Olympus OM-D E-M5

[Aleksandar 4]

This would mostly be in the eye of the beholder, so to speak. Are the EPL5 features you find missing in EM5 of use to you?

 

I am not missing anything on my EM5 to complain about, apart maybe from perhaps focus peaking. However, this is irrelevant feature for underwater application and relates to old, manual focus lenses. Even if I was missing something, it is probably of little importance as I do not know I am missing something.

[carolinepower70808 0]

HI,

I am looking for a bit of advice about using the EM5. I was lucky enough to find dolphins yesterday on the way back from my dive. I had about a 10 minute encounter with two bottlenose and snapped as many photos as I could. However, almost all of them were out of focus. I was shooting on Shutter Speed Priority at 80 and auto focus. That is what I used to do with my old camera, a g12, and never had any issues. So my question is: what is the best focus setting to use for quick moving open ocean species like dolphins, mantas, and whale sharks?

[Deep6 7]

I was having the same problem shooting my niece's basketball game. Use single focus. Was the "out of focus" really motion blur? I would crank the shutter speed up to at least 1/250 and bump the ISO if needed.

[markw 1]

A question for those using the Olympus 60mm macro lens in manual focus mode (on an EM5).

When I turn the focus ring, the image changes to 14x the original no matter what setting I select. Once I leave it the original view returns. I am unable to achieve focus in manual mode and wondered if anyone else has experienced this and if so, how you dealt with it. Any suggestions on how to fix this frustrating issue would be most helpful.

 

Thanks,

Mark

Edited April 5, 2014 by markw

[frank70 3]

When u are in this mode if u rurn one off the wheels it changes see this video in german

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aqrchdt3E4Q&list=TLYTh0aaB6-452q4MoR6rXRdCXFdxiNCCp

 

somewhere around 24 minutes

 

Frank

[markw 1]

Thanks Frank, that's very helpful.

I didn't see that option in the manual (it's probably there somewhere).

 

Mark

[troporobo 237]

It sounds like you have the "manual focus assist" activated. This can be toggled on or off. It's somewhere in the MF/AF menu but I can't remember exactly where

[markw 1]

Thanks tropobro - I don't mind having this option if I can get to grips with how to use it. Frank's suggestion above helped - the amount of magnification can be reduced by turning the front wheel and this makes it possible to focus manually. It's also pleasing to know that the lens is functioning correctly.

 

Mark

[troporobo 237]

Had a chance to look this morning - "MF Assist" is in the *A menu

[carolinepower70808 0]

Hi,

So I finally have time to play around with my camera and have found a few things that I would appreciate some advice with. I have the nauticam housing with a Lumix 7-14 lens, the 12-50, and a +7 bluewater diopter.

 

When using the 12-50 lens, I am noticing a significant loss of sharpness especially in closer focus photos though in wider angle photos as well. Most of the macro photos were taken at f22 (iso 200, 1/250) which may explain some of the loss of sharpness. But some experimental photos at f16 didn't sharpen the photos. While I know it is not a dedicated Marco lens, I still expected it to be sharper. Has anyone else experienced this? And more importantly, have you experienced this with the 60MM macro lens (this is next on my list of purchases). I know f22 is high but I really like the black background it produces with the nudis I have found in Roatan.

 

I have also been experimenting with over/under short with the Lumix 7-14 lens and the Nauticam dome and would like some advice as to the best settings. The photos I have taken seem to be a bit soft as well.

 

I am also having focusing issues with the 12-50 lens. In many of my photos, especially of a turtle I found on my last dive, the eyes or intended focus area seem to be out of focus and the adjacent area in focus. Is it best to move the focus points through the "main menu" or use the F2 button to access the "magnified box" and move that around?

 

Thanks for any and all advice,

Caroline

[Draq 111]

Try using the 12-50 at no smaller than about f11 and preferably closer to f8. Similarly, the 7-14 does best right around f8. I haven't really evaluated this with my lens, but have heard the 12-50 is best 1-2 stops down from max aperture. At f22 you are well past the point where diffraction degrades the images you get. That isn't unique to that lens.

 

I have not used a diopter on the 12-50 and am unfamiliar with the one you are using; could that be at least some of the problem?

 

I have not experienced the focus problems or excessive softness you are describing with the 12-50, so I'm not sure what to say. It isn't widely regarded as a tack-sharp lens, but I am generally happy with it. The 60 is a better macro lens but of course you give up that zoom flexibility. Which is best depends on your priorities.

