Olympus EPL1 Review 

Sorry the audio is so hot y’all. Will get fixed for the next vid.

Your format seems perfect to me. Most of us can read and understand the tech specs of any camera or lens, but we cannot imagine the user experience without insight from free-thinking and informed people such as yourself. Long may you continue, with thankful regards from a new subscriber.

I absolutely love this channel. I've been looking for old cameras and you've convinced me that this is a good little one. Found an EPL2 for about 50 dollars

I have been using m43 for about ten years, sold off my Pentax DSLRs and used an E-PL1 and E-P2 for fantastic travel shots. The E-P2 does have the EVF port the E-P1 does not. I now have an E-P1 which was lightly used an OM-D E-M1 and an E-M5 mark II. I have a Sony a6300 which is very capable but not as fun to shoot as the Olympus cameras.

Just found this channel and I have to say that this format is such a refreshing break from the segmented, more structured/produced channels. I am just an amateur photographer, but I guess I already know what I can do with my lenses, and so it’s useful to just know what it’s like to live with a camera body day-to-day. Most other channels sort of go through the motions with stuff like “build quality” (whatever that means) and control points, but then don’t really dive into what that means for real usage, or which implementations are notable for a particular model. Anyway, thanks for a frank assessment of an interesting camera, and good luck with your channel!

I love older cameras. Your videos are really nice and informative! My only wish is that you included more photos in your videos!

I just bought this camera for $7! I have Pansonics and had a Pentax lens adapter. Wow! How fun this is so far and I haven't even updated the firmware yet. I have lots of manual lenses and will order all the adapters plus the screw on ones.

That kid stole the show!!!! Please keep it. Someday, at her wedding reception...SHOW It!!!!! That is a lovely angel!!!

73 y/o me likes your content, casual confidence, and laid back style. Keep it coming, well done

I bought a refurbished E-PL1 back a few years ago when they were even cheaper than they are now. It's become my "beach camera" body. With a small lens it's compact, fairly rugged, and not very expensive, so I don't have to worry about it too much. But if I want to be creative I can put on an adapter and easily use it with any of the manual-focus lenses I bring along for use on my Sony A7 or my Leica rangefinder.

Found this video just recently after acquiring one. It gave me a head start at enjoying the camera. ISO 200 and works like a champ the LCD is a little dark but I was able to find a viewfinder which I should be getting soon. Thank you

Funny 2 weeks ago I was rummaging through old drawers and came across my old EPM1 that I had given away but was returned to me. I located the charger, purchased a $90 Oly 17 2.8 and updated the firmware to except the VF4 that somehow appeared via my rummage. Damn I love the little thing. So well made and the dynamic range better than I thought it would be. I have been taking it everywhere with me. Sometimes our old cameras are not as outdated as we think they are.

I bought my E-PL2 for $10 without battery. I ordered 3rd party battery, and now it's in my collection.

I got olympus epm1 body for 35euros and got zuiko 14-42 lens for 40e. Totally worth it. I love street photography and this blows any smartphone away.

I have severel oldre Pen and OM D cameras including 2 e pl 1s. I really wanted to use them but the screen in not foF my old eyes, Ola, found the EVF on ebay and it arrived today. With limited time to use it I was enthused or fascinated to have this almost a reliic that produces so much quality. Enjoyed your insight and I will be using this a lot.

I picked one of these up for £16 (around $21USD) as spares or repair due to the IS being faulty. Everything else works fine and it's a fun camera to take out for casual shooting.

Glad I found your review. I have this exact camera I got about 3 years ago for about $25 at a pawn shop and it works perfectly. I sort of put it aside to use all my other M43, APS-C and full frame cameras but I recently went back to it and it is really good. I don't have the EVF module but I still like it. I recently picked up at another pawn shop for a very reasonable price an OMD EM10Mii which is also awesome. There is room so the EPL1 fits in the same bag as the EM10 and now that is my EDC go bag. Will look for more of your videos. Thanks.

Fun camera. I used to own one, but sold it to a friend. Only 12 megapixel, but took some of my best images with that camera. The only con I had was the video (usable, but not the best). I kind of regret selling it, but my friend got a good deal.

