$2000 for quarter-frame MLC in 2025?

Mark McGee usually photographs with 44x33 Hasselblad X.

Mark is taken aback by OM-3 features, speed, Stacked sensor, Computational.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UxxBV5KN57

[ o ]

Richard Butler dpreview technical editor writing in comments of OM-3 review :

"Don't underestimate how expensive a Stacked sensor is. The cheapest camera with a Stacked APS-C chip has a list price of $2500, the cheapest full-frame? $4K."

--
Photography after all is interplay of light alongside perspective.
 
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Mark McGee usually photographs with 44x33 Hasselblad X.
That makes sense now. He opens with there's a new camera hitting the street photography scene, but with a swivel screen it's not going to be a must have for many street photographers.
Mark is taken aback by OM-3 features, speed, Stacked sensor, Computational.
He doesn't sound like a retro camera enthusiast.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UxxBV5KN57

[ o ]

Richard Butler dpreview technical editor writing in comments of OM-3 review :

"Don't underestimate how expensive a Stacked sensor is. The cheapest camera with a Stacked APS-C chip has a list price of $2500, the cheapest full-frame? $4K."

--
Photography after all is interplay of light alongside perspective.
 
Mark McGee usually photographs with 44x33 Hasselblad X.
That makes sense now. He opens with there's a new camera hitting the street photography scene, but with a swivel screen it's not going to be a must have for many street photographers.
Mark is taken aback by OM-3 features, speed, Stacked sensor, Computational.
He doesn't sound like a retro camera enthusiast.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UxxBV5KN57

[ o ]

Richard Butler dpreview technical editor writing in comments of OM-3 review :

"Don't underestimate how expensive a Stacked sensor is. The cheapest camera with a Stacked APS-C chip has a list price of $2500, the cheapest full-frame? $4K."
Mark is still taken aback by the features of OM-3. As Mark says OM-3 opens up more creativity for street photography.

--
Photography after all is interplay of light alongside perspective.
 
Last edited:
Mark McGee usually photographs with 44x33 Hasselblad X.
That makes sense now. He opens with there's a new camera hitting the street photography scene, but with a swivel screen it's not going to be a must have for many street photographers.
Mark is taken aback by OM-3 features, speed, Stacked sensor, Computational.
He doesn't sound like a retro camera enthusiast.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UxxBV5KN57

[ o ]

Richard Butler dpreview technical editor writing in comments of OM-3 review :

"Don't underestimate how expensive a Stacked sensor is. The cheapest camera with a Stacked APS-C chip has a list price of $2500, the cheapest full-frame? $4K."
Mark is still taken aback by the features of OM-3. As Mark says OM-3 opens up much more creativity for street photography.
Has he tried the OM System OM-1?
--
Photography after all is interplay of light alongside perspective.
 
Mark McGee usually photographs with 44x33 Hasselblad X.
That makes sense now. He opens with there's a new camera hitting the street photography scene, but with a swivel screen it's not going to be a must have for many street photographers.
Mark is taken aback by OM-3 features, speed, Stacked sensor, Computational.
He doesn't sound like a retro camera enthusiast.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UxxBV5KN57

[ o ]

Richard Butler dpreview technical editor writing in comments of OM-3 review :

"Don't underestimate how expensive a Stacked sensor is. The cheapest camera with a Stacked APS-C chip has a list price of $2500, the cheapest full-frame? $4K."
Mark is still taken aback by the features of OM-3. As Mark says OM-3 opens up much more creativity for street photography.
Has he tried the OM System OM-1?
Not sure if he has. I think for him as a Hassy X photographer, OM-3 design appeals more to him than OM-1.

--
Photography after all is interplay of light alongside perspective.
 
