Can the New OM System OM-1 Mirrorless Camera Keep Up With the Canon EOS R3?

The OM System OM-1 is here, and with its impressive upgrades and new capabilities, it challenges the paradigm of full frame or even APS-C cameras ruling the sports genre, at least on paper. Can it really keep up with top-level professional cameras, though? This great video review pits the OM-1 against the highly respected Canon EOS R3 to find out. 

Coming to you from DPReview TV, this excellent video comparison takes a look at the new OM System OM-1 mirrorless camera and the Canon EOS R3 in a challenging indoor hockey environment. With 50 fps continuous shooting while using full tracking autofocus or 120 fps with locked autofocus, the OM-1 looks like a potentially fantastic option for sports or wildlife photographers, but of course, having insane burst speeds does not mean much if autofocus can't keep up or if the image quality is not there. And wildlife and sports photographers will always be concerned with image quality, particularly at high ISOs, as their need for fast shutter speeds in poor lighting often necessitates especially high ISOs. Altogether, though, the OM-1 looks quite impressive, and it may be one of the best bang for the buck cameras available right now. Check out the video above for the full rundown on both cameras. 

Alex Cooke's picture

Alex Cooke is a Cleveland-based portrait, events, and landscape photographer. He holds an M.S. in Applied Mathematics and a doctorate in Music Composition. He is also an avid equestrian.

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3 Comments

"And wildlife and sports photographers will always be concerned with image quality, particularly at high ISOs, as their need for fast shutter speeds in poor lighting often necessitates especially high ISOs."

Not entirely true though. Many professionals say they're perfectly happy with the IQ of m4/3s even in poor lighting conditions. E.g. here's two of them:
- https://www.instagram.com/wildmanrouse/
- https://500px.com/p/sulasulacom?view=photos

And their work really speak for themselves!

As long as you and/or your client is happy with the results, the type of camera/lens you use is good. FF makes me happy, M4/3 makes you happy. Horses/courses.

I enjoyed seeing this review and seeing the differences in these two cameras. I don't think most potential buyers are trying to choose between these two. Everybody has a budget--be it large or small.

Perhaps you could have/should have compared four cameras: The last OMD camera from Olympus'with the lens you used here; the new OM 1 with the same lens, a Canon body in same price range with a lens with equivalent reach and Fstop, the Canon camera used in the video with a lens of equivalent reach and F Stop.

I'm guessing that maybe 50 percent of people considering the OM1 are currently using Olympus and have a bag full of lenses, maybe 25 percent are looking for a first camera with varying amounts of cash available, and 25 percent are Canon users who are just checking things out. That would be so useful.