I have an EPL1 and it's one of my favorite travel cameras. It used to be my test bed for the micro four thirds system until a friend gave me her old Olympus OMD EM5. I use the kit lens, an adapted Zenit Helios prime lens, and an adapted 70-210mm Olympus four thirds zoom lens. I made sure all lenses work with EPL1 and EM5. The EPL1 also has a monumental significance for me, too. I introduced my friend to photography as a hobby by convincing her to buy her own EPL1 when it came out in the market when I got mine. Many years later, that very friend gave me her EM5. Ironically, we also both own Fujifilm mirrorless system cameras as well.

Just found this channel… decided it was worth it to go through all your videos… really love them but really hope that at some point you start adding actual photo samples

So, the ep1 was my first foray into the mft cameras and the epl-1 was my second. While the ep1 still holds a space in my heart. The epl1 was actually really fun for me! 4:3 is my favorite aspect ratio as well! Some of my favorite films were shot in this ratio! Gerald’s video about it is fantastic little lesson. Thank you for another great video!!

Lovely video 👏🏻thanks for sharing with us your experience !!! I am in love with M43 System for a while (being a former Canon guy for decades) and, it always surprises me on the results!!! I own a E-PL8 for Street Photography, being my choice due to simplicity with strong built-in resources that allow achieving great results through the several configurations for truly customization. I always have with me the VF-3 to get a better compostion feeling (rather than using my Cell Phone). That's it. See ya, blue skies 🤙🏻🍀📸 p.s. the Stylus TG series is amazing for photo & videos on a glance (in my case, carrying a TG-6, during biking or hiking in all weather conditions 😅)

The EPL1,2&3 are lovely petite light capable cameras. There’s a lot of options on manual glass for the budget conscious. M39 adaptors open up the world of soviet leica copy lenses from Fed, Industar etc and you can buy beautiful lenses with m4/3 mounts from TTArtisans. All of these options are manual focus but work really well from F4. M4/3 is great.

I bought one when it was launched and I hated it. So I bought the Panasonic GF1 next and found that it was my cup of tea and that make Panasonic my M4/3 brand. It seems Olympus and I don't play well together, though out the last four decades, since I also disliked the only other camera that I bought, the XA. 🙂

Lovely that you put the fun back into photography that so many people overlook , very engaging and looking forward to seeing more content from you…Great Stuff !!

I love your video! I've been trying to tell people how awesome these cameras are every chance I get. I've become an absolute Olympus fan because of a similar camera and similar vintage. The e-pm2 made me get into m4/3 system and I never looked back. In fact to this day, I haven't been able to replace it for a camera I use when biking. BTW. This format is perfect. Change nothing. No need to get too deep into specs unless it's something that is like an interesting tidbit. We can always lookup the specs. Usability and how you like the camera handling and final product is much more important.

Great camera. I got mine for £60 with kit lens and Epl1 for dummies book. It was my first digital interchangeable lens camera. I bought a few old lenses and adapters to take photo's of my grandsons Zukio 1.8 50 mm, Helios 58 mm, pentacon 135 mm, pentacon 30mm,industar 50 mm, 70-210 zoom OM fit, Meyer-Optik Gorlitz Domiplan 50 mm. 2x/3x tele converter and a 500 mm for moon shots. I missed manual controls and wanted to buy an EVF for it but found a OM-D em 10 for less than the price of the EVF. I let my grandsons who are three and five use the EpL1 now. The 5 year old is blown away that some of my lenses fit the broken OM 10 I gave him when he was two.

My first ILM camera. So comfortable to hold, had IBIS and punched above its weight. What I particularly liked about this camera was the option to turn off all EVF data on screen... this was an important thing for me. By doing this, using adapted vintage lenses, I taught myself Sunny 16 and zone focusing without relying on the camera telling me what I should be setting. A great little camera.

I got one a few weeks ago. To me the most annoying thing was the lack of dials. However it's hard complain about a £60 camera with lens. The build is a bit odd as the front feels quite premium and the back feels cheap. It still would be a great place to start with proper cameras for very little. I purchased Em10 MK II soon after. Great channel I hope it goes well.

