If things keep going the way they are for OM System right now, then I’ll be very happy. The company has been working on improving their cameras like the OM System OM1, and the more we use it the more we’re convinced. Lots of folks won’t believe what Micro Four Thirds can do for them. But honestly, there isn’t a lot of complain about. The OM System OM1 is one of the most innovative cameras on the market, and using it in Pro Capture Mode really proves it. So we updated our OM System OM1 review to reflect that.
We put the OM System OM1 head to head with the Canon EOS R5 and the Sony a1. And for the money, the OM System OM1 performed pretty much on par. Canon has the highest keeper rate only by a little bit. Sony is also highly capable. But the OM1 can snag the moments you missed, and that’s really important.
The following text is what was updated in our OM System OM1 review. You can take a look for yourself here. If you’re interested, see why so many people have bought the OM System OM1 through our affiliate links. Or try it out for yourself over at LensRentals.
Update August 2022
I asked OMDS if I could call in another lens for testing and photographing birds, so they sent me the Olympus 100-400mm f5-6.3 PRO lens. Indeed, this is a much better choice for photographing birds in the wild and even in cities like the one where I live. Where this got particularly fascinating is with a head to head tests against the Sony a1 and Canon EOS R5.
To give the OM System OM1 a bit more of an edge, I set the camera to Pro Capture mode. I haven’t used this mode for a while because, in my mind, I thought it was cheating. But in truth, it’s very effective. Pro Capture Mode records a bit of what you were autofocusing on before you fully press the shutter. This is critical because, honestly, if you see a moment in your viewfinder, then that often means it’s gone. Pro Capture Mode helps with this, though.
With that I set up a bird feeder on my balcony that attracted various species of birds. Ultimately, it lead to pigeons fighting one another for bird seed. And the results I got were absolutely fascinating. With the OM System OM1 set to Bird AI, it increased the hit rate so much more. Further, I set the camera to Auto area AF, so it searched the scene by itself and then found the birds to focus on.
A big part of this is the lens. The 100-400mm f5-6.3 PRO has a pretty deep depth of field. But it’s not so deep that you won’t get beautiful bokeh. Indeed, you can tell by these photos that it still nailed the shot. When things were set up this way, it rivaled Canon and Sony for accuracy and quality. However, it does so at a fraction of the cost and weight. That’s something very impressive and worth praising.
