Customizing the E-PL1

[Dee]

Phil....Ryan....or anyone who's done it. I need some help setting up some of the customizations. Namely the Menu Display and menu options. There's several buttons...*A AF/MF, *B Button, *C Release, *D Disp, etc. I want to assign something to the FN key but the button to do that isn't available. It's grayed out and can't be chosen. The *A, *D, *G, *H and *J can be chosen, *C, *E, *F and *I can't.

How do I access those functions? The manual is next to useless. It lists things you can set but not how to access them....just do it!

I sure wish someone would hold a class on setting up this thing! LOL!

 

[GMH]

There is only a limited list of functions you can assign to the Fn button. To do it go to *B (button), Fn (function), there you will see a list of function to choose. Your can find the fish symbol here too.

 

[slowhands]

.. I need some help setting up some of the customizations. .. I want to assign something to the FN key but the button to do that isn't available. It's grayed out and can't be chosen. The *A, *D, *G, *H and *J can be chosen, *C, *E, *F and *I can't.

How do I access those functions? The manual is next to useless. It lists things you can set but not how to access them....just do it!

I sure wish someone would hold a class on setting up this thing! LOL!

I too hope someone does make a guide to setting this up for underwater use. Maybe I'll ask my grandchild, kids seem to intuit new technology. I'm stumbling around figuring out how to do different things. Don't get me wrong, I like this camera, but like any new gizmo it needs a Do What I Mean button (DWIM). The iAuto and Live Guide are a step, but simplistic. I think I've got a handle on setting it up in A, S, M modes and tweaking white balance (although I have not tried that underwater to see the effect). I did that without reading the manual, then started looking for how to setup MyMode. I've always hated technical manuals, all the facts are there, but who likes to read an encyclopedia?

Is there a kind soul who has the time and knowledge to start this, and maybe others could add topics? Come on, you're all experts, share the knowledge!

 

[slowhands]

I decided to poke around for an Olympus E-PL1 tutorial on the net. Interesting, there are many. What caught my eye was a set of high level intros from Olympus itself - shot with an E-PL1!
This is not the nitty gritty stuff, but it's slick and worth a watch. Here is a camera store website with the videos listed, they are on youtube.
Introducing The Olympus E-PL1 - CameraWorld.com
Adorama has an excellent "Guided Tour" of the E-PL1 here (you could laminate this as a crib sheet):
Guided Tour: Olympus E-PL1 from Adorama Learning Center

 

[Dee]

I did finally figure out how to get to ALL the menus in the custom part...you have to take it out of iAuto mode. DUH! I knew it was something stupid!

One thing that's helping is I printed off the PDF manual and had it spiral bound. That sure makes it a lot easier to lay open flat to find things...and be able to use both hands to play with the camera! Did you know you can assign a function to the video button and use the regular 'shutter' button to start the video? If using the video isn't a big thing to you that could come in handy.

I don't have the list in front of me but I've been slowly working my way through the manual and taking notes for those things I don't know what they are. It's very frustrating....they describe what a button does, or can do, or will let you do but doesn't give explicit instructions on how to make it do it.

Thanks for those links. I had one of them saved but had forgotten about it. I DO know I'm liking this camera more and more!

 

[Peter Guy]

Dee -- As you get settings figured out, PLEASE pass them along for people like me who are beholden to all those who go before!

 

[slowhands]

...I've been slowly working my way through the manual and taking notes for those things I don't know what they are. It's very frustrating....they describe what a button does, or can do, or will let you do but doesn't give explicit instructions on how to make it do it...

I'm liking this camera. But I really need to set it up so the functions I often need are one touch. Maybe a couple of My Modes, one macro with flash, one other for subjects about a meter away, something like that. And single button access to custom white balance, perhaps, or something else useful. Quick setups that I can do to catch the moment, because sometimes the opportunity is fleeting.

