Just got my EOS-M! First impressions...

[dtaylor]

* Smaller and heavier then I anticipated. Heavy enough that I wouldn't want to use just a hand strap.

* AF isn't as bad as I feared. Certainly no 7D or 5D3, but I think it will be usable for all the situations where I will use the M. It should actually be usable for street (I'll find out tonight). Note: I'm judging the single focus square mode.

* Already love the 22mm f/2. Sharp, great bokeh.

* Touch screen interface is nice. The UI could use some tweaks to increase speed even more. But I don't think it's necessarily a negative vs. a design with more physical controls (in this size/format). It's better and worse. I have a feeling that touch to select focus point will prove to be a big positive for this UI over a more physical UI. My only real complaint is that I've already had my shirt change something, and I'm not on the sensitive mode.

* I'm thinking I will end up wanting an OV for some uses.

* I don't like that MF is disabled in AF and AF+MF (until after you AF and only while you hold the shutter). I realize the ring is electronically coupled, but I want a custom function where I can set it to always work if the camera is on. For that to be practically usable I suppose we would need to be able to move AF off the shutter button. That's fine with me, it's how every SLR I own is setup, and that red dot button isn't doing anything useful in still mode.

* Is it just me, or does it get warm?

* So far I've only tried one well lit scene, but...ISO 6400 JPEGs look great. After Noise Ninja they have similar noise levels to my 35mm NPH400 scans from a decade ago. More importantly, they have similar structure, i.e. the noise looks more like a fine grain film, not objectionable at all. 12800 has objectionable noise but still seems usable after some NR in post. I imagine this could fall apart with a poorly exposed scene (typical of crop at high ISO), but with good exposure I'm impressed.

This seems a bit better then my 7D, or at least better in JPEG (haven't compared RAWs yet). Sensor? DIGIC 5?

For being widely criticized and panned, this isn't a bad mirrorless body at all. I think Canon could have a hit if they:

* Improve AF even further (70D sensor).
* Tweak the UI and add focus peaking.
* Add OV and/or EV options.
* And finally: more lenses! Give us some more great primes like the 22mm f/2.

I'm happy I jumped on the $300 deal.

 

[neuroanatomist]

* Smaller and heavier then I anticipated. Heavy enough that I wouldn't want to use just a hand strap.

* I don't like that MF is disabled in AF and AF+MF (until after you AF and only while you hold the shutter). I realize the ring is electronically coupled, but I want a custom function where I can set it to always work if the camera is on. For that to be practically usable I suppose we would need to be able to move AF off the shutter button. That's fine with me, it's how every SLR I own is setup, and that red dot button isn't doing anything useful in still mode.

I frequently carry my 1D X + 24-70 II by just the handstrap.

You can set the M up with back-button AF (the * 'button') with C.Fn-5.

 

[celltech]

Got my new "Point & Shoot" in the mail today as well. I agree with a lot of your points. I am using this to hopefully replace a S95... I will "try" to not compare to my T2i or 5D3.

Construction is fabulous! Very solid in the hand and the 22 f/2 fits better and tighter than my other bodies. Why can't a 5D3 lens fit this tight???

Even with the new firmware the AF is perhaps, ummmm, deliberate. But it's no worse than the S95 in that regard. I think it will work fine for around the house and vacation duty.

Although I know its a mini T4/5i i really don't want to shoot raw and process. My desire it to just shoot jpg and be done with it. And as compared to my S95 I can already tell the resolution is *much* better. Forget the added 6MP, it's quite sharp and the 22 f/2 bokeh is very good. I know raw is much better than jpg on my T2i...but I don't want to go there

I am playing with my hand holding style and am getting used to choosing focus points. I think it will be much better to grab focus on the extreme sides of the frame by using my finger instead of a rocker/thumb knobbie thing. It just seems to work on a form factor like this.

Yes, if you are leaving the screen on and playing with the menu for a while it does warm up. But such is the price you pay for putting a Digic 5 in a powershot body. And I am still not burned

The little 1/4 turn fasteners on the strap seem cheesy, but I guess they will hold? I would still like a hand strap and need to look for one.

I put my 430EX on the shoe and it works great..even if it's bigger than the camera. But for some crazy reason I could see carrying it around if the need arises.

Love the pinch cap on the lens...makes me want them for all my glass.

Well worth the $299...if you are on the fence, jump off and pick one up before they are gone.

 

[Swphoto]

We used this strap on our S100, and it is now attached to the M. We'll probably purchase something that's a bit stronger for it soon, though.

http://www.amazon.com/OP-TECH-USA-Cam-Strap/dp/B000H02B6O

That's only used with the 22mm - if a heavy lens was on it, and I needed a strap, it would hang on the BlackRapid.

