Known for combining functionality with aesthetics, Olympus is also synonymous with innovation. Their unique features, great design, and ergonomics result in an increasing flow of photographers, both young and old, from other brands to their stable.
There are lots of articles on Fstoppers extolling the virtues of different cameras and brands. I've noticed comments from Olympus users that their cameras' unique features are often forgotten. I've tried to redress that by featuring articles about superb Olympus photographers like Rob Cottle and Ethan Beckler.
Putting the Arguments into Context
Olympus' Digital History
Along with Panasonic, Olympus recognized the future was with interchangeable lens cameras sporting electronic viewfinders, and so they became pioneers of mirrorless systems, switching entirely to Micro Four Thirds (MFT).
That early adoption places them well ahead of the competition with the development of high-performance mirrorless cameras. As the iceberg of doom tears away below the DSLR waterline, other brands are now jumping that sinking ship. Running for the mirrorless lifeboats, they are a long way behind Olympus’s head start.
Photographer Hannes Becker. Olympus OM-D E-M1 X
What About Noise?
As sensors have improved, the noise disadvantage that was brought by those smaller sensors has diminished to an irrelevance when photographing within normal parameters. With the arrival of outstanding noise reduction software such as On1’s NoNoise AI and Topaz Denoise, even working at those rarely needed, extremely high ISOs becomes achievable. As you will see later, Olympus has also found a cunning way of getting around long-exposure noise too.
The Depth of Field Argument
One of the criticisms Micro-Four Thirds faces is the greater depth of field. Detractors always ignore the benefits of that; there are two sides to everything in photography, a benefit for every disadvantage.
Landscape photographers often want more depth of field, and so, they reduce the aperture size. Olympus (and Panasonic Lumix) can achieve the same DOF with wider apertures, removing the image softness issue of diffraction that one would see with full frame at their necessarily small apertures.
Image by Olympus Photographer Justin Kauffmann
Additionally, in areas like portraiture, wildlife photography and macro, there can be too little depth of field. Full frame photographers have to stop down to get more than just the eyes in focus; having eyes sharp but a fuzzy nose tip and ears isn't that great a look. With MFT, that greater depth doesn't require a smaller aperture.
Nevertheless, shallow DOF is perfectly possible with an MFT camera. The shooting parameters are different, but it is still achievable, and Olympus Zuiko lenses produce lovely bokeh.
Why Photographers Are Buying These Cameras
The photographers I’ve met that use Olympus have been a mixed bag. Firstly, there are the exciting young art photographers. They want the convenience the smaller Micro Four Thirds system bring, better image quality than their phones deliver, plus the style that isn’t apparent in chunky-clunky DSLRs. Then, there are those of us who travel and do outdoor activities, where small size, low weight, and weather-sealing is all important. Additionally, there is the older photographer who no longer wants to lug around heavy gear because it hurts. There are also the technology enthusiasts, who like to push their photographic boundaries using advanced features. At the other end of the scale, there are those who just want a small, convenient, and easy-to-use system to take snaps.
Olympus's Unique Selling Points
Here are some major features that you might not know about that give Olympus cameras the edge over others.
1. Live Composite
An easy way of understanding Live Composite mode is to imagine shooting the same image repeatedly and combining the shots as layers into one image. Any subject with the same lighting remains unchanged in the final image. However, new brighter light is added. For example, if you start shooting a subject in the dark and then gradually light paint it, that light painting will appear in the final image. Another application is shooting lightning. The camera will continuously update the first shot you took but only add the lightning to it.
A photo of mine where I simulated a long exposure using Live Composite mode. While I was on this photo shoot, my Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II fell over onto underwater rocks in the middle of the river I was standing in. I picked it up, dried it off and continued shooting. See 13. Extreme Conditions.
Although not what this is designed for (see Live ND below), I’ve used this technique for simulating the effect of long exposures of moving water. Because moving water is white, it adds that extra light to the original shot, thus smoothing it out. With Live Composite, you can watch the image develop on the rear screen, your phone, or tablet using the free Olympus Image Share app. That app gives you Live View, focus and exposure adjustments, and remote shooting on the bigger screen of your smart phone or tablet.
A big advantage of shooting long exposures this way is that it negates the noise you would usually get. Instead of one long image, you are shooting multiple fast images where noise is not an issue.
