OM System OM1 review – Not a birding review!!!

In this OM System OM1 review I am going to show you what the OM1 is like in general use. I originally bought the OM1 with the intention to start spending much more time doing wildlife photography. However, with a young family , I simply don’t have the time available to really dedidcate to that pursuit.

It is easy to find an OM System OM1 review that covers bird photography.

Therefore this review will cover what the OM1 is like for landscapes, travel and some candid portraits too.

If you find my review useful then please consider using my Amazon affiliate link below. This wont cost you anything but will allow me to write more reviews like this.

OM 1

As you can see from previous articles on my site I have been using Olympus gear for a long time now. I have owned and used the EM5III which I reviewed as well as the EM1X and EM1III. I wasn’t motivated to write a review for the EM1 III as I didn’t feel that it brought enough to the table to warrant a full review. The EM1X was and is a fantastic camera but one that was controversial due to the size. I really liked that camera and have been tempted recently to get another due to the great deals Olympus Europe are offering on it. However, I’m doing a lot of travel these days and so I have resisted as it doesn’t fit that well with my ethos of travelling light.

Anyway, back to the OM System OM1 review.

The OM1 had enough new features and claimed improvements to get me seriously looking at it because I wanted a camera that was suited to travel. It is not just the size of the Micro 43 system that attracted me but also the possibility to leave both my tripod and filters at home thanks to the IBIS and internal ND filters. This would enable me to travel essentially with just the camera, lenses and batteries without compromising on the kind of images that I could create.

So What’s new with the OM Systems OM1

Here are the main selling points that motivated me to buy the OM1, which I shall talk about in this article.

:Speed improvements brought about by the new dual Truepic X processor and stacked sensor.

:Usable handheld Hi Res mode

:Live ND mode

:Subject detection modes

:IPX 53 weather sealing

:Supposed improved high ISO performance

:50 FPS with AF usable in Pro Capture mode

:Improved viewfinder

Om System OM1 ergonomics

The OM1 was the last camera that was designed by Olympus before they sold their imaging division and it changed to what has now become OM System. It has the Olympus logo on it and it feels every bit an Olympus EM1 series camera. The handling is very similar to previous EM1 bodies. A couple of the buttons on the back are a little too recessed for my liking so using it with gloves is more difficult than the EM1X (which was among the best handling cameras that I’ve ever used).

Weather Sealing

However, it is comfortable and the build quality feels up to the usual standards I have come to expect from Olympus. It now comes with an upgraded IP53 rating for weather sealing. In practise, I have put my olympus cameras through some of the most demanding weather over the years, from the wild winds and driving rain of the Outer Hebrides to the monsoons of Asia and they have never let me down. With the OM1 I have no concerns that it will be anything less than solid in all weather conditions.

The main upgrade that interested me was the new 5.76 million dot EVF. This has been a long time coming and is a much needed upgrade in order to mix it with the competition. It is bright, clear and sharp. It makes the EVF a pleasure to use and is a huge upgrade compared with the previous generation’s old 2.36 million dot EVFs. I am now able to clearly see which areas of an image are in focus and combined with the focus aids it is infinitely better than the older cameras. With the EM1X I could barely define sharpness and manual focussing was a real struggle.

Dual SD card slots remain and while it would have been nice to see a CF express type B card slot to match the shooting speeds possible with the OM1 I find that the dual UHS-2 card slots work well for everyday shooting and save me a bit of money on having to purchase (the still expensive) CF Express cards.

On the top dial the OM1 has 4 custom slots which I find very useful for quickly swapping between setups for various shooting scenarios. I initially set these up with differrent birding and wildlife scenarios in mind and it made switching between hi speed shooting modes and various auto focus modes very quick and easy. My custom modes are now setup for various portrait and lighting scenarios.

In terms of ergonomics, everything else remains broadly similar to the EM1 mark 3 so moving from one to the other is pretty seemless physically.

The OM1 has a new and in my opinion, much improved menu system which anyone migrating over from another brand will find far easier to navigate. Items are laid out and named in a much more logical way than the older menu system. As someone who has used a lot of Olympus cameras I knew my way around the old menus but the new one is undeniably much better.

