Return of the Thing

Yes, this thing.  The K-01. 
Another barely-used white version is coming!

A familiar friend is coming home again: a K-01 in zuzu white (Zuzu's our tuxedo cat). I enjoyed my time and images with this camera quite a bit. Yes a few things are disturbing about the K-01, most notably the viewfinder and glare off the screen on bright days.  I bought a flip screen cover long ago to help with that, and really this is the best way to acquire a super-16Mpx sensor on a budget. The K-30 is commanding cult prices and the K-50 has yet to fall to this point. So I'm regaining native mode for my K lenses, time-lapse stills/videos, and 500 shots per battery charge (that addresses my biggest grouse about µ43 bodies). I even have a white 18-55mm sitting near that screen shade - it needs a new mount, but perhaps I can pirate one off another old lens.

Part of today's problem for me is that the em5 is not quite the ideal body for me. How can that be, with all its great features?  Beats me - but every setup I try seems to have an issue for me that the ePM2 did not have with its single control wheel.  I've run into this 2-wheel mental lockup before, for unclear reasons adding a second wheel does not improve my interaction with my cameras. The best way for me to use a camera with two control dials is to completely ignore one, then act surprised when I see it work.
Call me crazy.. I often do!

image via imaging-resource.com

Since the em5 and epm2 were both just a pinch off, one way or another, I'm splitting the difference with a nicely-priced used ePL5.  Goldilocks lives! 
The epl5 will have the the em5's tilt screen, mode dial and image quality and a size closer to the epm2. It's quite tiny, sized between the Q and NX300 - so for my wife it will be ideal and the nx300 is free to travel. Whether the em5 or a second epl5 + viewfinder is the best answer for both of us, let's just say.. reply hazy, ask again tomorrow.

One thing is quite clear though:  the gear swapping must end!  Again.

micropriorities

Although my transition to micro-four-thirds gear was not planned to be a complete kit makeover, the budget insisted that some changes be made. It turns out that shooters on a budget can do quite well in the µ43 gear pool! Finding a Pentax dSLR for under $200 takes one back many generations, but I'm managing to find Olympus Pen and Lumix G/GF bodies in that range pretty regularly. Basic m4:3 lenses and my Pentax primes can make up a decent kit in a hurry.

So despite the siren calls from forum folk and advertisers, many products just don't resonate with me.

• Fast Zooms will not find a place for me. Yes the 12-35 and 12-40s are quite compact and perhaps one awaits me in the future. Definitely not the heavier f/2.8 telephotos however. I like this gear because it is compact and still talented, so adding big zooms will damage both budget and shoulder strap.
• Ultrafast Primes also don't speak to me. The primes that reach f/1.7 (and even Sigma's f/2.8 trio) are enough for my sort of subject isolation, so f/0.95 just is not my style.  This excludes the speed-booster anticonverters as well.
• 4k video cannot get much traction with me either.  The G7 swayed me with that call, but I have neither monitor nor TV screen that can show me the benefits. And pulling 8Mpx stills sounds wonderful.. but I so seldom shoot video even at 720p that I can recognize it for the gee-whiz feature that can grab my attention but only briefly.

So this list leaves a lot of gear available even at good prices. What do I expect to reach me next?

• probably a Pen Lite, whether ePL5 or ePL6 it's hard to say. The pm5 is available at an excellent price, and it has enough features to challenge my need for the weather-sealed em5 I have now. It has the same internals, the tip screen and several more assignable buttons that the pm2 did not have, and if a viewfinder is needed it's a $100 clip-on option.  Even if this does not unseat the em5 it could take the NX300 out of the back room and send it away, so from a budget viewpoint that's a plus. The PL6 includes time-lapse functions; I always liked Pentax for including those, and used the feature perhaps.. twice? Maybe this is why I recognize the 4k feature as a must-have-won't-use option..
• if the em5 survives the PL5/6 reality check, a sealed lens would be valuable.  The 12-50 is the easy and cheaper option so that's the nearest thing to a plan right now.
• Primes.  Sealed primes would be a wonderful thing that even Pentax has not yet offered, but a few great primes would be very nice. I've found the Sigmas and the Oly 17mm (all f/2.8) to be sufficiently excellent for my needs, and the price & bulk that I avoid are both highly valued.

Just don't ask me to do this again tomorrow.  I hate seeing how those siren calls can sway me!

more reconsiderations

Yes I did grab a 12-32mm Lumix, and I liked it.
However -

Given current circumstances, many beyond our control, the timing is really wrong for it.  About a half-dozen 40-150mm Olympus lenses are up for sale with no takers, and no Lumix telephotos are up for swap or purchase, neither 35-100 nor 45-150mm. I have two excellent m.Zuiko lenses right now, and I need to use them!

I did manage to sell the ePM2 body so when no lens went with it the time was right to change plans (again).  I put the 12-32 up for sale - and no surprise, it immediately attracted some interest.  As mentioned before the 12-50mm Olympus EZ is available at the same price so let's zoom that direction for a while.  At the same time my wife has stated that if I think something more suitable than the NX300 is available for us to learn on she's OK with that Christmas-present becoming a different camera. That suggests the 12-50 on an em5 and the silver 14-42 lens on an ePL5/6 would be a sensible thing to shoot for. So about face, sales closed on the m.Zuikos and farewell (again?) 12-32! 

from http://www.techhive.com

That's today's story, and if it disappears tomorrow (like yesterday's post just did!) - 

well it's my blog, and these things happen. Especially here.

Update - the 12-32 has left the building - so the BCL 9mm, 14-42 and 40-150 trio will do for now.

updates, down-dates

I pulled two recent posts after seeing that they both referred to non-events.  A busy two weeks of gear swapping with no actual results to show.. well, not yet!

First up/down was the Sigma 60mm DN Art, whose purchase coincided with news of more medical bills in the near future.  A great lens was returned in preparation for that.  I must say that the Sigma Art series has an issue for shooters who use AF with MF override: with the entire lens now a focus ring I have no place for my left hand without actuating the MF zoom feature.  Turning off the zoom or going just AF or MF aren't great options for how I shoot. So I love the images the Sigma 60 takes but its design is a poor fit for me.
edit- the answer came later in the mu-43 forum: keep the hood on and hold the lens there.  Good idea!

Another recent non-deal was a K-7 with some AF issues.  I was unable to get a single image with the camera in any mode, and the seller agreed that was not how it was when he listed it - so another refund and more thoughts for later.  I also bid on a silver Limited K-5 but that was trumped as well.  That would have been cool to own, but budget limits are in play. My consolation in the Pentax world (and m43 as well) is a good deal on a smc-M100 f/2.8; it looks a bit worn but some day it will get a fresh coating!

However! A twice-used em5 came up at mu43.com with Three batteries, several valuable extra features and for a net cost of $120 - assuming the ePM2 sells.  So yes that deal actually did happen, and it might stick!  It should arrive on Monday. For now it will do fine with the 14-42 and 40-150, as the 17/2.8 should help the ePM2 sell.  I really like that little camera, but adding a mode dial, second control wheel, viewfinder and tip screen will be great steps up.  Bummer that the batteries are not compatible with the ePM2..