(noise at ISO 200 for the sky, NR switched off, crop at pixel level)
I got a very good deal on a used EP-1. After having tested it for 2 days, I think I will send it back. Here's why. This is not a complete review and mainly lists what are negative points for me. Other people will be of a different opinion, depending on their requirements.
The first drawback of the EP-1 is that it is not very convenient to carry around. Even if the camera is small, the shape is as inconvenient as a SLR with the lens sticking out (I knew that, of course, but it took a try in my day bag to realize what it meant). The case is very easily scratched. There is a big screen on the back which is not protected at all. The screen has an anti-glare coating, just like the A900. I know from experience that the A900 coating scratches relatively easily, I have not tried extensively to scratch the Olympus since I want to send it back, but at that point I realized how useful the plastic covers which can be bought to protect the screen of the Sony DSLRs are. So to be put in my day bag without being scratched, the EP-1 would need a special pouch, and there goes the size advantage. Besides, a custom pouch will probably never exist for the combination EP-1 + 20mmf/1.7.
The second reason is that IQ is not much better than the Ixus. The kit lens is mediocre and does not improve when stopped down (but the quality is the same in the middle and in the corners of the picture). In practice, stabilization is not as efficient as on my Sony (maybe because the lack of viewfinder means that you need to hold the camera at arm's length). The sensor is surprisingly noisy at Iso 200, especially in the shadows. Olympus uses noise reduction (you can turn it off) which makes a mush of fine details (although, in fairness, it works much better than Sony's noise reduction at high isos).
(crop at the pixel level, full auto mode)
I didn't expect the EP-1 to match my A900, but I did expect to be much better my Canon Ixus shirt-pocket-sized P&S. The short answer is that in daylight, it isn't (it does have higher dynamic range, though). After sunset, it should, but the EP-1 tends to use much higher Iso and NR renders the picture worse than the Canon. I know one can choose a lower iso, but the lens is slower than the tiny Canon lens and stab not as efficient, so the advantage is not as large as it should be. IQ should improve with the Panasonic 20mm f/1.7, but the combination starts to be really a lot of money for a camera that still can't be put in my day bag (because it needs extra protection), is noisy at Iso200, would not have a zoom or a flash (as the tiny Canon has) and with still mediocre IQ because of the noise reduction. But please note that when I say it does not give better pictures than the Canon P&S, that is more a tribute to the quality of that P&S than a criticism of the EP-1, the next post will show comparison pictures.
(crop at the pixel level, full auto mode, which camera is which?)
The error is actually mine: I am trying to make the EP-1 do something which it has never been designed for. The camera certainly works perfectly for the casual photographer who wants to carry a camera and a few lenses in a photo bag on holiday and wants the bag to be small and light. I am pretty convinced that this photographer will be able to make decent prints up to A3 or even A2 size back home. The results aren't massively different to what you get from something like the A200, for example.
(The camera has also be designed to be a fashion statement and apparently enough people care about that for the EP-1 to sell like hot cakes. That also works, no other camera is cooler at present.)
But the camera will just fail if one tries to use it as an addition to a SLR system to be -how can I say?- something more akin to a rangefinder or something less invasive than a DSLR for street or casual evening pictures and something replacing a tiny camera like the Ixus. I thought that by replacing the lens with a 20mm f/1.7 prime, and using a optical viewfinder (Voigtländer has a 40mm viewfinder), I would have a second camera to my taste. Having tried the camera for a day, I realize how foolish that idea was: the camera is not convenient to use in manual focus (it can, but it is not very practical), AF is relatively slow and you still need to use the screen for everything. I wonder how people actually use the "pancake" kit (it comes with an optical finder). There are plenty of photographer toying with similar ideas, discussing how to adapt MF lenses for example. They are in for disappointment, this camera will not do that. Or not in a practical way.
The camera is indeed cute. I wish I could like it.
