Panasonic G9 or Olympus E-M1 Mk II

[nicholasg]

I'm looking for a secondary camera for when I don't want to carry my FF Canon camera and have lens.

The use-cases I'm thinking of are on a long hike and want something light and very weather resistant and when attending social events and want a few pictures but don't want the size and weight of FF.

I currently am 100% stills, but am interested in exploring video.

I'm thinking of one of the following combinations: -

Olympus E-M1 Mk.2 plus ED 12–40mm 1:2.8 PRO. This is 856 grams (or maybe the ED 12–100mm 1:4.0 IS PRO 1135 grams).

OR

Panasonic DC-G9 plus Leica 12-60mm f/2.8-4. This is 899 grams.

Based on comments on Youtube it seems they are both very capable cameras. I briefly played with each of them last week and have to agree.

People say the Olympus has better IBIS, worse menus, possibly better auto-focus.

Has anyone had the chance to use and compare these cameras? Are they there are major advantages or disadvantages in real-life usage?

Thank you!
Nicholas

 

[stillcrazyman]

I have an Olympus EM5 Mk II which is the smaller cousin to the EM1. I also have the 12-40 Pro lens. It's a great combo for lightness and great image quality. I came from a Sony apsc camera rig that was massive. The Oly gear is so much lighter and easier for my shaky old self to get great stills.

I've no idea about the Panasonic cameras, but they are a great system from what I've read.

 

[nicholasg]

I have an Olympus EM5 Mk II which is the smaller cousin to the EM1. I also have the 12-40 Pro lens. It's a great combo for lightness and great image quality. I came from a Sony apsc camera rig that was massive. The Oly gear is so much lighter and easier for my shaky old self to get great stills.

I've no idea about the Panasonic cameras, but they are a great system from what I've read.

Thanks for this data point

 

[Darmok N Jalad]

The Panasonic’s are great for video, especially 4K. I’ve had two LUMIX cameras and have been pretty happy with both. I dunno, I think either one would be a winner—you probably just have to figure out which one has the better control setup and feel for your liking. I must say, the 80MP high-res mode sounds impressive.

DP review has both highly rated. Image quality was a draw, with the Oly having an edge on metering and focus. The Pany appears to be faster and better with video.

 

[swissbob]

Both are very good but it depends which lenses you want to use.

Dual IS only works If Camera and Lens are from the same manufacurer.

12-100 IS =>>>> Olympus

PL 100-400 =>>> Panasonic

I tried several cameras with different Sensorsizes, m43 is probably the best compromise If you also want to use the big tele lenses.

 

[Fishrrman]

OP:

What about the EOS RP?
It's light and compact, and will work with ALL of your existing Canon lenses (both EF and EFs).

 

[nicholasg]

I did think about the RP. The problem is FF lens are heavy, even if a mirrorless body is a bit lighter. Hence my interest in a M43 system.

 

[swissbob]

I did think about the RP. The problem is FF lens are heavy, even if a mirrorless body is a bit lighter. Hence my interest in a M43 system.

It‘s the reason why I choose m43.

A G9 with the PL 100-400 is less then 4 pounds(about 1.7 kg).If you want the same reach with a Full format Camera like the Sony a7m3 with 2xTC and the 400mm f2.8 it would weight more then 8 pounds (about 3.8kg).

Price difference the G9 with the 100-400 ( FX equivalent 200-800) 2800$, Sony a7m3 with this Lens (400mm 2.8 and 2xTC). 14500$

This is a very extreme example.

 

[MCAsan]

The wife and I stood in the rain in Alaska shooting brown bears with no rain sleeves on our E-M1 bodies and Pro lenses. The same goes for huge dusk clouds and wind when on safari in Kenya.

I would not try that with any Panasonic bodies and lenses.

 

[nicholasg]

So for the best weather sealing I should pick the Olympus E-M1 Mk II and only Olympus Pro lens?

The wife and I stood in the rain in Alaska shooting brown bears with no rain sleeves on our E-M1 bodies and Pro lenses. The same goes for huge dusk clouds and wind when on safari in Kenya.

I would not try that with any Panasonic bodies and lenses.

 

[MCAsan]

So for the best weather sealing I should pick the Olympus E-M1 Mk II and only Olympus Pro lens?

Correct. The Pro series are as fully weather sealed as the bodies. Just use the hoods to keep water off the front element.

 

[nicholasg]

Do you mind me asking what M43 lens you use?

Correct. The Pro series are as fully weather sealed as the bodies. Just use the hoods to keep water off the front element.

 

[tizeye]

I guess my first question is why the miniature DSLR? For hiking and easy portability, think smaller like the highly capable Olympus PEN-F or the Panasonic GX-85 which are more of a rangefinder style with viewfinder and interchangeable lens, that with adapter will also mount canon glass (large and bulky lens but great magnifier ratio for wildlife). Add into the mix, the Sony 6000 series which is equally as small if not smaller, but with a larger APC crop sensor rather than 4:3.