 

[dtaylor]

Had my EOS-M out last night for some street shooting. I was really happy with the camera and results (that I could see on the screen) until I got home and loaded the SD card...and it was unreadable

I tried multiple photo recovery programs while testing the M with other SD cards. The photos could not be recovered, and I couldn't reproduce the issue. At first I was afraid there was a camera issue, but now I'm thinking it was the card. Everything (Mac/Win/disk utilities) reports a much smaller capacity for the card then should be available (i.e. <4 GB and it's an 8 GB card) and it's not a partition issue. In retrospect I should have caught this when I first put that card in the camera. Before changing from RAW to JPEG I remember thinking "that's all the RAWs this can hold?"

It was an older no-name card I had lying around, something a relative handed me over a year ago after upgrading to a bigger card. What was I thinking?

My M now has a SanDisk Extreme 16 GB. It better live up to their reputation.

Impressions from the night of shooting?

* AF is actually usable for most street, but...this camera would be a lot better in this respect if we could move AF to the record button (the exp. comp. button is not a good place) and if we had focus peaking. I also wish we had a "tap to focus" option in addition to "tap to shoot". I don't want AF to have anything to do with the shutter.

* MF throw is way too long. This is electronically coupled and can be anything Canon sets.

* I love being able to touch select focus points.

* With the 22mm I'm able to hand hold down to 1/10s even though I can't hold it like a DSLR.

* I feel comfortable to ISO 6400.

* I left +1/3 exp. comp. practically the entire time.

* Definitely does not draw the attention of a DSLR.

* The touch screen has one major issue: it acts on its own while rubbing against your shirt. Even got a shot thanks to this ;D (too bad it's gone). By the end of the night I found myself turning the camera off and/or hitting play. The latter prevents setting changes and lets the screen timeout, but the camera is still on and ready to shoot. I wish there was a "sleep screen" button or icon on the screen.

* Being used to SLRs I hate the relatively long blackout time.

I realize this probably isn't going to happen, but if Canon addressed the first points it would literally move the camera up a class for me.

 

[dtaylor]

I frequently carry my 1D X + 24-70 II by just the handstrap.

You're a mad, mad man.

You can set the M up with back-button AF (the * 'button') with C.Fn-5.

Thanks. Alas, I don't really care for that function on that button (location). I did put C.Fn-5 on my quick menu though because I will switch based on the situation.

Now if only there was a C.Fn for focus peaking and for short MF throw ;D

 

[dtaylor]

Construction is fabulous! Very solid in the hand and the 22 f/2 fits better and tighter than my other bodies. Why can't a 5D3 lens fit this tight???

Yes.

Even with the new firmware the AF is perhaps, ummmm, deliberate. But it's no worse than the S95 in that regard. I think it will work fine for around the house and vacation duty.

I'm OK with it. One trade off is that it always nails the focus.

Well worth the $299...if you are on the fence, jump off and pick one up before they are gone.

It was a steal at that price.

 

[Old Shooter]

Construction is fabulous! Very solid in the hand and the 22 f/2 fits better and tighter than my other bodies. Why can't a 5D3 lens fit this tight???

;D You must not have a "Shorty Forty"! The first time I put it on, I thought I had accidentally cross-threaded it!

Oh, I see you have one - maybe it's not as snug as mine...

 

[FunPhotons]

Got mine with the kit 22mm and the zoom I bought off eBay the same day.

I agree with the impressions posted here, including that it gets warm and it is heavier and more solid than I expected. On the blackout and focus it seems on par with my S100, which is fine by me. I actually use the S100 most of the time for family documentary shots (the 5DmII is too big, noisy and intimidating for much of that) and this is the perfect replacement.

I also can't help thinking that this is what the G1X should have been. I had that camera for about an hour and returned it. Too expensive for what you get IMO, I didn't find it substantially better than it's predecessor. This guy pulls it off however, and is a complete steal at the price.

The handling and touchscreen is really nice, and I love the clarity and resolution of the screen! Having this much control in this small a package is a dream.

I hate to say it but I'll probably be getting 90% of my pictures on this camera from now on. Looking forward to getting the zoom! Finally I also got the GPS shoe accessory and love it with this camera (I really like having GPS tags).

 

[missitnoonan]

I'm a big fan, the picture quality for the size with the 22mm attached is great and now I finally have something nice to carry when I don't want to lug my 60D around. I just got the 18-55 in from eBay yesterday. Seems nicely constructed on the outside and picture quality seems fine for the $120 I paid for it. I don't think I'll use it all that much (kind of pointless indoors without a flash, and I might as well use the 60D if I'm going to bother with external flash). But nice to have for the occasional trip when I want something light.

