Anyone had/got experience with this camera?

 

I'm looking to upgrade a very ageing IXUS as a 'pocket' camera. And I'm quite liking the idea of a compact mirrorless with a pancake lens.

 

Being a Canon guy I've looked at the EOS M (with the 22mm pancake) and aside from the slow AF I'm not hearing that much of a negative. I'm not really looking at spending huge amounts, but will happily go high enough over the bar of compact point and shoots as currently I'm hating every image from the IXUS simply due to the horrendous image quality (mostly due to the fact I'm using it in low light 90% of the time).

 

The M would let me get a usable ISO1600 and with f2.0 on the pancake it should, in theory, be much nicer quality on the APS-C sensor in low light.

 

It's mostly about pocketability so I'm not that bothered about zoom (hence the 22mm prime), as it will mostly be a social camera but the kit 18-55 should cover me if I really want to be artsy with it at any point.

 

The Olympus PEN or the NEXs seem to get much higher praise, but at a much higher cost too. So just wondering if anyone had some first-hand experience with the Canon?

How much can you get the EOS M and pancake for? 

 

Unfortunately I don't have any experience with the EOS M as my mirrorless systems are micro 4/3 and NEX plus in the camera forums I use more regularly I've not seen anyone with them either.  Canon have obviously faced a lot of problems as they came in late to the market and the initial price was ridiculous (around £800) so rivals were offering mature more polished cameras with a much wider choice of lens and accessories for a lot less money hence they generally have a fairly negative perception.

 

The situation is clearly different now as the price is more reasonable and firmware updates are meant to have improved the camera.  I find the NEX cameras cheaper, I managed to pick up a brand new NEX-5N with the 18-55mm lens for £240 and last week bought a brand new NEX-6 with the 16-50mm power zoom (very nice spec of camera) BUT my big problem with the Sony cameras which would clearly be an issue for you is the lack of small lenses.  The 16mm F2.8 lens is very small but a super wide isn't great for general use, the 24mm F1.8 is huge and expensive, the 35mm lens is pretty big and so is the 50mm.  I realise the latter two have optical stabilisation but it's really frustrating to have small, light bodies which would be perfect for a set of pancake primes but you're stuck with these bulky lenses.  Panasonic have the tiny 20mm F1.7 which is a great general purpose lens and as you've mentioned Canon have the 22mm F2 which is also great for its small size, flexible focal length and wide aperture.

 

The other camera I'd recommend looking into if you haven't already is Sony's RX100, its sensor is obviously smaller than the EOS M and micro 4/3 (two stops down from APS-C, one down from micro 4/3) but the body and lens are extremely compact.  It's the same size as the likes of the Canon S series so it's genuinely a small camera and while it sensor is smaller than the mirrorless cameras, it's much larger than the other compact cameras which are a similar size.  Originally my pocket camera was a GF3 with the 20mm F1.7 lens or the power zoom 14-42mm so a similar size of package to the Canon EOS M with pancake, it did fit in a jacket pocket ok but still felt quite noticeable.  The RX100 however is quite a bit neater, slides in without issue and out of its case it will go in a reasonable sized trouser pocket without issue.

 

Low light the RX100 isn't bad at the wide angle where it's F1.8 and the high iso I find to be superb for the size and more usable than I expected whereas the LX3 while good for its sensor size, I just found too frustrating in low light use.  The main weakness I find compared to APS-C and FF sensors is the lack of flexibility in the raw file, particularly with the exposure as you can't pull back highlights and lift shadows anywhere near the same.

 

John

Big issue if 90% of your shots are in low light as you mention, you will need to get a separate flash as the EOS M has no flash!

Ignore this UK get a compact flash in the box to fit the hotshoe, still adds to bulk though.

Edited 12 December, 201312 yr by Defenderben

The M makes sense I think you can also get a convertor to use you ES lenses too if you ever had call for a back up camera on a shoot

 

I have read that the Canon 110D is a little cracker too. Although it is a bit bigger than the M model it looks even smaller than the old 350D, perhaps I am imagining this and obviously any lens would bulk it out :(

 

I looked at the G15 a while ago (when I was a bit more flush) and found there to be a bit of shutter lag that I hated. Not tried the M model yet.

I'm looking at the EOS-M with Flash, 18-55mm IS and the 22mm pancake for £350 delivered.

(Likely won't be using the flash much though Ben, I'd rather be at f2.0 and a high ISO as I'm not a big fan of on-camera flash.)

 

John - I was initially looking at going for the RX100 II but that's over £100 more than the Canon at the cheapest I can find it. The RX100 (mk1) is around the same price as the EOS-M which is why I was considering going for the Canon.

 

Basically I was looking for a decent point and shoot and now I've seen the offer on the EOS I'm debating if it's justified to spend that amount of cash on a mirrorless system instead. Wasn't really keen on the idea of a m4/3 in the past (same cost and similar size to a low end DSLR). But with this being APS-C and (with a little more spend on the adapter, as you say Amanda) slotting into my existing lens collection it's become a little more tempting.

 

I just find it quite sad that I'd now rather go out without a camera at all than bring my IXUS with me. I'm pretty sure my iPhone can produce better pictures, and that's not much of a compliment.

Jessops are doing the EOS M with std zoom lens for £349 (not the cheapest price) but you do get a FREE Canon EF lens mount AND free next day delivery AND you can claim £50 cash back from Canon making it £299.

What's not to like about that offer?

I've only had a 'play' with the EOS M, but will be trading my Olympus EP-3 & std lens for one soon as the sensor is better all round (in my opinion).

but you do get a FREE Canon EF lens mount

Where's that? I can only find the body and kit lens offer on their site? :(

It's a link from Camera Price Buster (best website to find the best prices), so possibly a special offer to their 'customers'.

 

It's in the banner below the header and is automatically added to your shopping cart upon.