Last edited:
Mark McGee usually photographs with 44x33 Hasselblad X.
That makes sense now. He opens with there's a new camera hitting the street photography scene, but with a swivel screen it's not going to be a must have for many street photographers.
Mark is taken aback by OM-3 features, speed, Stacked sensor, Computational.
He doesn't sound like a retro camera enthusiast.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UxxBV5KN57

[ o ]

Richard Butler dpreview technical editor writing in comments of OM-3 review :

"Don't underestimate how expensive a Stacked sensor is. The cheapest camera with a Stacked APS-C chip has a list price of $2500, the cheapest full-frame? $4K."
Mark is still taken aback by the features of OM-3. As Mark says OM-3 opens up much more creativity for street photography.
Has he tried the OM System OM-1?
Not sure if he has.
He'd probably like the OM-1 better if it's the tech he's into.
I think for him as a Hassy X photographer, OM-3 design appeals more to him than OM-1.
--
Photography after all is interplay of light alongside perspective.
 
Mark McGee usually photographs with 44x33 Hasselblad X.
That makes sense now. He opens with there's a new camera hitting the street photography scene, but with a swivel screen it's not going to be a must have for many street photographers.
Mark is taken aback by OM-3 features, speed, Stacked sensor, Computational.
He doesn't sound like a retro camera enthusiast.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UxxBV5KN57

[ o ]

Richard Butler dpreview technical editor writing in comments of OM-3 review :

"Don't underestimate how expensive a Stacked sensor is. The cheapest camera with a Stacked APS-C chip has a list price of $2500, the cheapest full-frame? $4K."
Mark is still taken aback by the features of OM-3. As Mark says OM-3 opens up much more creativity for street photography.
Has he tried the OM System OM-1?
Not sure if he has.
He'd probably like the OM-1 better if it's the tech he's into.
I think for him as a Hassy X photographer, OM-3 design appeals more to him than OM-1.
He should get E-M1x 🤣 for street.
 
the strategy is clear to me - milk existing users for all they're worth
The latest sensor at base ISO improved about 1/3 of a stop vs the PEN-F and is roughly the same as the one in the E-M1 III.

https://www.photonstophotos.net/Cha...III,Olympus PEN-F,Olympus System OM-1 Mark II

You can see the same story for Sony's lineup too, about 0.41 stop improvement from A7II to A7III, and A7IV ends up being roughly the same as A7 III.

https://www.photonstophotos.net/Charts/PDR.htm#Sony ILCE-7M2,Sony ILCE-7M3,Sony ILCE-7M4

Basically don't expect amazing improvements unless you are comparing to a horrible sensor as a baseline (the Sony IMX269 that the PEN-F likely used, was already a good sensor in terms of IQ).
ok but there's a big difference in resolution evolution between OMS and Sony or Fuji

Sony have gone from 24mp with the A7iii (launched in 2018) to 33mp with the A7iv, and now they offer 33 and 61mp sensors in their entry level A7C series

similarly Fuji went from 16 to 26 to 40mp

Olympus/OMS are stuck on 20mp since the launch of the Pen F nearly a decade ago

Even Lumix made some effort and dropped a 24mp sensor in a couple of their most recent cameras
 
Olympus/OMS are stuck on 20mp since the launch of the Pen F nearly a decade ago

Even Lumix made some effort and dropped a 24mp sensor in a couple of their most recent cameras
Although 20MP, it's a Stacked sensor on OM-3. Stacked being one of the cutting edge things in consumer digital camera sensors.

Maybe future OM-1mk3 could have 35MP Stacked sensor.
 
Olympus/OMS are stuck on 20mp since the launch of the Pen F nearly a decade ago

Even Lumix made some effort and dropped a 24mp sensor in a couple of their most recent cameras
Although 20MP, it's a Stacked sensor on OM-3. Stacked being one of the cutting edge things in consumer digital camera sensors.
stacked makes it faster, not better IQ

for a camera like this i'd prefer higher res. e.g. Sony's R series are higher resolution than their stacked sports models
Maybe future OM-1mk3 could have 35MP Stacked sensor.
 
