Olympus OM-D E-M5, E-M1, E-M10 - Mk1, Mk2 & Mk3 Owners Thread

Hi Gordon, well captured !

I really like action shots like these and it is nice and sharp in all the right places. You must be pleased !

Gary
 
Gary, I am more pleased with the camera than my skills as it was just a snatched shot as the bird came in to a feeder that the campsite had put out.
 
.... W OW !!! That is an excellent read! A really well balanced and informative overview and not without any humour too. (y)

P.S. - @Box Brownie, when I wrote this I hadn't seen or read your post #25,172 yet! We both independently wrote "well balanced" so it must be true! :D


But he hasn't actually had an OM1 in his hand yet........!
 
well caught shot gordon , you have mastered that camera in double quick time .the new one should be even better
 
Wex not as helpful, on chat this morning and said they should have a sizeable delivery next week but not sure on the number and could not tell me where I was on the pre order list- info not available to the CS rep on chat.
 
But he hasn't actually had an OM1 in his hand yet........!
.... Phil Norton is a very very highly respected photographer with a lot of experience of Olympus cameras and understands in depth how the current M1-series cameras have been developed and therefore why the OM-1 can and will succeed in offering what potential OMDS have described it can.

It's not difficult at all to understand the internal architecture or functional structure of the modern M cameras if you have become very familiar with either the E-M1 mkIII or E-M1X. Perhaps you would benefit from reading Phil Norton's piece again?

I have forgotten if you have pre-ordered an OM-1 or not or whether you simply prefer to wait. It might not suit what you are trying to achieve anyway - Only you can decide that.
 
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Wex not as helpful, on chat this morning and said they should have a sizeable delivery next week but not sure on the number and could not tell me where I was on the pre order list- info not available to the CS rep on chat.
.... Unfortunately this is typical of WEX since they have become such a large company following their acquisition of Camelot (whose customer service was extremely poor in my direct experience).

WEX were exactly the same with me regarding my pre-order of the Olympus 150-400mm TC Pro and I cancelled my order with them as I found one elsewhere.

I don't understand why they can't inform a customer where they are on their pre-order list when other retailers are happy to do so thereby giving their customer a clue about what to expect. I know it is true that retailers rarely know or can guarantee how many units a brand's distributor will supply and don't want to raise hopes to then disappoint. But actually it's more disappointing not to be told where your order is in the queue.
 
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another water rail shot from my now antique 1-mkiii with the sub-standard 100-400 .. worth waiting in a freezing cold hide for 3 hours for though
off the rails by jeff and jan cohen, on Flickr
Very mediocre. You should really change your camera :D (joke - it’s super-clear with good detail on the underside)
 
another water rail shot from my now antique 1-mkiii with the sub-standard 100-400 .. worth waiting in a freezing cold hide for 3 hours for though
off the rails by jeff and jan cohen, on Flickr

That's a brilliant shot of a water rail - one of the best I've ever seen - if not THE best! If I might be so rude though, I think the white balance is a bit on the cool side :exit:

Pity you have such useless equipment though...... :LOL:
 
.... Phil Norton is a very very highly respected photographer with a lot of experience of Olympus cameras and understands in depth how the current M1-series cameras have been developed and therefore why the OM-1 can and will succeed in offering what potential OMDS have described it can.

It's not difficult at all to understand the internal architecture or functional structure of the modern M cameras if you have become very familiar with either the E-M1 mkIII or E-M1X. Perhaps you would benefit from reading Phil Norton's piece again?

I have forgotten if you have pre-ordered an OM-1 or not or whether you simply prefer to wait. It might not suit what you are trying to achieve anyway - Only you can decide that.

I expect I will update my EM1 mk2 (oh dear......) in good time, but there are so many reviews of this camera around either from people who haven't seen one yet or who are paid to deliver the goodies by Olympus. I'm sure it will be a great camera but I would rather wait until some actual genuine hands on reviews come out before making a final decision.
 
That's a brilliant shot of a water rail - one of the best I've ever seen - if not THE best! If I might be so rude though, I think the white balance is a bit on the cool side :exit:

Pity you have such useless equipment though...... :LOL:
That’s in the shade Jeremy trust me when I say there’s LOTS more to PP yet and out in the sunlight it put on a good display today , silent shutter and 18fps is a godsend
 
I expect I will update my EM1 mk2 (oh dear......) in good time, but there are so many reviews of this camera around either from people who haven't seen one yet or who are paid to deliver the goodies by Olympus. I'm sure it will be a great camera but I would rather wait until some actual genuine hands on reviews come out before making a final decision.
.... There always are loads of reviews, some worthy of being taken seriously and others not, whenever a new product is launched. We each individually decide what we want to buy or not and do so in our own time and that's how it should be.