 

FWIW, my 60 does not seem to exhibit any softness or focus issues. Perhaps post some images?

[Sentlon 0]

Is the nuticam 7" inch dome work on pana 7-14mm?

Is so, whats the outcome?

[Kadu 5]

Hi guys i need a litle help with my new OMD EM1, i need to fire the internal flash flipped down to fire the external strobes using a fiber optic cable, and for this i need to Change the Flash Mode so that the flash will fire even when flipped down, where i can configure this on the menu of OMD EM1 ?, i am using the new AE-M1 Aquatica Housing, sorry about my poor english.

[Aleksandar 4]

Set custom function keys to underwater mode - one fish/3 fishes icon (if you use 12-50 this also zooms to far end or wide), and it will fire even when positioned down.

[Kadu 5]

Tks Aleksander !!

[markw 1]

Hello all,

Thanks for the responses to the focus assist 'problem' I had with the manual focus on my Olympus 60mm macro lens.

I have used a 3D printer to print a focus gear using a file on the web that was made for the 60mm in a Nauticam housing (http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:40267/#files) but there were no assembly instructions. It is not clear how the 'base' fits with the other two components (how these fit together is obvious). Has anyone tried this and if so I would be grateful for any hints on assembly?

Mark

[Eismann113 1]

Hello dear diving-colleagues,

 

after one wonderful week of diving in Madeira I have recognized a tiny, almost unnoticable crack in the anodized surface of my new Nauticam housing. It is located at the inner side of the rear door just near the main O-ring and is continously in contact with saltwater while diving.

 

Can anyone give me a hint if this is something to worry about in terms of corrosion of the aluminium body or just to forget, as ist does not affect functionality.

 

Thanx in advance and have a nice weekend,

 

Eismann

 

 

[emapola 0]

Hello everyone, I'm buying the new diving equipment. I chose Olympus omd EM5 with Nauticam na-EM5. How do I choose brackets Nauticam Flexitray II. I ask you some advice about the buoyancy of a configuration like this:

- Olympus omd EM5
- Nauticam na EM5 + Flexitray II and right handle.
- 2 x Inon flash s2000
- 2x arms Nauticam 8 "
- 2x arms Nauticam 5 "
- 6x Nauticam Clamp
- Lens olympus 9-18
- Nauticam semi-dome port 4 "

According to what you want can be negative in the water?
How do I balance the weight? floating booms?

Thanks to all

Edited May 20, 2014 by emapola

[Phil Rudin 439]

I would try a four pack of these jumbo blocks to start about 1.7 lbs. of flotation, they should fit on your Nauticam arms with no problem. They also have a smaller version.

 

http://reefphoto.com/shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=95_124&products_id=2321

[troporobo 237]

It will be negative, even with four Stix floats, but not so much that handling is impaired. I shoot the same rig on 60-80 minute dives all the time with no fatigue

[f2tai 2]

@emapola - are the arms in your selection float arms? If yes, you should be fine. If not, i'd suggest to keep 2x "normal" arms and 2x float like these

 

I have STIX floats on the 2x other arms too, and have found that having 4x float arms don't give me the flexibility that i want with 2x normal + 2x float as a system.

[tobbe 0]

I have been using the OM-D EM5 for the last two years, and i love the rig, especially when travelling.

However i have some issues when switching to manual focus in murky waters when shooting fisheye.

I have assigned one of the Fn buttons for MF/AF that works fine. When turning the camera it will be set to infinity, that is great on the top side, but in the housing under water behind the dome it will result in images out of focus.

The thing i usually do is to focus on something two meter away just under the surface, and then switch to MF before decending.

That works if i keep the camera on during the dive, but if the camera goes into stand-by mode it will go back to infinity again.

Has anyone found a better way when using manual focus without using a focus gear?

Edited May 31, 2014 by tobbe

[coroander 16]

tobbe,

if you use the settings here:

http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=48625

then setting the camera to MF allows you to:

push the lever on the back to trigger autofocus, but the camera will otherwise remain in MF.

[coroander 16]

Also, i suspect your particular problem is because in:

Custom Menu -> A. AF/MF -> Reset Lens

is set to On. It needs to be set to Off to prevent the camera from resetting the focus.

[tobbe 0]

Thanks Coroander, I will have a try with your settings!