Olympus/OMS are stuck on 20mp since the launch of the Pen F nearly a decade ago

Even Lumix made some effort and dropped a 24mp sensor in a couple of their most recent cameras
Although 20MP, it's a Stacked sensor on OM-3. Stacked being one of the cutting edge things in consumer digital camera sensors.
stacked makes it faster, not better IQ

for a camera like this i'd prefer higher res. e.g. Sony's R series are higher resolution than their stacked sports models
Maybe future OM-1mk3 could have 35MP Stacked sensor.
If OM System could do Hand-Held High Res HHHR 80MP file in future OM-1mk3. At the moment it's 50MP file in HHHR.

I been tempted by Sony R series. Saw a 50MP Canon 5Dsr with warranty £350 maybe I should picked it up. Saving up for Gfx100smk2 which could take 7years 🤣 to become affordable for me.

--
Photography after all is interplay of light alongside perspective.
 
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Mark McGee usually photographs with 44x33 Hasselblad X.
That makes sense now. He opens with there's a new camera hitting the street photography scene, but with a swivel screen it's not going to be a must have for many street photographers.
Mark is taken aback by OM-3 features, speed, Stacked sensor, Computational.
He doesn't sound like a retro camera enthusiast.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UxxBV5KN57

[ o ]

Richard Butler dpreview technical editor writing in comments of OM-3 review :

"Don't underestimate how expensive a Stacked sensor is. The cheapest camera with a Stacked APS-C chip has a list price of $2500, the cheapest full-frame? $4K."
Mark is still taken aback by the features of OM-3. As Mark says OM-3 opens up much more creativity for street photography.
Has he tried the OM System OM-1?
Not sure if he has.
He'd probably like the OM-1 better if it's the tech he's into.
I think for him as a Hassy X photographer, OM-3 design appeals more to him than OM-1.
He should get E-M1x 🤣 for street.
I think he'd love it!
--
Photography after all is interplay of light alongside perspective.
 
Olympus/OMS are stuck on 20mp since the launch of the Pen F nearly a decade ago

Even Lumix made some effort and dropped a 24mp sensor in a couple of their most recent cameras
Although 20MP, it's a Stacked sensor on OM-3. Stacked being one of the cutting edge things in consumer digital camera sensors.
stacked makes it faster, not better IQ

for a camera like this i'd prefer higher res. e.g. Sony's R series are higher resolution than their stacked sports models
Yeah, high speed and computational features is certainly not what I look for in a retro camera. I would prefer a bigger, better EVF that enhances the user experience, particularly when using manual focus lenses like those beautiful Voigtlanders, which make a good match for the OM-3.
Maybe future OM-1mk3 could have 35MP Stacked sensor.
 
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Honestly, I feel the low-end market is gone. Why buy entry level or low end when your phone will take “just as good” images for most people. It seems the only way to make money now is to sell higher end cameras. If I were to start out why shell out $500 for a basic camera when I can save and then spend a bit more for a camera that offer more features.

People complain about MFT small sensor but out of those thousands and millions of photos out there, the vast majority is probably produced by a phone. So, do people really care about “Image Quality.” It’s only those that calls themselves “photographer” that cares about that since they will pixel peep and make sure all that money they paid was worth it.

With the rise of AI, will we even need photographers anymore?
That does seem to be the way most of the industry is thinking.

My guess would me they thin the OM-3 is going to be targeted at users who want small but good quality lenses.

If I was weighing it up relative to FF the main selling point for me would be lenses like the 45mm and 75mm F/1.8's. With FF you can keep fairly compact with wide/normal primes but when you get into tele things start to increase in size.
 
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The OM-3 looks like a great option if you wanted a smaller and lighter version of the OM-1 II for less money, and didn't need dual card slots, a hand grip, an accessory battery drive, or the better EVF.

Except for one big thing. It doesn't cost any less. Right now you can buy either one for $1,999 from B&H. So in that case, I will take the OM-II and get all the other stuff too.

In fact, if I didn't already own fourteen M4/3 lenses, I would go for the Sony A7C II for $300 less, or the Panasonic S9 for $500 less.

The OM-3 is a great camera, but it costs too much for too little. There are better cameras available for the same price or less... even from OM Systems. If you gave me one, I would gratefully take it, but I would never spend $2,000 for this camera. Something like $1,400 sounds about right.