Not only is the menu laid out much more logically but unlike other cameras, when an option is not available it actually tells you why. You can also press the info button to get a brief explanation of what a menu option does. I find the new menu to be one of the best available from any manufacturer.

Sensor

The OM1 comes with a new stacked 20mp sensor that allows it to shoot at insanely high frame rates of upto 120 fps without AF and 50FPS with AF. For birders this is incredibly useful and when combined with Pro Capture it allows you to get shots that are simply not possible with most other cameras.

To read more about these features I would suggest that you head over to specific wildilfe and birding reviews as it is beyond the scope of this review and as mentioned in the title, this is not a birding review.

Claimed Improvements

OM System claims that the new sensor offers a 1 stop improvement in dynamic range and a two stop improvement in high ISO noise performance.

In all honesty I have not done any scientific tests on the dynamic range of this camera compared to previous versions as I no longer have any other Olympus cameras. My instinct from looking at previous photos and ones from the OM1 are that any difference in dynamic range is fairly minor. The shots look the same to my eye and that’s fine as I normally get the exposure pretty close to where I want it in camera and I find the OM1 to have enough dynamic range to do this. Should it be a particularly challenging scene then it’s easy to setup bracketing.

I have tested for noise performance and I can say that a two stop improvement is a little optimistic. I would suggest 1 stop to be a little more accurate. There is definitely an improvement in the high ISO performance of the OM1 compared with the EM1 iii and EM1X and I am often surprised at how good images look at ISO 6400. In fact I was shooting the OM1 just the other day at night and found that the noise performance, even at ISO 10,000 was surprisingly usable when shooting black and white (which I do a lot these days).

Some of the claimed improvement in noise performance undoubtedly comes from OM Workspace now having an AI powered de-noise feature included which does a remarkable job at cleaning up image files. Adobe Lightroom also now has this feature.

As much as I wish they could, OM System cannot overcome physics and the small gap between Micro 43 and APS-C in terms of noise still exists. My Fuji XT5 files still look cleaner once I start to push the ISO to 3200 and above.

OM System OM1 Review – Key features

As mentioned at the start of this review, as well as wildlife photography, the OM1 has some key features and improvements that lead me to believe I could use this camera for travel and leave behind my tripod and filters.

The hand held hi res mode combines 8 images to create a 50mp file and importantly, composites the images much more quickly than the EM1 III.

In practise I have found this feature a mixed bag. Sometimes the additional detail and improved noise performance/tonality are readily apparent over standard 20mp images and at other times I struggle to see any meaningful difference between them. What I can say is that the speed at which the OM1 now produces the hi res images makes it much less of a hassle to take them as you are only waiting a few seconds for the camera to be ready to shoot again.

OM System’s Hi res mode still does not have motion correction unlike Panasonic so any movement in the scene can and does cause some issues. In practice, for landscapes I have found hand held hi res quite usable. I have even used it for portraits on occasion and providing your subject doesn’t move too much it can work well. I wouldn’t rely on it though.

One thing that I rarely hear discussed online is the fact that the larger depth of field of Micro 43 sensors for a given angle of view can be a benefit over larger sensors. For instance, when shooting a landscape where I want front to back sharpness on my GFX 100S, it will require me to stop down considerably, pay much more attention to hyper focal distances and quite often require me to focus stack. On the OM1 the hi res mode combined with deeper depth of field actually makes getting these kinds of images much more simple than on larger format sensors. The image quality of hand held hi res is not quite upto medium format standards but it is certainly a lot closer to full frame than you might think. Either way, I find hand held hi res to be a useful feature and one that I hope OM System develop more in the future.

ND Filter

The other feature that interested me is the ND filter mode. I say mode because it is not a physical ND filter but a software based solution that combines multiple photos and blends them together in camera to give the apearrance of having used an ND filter. I don’t know about you, but I’m a sucker for slower shutter speeds when it comes to rivers, waterfalls and coastal images.

In practise I have found the ND filter in the OM1 to work really well and give natural looking shots most of the time. With upto 6 stops of ND filtration it offers plenty of scope to get those beautiful silky water effects yet leave your tripod and physical ND filters at home.

Auto Focus

While most OM System OM1 reviews focus on how the camera performs for wildlife and bird photography, not much has been said about how good it is for general photography.

