Olympus and Panasonic are compatible?

[AgingEyes]

Questions for the experts:

Is it true that I can use Panasonic micro 4/3 lenses on the Olympus M5 with no ill effects on AF, exposure and probably some other things without using any adapter?

How about vibration reduction/image stablization or whatever Olympus or Panasonic call it?

Any more I need to know?


Thanks you folks for your help !

[Photo-John]

Yes - both cameras use the same Micro Four Thirds lens mount and any Micro Four Thirds lens can be used on either make of camera. Whether the AF will work as well with an Olympus lens on a Panasonic camera or vice versa is another question. But the lenses will mount and they will work. Image stabilization is done in-camera with the Olympus cameras and in the lens with Panasonic cameras. So Olympus lenses don't need image stabilization and you don't need image-stabilized lenses with an Olympus Micro Four Thirds camera.

[AgingEyes]

Thank you, Photo-John !

[Photo-John]

Thank you, Photo-John !

You're welcome. Happy to help

Are you serious about buying an E-M5? I really like that camera and have been trying to justify buying one myself.

[SmartWombat]

I'm not sure if the Olympus Peripheral Illumination Correction data in the camera includes information for Panasonic lenses, or if PIC only works for Olympus lenses.

Certainly the lenses are interchangeable, so if you already have Panasonic lenses then moving to the E-M5 means you can use all the existing micro four thirds lenses in your bag.
I haven't found any advantage in using the OIS in conjunction with the E-M5, it probably uses more battery and gives no visible benefit.
Once I sell my GH-1 (if it's worth selling) then I can start to replace the Panasonic lenses with new Olympus wide aperture lenses, but other than a desire for f/2.8 there's no NEED to change the lenses other than f-lust.

[AgingEyes]

You're welcome. Happy to help

Are you serious about buying an E-M5? I really like that camera and have been trying to justify buying one myself.

I already bought it. All the latest images (except the cat shot) I have posted on different forums here are from that camera with the kit lens, which is quite useful actually.

[AgingEyes]

I'm not sure if the Olympus Peripheral Illumination Correction data in the camera includes information for Panasonic lenses, or if PIC only works for Olympus lenses.

Certainly the lenses are interchangeable, so if you already have Panasonic lenses then moving to the E-M5 means you can use all the existing micro four thirds lenses in your bag.
I haven't found any advantage in using the OIS in conjunction with the E-M5, it probably uses more battery and gives no visible benefit.
Once I sell my GH-1 (if it's worth selling) then I can start to replace the Panasonic lenses with new Olympus wide aperture lenses, but other than a desire for f/2.8 there's no NEED to change the lenses other than f-lust.

I'm brand new to m4/3 and so the only lens I have right now is the kit lens. I'm pondering getting some primes and so is considering my options. One thing about the E-M5 that seems to be sub-par (comparing to other cameras I have that is ;-) is the battery life. It doesn't seem to me that I can get many shots out of it. I could be wrong though.

[SmartWombat]

You should get 250 shots.
Less if you're constantly chimping on the LCD screen.
Less if you disable the eye-sensor switch for the EVF.
Less if you have constant AF turned on.
Less if you have IS on half-press turned on.

Strangely, more if you use burst mode - I got over 400 shots mostly using burst mode at Laguna Seca around the corkscrew.

Watch out for the eye sensor turning the camera on when it's against your chest, particularly wearing light coloured clothes. The camera tends to sit level, so the sensor thinks it's up against your face because of the reflection.

So, use the EVF, eye sensor on, LCD off, stop chimping, turn off the constant AF, only use IS on half press with long lenses if you need it.


Of course the best solution is the HLD-6 because it has a battery in the grip as well as one in the body so you have one for backup and one easy to change in the grip. When the grip battery goes flat, then the camera carries on working - the letters PBH disappear from next to the battery symbol telling you that it's time to put a new battery in the grip.

[AgingEyes]

You should get 250 shots.

And I'm using a 8 gig card in the camera :blush2::cryin::mad2:'

Thank you for the energy-saving tips !

[SmartWombat]

Ah I changed to 16G UHS-I cards at 600x or 633x to get maximum speed out of the camera.
But left two of them at home instead of packing them for this trip.
I know just where they are, on the keyboard by the dedicated volume key so I wouldn't forget them ...