Thank you so much for taking the time to share this beautifully impressive tutorial. I was impressed with the EM-1 mark 1, 2 and 3 that I have owned, until I purchased the OM-1. The OM-1 has made my animal photography so much more satisfying and enjoyable.
Great review. I completely agree with your comments about both the EM1 mark2 and the OM1. Both are great cameras. Using the OM1 is a dream but I will never give up my EM1 mark2. Happy travels mate, cheers.
I really appreciate seeing how you use the OM-1 in these kind of situations. I have one as well that is a little over a year old now and have not had as many chances to travel with it as you have but have achieved a fair degree of success with it. I got a lot of great tips out of your video especially with regard to focusing techniques that I will now incorporate into my use of the camera. Thank you very much for this excellent video.
Good video! I have a Nikon Z6, but last year I purchased an E-M1 mk II with the view to changing to that system (for cheaper and smaller lenses, not the camera) . I instantly loved it, but still, I can't let go of the Nikon. Typically, I still go out with the Nikon one day during the weekend and Olympus the other - Nikon in a more stationary location with a Sigma 150-600, and Olympus for walking around. The Nikon is clearly better in low light - and autofocus, but of course the Olympus is so more portable. I did get a cheap used E-M1 mk II, so I could upgrade easily, so now I am think OM-1 or not (and stay with the dual system) 😊
Thanks for the comment. I have had the EM1 mk2 for going on 5 years and will keep it as a backup. I suspect it can be bought real cheap second hand and for most people is more than good enough but I would not push the ISO past 4000. The OM1 though is in a whole differnt league. I easily push it to ISO 12800 witout a concern. I have never used a Z6 so cannot compare but maybe someone reading this that does have both could comment.
I have a full frame Nikon and just got the OM 1. Love the OM 1. When I’m outside, I go with the m4/3 kit and it’s fantastic! Can’t beat full frame in low light, though. Good luck with your gear.
I have an E-M mk1 and upgraded to a Nikon Z5 a couple of years ago, but as I do a lot of hiking the weight is killing me, and now I am thinking of getting rid of the Nikon set up and getting an OM-1, the weight issue is a deal breaker for me, even though the Nikon is an excellent camera.
It is a very good camera. Subject detect for birds in tree got massively better with firmware 1.7. It was the only real issue I had with the camera and now that has been resolved. I love all the computional features and use them extensively🤣
I use the computational features as well. I haven't updated to latest firmware but sounds like I should. Having said that, I have always considered birds covered by branches to be ID images only so not that concerned with them.
@@Travelingseniors-xt9yh Even if I had a Clear shot of the bird but there was a branch in the foreground the camera would focus on the branch instead of the bird. It was so frustrating. Even single point AF wanted to focus on the branch. V 1.7 seams to have resolved most of these issues.
@@earlteigrob9211 I did have this happen sometimes but my solution was to release and re-engage the auto focus. I would do this several times until it focused on what I wanted. I use strictly backbutton autofocus, not sure if this makes a difference.
Thank you for your review. I ❤ my OM-1. I am getting very sharp images now, in most situations. If the bird is still I use Aperture Priority, with image compensation, where it’s variable light I tend to use manual with Auto ISO.
People have asked about my settings but it is important to set the camera up how you like it and get familiar with your settings. That way you can concentrate on getting images and less on getting settings right as they will become automatic.
I think we are really lucky to have so many good cameras available to us right now. I will be travelling to Argentina and Chile this upcoming year and many of the in country planes are smaller with more restictive weight limits. This is where this system really shines.
Excellent video. I shot lots(!) of hummingbirds in the Mindo Valley, Ecuador in March. OM1 plus 300 f4 - all shot manual f4, 1/2000 sec (only the fastest wings were very blurred, others slightly or not at all) and ISO Auto +0.4 ev. What a fabulous camera/ lens combo, although my 150-400 is due to arrive today! Your video reminded me of some settings and taught me some new ones. At 73 I am still learning; thanks!!
