The Olympus OM-D E-M5 MkII. Why This Is My Go-To Camera For Most Uses, Especially For Macro. 

I love this camera since 2018

That price was a steal!

So good, thanks

Many thanks.

Many thanks!

I still have mine, have owned since it first came out. Great video, and thanks for sharing.

I have a Olympus EM5 mark II and I think it is a fantastic camera. The images it produces are excellent.

I have a Mark I that my wife bought me for my 50th birthday. It's the camera that got me back into photography in a more serious way so I'll never sell it but I do have my eyes open for a Mark II for the extra features that are missing on the Mark I. Nice video, Don.

My first acquisition in M4/. Indeed a great little camera packed with all kinds of features. Image quality is fantastic. I bought a third party grip for it so that my pinky doesn’t fall off.

And it is a weather sealed too. I was actually cosidering the Pen E-PL7 but it is not weather sealed as I like to shoot in then snow time sometimes. Thanks for the review

You should try the focus stacking handheld. Sometimes it doesn't work, but I'm surprised how often it does work, and it works well. I love mine. I can't get my flash to work though :(. maybe it's user error. So I'm looking for tutorials.

I have the E-M5.3 and use in-camera focus stacking with the 30mm f3.5 macro. I've had pretty good luck doing it hand-held. Doing flower photography, the biggest problem I run into is wind.

These are rugged cameras with good image quality, and that IBIS is a bit of a game changer. My go-to is a step down (in some ways) from your E-M5.2; it's the E-M10.3s. I just love that thing. Even though it's not technically weather proof, I've taken it out on wet hikes and had no issues. It has image quality that I didn't expect (such good colour science, and as long as over-expose very slightly to raw, you can retrieve incredible amounts of detail), and it even manages video rather well. My only complaint is unreliable autofocus which is especially an issue when both my subject and I are moving independently (mostly an issue in video of course). For stills, AF is adequate, but again mostly as long as there's minimal depth movement; a subject moving rapidly towards or away from you is a problem. Phase Detect AF is one of those things that once you have it (which the E-M5.2 and E-M10 series are lacking), you really notice it when it's missing in a camera, almost like IBIS. But even so, unreliable AF (in certain conditions) aside, I really do love these cameras. They're lightweight, tough, and image quality is more than most people would ever need! With Phase Detect AF, these things would be just about perfect. They're quite a bargain. I'm a little nervous about the future of these with the change in ownership. Olympus doesn't exist anymore really (but I'll always call them Olympus), and it's re-branded as OM Systems, a name that has absolutely no ring to it whatsoever, haha. Time will tell if OM continues to provide the same quality at these affordable prices, and has a decent budget for R&D so they can innovate, not just iterate. I'm cautiously optimistic.

The gen ii e-m series are good I have newer cameras with the 20mp sensor but e-10m ii is still my favorite in some ways. Just really nicely constructed and unlike the newer cameras where they crippled the 10 series relative to the 5 and 1 series in terms of the features and menu. it really is just the guts of the e-m5 ii in a different body with smaller evf, tilt screen, and fewer buttons

I just got a very nice used E-M5 Mark I, but I’m already looking for a Mark II. Haven’t even come close to using the Mark I to it’s full ability, but it seems like if I can find a deal like you got, have to get it. 😊

It was my 1st Olympus camera. I was convinced I needed one by the late RU-vidr, David Thorpe. I now have it, an EM 1 Mark 2, and an OM 1. David, in addition to creating videos, wrote books about Olympus and Panasonic MFT cameras detailing the best settings he discovered. Here’s one of his videos. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-bIVQDgr8SQI.html Thank you for sharing your experiences.

nice video, i have the same one with the Olympus extra Handle with shutter. This thing is great, the Kamera is safer in your Hand but it is not really bigger, try it! Greatings Tom from Germany

Great video, I have been in and out of M43 twice. I want to go back, but I worry where OM is headed

Love all your content, super helpful. You mentioned that you were able to find this body unboxed. Would you mind sharing where you found it? I’m in the market and having a hard time finding a decent model.

