Olympus EM10 mark 2 vs Lumix GX80/85 - Never Trust The Spec Sheet!

[@PhotosByMotaz]

Thanks a lot. The difference between the JPEGs is astonishing!

[@pietro-viecelli]

As someone that doesn't do video at all, I needed this review!

[@nomansarker5556]

The sound and "deer in head lights" picture almost made my drink come out of my nose 😂.

[@DavidFlowerOfficial]

Haha, that’s the exact reaction I was after😂 Thanks for watching 🖖

[@TigerPaw193]

Definitely a world class "spit take" moment !!!

[@PhotosByMotaz]

I wonder how the em10 mkiii or iv would fare in this comparison. Not sure which camera is considered the "newer" version of the lumix because their whole naming system is confusing to me.

[@ankagie]

That was exactly what I needed, thank you sooo much

[@DavidFlowerOfficial]

Hey, thanks very much. It was your question on the other video that led to me making this and I hope it was helpful. Have a great weekend 🖖

[@ankagie]

@@DavidFlowerOfficial yeah, I figured 😉 it was very helpful indeed. Have a great weekend too

[@hedydd2]

I have both cameras and agree that the EVF is better on the Olympus. However the EVF on the GX80 is integrated into the body and is smaller to fit. The camera lacks the Olympus’s top ‘prism’ hump and is therefore easier to remove from one’s pocket. The GX80 has a lovely soft shutter in comparison and also has better Panorama and 4K photo modes. While I love both cameras I use far more of the GX80. The E-M10 MkII is by far the most attractive body to my taste and the ergonomics of the controls are superior while the menu system is less intuitive to the new owner. Personally I normally shoot only jpeg and both have highly customisable colour recipes, more so on Olympus E-M10 MkII. Only in dodgy light or critical shoots do I shoot both jpeg and raw. Recording both has great advantages because even if the EX teleconverter, or picture art filters are used, or when shooting in black and white which I often do, there is the full colour raw file available to allow any number of different edited pictures, styles, filters and crops to be made from it from scratch/raw, if you see what I mean.

[@DavidFlowerOfficial]

Yeah I always shoot raw primarily but I think it’s important for some people to see what the camera puts out without any tweaking either in camera or in post. I agree with your point about the menus and in hindsight that would have been a great talking point. I love both of these cameras and as a raw shooter I have absolutely no regrets about choosing the GX80. Thanks for watching🖖

[@uToobviewer2]

I agree the shutter on the gx80 is my favorite out of all the cameras I own and as you said it's so small I stick the 20mm pancake lens on and it's my daily alternative to the ricoh grx or fujifilm x100.

[@Bigfarmer8]

Great thoughts and comparison David! Behind the EVF are still lenses and I believe the lenses in the E-M10 MKII are just better, making the EVF experience better. When I bought my E-M10 MKII the GX80 was the strongest contender as the camera is very appealing to me. Where you have a "problem" with your nose on the E-M10 MKII I had the problem that the EVF on the GX80 was poking in my eye. That, with the better grip on the E-M10 MKII (to my hands) made me chose for the E-M10 MKII. In fact nothing on the spec sheet did. Underlining what you said in this video.

[@janhenkins]

Nice comparison, thank you David! I still prefer the Panny range due to cost, somehow Olympus always tend to be a lot more expensive. I would love to try the EM10 mk2 sometime once I find one for the right price (or with the right whiskey levels combined with an early morning Ebay/MPB spree).

[@DavidFlowerOfficial]

I was quite lucky with this EM10 mk2 as I bought it without a working screen and fixed it myself so in total it only cost me around £75-80 and a terrifying hour of repair😂 But you’re right from what I’ve seen, the early em10 and em5 models are pretty expensive. Thanks for watching 🖖

[@janhenkins]

@@DavidFlowerOfficial Fantastic! You also have quite a special GX80, that particular style (brown/silver) is a bit rare. The black/black and black/grey models seems to be more prevalent.

[@DavidFlowerOfficial]

Oh really? I didn’t realise that. I just bought that one because I thought it looked cool to be completely honest 😂

[@Bigfarmer8]

I believe there are two reasons for the difference in price. The main one is numbers. If you sell more units, the price per unit can be lower. The other reason may be that Olympus uses better materials in some areas (like I mentioned the lenses behind the EVF). Before I gave it away I used my E-M10 MKII for four years and had over 50,000 clicks on it.The current user is still using it frequently and happily. I think the GX80 is a very attractive camera though.

