But if you're looking for a stills camera, the E-P7 is capable of producing results that are as beautiful as it looks. First of all the resolution is increased to 1037k dots but probably more significant is the change in proportions. Some parts of the camera’s graphical user interface are extremely user friendly, for example if you switch into the Advanced Photo, Art, Video, or Scene modes you’ll be presented with the different shooting options and what they do, and you can easily select from these using the touchscreen. Amy was once part of the photography testing team for Future Publishing working across TechRadar, Digital Camera, PhotoPlus, N Photo and Photography Week.

If you’re a beginner then you’ll find the Olympus PEN E-P7 easy to use, as you can simply leave the camera in the Auto modes, letting you use it as a point and shoot, with easy to use on-screen controls. A focus-assist lamp comes in handy in lower light conditions, though you may wish to switch that off in discreet settings. We know that many people were hoping for a PEN-F Mark II, and may feel disappointed that this isn't that camera. Unlike the Art Filters Available in silver and black, or silver and white, we found the white version not to our own personal tastes, and combined with the plastic build quality, the camera didn’t particularly live up to our expectations for an Olympus PEN E-P camera, with both the Olympus PEN F and Olympus PEN E-P5 offering a more solid premium build quality.The Lumix GF7’s Self shot touch buttons are big and bold and let you change important settings like the number of shots with a tap or two. You’ll find an ISO range of ISO200 to ISO25600 available, with an additional LOW ISO speed of ISO100 available, albeit with a reduced dynamic range when using the lowest setting. If you like wide angle shooting there is of course nothing to stop you going for the E-PL7 body and, say, the Olympus 12mm f2. Of course, there’s always a sacrifice, and the trade off for having something so small and light is the lack of an integrated electronic viewfinder.

When shooting caucasian subjects this makes it difficult to know whether the camera's color rendition is overaggressive, but you have to trust your settings and keep shooting; get your images into a computer or your phone and the skin is just fine. This is a camera that should appeal to both entry-level photographers and those who are more advanced. The best results can therefore be found when sticking with AF-S and primarily shooting stationary – or at least relatively still – subjects. You’ll find plenty of detail available on the screen when shooting, including a dual-axis spirit level, and this can be toggled through using the INFO button.

So when using your own phone you only have to go through the QR scanning routine once, after which you just turn on the Wifi and select it from your phone settings in the same way you would any other access point. Josh joined Amateur Photographer in 2021, and as Online Editor, is responsible for bringing great content to the site, as well as reviewing cameras, lenses, smartphones and more. This is in contrast with Olympus’s OM-D series of cameras which have a mini-DSLR shape with a bump at the middle of the top plate for the viewfinder. Whether you need an ultra wide-angle, a macro lens or a telephoto optic, there’s something available – and what’s more, Micro Four Thirds lenses are so small that you can pack a great travel setup with multiple options into a fraction of the space a full-frame equivalent would take up.

A quick push of the 'OK' button on the back of the camera reveals a quick menu with a range of oft-used options to scroll through and quickly make changes, without requiring a deep delve into the more extensive main menu. Despite this being almost an “entry-level” model in the Olympus range, you can create exposures up to 30 minutes – once you’ve extended the 8min limit in the menus. Olympus has gained a reputation for outstanding stabilisation with the five-axis systems built into its OM-D E-M1 and EM5 bodies.If desired you can also dial the shutter speed in Manual all the way to Live Time and if previews are enabled on the camera you can view the peeking during the exposure along with the updated histogram on your handset’s screen.

The Micro Four Thirds mount gives the PEN E-PL7 access to the broadest and most established native lens catalogue of all the mirrorless camera systems. If you choose to record movies remotely with the camera you can’t touch the screen to reposition the AF area or pull-focus – something that is possible on Panasonic Lumix G cameras. If you’re thinking of picking up the E-P7 for vlogging, the fact that it uses a contrast-detect autofocus system makes it less adept than the likes of the Sony ZV-1, which plumps for a hybrid phase/contrast detect system. One minor complaint here is the slightly awkwardly placed on/off switch, which can be easy to knock to the 'off' position when making changes to the main mode dial, but it’s something you soon learn to account for when adjusting the dials.This has proven to be a sensible resolution for a Four Thirds sensor, and the familiar combination with a TruePic VIII processor leaves you with something that's capable in a variety of shooting situations. It’s also possible to replicated the effect of using traditional colour filters with the monochrome profiles and adjust the saturation of up to 12 colours by up to +/-5 steps for the colour profiles. While it's never going to be a sports camera, the burst shooting speeds are still impressive –the mechanical shutter is rated at 8. To use the Wifi you’ll need the Olympus Image Share app which is currently available for Android and iOS devices, I tested it with my iPhone 4S. If photography is your main concern, then the E-P7’s contrast-detect AF system puts in a perfectly good job.