I know several people who use Olympus M's when they go small off their normal Canon gear, they like them and even use on professional shoots. My son, relatively new to photography, started with and uses varieties of both Panasonic and Olympus gear, and I am amazed at some of the photography he does, but most gear tends to be Panasonic. If video is a a feature you need, even occasionally as the 'option to do video', Panasonic, Sony and Canon have it in their genes with their professional cine level that is migrated down. Olympus lags as they, like Nikon, historically offered only still photography, however you can thank Nikon, waking the sleeping giant, as they were first to introduce video in DSLR with their D-90, ultimately forcing Canon's hand as they were trying to protect their cine line of cameras, but responded with the 5d Mark ??, and the race to include was on.

Several years ago, my wife had Canon P&S 600 zoom camera that she hated as LCD useless in sunlight and couldn't find objects on zoom while holding the camera out. Her requirements - must be small and have a viewfinder, plus she was cost conscious. I concentrated the search on Panasonic and Olympus (which my son had) and Sony (daughter had a non-viewfinder NEX-5 she used for hiking in Switzerland where she lives). She also noted that if she had a larger, more complex camera, when she stopped and fiddled with long lens - her hiking buddies would leave her behind. While the Olympus and Panasonic were probably one model below today's Pen-F and GX-85, they were very capable, but ultimately settled on the Sony a6000, which ironically, they still sell despite being about 3 generations old, but I probably would look at the newer versions. You can't really go wrong with Panasonic, Olympus or Sony, just decide on the form factor you want (DSLR or rangefinder), going to the stores and handling both. Perhaps even consider renting for a couple of days for actual field use.

 

[MCAsan]

Do you mind me asking what M43 lens you use?

The wife and I each have: two E-MII bodies, 7-14mm Pro, 12-40mm Pro, 40-150mm Pro, 300mm Pro, 1.4 TC, and 60mm macro. We can put all of our kits into the small Thinktank Advantage rolling bag plus iPads, charges, batteries....etc.

 

[nicholasg]

What convinced you that the Olympus weather sealing is significantly better than Panasonic's?

Was the superior weather sealing the main reason for going for Olympus rather than Panasonic?

The wife and I each have: two E-MII bodies, 7-14mm Pro, 12-40mm Pro, 40-150mm Pro, 300mm Pro, 1.4 TC, and 60mm macro. We can put all of our kits into the small Thinktank Advantage rolling bag plus iPads, charges, batteries....etc.

 

[swissbob]

What convinced you that the Olympus weather sealing is significantly better than Panasonic's?

Was the superior weather sealing the main reason for going for Olympus rather than Panasonic?

The main reason for me has been the absolutely insane image stabilizer. The om-d e-m1 markII and the new e-m1X have the best image stabilizer on the market. Nothing comes close.

BTW: I use usually Nikon as my main system.

 

[MCAsan]

What convinced you that the Olympus weather sealing is significantly better than Panasonic's?

Was the superior weather sealing the main reason for going for Olympus rather than Panasonic?

Weather sealed bodies, sealed Pro lenses, IBIS plus hybrid IS when using a lens with OIS, and all the features such as Pro Capture, HDR.....etc. I have yet to see anyone shooting in the rain with a Panasonic body and lens without a rain sleeve or similar.

 

[swissbob]

I have yet to see anyone shooting in the rain with a Panasonic body and lens without a rain sleeve or similar.

I used the GH5 with my PL100-400 in the rain, it works without any issues.

I usually prefer the Olympus it feels more rugged. (But with the PL 100-400 it lacks the Dual IS compared to the GH5)

 

[nicholasg]

The main reason for me has been the absolutely insane image stabilizer. The om-d e-m1 markII and the new e-m1X have the best image stabilizer on the market. Nothing comes close.

BTW: I use usually Nikon as my main system.

The Olympus IBIS is better than Panasonic IBIS (in the G9) even when combined with a lens with Power OIS?

 

[swissbob]

The Olympus IBIS is better than Panasonic IBIS (in the G9) even when combined with a lens with Power OIS?

Yes it is. (I can only speak for the GH5 but Sensor and IBIS are almost identical)
BTW: If you use the Olympus IBIS with Olympus OIS lenses it becomes even better.
( the Olympus 12-100/4 and the 300/4 do have OIS)

 

[SkiHound2]

