Getting the most out of a Olympus E-PL2

[jeff2001]

I just ordered a new epl2 through costco.com. It was a great deal. I was originally looking at an epl1 through Amazon, but found this great deal and could not resist.

I am looking for suggestions on getting most out of my new camera and learning how to maximize the most out of this new tool. I looked online and only found one book that focused on the epl2 and I might buy it for reference material other than the included manual.

Any suggestions on the best way to learn about all of the ins and outs of the epl2 would be appreciated.

Thank you in advance.

[TCav]

What do you want to shoot?

[jeff2001]

I am not looking for how to learn about shooting certain types of pictures, I want to learn the most about the specific camera I bought. I think that I will be classified as a generalists and will be shooting mostly landscapes, people (both indoors and outdoor, but probably more outdoors), and travel related pictures.

I sure that I will be learning a ton about photography as I begin this journey, because I am upgrading from an old and cheap P&S, but I have a real keen interest in capturing great quality photos. The reason I picked the epl2 was because of most reviewers indicated superior IQ. I am sure that most digital cameras would have been fine for my current level, but I want to grow.

For example, I saw a book "EPL1 for Dummies" that is written in a straight forward manner, but there is nothing similar for the EPL2. I just want something as a reference manual for my camera, then I will move on to specific types of photography books.

[ramcewan]

jeff2001,

Congrats on the new camera, I have the e-pl2 and love it.

I guess the best thing to do is to hang around the Olympus Micro Four Thirds forum here on Steve's Digicam. There is a group of active regulars who all use the Olympus micro four thirds cameras who will be very helpful to you.

As for specifics on how to use the E-PL2 (or other Pen Cameras) there are a couple of sticky threads in that forum that cover things like setup and using single point focus. Beyond that the best thing to do is to get the camera in your hand and try shooting. The iAuto (hate the name btw) mode on the E-PL2 is actually pretty good at figuring out what you are shooting and making appropriate settings, with the exception of longer focal lengths (over 150mm) and low light shooting the iAuto mode is what I use mostly. In this mode the camera is very much akin to a point and shoot, but with much better images resulting.

[BillDrew]

Look at good photos - try to figure out how they were done.

Read your camera's manual - few (if any) books will get you through the mechanics.

Keep in mind that most of the great photos you will find in art galleries were taken with a lower IQ than the camera you just bought.

[zig-123]

Good morning and sorry for coming into this conversion so late. But, thought that, if you're still looking for information on the E-PL2, that a review and, to a lesser degree, comparison to the E-PL1, would be a good read for you. It is written by Kirk Tuck, a pro photog. from Austin Texas. It helps in defining the differences between the E-PL1 and E-PL2.

http://visualsciencelab.blogspot.com...ent-kirks.html

As for a good manual, frankly, the Olympus owners manual is the best source of information on the camera. As Mr. Drew suggested, read the manual. To that, I would add, download the manual onto your desktop and use it as a reference tool whenever you have a question.

Lastly, take a lot of photos, post those which you would have questions or seek comments in the micro four thirds forum on this site as there a plenty of good enthusiasts that can help shorten the learning curve.

Most of all, have fun
Zig