I was reading a Preview on DpReview: Olympus E-PL1 Preview: 4. What's New: Digital Photography Review
I stumbled on this:

The custom settings menu is hidden by default (and isn't for the faint-hearted), but can be accessed by switching it on in the setup menu [Wrench symbol, then MENU DISPLAY ON. Yes!!!] Once engaged an additional 62 options become available, arranged in 10 groups. These allow customization of just about every aspect of the camera's behavior.​

http://www.dpreview.com/previews/olympusepl1/Images/screens/menushow.jpg

http://www.dpreview.com/previews/olympusepl1/Images/screens/custommenu.gif

I walked through all of those 62 options with delight (see thumbnails below). I quickly figured out how to assign the Fn button to Custom White Balance, and did. The option to reassign the circle button was there, for now I left it as Video Start. Then I set up my two MyModes (it only has 2 MyMode setups). It's almost as good as my C5050 now (which had 4 MyModes). Happy camper here!

But wait, there's more! You can change the default simplified display of camera settings to be richer. You set the display to SCP (it's under Menu D, INFO, CONTROL SETTING, and change everything to SCP), which upgrades the simple Control Panel to the Super Control Panel familiar from Olympus DSLRs. Then when you press START, instead of the iAUTO stuff, you get the screen below with camera state shown. You can walk the display with the 4 buttons around the START button, and change almost everything without going to menus. It's much faster.
http://www.dpreview.com/previews/olympusepl1/Images/screens/control1.jpg

On an unrelated note, what about that issue of the shade ring to block flash from causing lens flare? Sea&Sea says flat out that you can't use DS-TTL with this housing because of internal reflections of flash (is that true?). They recommend manual camera, 1/64 flash, and manual strobe and say DS-TTL is "impossible".

The problem seems to be stray light from the flash reflecting into the lens. This is apparently only an issue with Olympus PT-E series housings, due to the housing design. It would seem to apply to any strobe, including Olympus' own strobes.

Is this a problem people have noticed? Has anyone tried to make a shroud to channel the light to the light ports, or some other fix? I am aware that Olympus is offering a "shading ring" for their PT-EP01 housing to resolve this issue. You need one for each different lens. :depressed:

Here is a specification for the Olympus POSR-EP01 Shading Ring for M43 ED14-42mm + PT-EP01:

Features:
* Shading Ring for Olympus M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 L Standard Zoom Lens when used with OLYMPUS PEN Lite E-PL1 and PT-EP01 Underwater Case enables to prevent lens flare

Compatible with the following models:

* Olympus EZ-M1442 M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 L Standard Zoom Lens

Here is a reference to the shading ring in the Olympus PT-EP01 launch news release:

OLYMPUS | News Release: Olympus announces the PT-EP01 Underwater case for the OLYMPUS PEN E-PL1

I recall Dee posted a request for info on this shading ring, and Jack posted a reply that he would try to get some in stock. I wonder who has stock on this shading ring?

I don't like that you need a different shade ring for each lens. I think I will try to make a shroud for the flash, to guide light to the fiber ports, but block it elsewhere. I'll just stick it on with Velcro and see how that works.

 

[Prop Joe]

Thanks for the info Mr slowhands!
How many "My Modes" can you configure?

 

[JackConnick]

I do have the shading rings, just need to get them on the site - I will tomorrow.

I asked Olympus to show how to turn on the Super Control Panel. They ended up writing a section to their FAQ section:

Super Control Panel.

This is direct control to most everything on the camera at a push.

Jack

 

[PHIL RUDIN]

I am sure I am not the only one on this site who has extensively used these housings in the field with strobes fired by fiber optic cords. I have used the E03, E05, E06, Nexus and SeaTool housings for the E-3 all with fiber optics and a wide verity of lenses and have had NO lens flare with any of the lenses I have used. I have used the Inon dome port for the 8 mm fisheye which comes with an adhesive backed foam ring to reduce flare and without the ring found no flare. I have yet to test the 14 to 42 in the PT-EP01 housing but I expect the results to be the same. The shading ring is threaded to fit each lens and is not a bad idea but I have not found that flare from the cameras pop-up flash has in any way caused a problem with the Olympus or Inon strobes not to work properly.

Regarding the Sea & Sea strobes, they work using fiber optics with other brands of cameras and housings all of which use the cameras pop-up flash to trigger the external strobe and all of which allow some excess light to bounce around inside the housing. How is it that the Olympus housings are any different from all the others. The problem is with Sea & Sea not getting the strobe's electronics sync correctly with the Olympus type TTL, I do not think the problem is with the housings.

It is great to have access to the "super control panel" which mirrors the rest of Olympus DSLR's

Phil Rudin