Review: Olympus XZ-1 - by Soon Ruey

[Soon Ruey]

i went to courts at orchard today (the one in front of 313) and tried this camera.. i feel that the manual focusing is a bit weird.. not using the barrel on the lens but rather the rotating wheel.. ergonomically, i think it is ok, but a grip would make it better..

I totally agree with you with regards to focusing and the grip. I think a small grip like that on the EP1/2 would have made handling so much better. I also cannot see the logic in not using the front rotating wheel for focusing initially but then I realised that I can have a 1 hand operation with the rear dial for focusingl

 

[bayusuputra]

I totally agree with you with regards to focusing and the grip. I think a small grip like that on the EP1/2 would have made handling so much better. I also cannot see the logic in not using the front rotating wheel for focusing initially but then I realised that I can have a 1 hand operation with the rear dial for focusingl

yup, agreed on the one-handed operation, but doesn't that make the camera a little unstable? (even with two hands, i feel that rotating the dial makes it somehow shaky..)

i find that the iFlash thingy was quite useful, esp for person like me, who seldom use flash and really dunno how to get maximum result by tweaking the flash set up manually.. Any review on that?

on a slightly lighter note and a bit OT, the sales person there was quite funny, he told me that the ND filter is actually polarizer..:sweat:

 

[driveanegg]

Great effort !!

 

[Rocky78]

Thanks ! ! !

;p;p;p

 

[Soon Ruey]

yup, agreed on the one-handed operation, but doesn't that make the camera a little unstable? (even with two hands, i feel that rotating the dial makes it somehow shaky..)

i find that the iFlash thingy was quite useful, esp for person like me, who seldom use flash and really dunno how to get maximum result by tweaking the flash set up manually.. Any review on that?

on a slightly lighter note and a bit OT, the sales person there was quite funny, he told me that the ND filter is actually polarizer..:sweat:

Again yes...so make sure you have the strap around your neck as without a proper grip, the camera can be a little slippery with a one handed use...

With regards to the straps, I actually feel that such a small camera should have a wrist/hand strap rather than a neck strap. The strap loops on the camera however are very small and will not take a decent wrist strap like the wrist strap for the PENs or a Gariz wrist strap. If any of you guys and gals know of a decent wrist strap, do let me know ya...

 

[Soon Ruey]

I am not really a video person but here is a short video in Dramatic Tone....

http://www.flickr.com/photos/57768925@N07/5390039033/in/photostream/

The XZ1 like the EPL1 & 2 has a dedicated video button. This means that you can set the camera in any setting or filter desired and just press the video button.

For example... you can use soft focus filter and then do a video to get that dreamy feeling

 

[henry soh]

Whether the pen charger can be used to charge the battery

 

[Soon Ruey]

Whether the pen charger can be used to charge the battery

The PEN ( I am using the EP1/2 and EPL1) uses a BLS battery and has an external charger. The XZ1 uses a LI-50B battery and is charged in camera. Though you can buy an external charger for it.

 

[Soon Ruey]

More random photos before I continue with a review further ....


In Auto mode


In Diorama mode


In candle mode


In candle mode

 

[Soon Ruey]

In portrait mode


In dramatic tone


In Pop Art Mode

 

[copycat]

Thanks for the well-written review. Keep them coming

 

[hummer]

Thanks for the review Soon Ruey. care to share how much you paid for it?

Also, can you post more low light/night pics?

The images seem to appear sharper than those I have seen taken by pre production samples.

 

[Soon Ruey]

Macro Mode...

I have decided to do some comparison between my XZ1 with my older camera Canon G10 with the EPL1 + 45mm Leica/ Lumix f2.8

Camera were set in Auto Mode.


XZ1


EPL1 + 45mm Leica


Canon G10

 

[Soon Ruey]

XZ1


EPL1 + 45mm Leica


Canon G10

 

[Soon Ruey]

XZ1


EPL1 + 45mm Leica


Canon G10

In all the photos, you can see subtle colour differences.

Please note also that I am only a hobbyist so I know my photos are not really fantastic..

 

[Soon Ruey]

Thanks for the review Soon Ruey. care to share how much you paid for it?

Also, can you post more low light/night pics?

The images seem to appear sharper than those I have seen taken by pre production samples.

Will try to take more Night Photos tonight (the lanterns are out and begging to be photographed!)

 

[Soon Ruey]

I totally agree with you with regards to focusing and the grip. I think a small grip like that on the EP1/2 would have made handling so much better. I also cannot see the logic in not using the front rotating wheel for focusing initially but then I realised that I can have a 1 hand operation with the rear dial for focusingl

I need to make a correction to my above statement. I tried out manual focus with 1 hand today. It is possible with a finger grip but not very stable and is difficult with a neck strap or with a wrist strap. Again I must say that using the front dial for focusing would definately make much much more sense!

 

[MichaelLee]

I have decided to do some comparison between my XZ1 with my older camera Canon G10 with the EPL1 + 45mm Leica/ Lumix f2.8

SR, you have Leica 45mm f2.8 ? wow..i am rather interested to read if you could a review on this lens too. Considering this lens for both macro and potrait shot.

 

[Soon Ruey]

SR, you have Leica 45mm f2.8 ? wow..i am rather interested to read if you could a review on this lens too. Considering this lens for both macro and potrait shot.

. I use it more for portraits.

 

[henry soh]

Thank you for battery information