OM-1Amazon

I am often asked whether I'm still using Olympus (OM Digital Solutions) gear and the answer is yes... at least for now.

If you've been following my recent work, it's all with the new OM-1 and I gotta say, I love it!

When the camera came out, I ordered a few right away. What can I say, I like to go all-in. (Really it's because I have a pet peeve of having different batteries or menu systems)

The first thing I noticed was the ISO. On the E-M1 Mark III, you hit "extension" at 8000. Now, you aren't in extension until ISO 10000 and the ISO performance is significantly imptoved.

Another game-changer is it's ability to charge while photographing, via USB-C power bank. This means I don't have to worry about carrying around extra batteries, I can just carry around my power bank, which I already have on hand to power my computer. Though John Mabanglo did tip me off onto this much smaller power bank that I plan to use when on assignments where I don't need to worry about having battery power for my computer.

While the E-M1X boast the dual processors, I've actually found myself preferring the OM-1 with grip over the E-M1X. I would definitely recommend the camera to anyone.

As of now, I am still using Olympus/OM Digital Solutions gear. Value for dollar (especially because, full disclosure, I still get a pro discount) weather sealing and the lens range, in my opinion, make it the best camera for most sports photographers (and I suppose bird photographers too, but I don't have enough expertise in that field to speak on it). My biggest gripe is not the M43 sensor but rather that it doesn't have FTP capabilities. For most of my work, it's not a problem because I am either ingesting to a computer to add captions, or sending via built-in wifi to my phone, but for major events, I have to be able to send to a remote editor via FTP and have used sony cameras for that purpose.

Some other hiccups I've noticed is that it doesn't do as well finding focus behind netting. I used to be able to dial in my focal point on an object behind a net and it would grab, now it pretty consistently grabs the netting. I also had a hiccup where the first OM-1 that I received, randomly just stopped working while I was taking test photos for a Sports Business Journal Forty Under 40 portrait of Maggy Carlyle. Thank GOODNESS I had an E-M1 Mark III with me as back up!

That and the uncertainty of where the OM-Digital Solutions brand will go doesn't give me the "ultimate reliability" that the Olympus brand focused on. I am testing out sony and am open to testing out other gear. I don't think I will be OM Digital Solutions indefinitely, but it is still the best system for me and the work I do.

See what other gear I am using on my gear page.