Available in the OM-D E-M1 X, OM-D E-M1 Mark III, OMD E-M1 Mark II, OM-D E-M5 Mark III, OM-D E-M10 Mark IV, EPL-10, E-P7, Tough TG-6
Output: raw or JPEG
Great for: product photography, real estate, interiors, lightning, landscapes, long exposures
2 and 3. Live Bulb and Live Time
I’m putting these two together as they do similar things. Most cameras have Bulb Mode. However, with Olympus cameras, Live Bulb allows you watch a long exposure image gradually develop on the back screen, and the histogram moves to the right too. This happens while the shutter is held down or is activated through the Olympus Image Share app.
Olympus took this one stage further with Live Time. Instead of holding the shutter down, you press to start the exposure and once more to end it. Of course, these can be activated wirelessly using the Olympus Image Share App too, thus avoiding camera movement.
Output: raw or JPEG
Great for: long exposures, astrophotography and star trails
Live Bulb available in the OM-D E-M1 X, OM-D E-M1 Mark III, OMD E-M1 Mark II, OM-D E-M5 Mark III, OM-D E-M10 Mark IV, Tough TG-6
Live Time available in the OM-D E-M1 X, OM-D E-M1 Mark III, OMD E-M1 Mark II, OM-D E-M5 Mark III, OM-D E-M10 Mark IV, EPL-10, E-P7,
4. Live ND
Live ND gives you five stops of neutral density filter, you see a preview of the final shot through the viewfinder, rear screen, or on your tablet or phone.
If, like me, you like to carry minimal kit, shooting with just a camera, a tripod and maybe have a spare battery in your pocket, having up to five stops (ND32) of ND filter built into the camera brings huge benefits.
This setting gives you a preview of how the image will look before pressing the shutter. How it works is a closely guarded secret, but it is similar in operation to Live Composite mode. Consequently, long-exposure noise is still not an issue as it would be with a long exposure using a physical ND filter. When you set the shot up, a preview of the final image is displayed.
Output: raw or JPEG
Great for: long exposures, shooting bright scenes, removing moving objects (e.g. people) from a scene
OM-D E-M1 X, OM-D E-M1 Mark III,
5. Pro Capture
How good are your reactions? Have you ever just missed that decisive moment? Pro Capture overrides your reaction time by recording and buffering shots to the camera’s memory with the shutter button half pressed. When you fully press the shutter, up to 35 of those buffered frames are recorded to the memory card. If you don’t press the shutter, the memory is cleared.
Image by Laurent Vu
Output: raw or JPEG
Great for: wildlife, sports, pets, children, theater, action
Available in: OM-D E-M1 X, OM-D E-M1 Mark III, OMD E-M1 Mark II, OM-D E-M5 Mark III, Tough TG-6
6. 60 Frames Per Second Raw
OMDs can shoot up to 60 raw files per second with single autofocus, or 18 with continuous autofocus.
Output: raw or JPEG
Great for: sports, wildlife, action
Available in OM-D E-M1 X, OM-D E-M1 Mark III, OMD E-M1 Mark II,
7. High Resolution
Olympus cameras use their sensor shift technology to create images up to 80 megapixels in resolution, equal to many medium format cameras. The latest version of this even allows it to work handheld up to 50 megapixels. The camera shifts the sensor by one micron and fires off images in quick succession, combining them into a single image.
Image by Javier Camacho
Great for: macro, still landscapes, interiors, architecture, product, astrophotography, and still life
Output: raw and JPEG
Available in: OM-D E-M1 X, OM-D E-M1 Mark III, OMD E-M1 Mark II, OM-D E-M5 Mark III,
8. Crop Factor
The crop sensor means you can get closer to the action with the same focal length. A 300mm lens has the same field of view (effectively, the same magnification) as a 600mm lens.The Canon RF 600mm f/4 prime lens weighs 6.8 lbs / 3,100 g, meanwhile the Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 300mm F4 IS PRO weighs 2.4x less at 1,270g. Both contain 17 elements, have 9 rounded aperture blades, and have built-in image stabilization, which on Olympus cameras works in conjunction with the In-Body Image Stabilization. That Canon lens costs just shy of $13,000, whereas the Olympus is under $2,900.
Image by John Stirling Ruth
Great for: wildlife, sports, photojournalism, street photography, weddings, travel, outdoor adventure, remote landscapes
Available in all Olympus cameras
9. Close Focusing
Micro Four Thirds allow for much closer minimum focussing distance than larger formats. The lenses can often be pushed beyond their recommended minimum focusing distances too
Great for: macro, product photography, abstracts
10. Telecentric Optical Path
Often overlooked, the design of Micro Four Thirds means that the photons traveling from the lens do so at 90 degrees to the sensor right across the frame. This means that there is no darkening (vignetting) at the edge of the frame as there is with the other systems where the photons hit the edge of the sensor obliquely.
