A system that’s been asked about and requested by our readers recently has been the OM-D E-M1 Mark III from Olympus. We’ve not really reviewed a lot of Olympus rigs here at SLR Lounge and I’ll definitely be working on changing that moving forward, especially since this camera looks so promising!
For the Vloggers out there, this tiny and powerful system is reported as having one of the best image stabilization systems around, letting you create super stable video while out on the street or simply hand-holding the rig for some footage. This also makes it a very ideal camera for Travel photography since it packs a decent punch and is also incredibly small! While there are other systems out there that may have a larger sensor or higher megapixel count for the price, none offer the 7-stops of image stabilization or the ability to focus on stars and shoot astrophotography without the aid of a tripod like this system allegedly can! Given i’ve been itching to get out and shoot some landscape work again, this is a feature i’m more than excited and ready to test out!
Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark III Specs:
- Maximum Resolution 5184 x 3888
- Aspect Ratio 4:3
- Sensor Type MOS
- Sensor Size 17.4 x 13 mm
- Image File Format JPEG, Raw
- Bit Depth 12-Bit
- Image Stabilization Sensor-Shift, 5-Axis
- ISO Sensitivity Auto, 200 to 25600 (Extended: 64 to 25600)
- Shutter Speed
- Mechanical Shutter
- 1/8000 to 60 Second
- Bulb Mode
- Time Mode
- Electronic Front Curtain Shutter
- 1/320 to 60 Second
- Electronic Shutter
- 1/32000 to 60 Second
- Mechanical Shutter
- Exposure Compensation -5 to +5 EV (1/3, 1/2, 1 EV Steps)
- Metering Range -2 to 20 EV
- Recording Limit Up to 29 Minutes
- Focus Mode
- Continuous-Servo AF (C),
- Manual Focus (M),
- Single-Servo AF (S)
- Autofocus Points
- Phase Detection: 121 (121 Cross-Type)
- Contrast Detection: 121
- Autofocus Sensitivity -3.5 to +20 EV
- Connectivity
- USB Type-C (USB 3.0), HDMI D (Micro), 3.5mm Headphone, 3.5mm Microphone, 2.5mm Sub-Mini, PC Sync Socket
- Wireless
- Wi-Fi
- Bluetooth
- Dimensions (W x H x D) 5.28 x 3.58 x 2.71″ / 134.1 x 90.9 x 68.9 mm
- Weight 1.28 lb / 580 g (Body with Battery and Memory)
- Price – $1,799 – Adorama | B&H | Amazon
Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark III Reviews
Like I mentioned above, we’re very excited to get our hands on it and complete our original review in the near future. Until then, here are some of our favorites from around the web from other respected sources:
B&H’s Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark III First Look
Endgadget’s Review of the Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark III
DPReview Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark III Review
Vistek Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark III Review
Endgadget Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark III Review
For comparison, here’s Kai W’s review on the previous OM-D E-M1 Mark II
Conclusion
From what we’ve seen the negative feedback about this system has centered around these things:
- Issues with the continuous autofocus remaining in focus when shooting (burst image stills and video)
- The sensor – (Meaning pixel peepers always seem to find issue with a Micro Four Thirds system)
- Average (at best) performance in Low-Light situations
- Not a lot of video features
- The EVF is underwhelming when compared to the competition
Given this system seems to be targeted more for the travel-photography enthusiast, the issues above may not really be that much of, well, an issue? There are likely better systems out there for the price if you’re simply looking for better still or video quality, but this system comes with a very effective weather seal crammed into a very travel friendly package. Meaning, if you want to capture great images on your travels without _having_ to carry around a tripod, this may be a great camera for you. Especially considering it has built-in ND’s.
Until we get to test this system out ourselves, please let us know if you have any thoughts or questions about the camera below and we’ll be sure to tackle them in our own review soon!
