E-P1 Settings Question

[Burningalive]

Ok....I've had my e-p1 for approx. one day, So could someone share with me the setting I need most be concerned about? I'm starting to figure the menu's out but man.....I really don't understand the way some settings are buried! The camera is beautiful! I just figured out how to change the IQ to superfine! It shouldn't be that hard! I haven't got a chance to look at the photo's out of it yet....I shot a bunch today and will look when I get home tonight. Any suggestions would be great! Thanks!

 

[tom in mpls]

As much as I'm enjoying what this camera can do, I agree that the menu and function organization is appalling.

 

[Godfrey]

hmm. I don't know about appalling; the Olympus C8080WZ was appalling. Complex is a little more like it for me.

I don't own one yet, but I've been reading the instruction manual for a week or so. Most of it is pretty understandable once you get the designer's logic in your head ... that's the real challenge. ;-)

 

[tom in mpls]

OK. How about, "the menu and function organization could benefit significantly from a careful redesign". In the mean time, I will try to get into the head of a seriously deranged designer.

 

[Brian Mosley]

It's just very deep, and not familiar... take it one step at a time, the beauty of the E-P1 is that you can use it every day - you'll master the menus in no time.

I've been using it for a good three weeks now, and it's getting better and better.

Cheers

Brian

 

[kevinparis]

obviously I am a seriously deranged designer...

I had a play with an e-P1 in Arles just over a week ago and found everything i wanted within seconds... Maybe i don't use a camera properly but i really don't get this constant moan about how the e-p1 interface is difficult... to me it is just like my oly 510... everything i need a press jog press away. Much better than any other digital camera i have ever had.

Maybe all these feature people are hunting for in the lower depth of the menus will make them better photographers... but i doubt it... they are buried because they are not that important to the process of taking a photo for the large majority of photographers

still not as instinctive as the old pre digital days... split screen to focus with a ring actually connected to the glass, and just 3 other controls for ISO, shutter and aperture... bliss.

K

 

[tom in mpls]

It's just very deep, and not familiar... take it one step at a time, the beauty of the E-P1 is that you can use it every day - you'll master the menus in no time.

I've been using it for a good three weeks now, and it's getting better and better.

Cheers

Brian

I am reassured. I do love the camera, but I am certain that the controls could have been designed in a more intuitive manner. It is true that my time with the camera has been short, and part of the problem remains my limited familiarity with it.

 

[Terry]

obviously
Maybe all these feature people are hunting for in the lower depth of the menus will make them better photographers... but i doubt it... they are buried because they are not that important to the process of taking a photo for the large majority of photographers

Perhaps there are some esoteric settings that you are referring to but I don't consider landscape out of the mainstream and bracketing, a simple fact of life in this type of shooting, takes either 26 or 13 button pushes depending on how you set it up. :thumbdown:

 

[kevinparis]

Terry

Not tried that... not a function I ever use... just tried finding bracketing on my 510 and it was a about 5 clicks away.

26 does seem excessive

K

 

[Godfrey]

Perhaps there are some esoteric settings that you are referring to but I don't consider landscape out of the mainstream and bracketing, a simple fact of life in this type of shooting, takes either 26 or 13 button pushes depending on how you set it up.

Heya Terry,

I tend to use bracketing infrequently, but most of my cameras have made it moderately easy to do either with a menu to configure the bracketing and a button to switch it on and off (Panasonic) or a button/dial combination press to do both in one operation (Pentax K10D, Olympus E-1). Doing the latter strategy with a menu is a bit slow to get to, makes switching it on and off quickly a bit of a pain .. I wonder how many people switch bracketing on and off like that?

It seems it might make sense to create a "my mode" configuration with all your standard settings plus your typical bracket setting. That way you could swap back and forth between them without having to dive down into the bracket configuration menu, just select which mode you want to be in and shoot.

Does this not work the way I think it ought to? Be easier to figure out if I had a camera, heh ... ;-)