Refurbished Olympus CAMEDIA D-540 Zoom 3.2MP and similar items

Granted, and with a grain of salt, I am coming from a 15yr old DSLR - a Nikon D80 (not-full-frame) camera that was top of the line when I bought it, . . . and I have a few Nikkor "pro" lenses (including the treasured and ahead of its time 17-55mm f2.8) . . . and, I only ever shoot in aperture priority (90% of the time) or shutter priority (10% of the time). So . . .

That said, the Pen-F (when paired with the 12-40mm f2.8 Pro) blows my Nikon out of the water. I've made the joke, "This things takes pictures in the dark, hand-held at an 1/8th of a second!" Just incredible. Lightweight. Functional size. Sleek. Buttons in the right places.

And I love the images produced! I do very little editing in general. This camera's sensor and imaging core make that even easier, almost to the point where all am doing is a crop for style. (Admittedly, I am doing a little light & dark level adjustment and sometimes adding a filter, but that's about it, where often times, this is a simple (auto-correct) button push and I move on with a great, color balanced image.) Really pleased with this as I hate photo editing.

As for the screen - imho - just figure out what you want to use on the touch-screen and turn the rest of its functioning off - especially the "focus and take a picture when I press here" function (which should have been off-by-default). It'll be the first thing you hunt thru the menu to find, trust me.

But (unlike the other Pen cameras) there are buttons for everything on this body anyway. So, learn to use them and just use the screen as a viewfinder when pressing your eye to the camera isn't ideal for taking the shot. Or use it for review (which can be auto-off and only when I press the |>| play button, as is my preferred setup).

As for lenses (which is what should be your reasoning behind a body purchase), the Olympus line is great; and while the pancake zoom 14-42mm f3.5-5.6 is sleek & non-obtrusive, you'll be happier with the Pro version in the long run - just know that the 12-40mm f2.4 Pro lens is much bigger, comparatively to the non-pro line and is about the same size as the Pen-F body, only round. Either way, you'll probably end up replacing the range of the pancake kit lens with either the wonderful prime options or the pro versions and the pancake with just end up being a $200 paperweight. So, skip it (if you can).

Speaking of primes, if the 12-40mm f2.8 Pro is out of your price range, opt for the 17mm f1.8 and the 45mm f1.8 as both are perfect mates to the Pen-F. They're sleek and spot on.

Pop one on the camera and the other in your pocket and you're set for street to portrait with a little food, jewelry & flower macro in between (as the 45mm can get you in close) - all in a tight little package that you can stuff into your jacket verses a camera bag on your back. These 2 (tiny) lenses and the Pen-F body make a perfect travel, around-town or always-have-on-me set - imho.

(Haven't tried the 75mm f1.8 but kind'a figure this will complete the full package with no need to shop further.)

Unless you're gunning for the "complete prime set," once you have these two (the 17mm & the 45mm), I wouldn't bother with the 25mm f1.8 (non-pro version) as its *too* close to the 17mm f1.8 anyway - which has a better field of view and an auto/manual focus snap-ring, just like the pro lenses. I think you'll find yourself going for either of the other two lenses before putting on the 25mm.

I am totally happy with the camera body & the MFT system.