However, I have to challenge the notion or suggestion that reviews and presentations by Olympus representatives are neither hands-on nor genuine. Well respected good photographers chosen by Olympus because they are very experienced photographers in their field, have had the new product (OM-1 in this case) in their hands and out in the real world for many weeks before an official launch. They understand camera features and differences and know what they are talking about as their presentations clearly demonstrate. They also voice their concerns and whether the new product has addressed them or not.

This is a very good example and demonstrates my point :

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58v2I8kugmU
 
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A good friend of mine, who shoots Nikon, has a plethora of expensive Nikon glass and is an accomplished avian photographer, has been waiting for his Z9 since last July. He’s now seriously considering chopping in the whole lot in favour of an OM-1 setup, including the new 100-400.
to be honest, if my main interest was in smaller wildlife or fast moving planes, then I'd seriously consider moving back to m43 (almost certainly Olympus) where I spent three quite happy years around a decade ago. Like Stephen, I spend quite some time with Fuji but to really get a useful size difference in the lenses (the bodies are fairly irrelevant these days), I think Olympus is probably the way to go nowadays. This is where the crop factor clearly comes into its own. But my main interest in landscape and shots which send the background into oblivion is better served by my current Nikon Z6 setup. The Z9 is far outside my price bracket and buying any new Nikon Z camera in even the next couple of years is quite unlikely. My GAS was satisfied by picking up a Nikon Df recently which is a gorgeous retro object.
 
FWIW

Here are few images taken by a Norwegian early adopter of the OM-1

.... I think this Norwegian photographer has slightly overcooked the noise reduction in his post-processing - It is evident in the bird's plumage and is beginning to look like what I call 'waxy'.

Regardless of manufacturer's claims, I think that ISO values as high as 3200 or 6400 should always be avoided on m4/3 sensors. Nonetheless, any improvement in RAW noise reduction potential is always welcome.

The introduction of noise isn't simply down to the camera but is also influenced by the photographer.
 
I am so over due with any post processing but here is something share.....M1X used in a hide in Sussex (Millers Wood)
I was waiting for more diving behaviour (hence the birds position inn this cropped image) and the Kingfisher decided to take a little walk/flutter along the branch. Maybe not the most special of Kingfisher images but it does make me smile.....not least because his sudden movement along the branch caught me by surprise ;)

King of the Dance

King of the Dance_LBX2805_DxO_-sharpen-stabilizeWEB.jpg
 
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I am so over due with any post processing but here is something share.....M1X used in a hide in Sussex (Millers Wood)
I was waiting for more diving behaviour (hence the birds position inn this cropped image) and the Kingfisher decided to take a little walk/flutter along the branch. Maybe not the most special of Kingfisher images but it does make me smile.....not least because his sudden movement along the branch caught me by surprise ;)

King of the Dance

View attachment 345850
.... I think this is special! You have captured a great moment full of action. And it would seem, without the aid of ProCapture.

*cough* You don't need an OM-1 :ROFLMAO: :exit:
 
I am so over due with any post processing but here is something share.....M1X used in a hide in Sussex (Millers Wood)
I was waiting for more diving behaviour (hence the birds position inn this cropped image) and the Kingfisher decided to take a little walk/flutter along the branch. Maybe not the most special of Kingfisher images but it does make me smile.....not least because his sudden movement along the branch caught me by surprise ;)

King of the Dance

View attachment 345850
That's a great shot, and I love the title too! :)
 
.... I think this is special! You have captured a great moment full of action. And it would seem, without the aid of ProCapture.

*cough* You don't need an OM-1 :ROFLMAO: :exit:
I have checked the frame sequence and there 9 frames all shot 1/3200s I was during the session using both C-AF and some ProCap Low but I think this set was one where it C-AF in use :thinking:

As for the OM-1 perhaps neither of us need one :lol: though I anticipate my BiF attempts might see some benefits (to name but one area of interest ;) )
That's a great shot, and I love the title too! :)
Thank you, the title came to mind the moment I saw it in camera :)



And to all the others who clicked their 'likes' much appreciated :D
 
As for the OM-1 perhaps neither of us need one :LOL:
.... This is true. So I better cancel my pre-order on Monday
:LOL:
. Hell will freeze over before I do that.
though I anticipate my BiF attempts might see some benefits (to name but one area of interest ;) )
.... Me too! And also I am hoping for a higher hit rate on my railway train panning efforts. And just a little bit less noise on some of my dawn and dusk action images - I don't care whether it's called 2-stops, 1-stop or 10-stops or what the graphs look like but only hope for some improvement to my naked eye. I think that some of the pixel-peeping brigade online who are alleging that OMDS are feeding us false information about 2-stops to increase sales, are being ridiculous and just trying to impress their peer group.