Great for: all photography
11. Shorter Flange Distance
The distance between the back of the lens and the sensor is greatly reduced. For those of us who shoot with vintage lenses, the addition of a simple extension tube without any glass elements will allow that lens to focus to infinity. Adapting vintage lenses with different mounts to fit most cameras means losing the ability to bring infinity into focus, unless the adaptor has extra glass elements.
Image by: Justin Kauffmann
Great for: all photography
12. In-Body Image Stabilization
Standard in all Four Thirds and Micro Four Thirds cameras, Olympus offers up to 7.5 stops of image stabilization, having found a way to overcome the IS limitations caused by the Earth’s rotation. I have managed to handhold a 45mm lens mounted on an old E-M5 Mark II for 1.5 seconds, and the newer cameras perform much better than that.
Great for: all photography
Available in all Olympus cameras
13. Extreme Conditions
Going back to 2010, when Olympus launched the E-5 DSLR, the internet was strewn with images of it being used covered in ice and snow. Since then, the environmental seals of the OM-D E-M1 series of cameras have come even further. The flagship E-M1X has inherited the sealing from the Olympus Tough compacts and is guaranteed to the formal rating of the IPX1 operating environment. The range of operating temperatures is from -10 degrees Celsius (14 Fahrenheit) up to 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) and up to 90% humidity.
Great for: all outdoor photography
Available in: OM-D E-M1 X, OM-D E-M1 Mark III, OMD E-M1 Mark II, OM-D E-M5 Mark III, Tough TG-6 and all pro lenses
14. Amazing Customer Support
Here in the UK, the Olympus team is running interactive live tutorials and interviews twice a week almost every week of the year. You don't have to be in the UK to join in with these. Furthermore, if you are befuddled by anything your camera is doing, you can book a one-to-one session online with any of their technical experts who will help you get to know your camera.
15. Weight and Size
Have you ever ended up with neck ache from lugging a heavy DSLR all day? With aging populations, older photographers no longer want to suffer sore necks and backs from carrying excessively heavy kit around.
Because Micro Four Thirds have smaller sensors, the camera bodies and lenses are smaller and lighter too. This is great news for those who want to travel with their camera gear. An OM-D E-M1 Mark III weighs just 580 g including the battery and memory card. Add to that the M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-200mm F3.5 6.3 (455 g) lens, which covers a huge focal length range, and you have a versatile kit weighing just over a kilo, or 2.28 lbs.
16. Intelligent Subject Detection Autofocus
AI technology in the E-M1 X allows the camera to recognize and focus on and track the eyes of birds as well as a range of vehicles. Further subjects are promised to be added to this function in future updates.
Great for: bird photography, moving vehicles
Available in OM-D E-M1 X
Your Turn to Comment
Are there essential, unique features your camera has that sets it apart from other brands? Okay, I know that you will be as dedicated to your brand and format as Olympus users are to theirs. All of the major manufacturers make great cameras, and so, please keep your replies positive and on topic about unique features that you cherish or wish you had.
Images used with permission of OM Digital Solutions.
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I think our disagreement here is down to us looking at the same thing in different ways. I'm talking about how much diffraction softening will be visible when viewing similar final images, i.e. when they're printed at the same size, or viewed at the same size on screen.
The amount of diffraction blur the lens delivers to an area of the sensor will be the same at a given f-stop, but a shot taken using a smaller sensor needs to be enlarged more to create an output image of a given size.
Shoot at f/8 on MFT and at the pixel level, on the sensor, there'll be half the diffraction blur of f/16 on full frame, but that's before taking the 2x crop factor into account. Enlarge the micro four thirds image to match the full frame output and the diffraction blur is enlarged along with it. There'll be similar softening due to diffraction in the final output images despite the different f-number used.
This is something I've seen in practical real world results when shooting macro with different formats. If I need plenty of DOF when shooting a small subject, I'll get both similar DOF, and similarly soft images, whether I shoot at f/16 on MFT, f/22 on APS-C, or f/32 on full frame.
When it comes to DOF, I think it's fair to say that multiplying the f-stop by the crop factor works as a rule of thumb, even if it isn't 100% accurate and the reality is more complex.
For example, putting 25mm f/8 MFT vs. 50mm f/16 full frame in my DOF calculator app, gives me DOF @ 2m of 1.69m for MFT and 1.67m for full frame. Changing the distance to 6m for a landscape shot gives 2.84m-infinity for MFT and 2.85m-infinity for full frame. To me that's close enough for real world use.