 

[Random Orbits]

After having the wife use the S90 (before I accidently drowned it)/HSxxx, this blows it out of the water IQ-wise. Best $300 camera I've ever bought.

Played around with MF and AF+MF with the EF-M 22 f/2 and was likewise disappointed with its implementation. This camera will be used strictly AF only with EF-M lenses. Loved the IQ of the EF-M 22 -- fantastic little lens. Still haven't quite figured out a good way of holding it with the right hand and still have good access to the controls, but it's a good trade for the compact size.

I do wish that the camera would prefer something faster than 1/30s before trading shutter speed and ISO (auto ISO) though. It'd be nice to set the min shutter to something like 1/60 or 1/120 because kids move even when they try to be still. Servo AF isn't very good, but it was not expected to be good.

When the wife looked at it, she immediately asked where was the flash. Might have to pick up the ex-90 at some point because there is no way she'd use it with a 430. Ordered the ef-m ef adapter. Don't intend to use it much at all, but the M will be a capable backup to the DSLR if the situation arose.

Not quite sure if I'd get another lens for it since all the needed focal lengths are available with the DSLR and the main advantage of the M + 22 f/2 is its size. Tried out a relative's NEX 5 and was not impressed. It probably had to do more with the kit zoom than the sensor, but I know I'd rather have the M + 22 f/2.

 

[Swphoto]

Played around with MF and AF+MF with the EF-M 22 f/2 and was likewise disappointed with its implementation. This camera will be used strictly AF only with EF-M lenses. Loved the IQ of the EF-M 22 -- fantastic little lens. Still haven't quite figured out a good way of holding it with the right hand and still have good access to the controls, but it's a good trade for the compact size.

Did you try switching to back button AF? That enables full time manual focus with the 22mm (when you have AF+MF selected) in the menu.

 

[celltech]

Construction is fabulous! Very solid in the hand and the 22 f/2 fits better and tighter than my other bodies. Why can't a 5D3 lens fit this tight???

;D You must not have a "Shorty Forty"! The first time I put it on, I thought I had accidentally cross-threaded it!

Oh, I see you have one - maybe it's not as snug as mine...

My 40 is tight...tighter than any other EF/EF-S lens that I own. But it's still not as tight as the 22, and once the 22 "clicks" onto place there is -0- rotation. The 40 can be moved back and forth a hair.

Believe me, the first time I mounted the 22 I thought something was wrong and I was thinking I was going to break something Now I know that feeling was that of quality.

 

[tiger82]

I've been playing with my new EOS-M and while it will not replace my 5D2 or 1D3, it opens up many possibilities. Using my EF lenses is very different. Handheld shooting will be an adjustment. If I had the $, I'd attach 4 EOS-M cameras to EF lenses like the 24-70, 70-200, 16-35, 8-15 fisheye when I go on vacation. The camera/lens combination is barely larger than carrying just the lens. Here's my strap setup using an Optech wrist strap and a mini QD adapter:

 

[neuroanatomist]

@tiger82 - what's up with that hood on the 70-200/2.8? Hope you know it's too short to be of any real optical benefit...

 

[tiger82]

It extends quite a bit.

 

[Cali_PH]

@tiger82 - what's up with that hood on the 70-200/2.8? Hope you know it's too short to be of any real optical benefit...

I think it's one of those rubber hoods that can 'pop out' to a hood, or folded back. I've wondered how those are in use.

 

[Random Orbits]

Played around with MF and AF+MF with the EF-M 22 f/2 and was likewise disappointed with its implementation. This camera will be used strictly AF only with EF-M lenses. Loved the IQ of the EF-M 22 -- fantastic little lens. Still haven't quite figured out a good way of holding it with the right hand and still have good access to the controls, but it's a good trade for the compact size.

Did you try switching to back button AF? That enables full time manual focus with the 22mm (when you have AF+MF selected) in the menu.

I was trying to set to BB AF (custom function 5), but it didn't seem to be working the way i thought it should. There might have been something else that I had set that might have over-rode it or locked it out. I'll have to dig into the manual to see... Thanks for the heads up!

 

[RGF]

Nice if the M had a sub-APS-C sensor, similar to Nikon for long lens work

 

[tiger82]

Nice if the M had a sub-APS-C sensor, similar to Nikon for long lens work

We are schizophrenic, do we want larger or smaller sensor in a compact camera? If you want a 4/3, don't buy the M. What do you want to be able to do with the M?