really? Is that in the manual? The tip about the Wi-Fi button I mean... I haven't gone thru the entire GM1 manual yet, gonna have to try that as soon as I get home tho...