This is, by far, one of the best comparisons videos I have ever seen between two cameras. This was not a comparison based on stat sheets alone, nor was it hampered by preconceived expectations or even personal wishful preferences. This was just based on bare-bone raw use case scenarios. What a great watch.

Regarding the compability of lenses with bodies regarding burts mode, don't forget that Panasonic used DFD AF for many years and this system needed very fast motors in their lenses. Sean Robortson of Lumix USA said this during one of the Lumix Live session. Due to DFD the lenses need to make very fast changes and the motors of their lenses are build for this. So that Lumix lenses can support the super high burts mode can be explained well.

Amazing video, people who were giving you undue amounts of flack really need to grow up, especially fellow KZfaqrs who should know better. Thanks for addressing some of the issues with the first video and bringing us another cracking video. 🙂

You won't go wrong with either cameras. I have two OM-1s that my Wife and I shoot wildlife with mostly birds in flight and the 300mmf4 pro lens is in a different league. When using the 100-400 panasonic lens the eye of the bird is very rarely in focus as there is a lack of sync af between the different brands. Panasonic with panasonic lens looks great with eye af and same goes for olympus native lenses. So the choice is yours as they both do a great job. Panasonic for video yes I agree. OM-1 however has beautiful stabilised video with the 9mm vlogging leica lens.

Wow, what a great, comprehensive review! I have read nearly all the other preview/reviews of the G9ii and none did anywhere near as good a job as yours, and you add in all the wanted comparative information on the OM-1. Amazing! I have been doing a lot of wildlife photography for decades and have done three long trips to Africa. Your photos, particularly in your short time there are truly lovely. Well done!

You’ve really covered every base possible, Emily! Another fantastic video and I love all your photos! I still to this day haven’t bought a MFT camera but getting close. And even if I don’t, I will still keep watching your channel. 😊 Congratulations on a seemingly successful photography safari!

Thanks Emily for a detailed, concise and even handed overview. I’ve been using the OM1+300mm f4 for a year and have preordered the G9ii+100-400mm for video work. The G9ii looks like the better all-rounder now Panasonic came to their senses with phase detect autofocus.😊

great video thank you!!

STUNNING PHOTOS Emily!!! Looks like you had an amazing trip!

Lovely pictures! I need to plan a nice safari trip...

i just got the olympus 40-150 f2.8, i'm so ready for G9ii

Creative combined setting lets you differentiate between photo picture profile and video. On my s1h & gh6 I can snap photos in standard and then switch vlog when in video. Nothing to change

Great video. I am an Olympus/OM system user. Your analysis about the lenses was really good. We focus so much on the camera body that we forget about the rest of the ecosystem

Amazing review, thank you!

The following OM cameras have pro capture mode: OM SYSTEM OM-1. OM-D E-M1X. OM-D E-M1 Mark III. OM-D E-M1 Mark II. OM-D E-M5 Mark III. Tough TG-6. OM-5. The OM-D E-M1 mark II (used) is a bargain way to get this feature.

Super review, I really enjoyed it. Thank you

Thank you for the great rewiew, as usual!!!

WOW!! What an incredible everything! Such a great review on both systems but also tutorial on safari shooting. As always fully comprehensive & fair to a fault...great work Emily - we loved every second 😍

Great review, thanks

Thanks for taking the time to do this, beautiful photos and great comparison.

Amazing comparison with great Shots, thank you!

Great review! The m4/3 system really is the perfect "safari-system". I visited Masai-Mara in sep 2022 and I brought with me 2 cameras and two lenses, the 12-100 and the 150-400 and a 2x converter. I got the 35mm equivalent of 24-2000mm with thoose lenses and everything weighted in at 9,5kg including the camerabag.

Many thanks for the comparison. I've been toying with the idea of selling my OM1 for the G9ii, primarily for enhanced video features, but one OM1 feature has recently become used surprisingly frequently and that's Live ND. For dynamic range and noiseless shots as well as long exposure photography plus the classic water flow effects, it's such an amazing thing to have a range of ND "filters" available in camera. It's just a shame it doesn't work for video too. But I think now I'm going to keep the OM1 instead due to my increasing reliance on this feature.

I enjoyed this comparison review. Nice to see Lumix upping its game while making MFT a more credible alternative format. I have the original G9 and 100-400mm and love the portability.

Great video Emily. Looks like a fantastic trip too, and what a bonus to be able to use these two cameras side-by-side. I'm interested in your take on the new 100-400mm compared to the older one. Just want to know if it's worth the upgrade. Of course the TC will make all the difference in the new version of this lens. But it's a big chunk of money! Cheers.

OUTSTANDING info / review! Early OM1 user, switched to G9 mostly due to menu and my personal inability to find/make changes easily. I have absolutely loved the G9 as a still-photography camera. You helped me a lot re current OM1 menu ease of use status. Thanks

I LOVE your reviews. Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge!

