It Finally Arrived

It took me forever to finally get this camera. I wanted one all the way back to when it was announced for pre-order in January of last year. Then one thing after another started to get in the way. First my pre-order funds went to something more practical. Then other camera makers started to release interesting cameras. Then the core of my 4:3rds systems was stolen and replaced with insurance money. Then Fotokina showed up overseas in Germany, and I decided to wait for that to finish to see what else the camera manufacturers were going to release.

Of all the cameras that came out last year the two that caught my eye were the Nikon D800 and D600. I knew I could never really be comfortable sinking money into the D800, but the D600 looked like it might actually be something I could purchase. But no. Then Sony came out with their α99 to compliment their α77, an APS-C camera I was also contemplating. Finally, on the last day of the year, I placed an order for the E-M5, an extra battery, and the 15mm f8 body cap lens. And then I waited through New Years for it to be shipped to my waiting hands.

It showed up a week later, 7 January. It was a long day at the office, made even longer waiting for UPS to make the delivery. When I got home I thought how wonderful it would be to open up the box and pull everything out. I had every intention of using the three new Fotodiox LED 312AS I'd ordered the last week of December on a recommendation of Kirk Tuck. I was going to light up all the unboxed gear and take a photograph so beautiful it would make even the most jaded photographer swoon just to see it.

And then Lucy got into the picture, metaphorically and literally.

Lucy is my cat that's been living in the house for the last four years. Lucy is a strange little critter. I'm no cat person, but I think Lucy would confound even the most devoted and understanding of cat people. She's not a bad cat; far from it. It's just that she's a strange cat. She loves me, but she's definitely different. For whatever reason Lucy was all over the new camera gear. She got up and started knocking the boxes around and out of place. I'd put her on the floor and she started to knock on the light stand bases and move them around. When I turned around to shoo her away and readjust the lights, she immediately jumped back up on the table where the gear had been carefully arranged and started rooting around there. After going through this twice I finally gave up. I grabbed the E-PL1 with the 25mm and grabbed this one shot of her and the E-M5 before I turned out the lights, grabbed the E-M5, and went into the other room to sit and read the manual. Lucy followed and sat in my lap, staring at the little instruction booklet with me.

Today was my day to go to the gym and work on the knee. I'm past having to go to PT, so I go on my own now to continue working out to further strengthen the left leg and knee. Of course the E-M5 with the Leica 25mm went into work with me, and it was with me as I was driving home. It was about six, the sun had set, and there were these dark clouds on the sky. So I grabbed the E-M5, pointed, and started to trip the shutter.

This is certainly no contest winner. But there's a story behind this photo that speaks leagues about the difference between this camera and every other Pen and regular 4:3rds camera I've owned and still owned. First, the autofocus locked onto the sign like a supersonic wolverine and wouldn't let go. It was so fast that I tripped the shutter before I even know it had tripped. When I looked at the raw file I had a lot more exposure range that any other Olympus 4:3rds sensor-based camera I've ever used. I did a bit of post, but only to see what happened when I brought the shadows and highlights back into the display range of the screen. It's grainy due to the ISO 3200 exposure, but so what?

I'm going out to do a lot more night photography with this little beast. I think I'll play around with the Panasonic 20mm next.