Your first reaction when picking up a GM1 is likely to be “this is much smaller and lighter than I expected”; unless you are my wife in which case your reaction will be “SOOO CUTE!; which is just as well because I bought one for her to replace her ageing Olympus EP1. And yes, it is cute, especially in orange. But is it a proper photography tool, or just the result of a Panasonic engineering exercise?
Let’s tackle the size first, this thing is tiny. If you have a modern smartphone, the GM1 may be thicker, but it is smaller in the other dimensions:
As for weight, it feels even lighter than you expect for the size, a mere 280 grams. This camera is not going to weigh you down.
Construction feels solid, and the controls are positive, which they need to be given that you are operating in a very confined space. On the top of the camera there is the on/off switch outside the shutter button, a mode dial, and focus mode selector; inside of which is a function button which you can program to one of a number of options:
There is also a pop-up flash, although a maximum flash sync speed of 1/50th is a limitation:
The back of the camera offers the usual Panasonic control panel; except for the control wheel.
The control wheel function is triggered by pushing the top of the ring and then rotating the ring to, for example, change aperture when you are in Aperture mode. Push the top of the ring again and you rotate the ring to change exposure compensation; a familiar process if you have used Panasonic cameras before.
Only one function button? Not enough! But turn on the camera and the back of the screen offers two pop-out tabs. The first is pre-set and provides different options depending on which mode you have selected, e.g.:
Aperture mode:
Intelligent Auto mode:
The bottom tab opens up to provide a further five programmable function buttons:
These are nowhere near as convenient to use as physical buttons, but are much quicker to access than navigating through the menus. There is also a Quick Menu which gives you access to the main functions of the camera. Given the limited space to provide controls, Panasonic have put effort into providing a comprehensive screen-based control system, and once you have set up the camera, everything you need should only be a couple of screen taps away.
Selecting a focus point is a breeze, touch the screen where you want to focus and if necessary spin the wheel to change the focus box size. You can also set the camera so that it takes a photo focusing on the point you touch; which is good for discrete shooting; but also good for taking loads of unintended shots triggered by your fat belly (allegedly). Focus is fast and accurate.
Inside the tiny machine is the sensor from the GX7, which is reckoned to be up there with the E-M1 for quality. Also inside is a shutter than can be as fast as 1/16,000th of a second; which is quicker than most other cameras on the market. It achieves this by offering both a mechanical shutter and an electronic shutter. If you set the shutter choice to Auto, then the mechanical shutter will operate up to 1/500th second, with the electronic shutter being used for faster speeds. The electronic shutter is almost completely silent. The mechanical shutter, unless you are in a very very quiet environment, is also close to silent; provided you turn off the optional shutter noises in the menu. Quiet times. Also inside a WiFi module, so you can share those crucial shots of your lunch on Facebook as soon as you have taken them.
What’s it like to shoot with? A bit of a fiddle to be honest, especially with my largish, clumsy hands. Using the dial to change aperture, for example, is fine unless you press too hard, at which point you find you may have triggered changing the white balance and your shots are suddenly purple. Manual focusing is a challenge, And once you get the sunshine on that rear screen, then you are driving blind. But that’s compared to my E-M1; my wife finds it as easy to operate as her EP-1.
Being a Micro Four Thirds camera, you can stick whatever you want on the front of it; but the camera comes with a 12-32mm F3.5-F5.6 kit lens. It’s compact when folded away, but has to be opened up to be used:
Here are some shots taken with this lens:
Pleasing enough IQ, but how would it compare to the much heavier and much more expensive Olympus 12-40mm Pro lens? Here are two shots, one taken with the 12-32mm on the GM1 and the other with the 12-40mm on the E-M1; both with 100% crops for a more detailed comparison:
Not a huge difference.
Apart from the kit lens, the obvious partner for this camera is the classic Panasonic 20mm F1.7.
Add in the Olympus 45mm F1.8 and you have a useful setup for both normal and low light.
The weight of the camera and these three lenses is 528 grams. Compare this with my equivalent set-up with the E-M1:
This collection weighs 1.7 kilos, costs considerably more. and takes up much more space in a bag. Which is better?
As with all camera choices, it’s all about compromise. I love the E-M1 because it fits in my hands perfectly and does everything it needs to do, fast and effortlessly. It sacrifices little in terms of utility and performance; but this comes at the expense of size and weight compared to the GM1 (although it’s still much smaller and lighter than a DSLR).
The GM1 sacrifices ease of use in pursuit of minimal size. You have to admire Panasonic for producing such a tiny camera which retains so many, albeit fiddly, features. Image quality has not been compromised and I understand video is also very good. The kit lens is competent, probably more so than other recent kit lenses from Panasonic and Olympus; and of course you have the option of sticking all the other wonderful Micro Four Thirds glass on the front.
Would I swap my E-M1 for the GM1? No, I am besotted with the E-M1. But would I like to take the GM1 out on the street with the 20mm F1.7? Definitely. And if I space dictated that it was all I could take on a trip then I would look forward to using it; even though its size might frustrate me at times.
The king of the compact cameras has been the Sony RX100. I reckon the GM1, pitched at a similar price point, beats it easily; and offers a way into a the wonderful world of Micro Four Thirds. If you like your cameras small, the GM1 is definitely worth a look.
Comments 🔗
2014-02-14| Andrew saysThanks for the review -was waiting to see what you had to say ( had some suspicions but being patient I cleared my mind for your final denouement )…for those of us on a budget this could find appeal although the no viewfinder thing is kinda a killer for me….wow, if I keep saving money by not buying cameras I will soon be able to afford one ! - although with everyone and their dog announcing new models ( seems like ) every day it’s somewhat difficult to choose…just waiting for the “Oh bite the bullet " time to get something which is (hopefully) better than now…though of course the “next greatest thing” will be released the day after….