[@martingreenberg870]

Thanks for the review David. I have the GX85 and Olympus EMD1 Mii. I know the EMD1 Mii has PDAf vs the GX85’s contrast detection Depth From Defocus. DFD is quick & accurate. It takes a little time for the sensor to go back & forth until it locks onto the subject. For photography DFD is OK. Not so much for video. DFD also isn’t so sticky for video. The PDAF on the EM1 Mii is better than the DFD on the GX85. I suspect the EM10M 2 also has PDAF. I really prefer the RF style of the GX85 to the DSL style the Olympus has. It is smaller and less heavy. A head scratcher about the GX85 is it has so many video functions yet lacks a mic jac. The EMD1 Mii has the mic jac. I suspect the EMD1 Mii has better IBIS. Olympus has always had super IBIS. I love M43 bodies and all these bodies are good. Oldies but goodies. Mask On Nurse Marty (Ret)

[@DavidFlowerOfficial]

You pretty much hit the nail on the head. The gx80 feels like it’s almost unfinished with the missing mic jack and superior video features yet it’s a far better photo camera than a video camera. The EM10 mkii was the camera that made me take a closer look at m4/3 and eventually switch to it as my main system, so I’ll always have a soft spot for that camera🖖

[@GrumpyTim]

Really interesting to see just how differently those two process the images David, you can't beat a side by side comparison. I think I turned many of the touch screen features off on my GX80 because I was always changing stuff by mistake, and that was just be holding the camera, so I bet I'd be all over the place with the EM10 - I have a love hate relationship with touchscreens!!!!

[@DavidFlowerOfficial]

Yeah I was quite surprised by the difference between the JPEGs, but the raws just need a slightly different approach to land at pretty much the same place. I do like that gx80 though🖖😁

[@StephenStrangways]

E-M10 II: 2360 k dot EVF GX80: 2764 k dot EQUIVALENT EVF. It's the "equivalent" that you missed and is super important, because it means it's actually only 1/3rd of that resolution, displaying only colour at a time and rapidly flickering between them, which some people can perceive, making it utterly maddening, in addition to simply being much lower resolution overall.

[@unbroken1010]

In English man

[@StephenStrangways]

@@unbroken1010" 2360k dot" means 2360k dots. "2764k dot equivalent" means 921k dots and it will give you eye strain.

[@SudipHowladar]

Totally agree on the evf. GX85 had a god awful evf, em10 ii isnt too bad and works well. I think its also an oled evf. Makes the world of diff. Menu system in gx85 is amazing like all other lumix bodies and doesnt drive me crazy. But on the fly, I dont need much other than the super control panel. Lastly, usb charging is a good thing for me. I ended up selling my gx85. Regret it simply cuz I want something with 4k video stabilization thats kinda small. Own a gx8, ep5, em10ii, and a g9 ( abd a 5d mkiii). But no 4k stab on a smaller body. Agree on jpegs as well, but there are certain setups on lumix to bring the jpeg game up, if not better than the olympus. (IMO)

[@alx4nex]

Hey Dave, as another eagle-nosed fellow, I completely understand your frustrations mate 😅. After using for 12+years my canon 7D and for the last one year my S5MII, which i love both, i decided that for everyday usage i wanted something fun and without a VF. (I can't help it but use it when available...😂) Soooo... My everyday snapper now is a 2nd hand Pen LP9 with a pancake lens and my 👃 couldn't be happier...😊

[@DavidFlowerOfficial]

I think it’s time the camera companies started to understand the struggles of us beaky lads😂

[@MaybeTiberius]

i feel you on the usability. i m getting back into cameras, used to have my dslrs and stuff and as someone with a big nose and wearing glasses, i absolutely hated those center VFs. its frustrating, annoying and even ruined fun in photography for me. your nose always ''hurts'' your screen is always dirtys, your glasses are always dirty and at times i had to guess images because i couldnt even get close enough to the evf to see all 4 corners or light was coming into the evf making me see almost nothing. from a usability standpoint, a small evf on the side without having this huge mountain of a vf in the center is huge and i think i much more prefer this design over dslr style

[@l00kmore]

The specs of the gx80 evf are misleading. They mention 2.7 mpx but as this is a field sequential screen I understand that's actually 920k pixels times 3 (RGB) ? Thus real resolution is 920k pixels

[@DavidFlowerOfficial]

That would explain why the Em10 looks better. Thanks for watching 🖖

[@uToobviewer2]

I have both of these cameras and I agree. Olympus performs better with their focus (face and eye af was there before Sony), jpegs and evfs. Even the older olympus cameras are way better with colors straight out of camera. I usually prefer the build and ergonomics of the panasonics and they tend to be filled with useful features. Olympus cameras are like accessories and are easy to get scratched and beat up quickly. The raws are usually good enough but the only issue really is focus on some of the Panasonics. They're just not as fast or inspire as much confidence as olympus in many cases.

