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Olympus PEN E-PL7: the Ultimate Camera for Traveling and Blogging

Sep 6, 2016 by Sarah Kim 9 Comments

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For the past six months, I’ve been stuck in endless review holes to find the perfect camera for traveling AND blogging.

The perfect camera has to be light and easy to toss in my bag (unlike my current Nikon D90, which weighs about 2lbs with the lens). Also, the perfect camera can’t compromise quality just because it’s a smaller.

Well, after hours of research, I’ve found the ultimate camera for traveling and blogging– the Olympus PEN E-PL7. Read on to find out why it’s great for both traveling and blogging, or at the very least, scroll down to see some photos!

1

Light

The best part about the Olympus PEN E-PL7 is that it’s lightweight. With the battery and kit lens, it weighs 16.5 ounces (469 grams), which makes it quite easy to carry around all day when traveling.

Compact

The camera size is quite compact so I don’t have to bring a second camera bag out in addition to my daypack or purse when traveling. This is a must since traveling minimally is important to me.

The Olympus PEN E-PL7 is so compact that it fits into this gray leather wristlet I have. You can see in the picture how it compares in size to my sunglasses and make up too!

https://www.instagram.com/p/BIcnaRfDyvz/

Quality

Even though the Olympus is smaller than my Nikon, it doesn’t compromise in quality. It has really great image quality at 16MP for its resolution and even does great in low lit places such as restaurants where I love taking photos of food.

Screen for Selfies

The LCD screen can tilt 180 degrees, which is great for selfies. I’ve found that the selfie is a bit unflattering since the camera is so close to my face, but I do tilt the screen 90 degrees so I can get an overhead shot of my restaurant table shots.

It makes it much easier than having to stand up on my tippy toes and look down at the camera. I can now hold my camera up and look at the tilted screen instead.

Touch Screen

The touch screen has many advantages when it comes to changing settings for a photo, but my favorite part of about the touch screen is that I can simply tap the screen where I want the lens to focus, and it automatically focuses on that part!

I don’t need to manually move the dial to the focus point I want, and with so many focus points on this camera, every picture of mine comes out with a precise focal point.

Wireless Capability

I love the wireless capabilities that this camera has. When your phone and camera are connected to the same network, you can take photos from your camera through your phone!

This is great for taking photos of yourself in your home without having to set a timer or constantly checking your camera on the tripod to see if it focused on you properly. This feature isn’t exactly for travel bloggers, but it’s great for lifestyle bloggers.

Also, you can transfer photos from your camera to the phone asap so you can eliminate the step of having to transfer photos to your computer, then your phone for Instagram candy!

Price

At only $399, this camera excels in its price-to-quality ratio. You can buy this film looking camera on Amazon or Olympus’ website.

Tons of Features

The above points were my favorite parts about this camera, but if you’d like to find out more about how this camera can rock your travel and blog life, check out Olympus’ website.


Cons of the Olympus PEN E-PL7

Overall, the Olympus PEN E-PL7 is no DSLR. If you’re going to get this camera, you are either a beginner photographer, using this as a second camera like I am, or wanting something that fits your needs for traveling and blogging. With that mindset, here are a couple of cons I found from using the Olympus PEN E-PL7.

Sensor Size

One thing I don’t like about the Olympus PEN E-PL7 is that the sensor size is smaller than what I’m used to with the Nikon D90. The Nikon D90 has a APS-C sensor size while the Olympus has a 4/3 sensor.

However, this is bound to happen with a camera as small as Olympus PEN E-PL7 (sensor size tends to decrease with the size of a camera). For landscape photos, I quickly adjusted to this sensor size and embraced the difference by taking photos a bit further back than I would normally stand– easy fix! As for food or lifestyle photos, the sensor size didn’t impact my photos enough for me to notice.

To learn more about how sensor sizes affect your photos, read this helpful post by Photoseek.

No Viewfinder

There is no manual viewfinder on this camera, which is unlike my Nikon D90 but similar to my iPhone so it wasn’t too hard to adjust to.


Photos Taken with the Olympus Pen E-PL7

Here are a couple of photos taken of me at Rue Cremieux in Paris. It’s a charming little street!

P7230463

P7230458

So you can get a well-rounded view of the types of photos that the Olympus PEN E-PL7 excels at, check out these photos from Instagrammers.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by natsuko hirakimoto (@hanamaru_natsuko)

https://www.instagram.com/p/BJ9gVX9DKfn/

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by ASHLEY (@fitforwanderlust)

https://www.instagram.com/p/BJ7_aXlA9qe/

What do you think of the Olympus PEN E-PL7? Do you own one or would you consider buying one? Would love to hear your thoughts!

Thanks for stopping by! xo.

About the Author

Sarah is a New Yorker living in Amsterdam. She’s been traveling the world since 2005 and has been to 19 countries and counting. She loves to travel for food and off the beaten path adventures. Check out her blog at https://www.talesfromafork.com, or at the very least, follow her adventures on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/talesfromafork. Article also published here and used with permission.

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Filed Under: Gear Tagged With: E-PL7, food photography, olympus, Olympus PEN, Pen, Photography, review, Sarah Kim, travel photography

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