Panasonic GF1 & Olympus E-P1 Review
October 15th, 2009 | 
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Panasonic-Lumix-GF1-vs-Olympus-EP-1
If you haven't heard about these cameras, the GF1 and E-p1 are a new breed of digital cameras call Micro Four Third aka hybrid cameras.
It has the flexibility, sensitivity and function of a SLR camera but at a much more pocket able size. This new design is achieved by eliminating the Mirror that exist in every SLR. There are of course some trade off in this new design, but luckily for me, I've never used a SLR so I wont really miss them.
I order the Olympus E-P1 camera from Amazon to test it out and exchanged it for the Panasonic GF1 when that came out.
- Olympus E-p1 test shot - fountain
I had no prior experiences with other SLR until now. The current point and shoot cameras that I am using are Fuji F30 and Panasonic tz5 before this. Fuji F30 is known for it's ability to capture better low light photo than most other p&s camera and it has some manual function so I am somewhat prepared for the more advanced function of my new camera.
- Olympus E-p1 test shot - food
Size - At first glance, the E-P1 was a lot bigger than expected, the two companies tries to advertise it highly portable like a typical P&S camera but it is almost twice as big as my F30 without the lens. However, unlike the reviews I have read so far, it is pocket able even with the lens, you just wont feel very comfortable walking around with them. I stuffed the E-P1 with the 14-42mm lens kit into my dress pants with no problem and it was awkward trying to walk with something that big in your pocket. The Panasonic zoom kit was even bigger so I didn't bother trying but both comes with a tiny pancake lens kit, and with the pancake lens kit, I am sure most people will not have problem stuffing them in their pocket.
downtown disney
Picture Quality - I am obviously judging the photos from eyes without any scientific process. My first experience with the quality was that the picture was not too far off from what I can get with my point and shoot under the right lightning condition, but it was most likely due to my inexperience with a full manual camera. I took the camera out at night to downtown disney and took a bunch of photos to test out the low light quality and I can definitely see the quality difference between this and my P&S camera.
- Olympus E-p1 test shot - random cat
I had better luck getting a decent quality of my Panasonic GF1 once I traded in the Olympus E-P1 and I think it is most likely due to the fact that I have gotten used to using the manual function while I was testing the E-P1 and also they both use the same sensor so the quality should not be too far off. Overall I am very pleased with the quality that it produces, the large sensor allows me to throw off the background and take better low light photo while being small enough to carry around if I go on a vacation.
- Panasonic test - downtown disney
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Speed - The major complaint of the Olympus version from most reviews that I read was the auto focus and my feeling was the same, I was having a really difficult time capturing photos of my dog and she is old, blind and deaf, in other words, she wasn't moving very fast. Under low light, it would sometimes just give up focusing or take a long time to focus.
- Olympus E-p1 test shot - my dog
The Panasonic on the other hand, was very speedy, I was having a lot of fun taking photo of my dog and I did not feel any frustration from missing shoots. In addition, Panasonic also comes with Auto Focus assistant lamp, it helps you focus under extreme low light so that the camera wont just give up when it can not focus properly.
- Panasonic Test - my dog
Features - I am a photshop user so I like to do all my effects in Photoshop so the extra fancy filters did not impress me. The camera took awhile to process and the result was limited so I didn't bother with any of it.
- Olympus E-p1 test shot - at the park (photoshopped)
Interface - I thought the interface of the Olympus was really cluttered and a lot of control was hard to get to, I wanted to experiment with bracketing, but I had to dig deep within the menu to get to it every time, unless I'm missing something. I took the time to study the manual several time before I was able to set all the settings and find all the features that I wanted. Panasonic did a better job by placing a lot of the features on the hardware button and dials. I was able to get to everything I needed with a few quick glance of the manual.
Flash - I find the Olympus' lack of flash very inconvenient. Most serious photographer will say that an on board flash is not necessary as SLR are good for low lights anyway, while that is true, you will still find yourself in situation where the low light is too low. The Panasonic comes with a tiny flash, while not very powerful, it does the job.
- Panasonic GF1 test shots
It has been more than a week since I got my Panasonic, I do not miss the Olympus at all. I might not be giving it a fair review because after all, I got to practice with it for a month so I was more comfortable with handling another similar camera. But there are just certain features that cannot be solved just by getting used to it. Here is what I like from both camera
| Panasonic | Olympus |
| Comes with an on board Flash
Better menu system Easy access to many features Auto focus is faster AF assistant lamp |
In camera stabilizer
Smaller lens Higher sensitivity Cheaper Underexposed indication Better lens compatibility |
Have you had the chance to play with either one of them yet? If so what do you think of them?
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Since you’re asking – I am a user of the E-P1 and I’m very satisfied with it. Main reason for buying: interchangeable lenses, good low light capabilities (I love available light photography) and the new Lumix 20mm/F1.7 lens. Indeed, the camera is complicated at first and several gimmicks are hard to reach – but for me this is the perfect buy. Since I don’t like using a flash, I don’t miss it. And focus speed will be ok I guess, since I don’t do action shot. Another bonus was the price: the E-P1 was released earlier, so there were good used ones on eBay for about 25% less than the original price. Also, Olympus does a great job in JPEG processing, from what I saw the GF1s output doesn’t look as nice.
That said, I’m sure it is only a matter of taste – both cameras seem to be great and do their job well.
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It took me about a month to learn to like the E-P1. I find the menu system to be particularly obtuse and inefficient. Focus is slow and the more I use the camera the more useless I think the +/- button is, and needs to be reprogrammed to do something else.
But, the built in IS is great with manual focus M lenses which make this format shine. The results I have with the inexpensive Nokton 40mm f1.4 match what I can get with my 5D and 135mm L with 1/4 the weight. For me the clintcher was the in-body IS. Lenses matter more than the camera – for the most part – and the E-P1 can make better use of lenses than the Panasonic. With a little practice and a bit of set-up the E-P1 makes a pretty decent manual focus system.
[Reply]
[...] Panasonic GF1 and Olympus E-P1 comparison at http://sanweng.com/?p=213 [...]
Panasonic GF1 is an excellent camera for its intended use–prosumer controls on a camera that is much lighter than a DSLR but not small enough to slip in the pockets in your shirt or pants. Outstanding build quality, flexible feature set, good but not superb low light performance.
[Reply]
The quality of this ‘review’ is obvious from the start: “I had no prior experiences with other SLR until now.” These are *not* SLRs!
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