[@DavidFlowerOfficial]

Absolutely agree about the af. As I said here I use the GH5 for my videos and it’s an absolute gem except for that video af. I understand that Panasonic had their own ideas about the auto focus system but I can’t believe it took until the G9ii to change it with all of the great cameras they’ve made . Thanks for watching 🖖

[@maxpatzke]

After using a GX80 and an EM5 Mark 2 for years i've eventually sold the Olympus. The Olympus menu system is so mad that it takes all the fun out of making photos.

[@DavidFlowerOfficial]

Absolutely and another big difference between the two. In hindsight that would have been a good talking point🖖

[@paulanderson24]

I absolutely love the gx80. IMO it’s one of the most underrated cameras of the last decade. Great to see it making a bit of a resurgence as a forgotten gem. And I agree RE the EVF. It’s not great but it’s fine for composing.

[@DavidFlowerOfficial]

Yeah absolutely. It’s a great camera and many people would likely use the screen over the EVF anyway. Thanks for watching 🖖

[@paulanderson24]

@@DavidFlowerOfficial absolutely. Love your down to earth real world videos and actual photography compared to the “photographer” influencers on here

[@DavidFlowerOfficial]

I appreciate that mate. As an older guy and someone who’s been in the game a while I prefer the no bs approach (I think the internet has an abundance of it already😂) Have a great weekend 🖖

[@paulanderson24]

@@DavidFlowerOfficial oh big time. I’m near 40 now and just cannot be arsed with the level of crap that’s out there. I’m no “photographer” just enjoy taking pictures and appreciate others work. Being from an industrial city myself I am partial to the views from sunny Hull

[@martingreenberg870]

@@paulanderson24 If you are taking pictures you are by definition a photographer. Mask On Nurse Marty (Ret)

[@alexSpunkt.]

Great review 🖖🏻

[@DavidFlowerOfficial]

Cheers, Alex🖖

[@metphmet]

You missed something in the specs: The screen and the evf of the lumix are 16/9 . In 4/3 ( which is 12/9) only a part of the screen and of the EVF is used. The resolution is reduced in 4/3 to 75% of the original (2M dots)

[@unbroken1010]

What is your point

[@LadyBovine]

​@@unbroken1010 I think the point is exactly what he said. That because only part of the screen/EVF is used by the 4:3 image of the sensor, the usable resolution of the Lumix EVF is lower than the E-m10ii, despite the spec number being higher. And if you're wondering what my point is then bless you.

[@RealBesty]

Top centre VF wins over one on the left every time as I use my left eye…

[@DavidFlowerOfficial]

That’s fair, I’d have the same nose issue if I used my left eye😂

[@RealBesty]

@@DavidFlowerOfficial I have to turn my head and look left whatever I use but at least with the VF in the middle my conk is less likely to be on the screen!

[@davidmccarthy6061]

Thanks!

[@MichaelGerrard]

Many years ago I looked at those models when they were new. My choice was the GX80. The reasons were, it looks better, it is a range finder style sleek design, 4k video, 4k photo mode, cheaper than the E-M10. I used the GX80 for four years. I never had washed out jpegs. You can easily change the in-camera photo profiles. Previously to owning the GX80, at one time I had an Oly E-PL5, I remenber toning down the colour a notch because trh standard set up was unnatural to my eyes. Conclusion? Each to their own 😉

[@michaelbrown5371]

New hat Dave?

[@DavidFlowerOfficial]

Did I not wear that one the last time we were out? It is pretty new so maybe not lol

[@michaelbrown5371]

​@@DavidFlowerOfficialpretty sure you didn't but I could be wrong! I'd look great in it tonight. Got too much sun today and my face is about the same colour as that hat 😂

[@DavidFlowerOfficial]

@michaelbrown5371 Haha, part of the reason I always wear a hat is to stop my bald melon freezing or burning😂