based on a production Olympus E-M1 with Firmware 1.0
The E-M1 is the second model in Olympus's OM-D series and extends the range further into semi-pro/enthusiast territory. There are two distinctions that set the E-M1 apart from its little brother (the E-M5) - a more sophisticated autofocus system and a 'buttons for everything' design approach. As such the two models will coexist, with the E-M1 sitting at the very top of Olympus's lineup.
The biggest technological step forward on the E-M1 is the addition of on-sensor phase detection elements, giving the camera two distinct focus modes. The phase-detection system is used when lenses from the original Four Thirds system, which were designed for use that way, are attached. With native, Micro Four Thirds lenses, the camera will mainly stick with the contrast detection system that has proved so fast and accurate on the E-M5. Only if you use tracking AF will the camera utilize phase-detection information with a Micro Four Thirds lens.
The E-M1 also gains the excellent 2.3m-dot electronic viewfinder panel we first saw as the VF-4 accessory for the PEN E-P5. Not only is the resolution very impressive, but the viewfinder optics give a viewfinder with magnification of up to 1.48x (depending on display mode), which puts it only a fraction behind the 0.76x viewfinder in Canon's 1D X and ahead of Nikon's pro-grade D4 DSLRs.
There's also a more advanced processor in the E-M1 that conducts a variety of lens corrections, when creating JPEGs, leading the company to proclaim the best image quality offered by one of its cameras. These corrections, enabled by the company's latest, TruePic VII processor, include correcting for chromatic aberation and correcting sharpness on a per-lens basis.
The biggest difference between the E-M1 and the E-M5, though, is the degree of direct control on offer. We really liked the E-M5's twin-dial control system, but the E-M1 goes beyond that by providing button-and-dial combinations for quickly changing almost every imaginable setting on the camera, quickly. It's the kind of approach you don't usually get until the very top of manufacturers' lineups - it means you have to get used to where every function is, but can shoot fluidly once you have.
However, this direct control doesn't come at the expense of the potentially slower but easier to find touch-screen interface. The E-M1 can be operated pretty much however you fancy.
As well as representing the highest-end Micro Four Thirds camera yet, the E-M1's role is also about offering continued support for users of the original Four Thirds system. Olympus created some very nice lenses for the Four Thirds system, but the company struggled to make enough impact in the market to justify the cost of continuing development for both systems in parallel.
The company claims to have studied what the E-M1 and a hypothetical 'E-7' could offer, and concluded that, while image quality, durability and speed would have been the same, the OM-D design allowed a size advantage and much greater viewfinder magnification than would be possible with an optical finder. As such the E-M1 should be considered the successor to the E-5.
We'll look at the performance of the camera with Four Thirds lenses in a little more depth later in this article, but, in principle, the on-sensor phase detection autofocus system should be much more effective when it comes to controlling Four Thirds lenses, all of which were primarily designed to be driven by phase detection-based systems.
If you're new to digital photography you may wish to read the Digital
Photography Glossary before diving into this article (it may help
you understand some of the terms used).
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Conclusion / Recommendation / Ratings are based on the opinion of the reviewer, you should read the ENTIRE review before coming to your own conclusions. Images which can be viewed at a larger size have a small magnifying glass icon in the bottom right corner of the image, clicking on the image will display a larger (typically VGA) image in a new window. To navigate the review simply use the next / previous page buttons, to jump to a particular section either pick the section from the drop down or select it from the navigation bar at the top. DPReview calibrate their monitors using Color Vision OptiCal at the (fairly well accepted) PC normal gamma 2.2, this means that on our monitors we can make out the difference between all of the (computer generated) grayscale blocks below. We recommend to make the most of this review you should be able to see the difference (at least) between X,Y and Z and ideally A,B and C. |
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This article is Copyright 2013 and may NOT in part or in whole be reproduced in any electronic or printed medium without prior permission from the author.
Olympus OM-D E-M1 Compact System Camera with 16MP and 3-Inch LCD - Body Only | $1,390.95 |
Olympus OM-D E-M1 Compact System Camera with 16MP and 3-Inch LCD - Body Only | $1,390.95 |
Olympus OM-D E-M5 16MP Live MOS Interchangeable Lens Camera with 3.0-Inch Tilting OLED Touchscreen and 12-50mm Lens (Black) | $1,022.21 |
Olympus OM-D E-M5 16MP Live MOS Interchangeable Lens Camera with 3.0-Inch Tilting OLED Touchscreen [Body Only] Silver | $844.96 |
Olympus Mirror-less Slr Om-d E-m1 12-40mm F2.8 Lens Kit Black Dust Drip Om-d... | $2,620.00 |
Olympus OM-D E-M5 16MP Live MOS Interchangeable Lens Camera with 3.0-Inch Tilting OLED Touchscreen and 12-50mm Lens (Silver) | Too low to display |
Olympus Limited Edition OM-D E-M5 Kit with 17mm f1.8 lens, metal lens hood, and metal lens cap (Silver) | $1,399.00 |
Olympus OM-D E-M5 16MP Live MOS Interchangeable Lens Camera with 3.0-Inch Tilting OLED Touchscreen [Body Only] (Black) | $844.96 |
Olympus OM-D E-M5 16MP Live MOS Interchangeable Lens Camera with 3.0-Inch Tilting OLED Touchscreen and 14-42mm Lens (Black) | $950.00 |
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