Thanks for the comment. I shoot hummingbird birds 1/2500, the rest the same. The trick is to shoot as they approach the flower as they slow down. I am envious of your new lens, have fun. I am 65 and yes still learning all the time. I hope that helps keep our minds sharp.
Thanks for the well narrated description of your OM-1 experience. I finally ordered an OM-1 today. I have the E-M1X which I love, but it struggles with small birds too often, and I have a Hummingbird trip coming up in Sept. The OM-1 Bird Detection is simply too good to pass up. I will keep my E-M1X as a back up -- it is built like a tank and such a pleasure to shoot with. I wish they had updated the firmware to improve bird tracking.
ps enjoyed seeing a dusty well used Olympus. I absolutely love my OM1 have found a massive difference between the OMiii and the OM. I am capturing expressions from birds I never thought I would see.
Thanks for posting this video. I have a OM5 for general shooting but am looking at the OM1 for wildlife shooting and this is super helpful. Best Wishes.
I glad you found this helpful. The OM1 is a great camera but has so many settings available. Be sure to try the high rez and live ND. Seem like gimics but do work well.
Terrific video. Greetings from Calgary. I have the OM1 + 150-400mm 4.5 TC, set up pretty close to the same way that you’ve done. My previous bird and wildlife combo was the D850 + 500mm 5.6 pf, a truly great camera, probably the best DSLR ever made. I got great shots with it. However, when I got the OM1 - instead of shelling out on a Z9 - I started getting shots I simply couldn’t get with the D850. It’s so much faster and the AF is uncanny. My results with both AF (a few shots soft out of a burst) are the same as yours and ISO is not an issue, having captured usable shots as high as 25600, cleaned up in either Topaz or, now, Lightroom Denoise. I do think the Nikon image quality at 45MP is better than the OM1 - but it’s very close. Finally, I just bought the new Z8 as my main general purpose camera and to couple with my Nikon lens inventory. It’s also a terrific camera ………. but the AF simply doesn’t match the OM1, as much as the Z8/Z9 fanboys want to argue otherwise. I’ve shot both cameras under the same conditions, including using the Nikon “pre-capture” equivalent of pro-capture. Love the new camera but if I’m shooting a challenging subject like a kingfisher or yellowthroat, I reach for the OM1 first. Again, great job and keep posting.
Thanks for the complement on the video. I am not surprised the OM1 out performs a DSLR, mirrorless just has many advantages here. i have not used Nikon mirrorless so cannot comment but suspect when you are familiar with it and use a native lens it will have good autofocus. Having said that the fact the OM1 can compete with a Z9 at all is a credit to the small and much cheaper system.
@@chiara1086 the short answer is yes. The 150-400 will never get the DOF of a comparable full frame lens with similar reach and aperture - $$$$$$. The longer answer is it depends, sometimes the contextual shots are as good or better. And the fantastic reach allows me to get shots I can’t get or have to crop heavily with my Z8/500mm pf combo - if the crop is more than 1/3 (APS-C sized) then my 45MP Nikon pic is the same as the Olympus; more and it gets much smaller. The main thing I have to do is adapt my technique to allow for it - wherever possible. That means getting in a position where I can maximize the distance between the bird or animal and background. The often told recommendation to get to eye level is helpful. As a result I have many shots with a creamy background. All in all, the day I started using the 150-400 with the OM1, I started getting shots I was not able to get with my D850, Z6ii and now my Z8. I have some Great Grey owl BIF photos that are simply amazing and small bird photos that are even more so when I used the pro-capture mode. It’s really the combination that does it, the reach and quality of the 150-400, especially when I stretch it with the built-in TC (a fantastic feature only available elsewhere on the mega-primes), as well as the speed (up to 50fps raw with full AF), auto-focus (among the best of all cameras for subject detection) and pro-capture of the OM1. Finally, I don’t just do birds and wildlife with the OM1. We just got back from a trip to London and the 25mm 1.2 lens on that camera was fantastic for Street and travel and night shots. Very light and versatile. Long answer, sorry. But yes, I sometimes miss the background effects of the full frame. And if I’m close enough or maybe shooting big fauna like elk, deer or moose, my Nikons + 500 pf will give me a better picture. I often go out with both kits and pick one or the other when I get out of the truck. One day I may buy the 800mm 6.3 pf for the Z8. It’s expensive in its own right but less than the 150-400 and better DOF and pixel count. The Nikon super-teles with built in TCs are the best of any brand but ………. $$$$$, not a chance.