I bought this when it came out, along with the EVF finder. I've adapted many manual lenses to it. Nice camera.

i got one of these for 35Euros with the kitlens. its really nice, surprisingly. weird enough the kitlens feels more like a semi macro lens. if i go 42mm and close to a subject, it renders close up details incredibly well. if i take more of a wide shot, it can be kind of ''meh'' and hit or miss. honestly i think, everyone should own one of these. and once you realize that you are not forced to only use one brand of camera and you can use this camera without heavily investing into m43 too, it becomes a really nice camera. its tiny, its cheap. and because of that i never leave my house without a camera. even if i just do grocery, i throw this guy into my backpack because maybe you see something cool on the way. or if you hang out at the beach with friends for example, just take this guy and do some nice photos, because if it gets stolen... honestly its really not that big of a deal because it costs close to nothing. would you bring a larger expensive camera with you while doing groceries? or leaving a 1000$ camera inside a bag at the beach even noone is there to look after it? ofc not... but for those scenarios, this guy is actually perfect.

I’m loving your videos. I came across your channel looking for videos about my Nikon D300 and any other old DSLR’s! It was a much more recent video. So I went back to the start of your channel and I’m going through them one by one. I’m hooked!

Cool to hear your thoughts, thanks. I've always loved m4/3rds and just recently started shooting with my EP3 again after a decade. It's been a lot of fun. It's a solid and good looking camera. I still have an EPL1 in the drawer somewhere too.

i learned that a cool camera that has a nice look to it and is comfortable will be so much better to start off with than some expensive dslr with a crazy lens. Dont get what people tell you is the best of the best. Get what feels like the right camera for you.

LOL, I bought the EPL1 a year because I love the design and classic look. I’ve only used it once. But I love that camera.

Spontaneous, off the cuff is what works. Much better than the people who are “trying to have a RU-vid channel”

I have this camera. Last time I made photos with epl1 was before 2 months with lens takoumar 50mm

For those who hate the om menus, you should activate the super control menu display. The display will have all of the main functions and can be adjusted with out the need to scroll the normal menu screen.

My E-PL1 has shutter count of ~16000 and it still sound healthy to me, just like you, i can't live without the EVF and wifi SD card. I have been using mine for over 6 years, recently bought another surviving copy of E-PL1, then sold off all MFT camera bodies. E-PL1 is probably only camera i will ever need for casual shutter therapy sessions.

The scene with putting on the pants is just gorgeous !!! )))

I've just spend two years trying to find replacement for my great Canon 550D. I've tried Canon M50 which have absolutely trash sensor. Next I've tried Fuji X-T3 with pro lenses which have great colors but absurdly nonsensical menu and controls and is super heavy. After this I bought Sony A6300 which is ugly and have also dumb menu and controls, the pictures have weird digitally feeling. New cameras have always too many MPx, too many buttons and always some big downside made just to push you buy higher models. Only new camera which was able to satisfy my expectations is Ricoh GR but this beauty have obvious limitations in fixed lens. I gave up and sold it all keeping my 550D and Yashica D. But two days ago I inpulsively bought two years old Olympus epl8 with set lens just for 250 dollars. It's like new. I've never considered Olympus because of small sensor, but after two days I am in love. This beauty is fast, small, without useless functions and controls, output quality is pretty good too. This is will be long time relationship.

Yes you can use adapters so that the M43 can use Canon EF, FD, M42 and Nikon lenses. But since you're going manual focus anyway, get something called a lens booster. It takes the light from the lens and concentrates it, so if you're using a f2.8 lens, the lens is now f2 with a lens booster.

I have the younger sister of this body, the E-PL8. Like you I'm not necessarily a fan of the ergonomics. I used to have the E-M1 but I also have a Micro 4/3 4mm fisheye lens that has such a wide angle of view that I was getting the hand grip of the camera body in every shot. The E-PL8 doesn't have a large hand grip, so that fixed the problem. The E-PL8 has a lot of control customization, so it's not as bad an experience. For lenses, I really do prefer the regular manual focus lenses, but the Olympus lenses with the focus clutch mechanism really do work well. I couldn't tell it was fly by wire when using the manual focus clutch. I think some companies are starting to realize that people do like a more linear feel to the focus ring, so that's starting to become an option on some lenses. On my E-PL8 I often shoot in manual mode and since there is only one control dial, I have to push something to change my aperture. It's not as convenient as I'd like, and I much prefer using my E-PL8 with fully manual lenses that have an aperture ring (the Panasonic fly by wire aperture rings don't work)

I really enjoyed your presentation, thanks for posting. Just be you, that's what makes it interesting and fun.

