Poor Man's Photo Diary: Switched to Micro Four Thirds System

[Panasonic GF2]

I switched to micro four thirds system after my searching for a good point and shoot camera came to a disappointed end.

The camera system using 4/3" sensor is called Four Thirds system. Four Thirds system looks just like Canon's or Nikon's DSLR system. If you don't look carefully, you might not be able to tell. Micro Four Thirds system (m43 in short) is a modification of traditional Four Thirds system. The main difference between these two systems are the lens mount and mirror box. I don't want to go into the details here. To make it short, all these differences make Micro Four Thirds system a powerful camera system with a very compact size.

When m43 just came out, the leading models are Olympus' E-P1 and Panasonic's GF1. Since it's a new technology, those cameras are so expensive. They are almost at the price range of Canon's XXD series. Of course lenses cost extra.

Olympus updated E-P1 to E-P2 in less than 6 months and caused quite a stir in the camera world. As a long time DSLR user, the introduction of E-P2 made me feel uncomfortable about m43 system. I was not sure if this is a system that will go a long way. However, the portability of the system and the photo quality from the systems are really attractive. The thought of using m43 system to replace my point and shoot camera was lingering around my head.

I never go for the latest model and with the high price tag of first generation m43 systems, I really didn't have the luxury to own one. When E-P2 came up replacing E-P1 within 6 months, E-P1's price didn't go down and they disappeared from the market fairly fast. It was until Olympus' E-PL1 and Panasonic's GF2 being introduced, did we start to see some slightly cheaper alternatives. The letter L in E-PL1 means "Lite". It's a stripped down version of E-P2. When Panasonic came up with GF2, although it didn't add any new letter into the original GF1 model name, it is a stripped down version of GF1.

One thing I always feel sorry for Panasonic is that people always praise Olympus' system more than Panasonic's. I think part of the reason is people accept Panasonic as an appliance manufactory more than photography equipment maker. The price of Panasonic system always drops faster than Olympus'. With higher popularity, Olympus' price is always higher and seldom on sale with big discount. E-PL2 was on the market almost 2 month later after GF2 was introduced. GF2 has a full metal body opposite to E-PL2's plastic material for the back of the camera. GF2 has touch screen interface opposite to E-PL2's traditional button/menu interface. Both of them use the same sensor. Both of them were priced at $599. Almost one year later, by the time I bought GF2, its price dropped to $399 while E-PL2 was still priced at $549. E-PL2's price finally drop to around $500 this year.

As of now, there are so many compact systems on the market from Sony, Samsung, Nikon and Canon. I am not very interested in Sony's NEX system because for me its identify is not clear. I was scared away by Nikon's J or V system's even higher price tag. With all those, I stick to m43 systems. For me, m43 system is a good substitute of bulkier DSLR. It's compact and yet still very versatile. The picture quality is not as good as DSLR but it's decent enough to be used for many serious purposes. If you buy the system at the right time, the price can be very reasonable. With Olympus and Panasonic being the driving force for m43 systems and offering so many compatible lenses, I feel sky is the limit.