The speed of the new processor along with quad pixel Af points mean that the OM1 is very quick to focus. I use the OM1 with single AF unlike when I use Sony cameras which do much better in continuous AF mode.

The OM1 easily captures candid shots like this one of my daughter enjoying snow for only the second time.

The AF is quick to attain focus and rarely gives me any false positive focus locks.

Face Detect

Face and eye AF work quite well when your subject is facing the camera front on and even to the side a little but it is not as good as the latest AF from either Canon or Sony. Those systems are exceptionally good at keeping the subject when they turn away from the camera and back again although my Sony A7IV does ocassionally give a positive focus lock yet the image is not quite in focus. Generally the AF on the OM1 is fast and accurate and on par with my Fuji XT5 when it comes to face and eye tracking. In low light it can sometimes struggle a little bit but all my other cameras behave in the same way under the same circumstances too.

One of the main benefits I find with the Micro 43 system is that I’m much more likely to take it out and capture casual moments and memories.

If i had to rate the OM1 AF when shooting general subjects and people I would put it in the second division, below Canon and Sony but on par with Fuji and Nikon and above my Panasonic GH6. It is more than capable of getting sharp in focus shots in the majority of situations.

The subject recognition modes also work really well, bird photography is a breeze and shooting my growing pack of dogs when they are charging around is no challenge at all. The fact that you can easily setup custom functions to switch between your favourite AF modes is also very useful.

OM Sytem OM1 review – Conclusion.

If you are considering the Om System OM1 as a general camera for family, portrait, landscape and travel photography then it is a very capable camera. It has the most advanced computational photography modes of any camera from any brand with features such as live view, live composite and hand held hi res and ND modes. Combined with the exceptional weather sealing and comfort it makes for a great all around camera. It will also allow you to capture some fantastic wildlife images for a lot less money than a lot of other systems while saving quite a bit of weight.

However, as a general camera there is a lot of competition and if the features that I mentioned above are not integral to your plans then it may not make sense to pay for all the technology crammed into the OM1.

Yes, the OM1 is capable of doing just about everything you could want and that makes it a great all rounder. However you are paying for a stacked sensor and hi burst shooting rates which may be of no benefit to the things you photograph.

For landscapes and travel, an OM5 ii (if they bring the new menus, hand held hi res speed and ND filters of the OM1) would be perfect and cheaper/lighter. I would choose the OM1 over any X series Fuji for landscapes as I’m just not a fan of Fujiilm X series cameras for landscape photography.

Alternatives

If you shoot mainly people then I would take a Fuji XT5 over the OM1 and for street photography the Fuji weather sealed f2 primes are hard to beat. I wish OM System would update their compact f/1.8 primes to be weather sealed but they show no signs of doing so.

You also have to consider that you can now pick up some great full frame options for a similar price to the OM1. A Sony A7IV with an f/1.8 lens will still give shallower depth of field than an OM1 with one of the costly but excellent f/1.2 primes. The shooting experience with the OM1 may be a little nicer but the image quality of the Sony will be better.

As with all cameras, there are pros and cons and I could make arguments for and against almost all cameras and kits. In the end, if the OM1 does what you want it to do, for a price you are willing to pay, then you will not be disappointed as it is an excellent camera. There is no camera that does everything brilliantly, thats why I now choose cameras for specific needs. The OM1 suits me perfectly for travel where the subjects will be of the natural world and that’s why I take it with me on these kind of trips.

That concludes my OM System OM1 review. I really enjoy using the OM1 and Micro 43 in general. Many have spoke of the demise of Micro 43 but I sincerely hope that they continue to bring out new and innovative cameras like the OM1 because I certainly enjoy using them. Despite Youtube and other places constantly beating the drum of full frame I believe a lot of people would be well served using Micro 43 instead. All sensor sizes come with compromises and it’s up to us to decide which ones we are willing to accept. Now OM Systems, please make a Pen F II and I would be all over it.

Sony A7R II vs Olympus OMD EM1 II Depth of Field Comparison

I just took delivery of a Sony A7R II yesterday with the Zeiss 55mm f/1.8 lens. Part of my decision to buy this combination was to supplement my Olympus OMD EM1 II with a camera with a full frame sensor as I believe Micro 4/3 and full frame compliment each other as systems very well. The idea being that the Olympus will be my everyday camera and the Sony will allow me to get more subject isolation and better low light performance when I need it.

