ziggy_nc

I am thinking about upgrade my Nikon D7100 to Olympus E-M5 iii or Nikon D7500. Both companies are having black Friday deals. My only issue with the Olympus E-M5 iii the lowest ISO is 200. I take many landscape and sunrise/sunset picture and I like using the ISO setting of 100 on the D7100. I am curious if having an ISO of 200 will be an issue. When I used film back in the day, the standard was 100 for every day used and 400 or 800 of evening photos and 200 was in between. The only issue I have with the D7500 is the LCD in the D7100 is broken and it will cost over $300 plus to repair. For a camera that should had lasted a life time (6 years or more) it did not. The Z-50 I think is out of the picture even though Nikon is offering a good deal, it doesn't have the capability I am looking for. It doesn't seem to fit my needs for great landscape photos. I checked the website camera decision and did a comparison, and seem the E-M5 iii and Z-50 is 1 and 2 for mirrorless at that range, but Z-50 is entry level while the E-M5 is immediate. Comparing the D7500 with E-M5 iii, both immediate cameras, the E-M5 iii score a little better. What do you think?

BebuLamar

Do you consider lenses and their cost. The 2 cameras don't use the same lenses. What lenses you're already have for the D7100?

Tomfl101 Loc: Mount Airy, MD

I doubt you will see a difference in noise/quality from 200 to 100 on any camera. I like the expanded ISO 50 on my Canon Mark4 but only need or use it when syncing flash since the fastest shutter speed is 200 without going to HSS. It allows a wider aperture for increased bokeh in portraits. Since landscapes are your thing, I wouldn't make that a factor in your buying decision if it were me.

ziggy_nc

Thanks for the input.

rjaywallace Loc: Wisconsin

The Olympus E-M5 iii seems the better deal right now, but you will need lenses. Oly pro-level primes are very nice, but typically not cheap. Look for USED Oly primes at KEH, B&H Photo, Adorama and Cameta.

odujim Loc: New Jersey

About 5 years ago, I was shooting with both the Olympus E-M5 (first edition) and the Nikon D7100. The E-M5 was eventually traded up to an E-M1. Prior to getting the D7100, I was shooting with Olympus exclusively - my first camera was the Evolt E-510. I really enjoyed the E-M5 and E-M1, but grew frustrated with the noise at higher ISO and that the premium lenses cost about the same as Nikon's premium lenses. Also, the APS-C sensor in the D7100 was considerably larger and more capable in low light situations. I sold my Olympus equipment because it made better sense for me to stick with one system. Eventually, I added a Nikon D800e to the mix so that I would have the benefits of a full-frame camera (I was buying mostly FX lenses for the D7100 anyway.) A couple of months ago, I bought the D7500 during a Nikon refurbished sale and got a terrific camera with only 8 clicks - practically brand new! I sold the D7100 on eBay and have thoroughly enjoyed the D7500. It's one of the few cameras that I instantly liked. And I have to add that the D7500's flip-out screen has been a very useful feature to have, as well as many of the features from the higher-end D500. I don't miss having the two card slots of the D7100 and the battery life of the Nikon DSLRs last much longer than the Olympus micro 4/3s.

Ultimately, the decision is yours but I would choose the D7500 over the E-M5 for landscapes if given the choice.

Jef7.1 Loc: Alameda, CA

I just got the 7500 and I’m happy with it so far. If i were you, my two main concerns would be the aforementioned lens compatibility issue and also that the 7500 actually dropped from 24mp in the 7100, 7200 down to 20.9mp. This allows for better low light performance and I only noticed a slight issue when blowing prints up to 16”x 24’” but even that was in an image that was pretty heavily cropped to begin with.