@@brianlemke6017 thanks for that detailed answer! I use the 300mm f4 all the time (in some cases with 1,4 tc) and sometimes miss the possibility to zoom out when birds get to close. Also sometimes I wish I had less noise. But this is not the lens or the camera - just the sensor size. I am currently thinking about wheter buying the om1 or g9 Mark II. But then I think of creamy bokehs and think about z8 (which I find really expensive) maybe with 180-600. But if I got that right, the Om1 seems to have an impressive autofocus. Sometimes its confusing, because I also heard different but in most cases people said its (nearly) on par with sony or canon.
Thanks for this practical helpful review. I'll make some changes to try out with my OM-1/100-400_Oly combination for BIF based on your experience. I'm seeing a 300/f4 in my future! I use a dot sight as an aid for finding; and for tracking birds, it does help. Regards from Downunder.
Great info, I just bought my OM-1 and M. Zuiko 150-400 last week as a second system to my Canon and am loving it, As far as DOF you would have the same DOF with f4 as your wifes sony f6.3 or f8 so it's a wash I believe, That's what I am seeing with my R3 and RF 100-500 f7.1 but we have lower ISO than those lenses. One other thing I will say is for the money the 0M-1 has more features than my 6k canon.
Depth of field is becoming a non-issue like noise. New AI software allows us to fix this at will now. The OM1 is a feature rich camera for sure. Be sure to try the hand held high rez I think you will be amazed as on a static scene it can match the R5 resolution. The Live ND I also though a gimic but it works as advertised.
Hi, Thanks for the compliment. I may show my setup but I am torn on this. I downloaded the manual and watched some videos but my setup is my own. It is really important to get to know your camera and set it up how you like it as what works for others may not be best for you. If you have not downloaded the manual I really suggest you do that and explore the settings.
Thank you for sharing. Great information to gird myself with before a trip to northern Kenya in january. I have the Sony A7R5 but it has some limitations. (Mainly weight & fps). Hoping to compare it with the OM1 and make a choice.
My wife has the A7R4 and my OM1 had much better autofocus and buffer. I think Sony has improved these on your 5. What will be the same is bad rolling shutter limiting it to mechanical shutter, they did not fix this. Not an issue most of the time but I definitely had more shots to choose from. Having said that if you can fill the frame with 60mp the Sony captures amazing images.
Thanks for posting this video! Very very helpful. I’m going to Panama in March 2024 and have been concerned about taking my heavy f4 lens around in the deep forest areas there. After watching your video, I believe my r5 and 100-500 (w and w/o the 1.4tc) will be sufficient. I do like to have enough DOF to get a bird’s and back in focus as you showed in that one shot. Plus, with the IBIS and high fps it is easy to get to low shutter speeds and burst to get a sharp shot in poor light if/when your subject cooperates (which does happen from time to time). And of course, we have much better chances when dealing with high ISO images than ever before. So my mind it at ease in regards to what gear to take. Of course, i’m still wondering about backup gear and extra lenses. I’d like to grab butterfly shots, frogs, and maybe owls at night. My 100-500 doubles nicely for close up work and even some landscapes. I’m thinking of bringing a 35mm f1.8 or 100 mm f2.8 for lowlight stuff at night. Any ideas on that? Thanks!
Thanks for the comment. We went to Panama last February and enjoyed it very much. I would say at least a third of the images were in deep cloud forest and a couple of days in the rain so light was an issue and lots of high ISO shooting. I really appreciated my F4 lens as my wife with her Sony 200-600 is 6.3 at the long end her ISOs were more than twice mine. She would often compensate with slower shutter speeds. You will get lots of shots with motion blur so just shoot lots of images and hopefully one will be sharp. You only need one. I can get really close with my olympus 300F4 so I used that eben for frogs and butterflies so can't help you with a suggestion their. Good luck with your trip.