The difference between micro 4/3 and APS-C is so negligible that I don’t see the benefit of owning both for my uses.

Anyway I thought it would be interesting to do a quick test to see the difference between the two when it comes to subject separation.

I shot both on a tripod from the exact same location. The Zeiss is a 55mm lens whereas the Olympus equates to roughly 50mm so the field of view is not exactly the same with the Zeiss being a bit narrower. The Sony was paired with the Zeiss 55mm f/1.8 and the Olympus with the 25mm f/1.2 Pro (see my review here ).

So here are both shots wide open.

The Sony A7R II + 55mm Zeiss lens wide open

Olympus OMD EM1 ii + 25mm 1.2 Pro wide open

The Sony is definitely doing a better job of isolating the subject and that is no surprise as the 25mm 1.2 on the Olympus is roughly equivalent to a 50mm f/2.4 on full frame in terms of depth of field and field of view. Part of the difference can be put down to the longer focal length of the Zeiss lens but even then here are the things to look at that highlight the differences.

Look at the detail in the brown unit to the left of the top of the lens. The Olympus is picking up more texture and details whereas the Sony has blown most of that into smooth out of focus rendering.

Secondly the light sphere immediately left of the focus markings on the lens is much more in focus on the Olympus shot than the Sony one.

So even wide open and with a larger aperture the Olympus 25mm 1.2 can’t quite match the Sony with a 1.8 lens.

Here are the Olympus and Sony both at f/1.8 side by side in Lightroom so you can directly compare like for like what you would get when shooting at the same apertures on different systems.

Sony (left) and Olympus (right) both at f/1.8

So as you can see the Sony definitely offers an advantage when you want to isolate your subject. Just as expected. You can of course also buy lenses with a larger aperture for the Sony system which will widen the gap further. However I have no intention of buying those lenses, not because of the price (which is expensive) but because I don’t want to imbalance the camera by putting on huge lenses that will make the whole setup incredibly front heavy.

So if you want that creamy shallow depth of field look then it’s a no brainer right? Get full frame….. Or is it.

One thing to note is that these Olympus Pro line of lenses have a trick up their sleeve that can level the playing field somewhat if you are not constrained in your shooting position.

They can focus incredibly closely.

All the shots above are taken from the closest focusing distance of the Sony Zeiss 55mm 1.8. In these circumstances the full frame Sony clearly does better. However take a look below at just how close the Olympus 25mm 1.2 Pro can focus. The lens hood was nearly touching the subject when I too this.

The Olympus 25mm 1.2 and all the Pro lenses can focus really close.

I’m not arguing that one is better than the other here. For some things the Sony will be better and for others the Olympus. That is why I bought the Sony A7Rii to compliment, not replace my Olympus OMD EM1 ii. For example when I shoot the Olympus 25mm 1.2 Pro I get the light gathering of a 1.2 lens but I gain a little extra depth of field which can be useful to ensure enough of your subject is in focus. More depth of field can be an advantage at times.

The Sony will of course give me better low light performance, a little more dynamic range and the ability to print gallery sized prints with more detail but if anyone tells you that Micro 4/3 is not capable of producing shallow depth of field images then you can safely ignore them as they clearly haven’t used lenses like the 25mm 1.2(review here ), 45mm 1.2 (review coming soon) and 75mm 1.8 (review here )from Olympus.

The best value portrait lens in the World

If you are looking for the best value portrait lens in the World then I think I may have the answer for you.

For many years now I have been shooting a variety of cameras and lenses ranging from Micro 4/3 to large format 4×5 film. As I am not rich I like to get the best gear that I can afford that will do the job I need it to do.

With that in mind I have used many different lenses and for portraits I have found that the Olympus 45mm f/1.8 lens offers the best value of any lens for portrait shots. It comes in at around £200 and is as sharp as you need for portraits. In fact it is pretty sharp wide open at f/1.8 and gets a little sharper when stopped down to f/2.8-5.6.

So below I am going to show why I think it offers great value and is basically a must have lens for every Micro 4/3 photographer.

Don’t forget that you can really help me out by buying this lens through the links on this page. I will earn a small commission and it won’t cost you a penny more.

