E-PM2 and LCD viewfinders

I know the E-PM2 has a touchscreen, but has anyone tried an LCD viewfinder with it ?

I'm curious about the combination and I'm wondering if the physical controls are enough to operate properly with an LCD viewfinder in place.

Thanks in advance for info.

I'll chime in with my experiences with E-Pn's and E-PLn's, that had more controls than the E-PM1, from an EVF is the only way to fly perspective. . .

The dials on the Pens were so sensitive and unresponsive at the same time that I ended up simply using them as having push-button control only. And once I was used to it it became 2nd nature. (Press North button on the rear dial to get exposure control activated, then use east/west buttons for shutter adjustment, north/south buttons for aperture adjustment).

I ended up getting rid of all things Pen once there were two proper dials introduced on the OM-D series, just because working with better controls more often made casual use of the Pens more frustrating muscle memory wise. YMMV ( Your tolerance for that sort of momentary frustration may be greater than mine [g].)

darklamp wrote:

I know the E-PM2 has a touchscreen, but has anyone tried an LCD viewfinder with it ?

I'm curious about the combination and I'm wondering if the physical controls are enough to operate properly with an LCD viewfinder in place.

Thanks in advance for info.

I have the E-PM2 + VF-2 combo. I generally shoot in A mode; one has to switch the dial from setting aperture to exposure compensation; but you get accustomed to it. The dial on my E-PM2 works very well and you can change these most of basic shooting parameters very quickly. So not a problem at all. I generally use the super control panel (SPC) for setting other shooting parameters like ISO, WB, IS (internal stabilisation), picture mode etc. I like the SCP; it comes up instantly and with the touch screen it gives you almost instant access to these features. I would say overall it is a usable camera, BUT if you are accustomed to specific physical controls for every function and like to change shooting modes frequently, I would look elsewhere.

The VF-2 provides a clear sharp image and gives you exactly the same information you would have on the LCD screen, so it is too is very usable. However when attached the EVF appears somewhat awkward on the camera and changes the overall portably of the kit. I am glad that I have it because there are times--bright sunlight obviously--when you really need it. However, most of the time I just bring it with me, often in my shirt pocket, in case I need it or want it; I am happy enough to use the LCD screen otherwise. I would put it this way. If you are looking to use a viewfinder extensively than I think you should be looking at another camera, perhaps an E-M10. It just makes more sense o have a built in finder in that case.

Best of luck.

The only things I really use my touchscreen for on my E-PM2 are occasional touch focus/touch shutter, and changing shooting modes, and swiping through captured photographs. During shooting, the camera is fully usable with buttons alone. If you use the SCP, the touch screen is only half-functional anyway-- you can tap the screen to highlight a setting but you need to press a button anyway to actually do anything with the setting. Using the 4-way controller/jog wheel works better for me in most cases.

I tried the VF-2 on my E-PM2 before I sold the VF-2, but I found that the control layout was a little too cramped on that camera to be used with a viewfinder in the same axis as the lens (I won't say whether rangefinder or SLR style is fundamentally better, but I will say that a corner viewfinder is better on rangefinder style cameras and a lens-centered viewfinder is better on SLR style). But it was only a 30 second trial as I was already selling the viewfinder, I'm sure one could adapt to the cramped feeling.