Hi Don, I’m just revisiting this video as I have just added a near mint EM5 mkii to my MFT camera collection. Mine wasn’t such a great bargain as yours but the shutter count was just 1626, not bad for a camera that’s been around for a few years. I already have the EM5 mkiii and I am now in the throes of comparing. I have managed to get an Olympus hand grip for the Mkii and it certainly improves the handling. Incidentally I also got an Olympus hand grip for the EM10 mkii and that has transformed the handling to be my everyday camera. There are some great camera bargains to be had at the moment for the ‘older cameras’ all still very competent.

Great video. How about sharing some of your other hobbies. I too have a LOT of interests pulling me in many directions and competing for disposable income.

Still trying to master my OM 1 mk 11 with limited success. It has a tendency to expose frames without my permission and I can't discover why! Luckily I'm fortunate in possessing a delightful Pen F, which is an absolute joy and reminds me of my Leica M3 - a camera that accompanied me as a wedding photographer during the 1960s /70s. The Leica had its faults and could be bit of a bug##r to load and so I always had a brace of Minoltas as backup. Thoroughly enjoy your videos, which help to keep me in touch with this 'Brave New world' of digital photography, which has a few positives - I'm sure??

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Is focus stacking like computational photography as in the iPhones? Do you see a merging of technologies?

i have the om5 MkII limited edition Titanium. This camera is beautiful. It's a strong camera, but the door of the battery pack is not strong. I learn some things of this video. I try the flash for making macro photo's. I have also the 60 mm 2.8 macro objectief. I like also the viewfinder. It's beter than the om 1MkII. I have also the om 10 mkII. This camera makes sharp sometimes oversharp photo's. I like the om5mkII the photo's are not to sharp. Maybe this camera makes therefore better photo's then the om5mkIII. The handeling is also better.

Same here! Too many hobbies and no time to work! 😂 Thinking of getting a nice used one!

I'd love to get one...but have the MK 1....not happy with the battery though...

Did you happen to have get hands on OM D E Mk1 . Prices are similar to Om 5 mk II . Was confused between them

I have the Mk I and like it a lot. But I don't care for the EVF, re. manual focus; rather coarse. It's good to hear the Mk II's is better. But is the EVF clear enough to reliably focus manual lenses?

I've been using this camera since 2015, and it has proven to be a reliable companion throughout numerous trips and family events. However, one aspect that occasionally disappoints is its autofocus, particularly in dynamic situations like capturing children in motion. I had hoped that subsequent models would match the reliability of the Mark II, making an upgrade worthwhile. Unfortunately, it seems that Olympus/OM System tends to recycle older technology in their newer releases, leaving users like myself concerned about future-proofing and the potential for meaningful firmware updates. This recycling of technology feels like a short-sighted strategy that may ultimately limit the innovation and advancement of their products.

Hello sir what lens do you use for your camera?

Hi Don. I have an issue on my EM5 mark II. Basically between shootings when I lay the camera away of the eye it enters a sort of stand-by or sleep mode, the screen goes black and it takes 2-3 seconds to come back. Why is that? I can avoid it only if I keep half-pressing the shoot button. How do I make in between shooting and waking of the camera immediate?? Thanks

Need your input please! My Em5 ii arbitrarily shuts off when in video mode (after 5,10,20 secs) and has become almost unreliable. I am at my wits end. I have cleaned contacts with lens, changed SD cards. I don't know what to do anymore. You know this camera well... any ideas? Thx

2m 2.5l w 181E182l

Just got the em5 mk3 finding my way around. I’m going to say these cameras would be great for girls ….. small camera, small hands and i don’t care what anyone calls me for pointing that out… let’s see if I get slammed or banned …)

better build quality than mkiii for sure