I think you are talking about the same (in the end).
Steve Yates : I think you're over-thinking it.
Take a µ4/3rds camera and a full-frame camera, with the same focal length and focal ratio (ƒ-stop), shoot the same subject, with the same lighting, same exposure, and same distance to the subject, centred on the same subject.
Now, take identical shots with that setup. Print the µ4/3rds shot at 3"x4". Print the full-frame shot at 6"x8".
Now, cut the centre 3"x4" section out of the full-frame shot — it will be IDENTICAL to the 3"x4" print, in exposure, DoF, diffraction, noise, and dynamic range!
It isn't that difficult. That's why they're called "crop" sensors.
Yes, it is all about (and only about) the circle of confusion.
Hi Ivor,
There may be another couple of unique features:
Keystone compensation in camera. Helps avoid outlay on an expensive tilt-shift lens.
Focus stacking in camera.
In camera panorama.
Although some of the above might not be that unique.
Nikon offers in-camera keystone correction, but only afterwards (JPGs). Is it possible to do with Olympus cameras before exposure?
Hi Jan,
There are two ways to use keystone correction with Olympus, before taking the picture as well as after taking a picture if you forgot the correction pior to taking the picture.
This write up from November 2014 explains how you can use keystone correction to compose your image before pressing the shutter as well as how to use keystone correction editing post pressing the shutter. So may be it is/was unique:
https://thedigitalstory.com/2014/11/how-to-use-keystone-compensation-omd...
Thank you. That is a nice feature to have in the camera.
Stopped reading at "Olympus (and Panasonic Lumix) can achieve the same DOF with wider apertures, removing the image softness issue of diffraction that one would see with full frame at their necessarily small apertures."
Why do people feel compelled to write articles about optic when they have no clue how it actually works?
Olympus have always been a very innovative company in everything they do .Camera's, microscopes ,binoculars the list goes on .A while back I was looking for a more compact option than a full frame Nikon kit that I owned and dismissed the Om range because I wanted 14 bit RAW files. M4/3rds seems to offer only 12bit RAW file option, more recently Sony , Canon and Nikon seem to be offering 16bit RAW options .If 14bit was available I would be a strong contender for OMD M1 version , I would like to think one day it might happen as I had a TG-4 and thought very highly of this great UW camera .Here's hoping
Tom, do you know why you demand 14-bit RAW files? Do you have some special application that demands that?
If you have the *right* 12 bits, you don't *need* 14 bits!
The same goes for megapixels: if you have the *right* 20 megapixels, you don't *need* to crop 20 out of your 80 megapixel image!
I hate to say this but I find this list a bit biased lacking some context and part of it, not all, a bit bogus.
Point #10 - telecentricity- this is absolutely not true for the m43rds standard. It *was* true for 4/3rds, but for m43rds and this was said right at the beginning when Panasonic and Olympus revealed the system - they let that requirement slide in favor of smaller and cheaper lenses.
And it shows- try the Lumix 25mm F1.4 m43rd lens and now try with an adapter the Old Lumix 25mm F1.4 lens- you will see a notable difference in purple fringe, micro contrast from the get go at F1.4.
This also affects all the Olympus smaller primes- as good as they are. Maybe *some* of the pro lenses are tele centric but it's not like 4/3rds where this was *required*.
The whole IBIS thing- other systems doing it now. What's missing here is that 4/3rds needs this more than some other systems because they can afford to shoot at a high ISO with same or better quality.
Pro Capture? Fuji was doing this way back in the F700 point and shoot and they have it pretty much in all their current Xtrans cameras.
Weight and Size - the unique selling proposition of the system- has been sliding thanks to both Panasonic and Olympus going with bigger cameras, and mirrorless FF and ASPC going smaller. Thank god we just got the EM10 MKIV and the E-P7 to keep that advantage in a more obvious way.
Intelligent AF? Olympus AF is sub par even to Fuji's (current Fujis that is). Where's Human and Pet detect AF? Panasonic has that, and so does Sony. Sony in particular does this extremely well. Nikon has that too. I think we can agree human/pet AF is vastly more useful than train and airplane AF.
There's a few key things Olympus does well, and for that I am using them. But over justifying m43rds (and particularly) Olympus with half context truths has become very old in my book.
Let the system shine by itself where it does best - lens selection, size weight - and should keep pushing the company to keep it that way- etc. Out of the box great JPEGS (I put Olympus and Fuji in the same category here).