As the cameras you mentioned are much more expensive you should get something for your money. Having said that my wife uses a A7R4. When we show images at our photo club no one can tell which camera is used. Unless using very high ISO, printing large or you like to pixel peep OM1 images are fine. I also have a waterfall video where I use Line ND and hand hold a 10 sec shot with sharp results. Don't think the cameras you mentioned can do that. OM1 makes things fun.
I'm glad I watched this because it has put me off M4/3rds. I watched this on my 65 inch calibrated oled TV and I just found the images looked flat, soft and with busy bokeh and a lot of grain. You're a great photographer but I don't feel like the images do you justice at all. Almost like an old camera phone with the ability to change lenses. The shot from the A7 IV of the rhinos was for me how a camera should render images. Tack sharp, great colours and nice subject isolation from the background. I'm feeling quite disappointed as I very much wanted the lighter weight setup
So you judge a cameras ability from images in a compressed video on youtube, not wise. My wife shoots with a Sony A7R4 so I have a good basis of comparison. I am very satisfied with the images I am getting. Depth of field is an ongoing issue for some people but it is just as often a bonus as a fault. I can get a whole bird in focus and not just the eyeball. Having said all that you probably don't want this camera as you seem to have already made up your mind.
Yeah if you are after Bokeh -- Bigger Sensor with same apeture will give you more bokeh. But as pointed out -- judging by RU-vid on a TV...mäh. I mean you do realize that your 4k Screen basically can just render an 8 Megapixel Image (4k by 2k). I mean most of his other shots were birds which usually are farther away. What you have to consider here is that just through the distance you will lose image quality to e.g. dust particles in the air, or thermo effects (hot air has a different refractive index as cold air and so on and so forth)
Wow, just discovered your video and channel very helpful. I’m about to update my camera equipment, I’m still using Olympus em-5 from the day it was released and still going strong. I am looking to get used body with a more advanced AF for birds and animals, either a EM-1 iii or the OM-1. Can I assume the Om-1 is way ahead of the EM-1?
the bird pictures of "fast" and "tiny" birds seem like proof that 25 FPS is a good choice, but I am taking away from your dialogue that 50 FPS would be better. What do you think about using 50 FPS (for SH2 and Pro SH2)? (BTW, I notice you comment about being 65 and learning "all the time" ... :-) ... I am 78, and still learning too )
Hi I am sure there are lots of thoughts on fps. I think I am getting to shots I want at 25fps so will stay there. At 50 fps you will fill the buffer faster and twice as many images to look at.
I tried commenting on your website but didn’t get through, so here goes… Great portfolio! I’m curious how many were taken with the Olympus? Also, were the night sky shots taken with it? I’m considering going lighter and found your RU-vid video very informative. Any thoughts on the Lumix G9ll? Thank you!
Thanks for the comments. Unfortunately WIX, where we do our website, strips all metadata from images. I can tell you early on we shot exclusively olympus so those images were all olympus. My wife got into birding so bought a Nikon D500 for the better autofocus but now the OM1 has changed all that as it is great for birds (she currently uses a Sony A7R4 and the 200-600). I do the website so use my images first and just use my wifes for something I missed so images are at least 90% oly images. Reality is with that with the OM1 and using noise reduction software you really would be hard pressed to see the difference. This image www.travellingseniors.com/panamabirdingtrip?lightbox=dataItem-lgsa0szq4 is ISO 12800, great color an lots of detail. All the night sky images are with the OLY as my shots. I have not used the G92 so can't really compare but what I have seen others say the OM1 is a better stills camera and the Panasonic a better video camera although both cameras are capable in all areas. Oly has more computational features, one I love is the live ND and it is useful, I did a video on this. I hope this all helps and I am not the least bit envious of my wifes full frame camera, especially when travelling or on a long hike.