Micro Four Thirds ain't dying. Panasonic and DJI will keep it relevant for video, OM Digital Solutions has retreated to the outfoor/adventure/wild life niche and they will survive there. I'd agree with saying that Pen like compact cameras in Micro Four Thirds are dead. That won't come back. Grabbing these Pen gems now is the smart thing to do.

I bought one of these brand new when they were on close out at right around 200 bucks. I have the viewfinder and old 35 mm lenses to use with it. My other cameras are Lumix FZ 1000 and a Sony A6600. I much prefer the color rendition of the Olympus EPL 1 over the other two.

I love this little camera as an introduction to m4/3. My little video of it seems to show that it's still popular. Keep up the good work. :)

I have been snooping around for a small mirror less camera as a backup for my film slr. Absolutely do not want to spend more than 200 bucks for one. Found a pl1 with two manual lens for 130 bucks. For that price I doubt I would ever hate it,,

I like the colour profiles of your photos. they look very pleasant.

You are so inspiring. So knowledgeable !!!LOVE THIS CHANNEL!!!!! 📷📸📷📸

I love my Olympus E-PL1! I picked mine up quite a few years back for a steal, about £30 with the kit lens! I mainly use it for black and white photography but it does okay in colour too, maybe a bit soft and pastel like. The autofocus is slow and the focus points are a little too large but I've very few complaints at all. I generally keep my Olympus 17mm f2.8 on it and love the combination. Good choice 👍

What a fun vid that was. The camera pick at the end was great fun too.

I have this camera. In the day ight, It still gives me the great results.

Good video. I still use E-PL1 regulary until now. It is fun camera to use. I always combine it with vintage manual lenses (most of them m42 lenses from my pentax spotmatic) and use external speedlite for low light. Yes the lcd live view is not as good as the modern ones so i use extenal LCD view finder.

I love (and still use) my EPL1 - I love the feel of it. My only complaint is that the autofocus can be slow and - on rare occasions - it seems unable to find it's focus at all.

I currently have my hands on a E-PL 3 with a Panasonic lens .Still getting to grips with . I have no EVF I would love one but so far no luck finding . It is great to hear old lenses fit these cameras with of without and adapter . I am also missing cables and the Flash , but these may turn up at some point . This is more of an trail to see if I can get back in using a fully functioning camera instead on a smart phone , it had been way back in the 80's since I used SLR like Canon A1 series , but I have been wanting to do some proper photo taking for a few years now , so for me this is a cheapest way to get going and not blow 1000 euros plus to only sell everything in a few months time. Thanks for the video.

Love this project, just suscribed. I got one of these a month ago and I was pleasantly surprised too. I actually like the chunky feel of the camera, I had an epm1 before and it felt a lot more flimsy.

great video,i love old cameras and the good personal reviews

Wow, I hate it too. It's low light performance is awful. It's daytime images are much better but still I can see noise. But it has so many cool modes and settings, I can't sell it (I tried, no one wants it on ebay). Yes, I totally agree with you on the viewfinder. I discovered I absolutely dislike using cameras with only an lcd screen, especially here in Arizona, it's almost impossible to see what you're shooting. I would have to get that electronic viewfinder attachment to continue to use this camera, but unfortunately they are not cheap.

Just found your channel. Instant subscribe. What a great and fresh idea. Love the informal format

I bought this camera 📸 just for fun during COVID years 😊 I am planning on taking it with me to the USA with me in April along with Fujifilm X-T1! What other lenses alternatives would you buy for this camera???

I bought one for $50 just to see how much longer ibis can let me increase my shutter time. I paired it with a Panasonic lens so I can test lens IS too, and no, I know you can't use them together. Just want to test both and see how many stops I can get before plunging into either system and picking between om-1 or gh6.

nice video, brought so many memories, the time i use to shoot with the e620, got this one to be able to take videos, i mainly shot birds, so used it with the bigma (Sigma 50-500mm) with an adapter, focus was a bit slow so mostly adjusting it manually, did use it for stills, and got many nice results, no as good as those of the e620 and the e5 which i got later. went completely mirror less only when the e5 died, yes used it to the last shutter. yes i am an olympus fangirl. thanks again for this so much fun video.

I love it just the way it is 😊

ooh I love this channel concept! just 'discovered' olympus/m43cameras, so good and full of features! (mpb bargain em5 mii) my fav cheap random camera is nikon v1.. auto focus is awesome and there's a lovely filmy look to the photos. crazy battery life too. I wish I could be bothered shooting my weird collection of film cameras.