I shoot m43. I don't have either the G9 or E-M1ii though own and use both Panasonic and Olympus bodies. A previous response mentioned lighter bodies. While the lenses are indeed smaller and lighter than FF, the Olympus pro lenses are not really small nor really light. The G9 is about the size of a typical dSLR APS-C body. The E-M1ii is a bit smaller and lighter. Neither is truly small or light. I think they are just becoming available but I'd suggest taking a look at the new G90/95. It's weather sealed, smaller and lighter than either the G9 or E-M1ii, has a 20mp sensor that is very comparable to that in the G9. It doesn't have the 6k photo features that the G9 has, and while I've only used the 4k version, they are pretty cool and a 6k version would give considerably higher resolution files. And then I might suggest some smaller/lighter lenses. The 12-60 f/3.5-5.6 kit lens is weather sealed and is dang good optically for a lens like this. Probably not quite as good as the Olympus 12-40 or 12-100, but it's a small, light, weather sealed option. Biggest limitation is the slow aperture. You can always add better lenses later if you like the system. There are features unique to each company that may be deciding factors. Olympus offers what's called live time, live bulb, and live composition. All are for low light work. The first are largely the same and allow you to effectively watch the image exposure on the LCD while the shutter is open. The later basically sets a base exposure and then only adds brighter light on subsequent shutter releases. These are great features for things like light painting. Panasonic has the 6k (G9) and 4k photo features which allow you to select images from a sequence of 4k or 6k video. Also pretty cool. In general I'd say the Panasonic menus are more transparent, though the Olympus menus are deeper. FWIW, I shoot m43 specifically because of size and weight. I found myself leaving my camera gear at home or in the trunk. Or really feeling burdened by it when carrying it around for extended periods or when traveling. I'm using a GX9 for the vast majority of my photography right now. The EVF on it is pretty dated and is, IMO, the biggest negative for the camera. It also doesn't have a physical remote shutter release (can use phone app), and that makes it less than ideal for some tasks. But I bought it for travel, street, and carrying around on a day-to-day basis and overall, it's the most fun camera I've ever used. It's not weather sealed, however. Good luck with whatever you choose.

 

[MCAsan]

Lets see if the rumored E-M1 II firmware upgrade happens and what goodies are in it. I can only wish it is animal eye AF.

https://www.43rumors.com/ft3-new-e-m1-ii-firmware-to-be-released-within-two-weeks/

 

[nicholasg]

Lets see if the rumored E-M1 II firmware upgrade happens and what goodies are in it. I can only wish it is animal eye AF.

https://www.43rumors.com/ft3-new-e-m1-ii-firmware-to-be-released-within-two-weeks/

From what I've read it is a major update, bringing a lot of features from the E-M1X.

 

[Ledgem]

Olympus E-M1 Mk.2 plus ED 12–40mm 1:2.8 PRO. This is 856 grams (or maybe the ED 12–100mm 1:4.0 IS PRO 1135 grams).

OR

Panasonic DC-G9 plus Leica 12-60mm f/2.8-4. This is 899 grams.

Based on comments on Youtube it seems they are both very capable cameras. I briefly played with each of them last week and have to agree.

People say the Olympus has better IBIS, worse menus, possibly better auto-focus.

Has anyone had the chance to use and compare these cameras? Are they there are major advantages or disadvantages in real-life usage?

IBIS is a bit of a wash. I've seen some review sites say that the G9 has superior IBIS to the E-M1 Mk2, while others say it's the other way around. It leads me to believe that they're both pretty close, in any event. As was mentioned above, if you're thinking to build further on the system, get the body that matches the lenses you like most, because unfortunately IBIS + ILIS only work together if they're both from the same manufacturer.

I'm surprised to read the weather sealing comments here. Olympus is among the best for its weather sealing and certainly has many years of experience with it. Panasonic is less tested, but I haven't heard anything bad about it. (Unlike Sony, which is routinely criticized for incomplete sealing.)

If you're looking for a one-off lens+camera body then I don't know that the choice matters too much. Otherwise, your choice of camera body should be dictate by what else you might like to build toward. Panasonic is traditionally stronger in video than Olympus is, but the G9 is pure contrast-detect autofocus. It does very well, but its best performance (using the "depth from defocus" algorithms) is only compatible with other Panasonic lenses. It should still perform very well with others, but... the E-M1 Mk2 uses a hybrid contrast and phase detection system, so it doesn't suffer any penalties regardless of which manufacturer's lenses are mounted. For your intended purposes, for a one-camera-and-lens to do it all, the Olympus with the m.Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8 is probably your best bet. However, you'd probably be better served by using the 12-100mm for hikes and a fast prime for your social events.

That's what I do so. I use the E-M1 Mk2 and have more than a handful of lenses. My preferred combo is to use the camera with the m.Zuiko 12-100mm f/4 IS PRO, which has an incredible zoom range and amazing optical quality, with dual IS performing absolute magic for image stabilization (including in video). I have one of Olympus' f/1.2 primes in my bag, as well, and switch to that when indoors or when the lighting gets poor and I still want to keep faster shutter speeds. The f/1.2 primes aren't cheap and while they're not heavy lenses overall, they are on the heavier side for µ4/3; you could probably do just as well with the lighter and smaller f/1.7 primes from Panasonic, or f/1.8 primes from Olympus.

 

[MCAsan]

Well, no animal eye AF. But the version 3 firmware is definitely not bad at all. One more AF pattern to use and other items.