And I'm also hoping that I can improve my macro work, especially with the STF-8 all-weather Macro Flash which I have hardly explored. Handheld HighRes shooting too.
 
FWIW for us who like the challenge of BiF photography.....

This Olympus user who also has Sony A1 has posted some interesting observations that IMO are worth a read (and possibly to keep an eye for his further owner/user insights? ;)


I only just noticed....................do note the shutter speed 1/1000s (bearing in mind this is one quick BiF subject) and the ISO 12800 bearing in mind the weather conditions!!!! Alright images will never make to getting in print but that is one heck of torture test & a result.

One can only surmise that results under more optimal conditions would be 'wonderful' :)

@Bebop @RedRobin
 
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What does this say about my bedtime reading? :D I just read a report that OMDS has detailed which of its lenses offer the same standard of IP53 weather sealing as the OM-1 body. It's essentially all of the 'PRO' series lenses, with the exception of the original 12-40mm F2.8 PRO from 2013. To a great extent these are also the lenses that fully support AF at 50 fps.

If you are an outdoor photographer in the British Isles this is useful and reassuring information.
 
Reading through the replies it seems he used a 200mm Panasonic lens . I would guess the chap is not someone used to olympus which in my book says that those of us that do fairly well now , will excell with the new one ..
I have so far held back from ordering in case of hyped up claims .. but I’m slowly starting to come round to the idea
 
Reading through the replies it seems he used a 200mm Panasonic lens . I would guess the chap is not someone used to olympus which in my book says that those of us that do fairly well now , will excell with the new one ..
I have so far held back from ordering in case of hyped up claims .. but I’m slowly starting to come round to the idea
Sounds like you’ve got one foot on a slippery slope Jeff.
 
Reading through the replies it seems he used a 200mm Panasonic lens . I would guess the chap is not someone used to olympus which in my book says that those of us that do fairly well now , will excell with the new one ..
I have so far held back from ordering in case of hyped up claims .. but I’m slowly starting to come round to the idea
Looks to me from all that i've read that the main improvement is the AF and EVF
If you use those for subjects like birds in flight or amongst foliage I reckon its probably a worthwhile purchase.
Doesn't seem like the dynamic range is much different so for someone like me with static subjects its not worth it.
I would probably get a FF or MF camera and lens for low light stuff before I bunged out two grand for another m4/3 camera.
 
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Looks to me from all that i've read that the main improvement is the AF and EVF
If you use those for subjects like birds in flight or amongst foliage I reckon its probably a worthwhile purchase.
Doesn't seem like the dynamic range is much different so for someone like me with static subjects its not worth it.
I would probably get a FF or MF camera and lens for low light stuff before I bunged out two grand for another m4/3 camera.
im sitting right on the middle of the fence as I do shoot wildlife , trouble is I personally have little difficulty with birds in foliage or inflight as I took the time to learn the camera from the start ..it may well help those that think its just a case of pointing the lens in the right direction and blasting away without a clue of what there doing .. and trust me theres plenty out there that do . my 1-mk3 was only bought middle of last year and I haven't as yet explored all its capabilities so to sell it at a knockdown price to buy similar takes a lot of thinking about which is where I am now ???
 
im sitting right on the middle of the fence as I do shoot wildlife , trouble is I personally have little difficulty with birds in foliage or inflight as I took the time to learn the camera from the start ..it may well help those that think its just a case of pointing the lens in the right direction and blasting away without a clue of what there doing .. and trust me theres plenty out there that do . my 1-mk3 was only bought middle of last year and I haven't as yet explored all its capabilities so to sell it at a knockdown price to buy similar takes a lot of thinking about which is where I am now ???

Only you know whether the potential performance increase is worth another £1k or so.
I am sure it wouldn't be for me, now if it somehow had a big increase in DR then I might be tempted.
Just don't think that's really possible with m4/3 so i'll stick and use software to enhance things.

What I really want from Olympus is a fast rectilinear wide angle lens, something like a 10/1.4 weather sealed with af.
 
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I have so far held back from ordering in case of hyped up claims .. but I’m slowly starting to come round to the idea
.... I don't know if you are still planning to come across to my neck of the woods Jeff but if so, you can pop your own card in mine and have a go. Stay in touch about it.

I think most of the challenges aimed at OMDS are from the usual pixel-peepers and technical geeks, those of little faith. They always come out of the woodwork when a new camera is announced. Some of their points might be valid but I don't think there is any doubt whatsoever that the OM-1 is a big leap ahead beyond both the M1 mkIII and M1X and especially for wildlife and action photography, which is what you and I mainly do.