Came for the camera video but stayed for her haha

Thank you for this review!!!!

Great video found an epl1 brand new in box for 100.00 bucks at a local camera store .love it need to find evf Enjoy your video

I didnt pay $60 but $650 when they came out at a camera store in Knoxville Tn. I never quite loved any other camera as much as the EPL1. I left it to a friend in the Philippines a few years ago and he is actually taking and getting paid to do some small events there. I own canon, Pentax, Fuji and did own a sony a 6000 series camera that I never connected with. However I still use my OMD EM5 and like my Pentax is weather resistant so is my Go to camera. I have some amazing M4/3 lenses including the Silky Olympus 45mm. I also use this and my Panasonic M4/3 for all my video and my youtube videos except obvios cellphone videos. Why be confined to only one brand or system? I also bought my OMD several months later in 2013 and still use it to this day. It saved my Japan trip as I gave my Canon to my host thinking I would use my pocket point and shoot for the rest of the trip only to drop it and here was my EM5 tucked in my suit case for bad weather shoots. I must say the Japanese really build quality standards are unparalleled. thank you for giving such a good review and showing some amazing home video style video as close to 8mm film as I have ever seen.

Say I just came across your channel. I LOVE its format. Thanks for making this video. I have an Olympus EM1 (Pen Mini) an EM3 and an EPL2 on the way. I love these old cameras. The Micro 4/3 line rocks. I had Olympus DSLRs but am now shooting Pentax. I wish that the Micro 4/3 system had more development going on, but new cameras are slowly coming out. Can you please send me the link to your Olympus TG review. I am very curious about that camera.

Hey! I just came across your channel and I absolutely love this format, definitely gonna binge watch all of them. Keep up the good work! Also I really like some of your pictures on your instagram page. :)

Thinking of buying one, it's very cheap now in mint condition. Tired of cellphone photos, and Sony Nex is a bit heavy.

It is lovely, just like your RU-vid video.

The E-Pl1 does NOT have focus peaking. Try a E-M10 ii which is super low cost and does have focus peaking and built in EVF.

Perfect review

I like the format. It's civil and chill. Only sound could be better. Something like rode video micro will do the job.

I love this

Did you use it with Lumix lens Other than the kit lens (14-42mm)?

I like that 6mp one better. I think its the E1 or something with the film like censor is it ccd sensor?

Hello, Isn't the base ISO100 on the E-PL1? Mine sits next to the door waiting it's daily pic. Thanks for the video.

This is an interesting camera to use with Zuiko OM manual focus lenses...

Glad you grew to love it. Great vid👍👍👍

Enjoyed this presentation

Great review. I just dug mine up and plan to use it soon. Hope the battery charges full. If you know where I can find that VF-2 viewfinder for cheap please pass on the info. I'm seeing prices 5 times what people are paying for the camera itself :(

I have to say that your halloween pictures with adapted lens look amazing in terms of colors and they pop . Olympus has some gems, for instance you should try the Olympus Stylus 1 which is an unique camera.

I also had the Olympus pen e-pl1 but got rid of it, not because of image quality, which was very good, but because the menus were so cumbersome and unintuative. Unfortunately ( for Olympus ) that experience put me off from getting another Olympus camera ever again.

Hello!! I’m new to photography. I just purchased this camera for $40, I’m wondering if you could give me a link to the attachable view finder you are using :) i never realized there wasn’t one built in until now and I wanted to get used to relying on that rather than an LCD screen. Thank you so much!

Hi. What adapter did you use for the lens please

Would there be any reason to choose this E-pl version over the later ones besides price? Thank you

I still use it with old school lens till now.

Is possible to load film preset simulation in camera? I use file batch in Olympus Workspace, but shot in jpg is most very easy. Thanks

Where is the TG-5 Video?

loving the content

To be honest I prefer the EP-1, as the build quality is so much better, and it is so much fun.

I haven't gotten to the micro 4/3 yet. but first I would like to try very old ones, on ccd. feel the color of the kodak

Excited to have just found one at a thrift store for $25.

Great video! I just bought one for my daughter, would you mind comment on what the EVF is (brand and model #)? I have a ton of vintage film lenses, wondering if those can be used on this camera via an adapter? Thanks!

Great videos! Just one suggestion, add more sample images, please.

what lense do you used?

A decent review and thank goodness no muzak.