Hi Ivor, you've left out a VERY important feature - one that I believe deserves an article update. It's AF Limiter. :)
The advantage of AF limiter is not only that it allows you to custom-set an AF range that works with any m43 or legacy Four Thirds lens, but more importantly, you can use it to stop your camera from focusing at infinity. This has tremendous utility for challenging scenarios in bird and macro photography. For example, if you're shooting challenging subjects such as swallows over water - with AF Limiter, you will never focus on a confusing background such as foliage. Because you can tell the camera - "focus no more than 60 feet away" - and it will search for a subject (in this case, the swallow) and stay with the bird, instead of locking on, say, some reeds in the background if you momentarily have the bird go outside the frame.
Contrast this with, say, Group AF on some Nikon bodies (I also shoot a D500). Group AF will lock on the nearest subject (the swallow) but if the bird momentarily goes outside the 5-point AF area, the camera will lock on the background right away, and you'll miss the shot. To work around this, you'll have to use a Sigma or Tamron lens that has a custom switch, and program that with a USB dock to set a custom focus range. And you won't be able to change the parameters in the field.
Attached shot of the cliff swallow would have been extremely challenging with any other camera system. With AF Limiter, my E-M1 Mark ii ignored the swirling rapids in the background and stayed with the bird.
I also love using AF Limiter for wide-angle macros. Ordinarily, to shoot a nearby subject with an ultra-wide-angle or fish-eye lens, you will have to use manual focus. With AF Limiter, you can restrict AF to, say, under 2 feet, which is great for accurate focusing with AF. And you can also combine this with in-camera focus bracketing (a feature formerly unique to Olympus cameras) to get a unique wide-angle macro shot.
That's very true. Thank you! (Super capture too!)
One feature I did forget is the ability to use the cameras as webcams. I'm not sure how many other brands have that capability. It would be interesting to hear if yours can.
I'm a very recent M4/3 users, and it's mainly for the weight issue (of the cameras, not mine). I'm primarily a live music photographer, so use FF cameras because the lighting is usually really bad. I was going to buy a new Canon R6 to replace an old DSLR, but changed my mind and bought two M4/3 bodies (not "pro" ones) and three (used) prime lenses for just over half of what the R6 body costs. Yesterday I shot a local open-air festival and took M4/3 bodies and lenses and they all fitted in a small shoulder bag instead of a big backpack that I previously used at festivals. When you're running around all day in the heat and/or mud, the less weight the better. I'm sure the FF photos would have looked better with close-up pixel peeping, but as they are for online use no one is going to notice any small difference. It's always about using the best tool for the job. I'll even still drag out my old 35mm and 120 film cameras if I think it's right for what I'm doing.
Thanks for that great comment, Chris, and that bit about the weight issue made me chuckle.
Olympus's sensor dust removal system is night and day better than my Canons (1DX, 5DIII and R6). In six years of using an E-M1 and E-M1II, I have had very very few specks of dust and NO dust stick to my sensor after simply restarting the camera. Not sure of the physics but I find all of my M4/3 lenses are very sharp right out to the corners. I like how I was easily able to switch my 'ON/OFF' switch from the left side of the camera to the right side (E-M1II). The 'push/pull' AF/MF switching on the PRO lenses is excellent. The lens hood of the 40-150 f2.8 PRO is outstanding for being so much quicker to use than on regular telephotos where you have to reverse the hood. The build quality of the PRO lenses is generally at least equal to, or superior to that of Canon 'L' glass but at much less money. I like how my 300 f4 PRO lens has the Arca Swiss 'dovetail' built into it's tripod foot. The Super Control Panel while no longer unique is still outstanding for fast access to a wide variety of parameters. And maybe the most important, the E-M1's just feel good in my hands.
That's very true, Paul. I've only had to clean an Olympus sensor once, and that was because something liquid fell onto it while I was changing the lens. I agree about the feel of the camera too. Years ago, I had my heart set on a Canon 5DIII and it felt dreadful, and the buttons were all in the wrong place for my big hands. Strangely, the smaller E-M1s suit me much better. Thanks for commenting.
I gotta say, you make a really strong argument for using an Olympus! That Pro-Capture feature is pretty amazing. Olympus has always been quite the innovative company. Back in the late 90s/early 2000s, I worked in camera sales and Olympus was a powerhouse in the early digital market and had some awesome cameras. Even back in the 35mm days, the OM cameras had some cool quirky features. I always thought they were similar to Minolta in this fashion.
Thanks for the great comment, Pete. We see a lot of articles on all sites singing the praises of the three biggest sellers, but that doesn't necessarily make them the best cameras for every photographer.
I had an OM2n and have an OM2SP and you are right, and they were superb cameras.