Olympus Pen E-PM2 review

The E-PM2 is the entry-level model in the PEN range, but it still boasts some upmarket features. Its metal body houses the same 16-megapixel sensor that’s used in Olympus’s top-of-the-range Olympus OMD E-M5. Continuous shooting is at 8fps – double what most CSCs at this price manage and only a shade behind the E-M5’s 9fps performance.

There’s an accessory shoe that accepts not just external flashguns but also an electronic viewfinder, microphone input, Bluetooth dongle (for wireless photo transfers to Android devices) and even a pair of macro LED lamps on flexible arms. There’s a small flash unit included in the box, but it’s no brighter than a typical integrated flash and rather spoils the camera’s sleek design. We suspect a lot of people will leave it in the back of a drawer and forget about it.

Optical image stabilisation is incorporated into the sensor so it works with any lens. This includes wide-aperture lenses, which rarely have stabilisation built in. It’s also worth noting the wide range of compatible Micro Four Thirds lenses – far more than for competing Sony NEX, Nikon 1 and Samsung NX systems.

CONTROLS

It all bodes well for keen photographers who want a sophisticated camera but don’t have vast amounts of cash to spend, or perhaps who prefer to stock up on lenses rather than buy the most expensive camera body. However, these kinds of users may be less enamoured by the E-PM2’s controls. It’s no surprise that there’s just a small scattering of buttons – that’s typical for entry-level CSCs – but accessing key features is slower than on rival cameras.

There’s a quick-access menu with 14 functions laid out over two pages, but fewer functions on a single page would be quicker to navigate. We doubt that many people feel the need to adjust the video resolution or toggle the video soundtrack on and off on a regular basis, and drive mode already has a dedicated labelled button. The six customisable functions on the Sony NEX-3N’s quick-access menu work better, as does the Panasonic GF6’s 11 functions that are all visible at once and can be jumped to using the touchscreen. The E-PM2’s screen is touch-sensitive but it isn’t used in either the quick-access or the main menu.

The touchscreen proves its worth when moving the autofocus point, though. It also goes a long way towards making up for the lack of a mode dial. Pressing the Menu button reveals the various modes, which can be selected by touching the screen.

The main menu is vast, spanning 23 pages. There’s huge scope to customise the camera’s behaviour but we didn’t find it easy tracking down specific functions. It’s not helped by cryptic labels such as FL BKT and Rls Priority S. Pressing the info button reveals explanations, but some of these provide no further clarity and they aren’t available in sub-menus.

PERFORMANCE

Autofocus is seriously quick, and it’s backed up by extremely responsive subject tracking. It took 0.6 seconds between shots in program mode, but iAuto mode was a little slower, at 0.8 seconds. The 8fps continuous shooting lasted for 19 frames before slowing to 2.9fps – a superb result. It maintained this top 8fps speed for 14 raw frames too. It’s great to see Olympus pairing this fast performance with a decent-sized buffer. Continuous mode with updating autofocus was at 2.9fps.

CSC Shootout – SPEED TEST – Sony NEX-3N, Olympus Pen E-PM2, Nikon S1 and Panasonic GF6

Here we compare shooting speed, single drive and continuous (JPEG and RAW) between the four current budget CSCs

IMAGE QUALITY – CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE

Image quality was generally excellent, as we’d expect from a camera that shares the same sensor and image processing engine as the £1,000 E-M5. Colours were rich and flattering and details were crisp, with noise remaining unobtrusive up to ISO 3200. The top ISO 25600 is overly optimistic but we’d use ISO 12800 for casual snaps.

There’s plenty of definition in the dark, dense texture of the ivy

There’s barely any evidence of noise in this low-light shot

Image quality wasn’t faultless, though. Whereas most CSCs use digital correction to eliminate chromatic aberrations, this isn’t available in Pen cameras. Sure enough, tell-tale halos of discolouration was visible towards the edges of the frame in high-contrast scenes. We found the autofocus to be a little unwieldy when shooting macro subjects. Otherwise, autofocus was up to scratch but it wasn’t always as reliably sharp as the Panasonic GF6’s.

Details could be a little more precise here, but it’s hardly a bad result

There’s some purple fringing here, whereas rival cameras didn’t suffer the same problem in the same shot

CSC Shootout – IMAGE QUALITY TEST – Sony NEX-3N, Olympus Pen E-PM2, Nikon S1 and Panasonic GF6

Here we compare image quality, in numerous scenarios, between the four current budget CSCs. Click through to YouTube and view at 1080p for 1:1 pixel comparisons

The video mode is well specified, with automatic, priority and manual exposure plus tracking focus with the help of the touchscreen. It took us a while to find and enable the latter option, though. Video capture is fixed at 30fps, which is fine for most people but 24 and 25fps options would have been welcome. Picture quality was decent enough but details looked a little coarse compared to rival CSCs from Panasonic, Sony and Nikon.

CSC Shootout – VIDEO QUALITY TEST – Sony NEX-3N, Olympus Pen E-PM2, Nikon S1 and Panasonic GF6

Here we video quality, outdoors and indoors, between the four current budget CSCs. Click through to YouTube and view at 1080p for 1:1 pixel comparisons

CONCLUSION

The E-PM2 has plenty going for it, but comparisons with the Panasonic GF6 generally don’t lie in its favour. It scores a clear victory for continuous shooting speed but its controls aren’t as elegant and its detachable flash unit is cumbersome. The GF6 doesn’t have an accessory shoe but it hits back with a higher-resolution articulated screen, a mode dial, automatic panorama stitching, HDR capture and time-lapse recording. The GF6 also has built-in Wi-Fi, while the Olympus requires the use of a £35 FlashAir 8GB card. The Olympus E-PL5 is a better match for the GF6 with its articulated screen and mode dial, but it costs £450 including VAT.

At £400 then, the E-PM2 seems overpriced. At present, though, it is available with a free 17mm F2.8 pancake lens; it’s both fast and compact and will cost you around £200 if bought separately. This alone makes the E-PM2 a great alternative to the GF6 right now, keep the lens or sell it on and get a huge potential discount, but we’ll have to re-evaluate the camera when the offer ends.