Confessions of a Micro 4/3 Photographer
August 27th, 2018
That’s my current photography kit above. I just recently “completed” it with the purchase of a wide-angle zoom. I primarily shoot with the two Panasonic GX8’s on the right and left, but still occasionally use the two older 16mp cameras in the middle, a GF7 in the front and a G5 in the back.
This entire kit cost me a total of $3,985. I noticed the other day that the total cost of this system, which covers the 35mm equivalent of 18-600mm, was slightly less than the cost of one of the new Nikon mirrorless cameras with one lens. Hmmmm.
Here’s what’s in my current kit with what I paid for each item:
Panasonic G5 with Panasonic 14-42 $300
It came with the 14-42 which I seldom use, but I didn’t deduct anything for that. This was the camera I bought when I started getting serious about Micro 4/3. That was in 2013.
Panasonic 45-200 $270
This was my first serious lens purchase, also in 2013. I wanted to do more bird and animal photos when traveling. I thought (incorrectly) that this lens would be the right choice for that.
Panasonic 100-300 $500
The next year, after realizing that the 45-200 didn’t have the reach I wanted for birds and animals, I went ahead and plunked down the big bucks (for me) and got this lens. I still use both of these telephoto zooms for different things, so I keep them both in my kit, though I usually only take one or the other when I go out to shoot. If you aren’t familiar with the Micro 4/3 format note that the lens focal lengths are exactly 1/2 of the equivalent focal lengths for 35mm full frame. So this 100-300 is equal to a 200-600 in 35mm.
Olympus 9mm f/8 fisheye body cap lens $100
Also in 2014 I was feeling the need for something a little wider, so I bought this cheap Olympus fisheye. It’s a fixed f/8 lens and is no bigger than a body cap, weighs nothing, and takes up no space in the bag. And, with software it’s a simple matter to straighten out the curved fisheye effect and make it into an ultra-wide angle lens.
Panasonic GF7 with 12-32mm lens $330
By 2016 I was pretty happy with Micro 4/3, but still using my Nikons for serious work. It was time to replace the little Canon S90 camera that I’d been carrying on my belt all the time for years. I thought this little GF7 might do the job. It didn’t. It is a little too big and the 12-32 compact lens is just not quite enough on the telephoto end for the way I shoot. But it’s a nice little camera and has the last generation of the 16mp sensor, so it stays in my bag, along with the G5, as a spare body.
Panasonic GX8 with 12-60mm $850
This is the camera that meant the end of my use of my Nikon system. This is a big deal for me. I’ve been shooting mostly with Nikons since 1968. But the GX8 is the best camera I’ve ever owned, film or digital. It’s a wonderful little camera. Handling is excellent. The controls are right where they belong. It’s weather sealed. It has great image stabilization in the body which works with the image stabilization in some of my Panasonic lenses. And the 20mp sensor is very nice, has excellent dynamic range, and handles high ISOs beautifully. I will shoot up to 1600 ISO and can’t really tell much difference in the files. It can go up to 6400 and still make very usable files that clean up just fine in DxO, my RAW processor. That 12-60 is a beautiful lens, too. It covers the focal range that I use for at least 90 percent of my photos, so I can go out with just this camera and lens and be fine for a day of shooting.
Panasonic 42.5mm f/1.7 $350
This is a sweet little lens. I got it mostly for portraits where I want to control depth of focus. It’s the equivalent of an 85mm lens on a 35mm camera. My manual focus Nikkor 85 f/1.8 was a favorite lens back in the film days. This lens gives me a very similar look, so it stays in the bag for the times I want that look. It’s small and light (a major difference from the old Nikkor which could double as a hockey puck) so it is a minor addition to the bag.
Panasonic GX8 $850
I was so happy with the GX8 that I was looking forward the release of the GX9. But, when I saw what they had done to “improve” the GX8 I was very disappointed. Many of the things I like about the GX8 were changed or even eliminated from the GX9. And the sensor is the same as the GX8 sensor. So, I watched for a sale and bought a second GX8. It wasn’t quite as good a deal as the first one I bought…same price, but no lens included…but still a pretty good price for such a fine camera. And this is the first time in my 50-year career as a photographer that I’ve had two identical cameras to work with at the same time. It’s nice to be able to have two lenses mounted and ready to use without having to switch lenses, and with all the camera controls exactly the same.
Olympus 9-18mm (used) $435
That pancake Olympus fisheye wasn’t really giving me all that I needed for the wide-angle end of the focal length range. So I started shopping for an ultra-wide. I would have preferred to just get a prime lens with a fixed focal length of 7-9mm, but, much to my surprise, there is no such lens in the Micro 4/3 system from either Panasonic or Olympus. Why is that? Seems like a major gap in the system to me. But, anyway I was thinking I’d buy the Panasonic 7-14mm, but I couldn’t find one anywhere to look at in person. I even went to a Panasonic event in Columbus to try one, but that was the one lens in their system that they didn’t bring to the event. I did try the Panasonic 8-18 at that event. It was nice, but cost more than I wanted to spend. Then I noticed that Olympus had this 9-18. Not only was it about half the price of the Panasonic wide angle zooms, but it was much lighter and more compact than the Panasonic lenses. Then, when I saw a used one on Amazon for even less money, the decision was made. I’ve only shot a few frames with it so far, but it seems like an excellent lens that does exactly what I need.
So, now the kit is complete. My wife says there’s no reason for me to ever buy another camera or lens. We’ll see about that. But I’m very happy with this kit. And my back is much happier when I load these small, light-weight cameras and lenses up and go out hiking.
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