If you are looking for an even better lens for portraits and don’t mind paying a bit more then be sure to check out my Olympus 75mm f/1.8 review here

Best Value Portrait Lens in The World – Handling

There is nothing outstanding about the handling of the Olympus 45mm f/1.8. It is made of plastic and doesn’t feel particularly expensive. However it is still a notch above lenses like the Canon 50mm 1.8 (sometimes called the plastic fantastic). It feels decently made but certainly cheaper than other lenses such as the Olympus 75mm f/1.8 or Olympus Pro zooms. However it is perfectly functional and does what it needs to do.

The reason I mention handling is because it is such a small and light lens that you can easily add this to your bag or even in a pocket and not even notice the weight. This makes it a carry everywhere lens for me and if I was to only have a 2 lens setup the little 45mm would almost always be one of the two lenses that I would carry.

Best Value Portrait Lens In the World – Image Quality.

More importantly, the reason why I think this lens offers such great value is because it offers really good image quality for the size and weight. It is sharp wide open and as mentioned before it improves a little when stopped down.

It easily defines eyelashes when shooting portraits which is one of my prerequisites for sharpness in a portrait lens.

It doesn’t suffer with any major flaws in terms of CA or distortion. Therefore for the price you get a very handy high quality lens that doesn’t add much weight to your setup. The only criticism I could level at it is that sometimes the bokeh can get a little nervous so you have to watch your background sometimes. However you should always be doing that anyway.

The f/1.8 aperture allows it to be used in low light and maintain fast enough shutter speeds to get sharp people images and the focal length is my personal favourite for portrait work.

Below are a few images taken with the 45mm f/1.8.

Olympus OMD EM5 II Review

This is not just any old Olympus OM EM5 II review. I have written this review after having spent nearly a year using this camera for travel, landscape and portrait photography. In this review I will tell you what is great and not so great about this small but powerful camera. So lets crack on and get into the review. If you are looking at higher end Micro 4/3 cameras then you might like my comparison of the Olympus OMD EM1 ii vs Panasonic GH5

Olympus OMD EM 5 II review – Build Quality and Handling

Let’s start with the build quality and handling of the EM5 II because for me in these days where almost all cameras produce high quality results I find myself more and more concerned with how a camera feels and handles.

The OMD EM5 II is a very well built little camera. It is constructed of a magnesium alloy body and is fully weather sealed. I have used it in everything from tropical rain to sub zero temperatures and it has functioned faultlessly.

The body weighing in at 469g feels dense and solid. Unlike Fuji cameras which often have a slightly hollow feeling. It is a little larger and heavier than the Mk I at 124x85x45mm but I also find it more comfortable to hold. This is thanks in part to the thumb rest (which extends out a little further) and the increased grip size on the front.

The buttons on the camera also lose the slightly spongy feeling of the mark 1 and as a result give better tactile feedback when in use.

The dials on the mk II are larger and the power switch has been re-positioned to the top left of the camera a la the EM1.

The 3 Inch fully articulated LCD screen feels robust and not in danger of snapping off or becoming a weak point. Let’s not forget that this little camera is weather sealed against dust, water and it is also now tested to be freeze-proof.

The only issue I have had in the handling department with the Olympus OMD EM5 II is the tendency for the rubber viewfinder eye piece to get knocked off when taking it in and out of my bag. So I would advise that you keep an eye on it to make sure you don’t lose it.

I would also mention that in its default state the startup time can be slow. It can also be tedious when the eye sensor is turned on and you switch between the LCD and EVF. I personally turn off the eye sensor and shoot only through the EVF. Leaving the LCD for reviewing images. This greatly speeds up operation of the camera.

I like the modular nature of the OMD EM5 II. What do I mean by this? Well I would advise any owner to at least pick up the HLD8G part of the battery grip because it really adds to the handling of the camera when using larger lenses. I find that with the HLD8G grip added the camera handles very similarly to my old EM1. It feels just right with larger lenses like the Olympus 12-40mm f/2.8 Pro attached. Of course with this combination you now have a very well weather sealed camera and lens combination that can take in just about any climate.

But of course you also have the choice to go small and light when you wish by removing the grip and using smaller prime lenses like the 25mm 1.8.