However ....
im sitting right on the middle of the fence as I do shoot wildlife , trouble is I personally have little difficulty with birds in foliage or inflight as I took the time to learn the camera from the start ..it may well help those that think its just a case of pointing the lens in the right direction and blasting away without a clue of what there doing .. and trust me theres plenty out there that do . my 1-mk3 was only bought middle of last year and I haven't as yet explored all its capabilities so to sell it at a knockdown price to buy similar takes a lot of thinking about which is where I am now ???
.... Your photography with the gear you've already got is excellent and putting teasing you aside for a moment, you don't actually need an OM-1. But neither do I - Well actually I need it more than you do!

Sounds like you’ve got one foot on a slippery slope Jeff.
.... :ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO: And not for the first time either!

slippery_slope.jpg
 
Only you know whether the potential performance increase is worth another £1k or so.
I am sure it wouldn't be for me, now if it somehow had a big increase in DR then I might be tempted.
Just don't think that's really possible with m4/3 so i'll stick and use software to enhance things.

What I really want from Olympus is a fast rectilinear wide angle lens, something like a 10/1.4 weather sealed with af.
.... That's exactly it. Each of us has our individual requirements to suit the photography we enjoy the most - It's Horses-for-Courses. And there's no such thing as the perfect camera anyway.

But you can't always put a pounds shillings and pence price on what enjoyment camera gear can offer you.
 
.... I don't know if you are still planning to come across to my neck of the woods Jeff but if so, you can pop your own card in mine and have a go. Stay in touch about it.

I think most of the challenges aimed at OMDS are from the usual pixel-peepers and technical geeks, those of little faith. They always come out of the woodwork when a new camera is announced. Some of their points might be valid but I don't think there is any doubt whatsoever that the OM-1 is a big leap ahead beyond both the M1 mkIII and M1X and especially for wildlife and action photography, which is what you and I mainly do.

However ....

.... Your photography with the gear you've already got is excellent and putting teasing you aside for a moment, you don't actually need an OM-1. But neither do I - Well actually I need it more than you do!


.... :ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO: And not for the first time either!

View attachment 345892
Yep holiday is booked and paid for Robin . But I have lots of things going on this year so it could change. .. might even have one myself by then, I have wildlife friends up here that have pre ordered to
 
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Another belated PP...to share.. ;)

Kestrel in head on flight

This from a trip to Guernsey in July 2021 and along the coastal area were about 10 Kestrels, this one was patrolling an area in high winds and it changed from a hover in an instant....I only just kept it in the frame but lost it as it came across parallel to my position and 'bounced' a small section of hedge where the group of birds were sheltering (Goldfinches and Sparrows) before disappearing off 'stage left'.........................boy did it move quick!

So, a large crop not great light a flat sky.........any excuse to explain why I struggled :lol:

_LBX0929_DxO_KestreWEBl.jpg

Should/when I get such a situation again I will hope the OM-1 will be, for me, a better/improved tool to use :D
 
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Another belated PP...to share.. ;)

Kestrel in head on flight

This from a trip to Guernsey in July 2021 and along the coastal area were about 10 Kestrels, this one was patrolling an area in high winds and it changed from a hover in an instant....I only just kept it in the frame but lost it as it came across parallel to my position and 'bounced' a small section of hedge where the group of birds were sheltering (Goldfinches and Sparrows) before disappearing off 'stage left'.........................boy did it move quick!

So, a large crop not great light a flat sky.........any excuse to explain why I struggled :LOL:

View attachment 345938

Should/when I get such a situation again I will hope the OM-1 will be, for me, a better/improved tool to use :D
.... You definitely will get similar situations again with Kestrels and they usually don't spook too easily from your presence, unlike Buzzards! And all reports are confirming, as I know you already know, that the OM-1 is the best m4/3 BiF camera yet due to its new AF and Tracking technologies.

Exciting times to come, methinks!
 
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Yep holiday is booked and paid for Robin .
.... That's a typo Jeff and it's really kind and extremely generous of you. You are a true friend.

When I first saw your post I read it as "Your holiday is booked and paid for Robin". I'll be off to Portugal soon, as you know, and will show you the pics when I get back in early April. :ROFLMAO:

I'm hoping my OM-1 will be delivered in time.
 
.... You definitely will get similar situations again with Kestrels and they usually don't spook too easily from your presence, unlike Buzzards! And all reports are confirming, as I know you already know, that the OM-1 is the best m4/3 camera yet due to its new AF and Tracking technologies.

Exciting times to come, methinks!
For sure I want to go to Guernsey again and other places too ;) I have a subject to try again to get some meaningful images of there, the Marsh Harrier pair :)
 
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Just saw a report of a brand new one with a hot pixel , apparently he mapped it out o.k though
 
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