Good question. I have the 300f4 and this is a fantastic lens. The sync IS is unreal and the details captured are amazing. Prime lens usually beats zooms. F4 is also an advantage in low light. The downside is it is more challenging to use. First to find the subject and sometimes it is too close. This just means learning how to use a prime lens. Finally I have no experience with the new zoom so can't truly comment just what I have seen online.
Hello fellow Canadian. The coldest was a winter morning where we had fog for a couple of days than it cleared out leaving us with beautiful frost on our trees. It was -25 to -30 C that morning and I was out for 30-40 minutes. The camera was fine but I was freezing up and had to go inside to warm up. Be aware your camera will fog up when you go inside.
An excellent video. I too shoot wildlife and I completely agree that (as with all cameras), once you learn where the camera's features excel and where they fall short, you will achieve maximum performance and image results from the camera. I was wondering what your experience had been with printing large prints of your images captured with the OM-1. Thank you for the excellent video. PJI
Thanks for the compliment. This link www.travellingseniors.com/kenyasafari?lightbox=dataItem-l965339t1 is to a 20 mp image that I took with the OM1 in Kenya. There is no cropping on the sides just a little off the top and bottom. This is printed 36 inches wide and hangs on my wall, I have never printed larger than 36 inches. It is tack sharp and gets lots of compliments. When I shoot secenery and there is nothing moving I use high rez mode which easily competes with my wifes 60mp A7R4 images. The only time I miss the mp is when I cannot get close to my subject and have to crop hard. The A7R4 definitely shines at this.
I use Pro-capture , set to C4, if the bird is perched and I expect it to fly soon, so only occassionally. It was used on the Malachite kinfisher and the white trhroated beeeater. It was not used on hummingbirds as they are already flying so I just folow them.
Not quite sure what you are refering to but most of the time subject detection works best with all points active. How many active points depends on the scene and the speed of the action.
Great videos. I am just not sure about the correctness of your pushing exposure so unnecessarily high, especially the little Red Crest which then brings more noise but more importantly, alters the true appearance of the bird. There is nothing wrong with dark pictures which is importantly true to what you really see, as long as colors and contrast remain good and there is nothing in the environment that may be important that gets lost. Pros regularly take a follow up background shot that may be needed for dynamic balance. Also, pros always try to use flash for hummingbirds near feeders or any bird landing or taking off from a predictable spot, unless buffer shooting is unavoidable, thus rolling shutter is not so much of an issue. Global sensors will in any case fix this forever. In the meantime, nothing beats mechanical shutters and good old photographer anticipation skills. Even if you spray, you still need to develop anticipation skills and know the animal behavior to a high level. Also, noise has never been an issue in analogue years, why the obsessions now?
Thanks or the commnt. Not really sure which image you refer to the red crest, but things like this always a matter of taste. As for flash on birds, this is something many object to on ethical grounds. I have a good flash, I will not use it on birds (many pros agree). Global shutter is the "holy grail" but in the mean time if you want fast bursts mechanical shutter cannot deliver. It does not matter how good your anticpation you cannot anticipate wing position. There is a reason people want these fast burst rates and it is a selling feature. Noise is an interesting one. I do not disagree with you but as cameras get better, peoples expectations just get higher.
Hi Steve and thank for complement. I do use manual with auto ISO. I have exposure compensation assigned to the ISO button to change exposure as needed. The advantage to EVF is you can see as you make adjustments.
Not sure what problems you have had with your OM1 but as I stated mine is 100% reliable. I am keeping my Em1 mk2 as a backup as it is a great camera but the OM1 is in a different league, I am sure the vast majority of OM1 owners would agree.
@@Travelingseniors-xt9yh Yes, any many of them because they don't want to admit they made a poor choice. I'm not that insecure. But there are a lot of problems with this to indicate it was rushed to market. How is your front dial holding up BTW?
@@Travelingseniors-xt9yh No, it's based on my experience as a photographer and consumer psychologist. Google cognitive dissonance.
10 месяцев назад
Thanks a lot for sharing your experiences! I can confirm all of your findings and am always interested how Olympus (OM) users set their buttons in order to achieve best handling. Looking forward to more real experiences stuff... Krgds, Frank
