The “Ultimate” Daddy Cam

Olympus E-M1 + 17mm f/1.8

As of 9/20/2015, the title of the “Ultimate” Daddy Cam has been transferred to the Panasonic GX8.

I actually own multiple camera systems — each one has their strengths and weaknesses. For fast action, fast FPS, superior optical quality, or using external flash, for when the shots really count, I’ll grab my Canon 5D Mark III. If I’m looking for casual snapshots photos of friends or walk around shots — nothing too serious, then Fuji is great. So, where does the Olympus E-M1 fall in?

For me, the E-M1 along with the 17mm f/1.8 is great as a daddy cam. What’s a daddy cam? It’s for those shots when you are running around and playing with your kids, have to pack light, don’t have time to carefully compose and focus, but want something better than an iPhone or a point and shoot camera. It’s also a great video camera. I know it’s not 4k, nor is it the best codec available, but the in body image stabilization and the speed at which the 17mm lens focuses are wonderful.

The best way to illustrate this is to look at some examples:

Nadia was telling me a story, while eating a homemade popsicle, she was laughing and had that twinkle in her eye. I picked up the camera, facial AF kicked in, and here’s the result! Straight out of the camera.

This video was shot entirely with the E-M1, 17mm f/1.8 combo, with onboard sound. It was the same night as the photo above, and purely spontaneous. I edited this and graded the footage in FCPX. This was shot handheld using only the camera’s built in IS. I’m quite pleased with the video quality.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQg2LbNbO_k&feature=youtu.be

Here was a monumental moment, Nadia had just started successfully riding her bicycle by herself without training wheels. I grabbed the E-M1 and used the tap on the screen to focus and shoot and was able to capture the moment. Would the shot have looked better with my 5D Mark III and Otus 55mm f/1.4 lens or even the 70–200mm f/2.8 IS II lens? Yes it would have, but I don’t regret my choice for this shot. It’s straight out of the camera, I had the white balance set to shade which accounts for her orange skin. Yes, I shot it RAW+JPEG and I could correct it, but I kinda like it the way it is.

This last video (an ALS ice bucket challenge video) was actually shot by three of my cameras. The first part where Vanessa is introducing herself, pouring the ice into the bucket, and challenging her friends was shot on the E-M1. The audio was from a Giant Squid Audio Lab Omnidirectional Microphone ran straight into the camera with the line input dialed down to -8 and the volume limited enabled. We removed the microphone from her dress before the ice water was poured. The white balance was set using a grey card and the shot was done in the standard/natural/default mode on all three cameras.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ah0VgoQBGM&feature=youtu.be

In conclusion, the E-M1 is a great family cam. Yes, it can be used for more serious things, but if you’re a dad looking for a great family cam, I highly recommend this combo. Is it for moms? I don’t know, I’m not a mom.