We thought this was supposed to be a camera priced "between the OM-5 and OM-1" and not "almost an OM-1 for almost the same price."
 
The OM-3 looks like a great option if you wanted a smaller and lighter version of the OM-1 II for less money, and didn't need dual card slots, a hand grip, an accessory battery drive, or the better EVF.

Except for one big thing. It doesn't cost any less. Right now you can buy either one for $1,999 from B&H. So in that case, I will take the OM-II and get all the other stuff too.

In fact, if I didn't already own fourteen M4/3 lenses, I would go for the Sony A7C II for $300 less, or the Panasonic S9 for $500 less.

The OM-3 is a great camera, but it costs too much for too little. There are better cameras available for the same price or less... even from OM Systems. If you gave me one, I would gratefully take it, but I would never spend $2,000 for this camera. Something like $1,400 sounds about right.

We thought this was supposed to be a camera priced "between the OM-5 and OM-1" and not "almost an OM-1 for almost the same price."
Since it has a lower price outside the US market, I suspect OM are just trying to add modest margin by a high price. If lowering the price doesn’t boost regional sales a lot, there isn’t much point in doing it.

Also, they may hope for a high market share in their home market and are matching production capacity to global markets.

Correcting for tax, at today’s exchange rate, the U.K. price is $1,755. The OM1 mk ii is $2,220. The OM5 is $1,135.

There will be deals in 9-12 months. I bought my OM5 plus 12-45/4 new as a kit from an authorised big name dealer for the equivalent of $985!

A

--
Infinite are the arguments of mages. Truth is a jewel with many facets. Ursula K LeGuin
Please feel free to edit any images that I post
 
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Well petapixel reviewed it. I know Chris isn't always a serious guy but it was a proper review by a well known channel.
By serious I did not mean disingenuous, I meant serious as in controlled testing , Petapixel, Gordon Laing and many others boil down to opinion . If you look at their "reviews" in detail , there is a lot more I feel , I like , I don't like than any actual data to substantiate it.
I'm sure others will. Every camera new to market gets reviewed.

Ofc we know M43 isn't as popular as the other formats you tell us often enough 😄 but it will get reviewed by non fanboys
 
Well petapixel reviewed it. I know Chris isn't always a serious guy but it was a proper review by a well known channel.
By serious I did not mean disingenuous, I meant serious as in controlled testing , Petapixel, Gordon Laing and many others boil down to opinion . If you look at their "reviews" in detail , there is a lot more I feel , I like , I don't like than any actual data to substantiate it.
I'm sure others will. Every camera new to market gets reviewed.

Ofc we know M43 isn't as popular as the other formats you tell us often enough 😄 but it will get reviewed by non fanboys
Just curious Jim, what data don’t we already know about this sensor, etc. that you would like to see? If it is indeed an OM-1ii, we have a lot of data on that.
 
> In fact, if I didn't already own fourteen M4/3 lenses, I would go for the Sony A7C II

Indeed. For me the OM1 is just too big to fit comfortably in my cycle bar bag, while the OM3 should fit albeit a bit close. With the FF options that fit I would need to give up focal lengths beyond ~ 100mm, and certainly couldn't fit anything close to my 100-300 Panasonic.

Mark
 
> In fact, if I didn't already own fourteen M4/3 lenses, I would go for the Sony A7C II

Indeed. For me the OM1 is just too big to fit comfortably in my cycle bar bag, while the OM3 should fit albeit a bit close. With the FF options that fit I would need to give up focal lengths beyond ~ 100mm, and certainly couldn't fit anything close to my 100-300 Panasonic.

Mark
This my 100mm solution. The lens comes with a push cap, so the rubber hood is mine. In APSC mode that’s effectively 150/3.8 with 26Mpix. Just under 300g with the lens cap.

My small kit is an OM5 with a few smaller lenses.

Andrew

--
Infinite are the arguments of mages. Truth is a jewel with many facets. Ursula K LeGuin
Please feel free to edit any images that I post
 

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