William Royer Loc: Kansas

Not a bad choice either way. As a person who has owned, used and loved over the years both Nikon (up to D810) and two years ago cancelled my order for the D850 and moved to Olympus M1/Mk2, I’d offer a few summary thoughts: 1) If you already own a set of excellent Nikon lenses, the cost of building a new set of excellent lenses is not trivial. (Yes, you can use adapters, but that gets to be a PIA). 2) You certainly know that while both camera have a ‘cropped’ sensor, the Oly’s is the smaller. That for me has been a non-issue (and sometimes a benefit) when printing up 24x36. 3). Having said all that, if I had it to do again I’d make the same decision again for the Oly. When you delve deeply into the relevant capabilities and advantages of each, it was for me a pretty easy decision, and one that has been re-confirmed through extensive usage.
Good luck. And, enjoy either decision!

Jef7.1 Loc: Alameda, CA

Almost forgot. One other thing to note is that with the 7500, pressing the shutter button halfway to focus is so sensitive as to be entirely useless. It doesn’t bother me as I prefer back button focus anyway but it may bother some people and I am entirely unclear why Nikon did this.

ziggy_nc

Thanks for the input, I am also leaning to D7500, because I already have 2 lenses and just need the body. I notice they also have D500 and D750 body only one sales, so I might shoot for the stars and go for the D750 over the D7500. The D7500 is less than D750, but the D750 is better camera. In either case, I am leaning toward the Nikon, it just that I had a bad experience with the LCD breaking on the D7100. I didn't drop the camera, but to get push into my collar bone while taking pictures of a lighthouse on the Outer Banks. That is another story.

wdross Loc: Castle Rock, Colorado

"My only issue with the Olympus E-M5 iii the lowest ISO is 200."

ziggy nc, I have the E-M1mkII and know that it can be slected to go below the default ISO 200. Since the new E-M5 mkIII uses the same sensor, I decided to check the specifications carefully. Good news for you! There is a setting of "LOW". It appears that when one selects "LOW", the camera can go as low as ISO 64, but the camera will try to pick the ISO closest to ISO 200. In other words, you can force the camera to use a lower ISO, but the camera gets to chose what ISO. This is one of the issues of buying a Semi-Pro camera where the manufacture limits some of the functionalities for various reasons versus a Pro camera. So even though you cannot specifically choose an ISO below the native 200 ISO, if you choose ISO "LOW" and have the right conditions, it will go there.

wdross Loc: Castle Rock, Colorado

And if you want to shoot in any weather conditions without any other rain gear, I know that the E-M5 mkIII will meet that demand hands down. Even my old E-M5 back in 2011 met that demand. Just mate the body with a splashproof lens and go shooting in the rain. I think even the E-M5 mkIII inital release bundle includes a splashproof lens.

mizzee Loc: Boston,Ma

I just got the m5III and while 200 is the recommended ISO, it has ISO “low” which is 100. This was the same with m5 II. I upgraded to Olympus 3 years ago from a Nikon d7000 and have never looked back. No more schlepping a big heavy bag, plowing through obscure menus and dealing with my tripod more than I would like. The 5.5-axis internal stabilization is amazing. Go for it! Be happy!

camerapapi Loc: Miami, Fl.

I can only speak in my behalf so what follows is only my opinion.

If you are not into wildlife and sports photography there is no way you can go wrong using a mirrorless camera. You can use a mirrorless camera with that purpose in mind but it will not perform better than a dSLR with their excellent AF system.
Image quality is excellent with mirrorless bodies and those little cameras pack more technologies than a dSLR. I have found my Olympus bodies excellent for portraits and landscape photography. I have done some wildlife photography with them but they are old bodies and their contrast AF is not as efficient as a phase detection one.

200 ISO is the base ISO of the camera meaning that the sensor will be working at the best resolution. I am not familiar with the new camera but so far all the videos I have watched have told me it is a great tool.
These cameras are small and very capable. They are great for traveling or spending the day shooting.

Ched49 Loc: Pittsburgh, Pa.

It's always a question of give & take when comparing two cameras, the question of iso shouldn't even be considered. As far as performance, both cameras are about even, to me it's a question of size, the larger DSLR or the smaller mirrorless. Just because the LCD broke in your D7100, doesn't mean it's going to break in your D7500. Good luck.