The HLD 6G grip transforms the handling with larger lenses attached.

All the function buttons are customisable and so are the dials.

Olympus OMD EM5 II Review – Features

16mp Micro 4/3 sensor
In-built 5 axis image stabilisation
40mp Hi res mode
1080/60p shooting and 1080/30p at up to 77Mbps (All-I)
1/8000th sec maximum shutter speed (1/16000th with electronic shutter)
Built-in Wi-Fi
Live Bulb and Live time for easy long exposure photography

Let’s talk about that 16mp sensor because some may feel it is lacking compared to many competitors today where they are regularly offering 20-24mp on larger APS-C sensors.

While the 16mp sensor doesn’t quite keep up with competition anymore it is still perfectly capable of giving detailed images that can easily be used for everything from social media to prints up to 30×20″ with proper technique.

This is a 100% crop from Raw file with no adjustments or sharpening.

Dynamic range is on par with larger APS-C sensor offerings from Fuji and Nikon (see my Micro 4/3 vs APS-C comparison here).

Up to ISO 3200 is perfectly usable and the grain from noise is not unsightly.

Below are a couple of samples from shots taken at ISO 3200. Test charts don’t really give you a clear idea of real world noise performance. I find that the real test is shooting portraits and seeing how the camera does with skin tones. Both of these are 100% crops.

ISO 3200 straight from raw file with no adjustments, no noise reduction or sharpening

The same shot with +25 luminance NR in LIghtroom CC and a little sharpening.

Olympus also offers a Hi Res mode which gives 40mp files that both improve the detail and colour accuracy of the images. It is an incredible feat. However the caveat is that you really need to lock your camera down on a solid tripod and have minimal to no movement within the scene. It is workable with landscape images and is certainly very useful for studio product and architectural photography.

Click the image to see the full resolution shot on Flickr

The image stabilisation within the EM5 II is one of the standout features of this camera. At 24mm I can comfortably hand hold shots at 1 second which has several benefits. Firstly it allows you to lower the shutter speed and keep the ISO low, resulting in better quality photos with less noise. This somewhat negates the benefits of larger sensor cameras if your subjects are stationary.

Secondly it allows you to feel comfortable heading out with your camera without a tripod.

The 1/8000 of a second fastest mechanical shutter speed means that even using fast prime lenses in broad daylight is usually not an issue.

Video has been improved on the EM5 II over the original and the quality is decent enough for travel use and V-Logging. You can even shoot time lapse and slow motion in camera. However the video image is nowhere near as sharp as that given by recent Panasonic cameras.

Here is a quick video I put together using the OMD EM5II and GH5. The scenes up to the vegetables being chopped are all shot on the EM5 II

I also find myself using the handy Olympus Viewer app to transfer images from the camera to my phone for quick uploading to social media. Unlike Fuji there is no 30 picture transfer limit. The app is simple and functional, allowing you to also leave your shutter release at home as you can trigger the camera from it.

The viewfinder on the EM5 II is taken directly from the EM1 and is larger than the one found on the Olympus Pen F for example. It is not the largest EVF in the world, with those from the Fuji XT2 and Panasonic GH5 offering a better experience. However it is large enough to manually focus lenses and see all the details that you will need to capture the moment.

With really useful tools in camera such as Live Bulb and Live Time you can capture long exposures while being given a preview on the LCD screen as the image builds. This is one of the standout features of Olympus cameras at the moment and genuinely useful.

Olympus OMD EM5 II Review – Verdict

So why am I reviewing the Olympus OMD EM5 II when it has been out for a couple of years now and its replacement is expected in a few months time.

Well in this day and age with companies constantly bombarding us with their marketing telling us that we need the latest and greatest in order to be good photographers, compete with everyone else etc, I wanted to show that this 2 year old small sensored camera is still perfectly capable of producing professional quality results in a small package with all the features you are likely to ever need.

It can now be bought for around £600 in the UK from some suppliers such as Cotswold Cameras and at that price it is an absolute steal.

If you are trying to decide between the Olympus OMD EM5 II and the Olympus Pen F then check out my comparison here

And if you are going to do any shopping on Amazon UK or Amazon US then please do click through my links as I will earn a small commission and it wont cost you a penny more.