The new Lumix cameras have a setting where you can choose if you want the same settings vor video or separated settings. Unfortunately the default is same settings what most people don't like. I think this works only if you shoot video in the video-mode and not in the photo-mode with the video button.

Great video. If you get the chance, I'm still dying to see someone compare the dynamic range between the G9 and the G9ii (especially in HLG which I primarily shoot in for sooc hdr)

Thank you for the lovely photos and for making this video, it was very helpful. As an Olympus shooter I've always wondered why they don't put OIS in more lenses 🤔

Great video comparison Emily! I am seriously considering buying the G9II in the future for its video capabilities. Did you experience any overheating problems with the G9II while filming in these warm conditions?

When comparing video for those 2 cameras it's always mentioned that the Lumix has much more modes, but what I care even more for is the acutual video quality. And I'm not talking about technical stuff like 10bit color or bitrates, but how it actually looks like. Now, I have no G9II yet, but I had the GH6 and the OM-1 both in use for over a year now. And with the same settings (4K, 24p, LongGOP, Log) the Panasonic just always produced much more versatile better looking footage (with the same grades applied in Davinci Resolve). I never got really beautiful footage out of the Oly, especially with their Log profile (of course using the official LUT - the different LUTs being on separate nodes and not part of the aformentioned same grade). At some point I put it to just 8bit video and the natural profile and skipped grading alltogehter. At least those videos looked ok-ish. Maybe I got somehting wrong, but playing around for over a year with pretty much all the settings both cams had to offer the video on the OM-1 was always disappointing. With photos it was of course the reverse, but not by such a big margin. It also bears mentioning that the OM-1's video files where tiny compared to the GH6 so it seems to have a much higher compression.

Wonderful detailed comparison, Emily. What did you think of the ergonomics, as you handled each camera for hours on end? And viewfinders: did the higher-res EVF of the OM-1 make a difference? How about the ability to see the screens during daylight?

Think you should be proud, some cracking photos and videos on that safari - plenty of great memories preserved. Appreciate you going into so much detail with your comparison.

Great video Emily! What an experience and a comparison

I kind of at times think of M43 as just a camera mount and mix my Olympus and Panasonic gear. I never had a issue as a wedding photographer. But I understand there might be features maybe a wildlife or sports photographer might like over one brand.

I really, really like your LUMIX G9ii Introduction on the LUMIX channel. Well done. 😃😃

thanks so much for all what you presented here in this comparison. yes agree no problem to use Oly lenses on pany bodies and vias versa, for a long time i have used the pany 100-300 mm on different oly bodies with no issues, and used the zuiko 300 mm f4 on the gx9 for about 6 month and got many amzing shots and videos. my only problem with the gx9 is that i could not understand the menus. just like someone else hint hint, LOL.

Now there's dedication for you - going all that way just to do a comparison test 😁 Must have been a fabulous trip. Great comparison video. Cracking photos

Awesome Vid! Thank you so much for capturing how these cameras handle the safari environment!

Great video. An excellent addition to part 1.

Thanks, Emily. Very good, real-life comparison and operation tips.

Great review. Have been a lumix fan for years. Love the intuitive UI. I was waiting for something like the g9ii but when the OM 1 came out I went for it. 12-100 lens has superb versatility. IS is incredible. Under dim indoor light I did 8 second handheld exposures of piano sheet music from 30 feet away at full zoom and able to read the notes clearly! Similarly with dawn and dusk shots. I wish the OM 1 had a still capture while doing video. Also, would be nice to have a video pause feature, like the phone cameras for more casual shooting. However, I am still tempted to try to justify the g9ii.

Great job with the updated video. I loved the safari pics. I'm sure you had thousands to go through when you returned home. Also, great job touting the benefits of M43. After shooting a Sony A1 and Nikon Z8, I realized that I love the features of the M43 system and the light weight. I have pre-ordered the G9 II for the resolution, buffer, tracking and fps but also have an OM-5 for the Starry Sky AF, built-in ND and creation of a composite focused stack image during bracketing.

‘My brain is is small enough already.’ I’m so with you on that one. There is nothing worse than forgetting that seventeenth setting needed to make one’s perfect image under a high pressure situation. On my one and only safari last year, I had the once in a lifetime opportunity to shoot a cheetah at the edge of the Etosha Pan. He looked directly at me and leapt over a small stream. I was so dialled in; I thought I nailed every setting. Then later that afternoon when I looked through my images I realized. They were all in jpeg! Only the cheetah photos were all in jpeg! I still don’t know how I managed to do that.

I really appreciate you comming with the second video and correcting some of the old infos. Well done!

Great video ! I still can’t decide which to buy !

👏👍 from Down Under. Love your work, Emily! Subscribed. So informative. So practical. So entertaining. Very fair without dissing one brand or the other. Been in the Pany camp for some years mostly due to better video specs (I’m very hybrid) and was tempted by OM-1 bcs of crappy Pany focus. But would have lost Dual IS of 6 lenses! G9-II changes the game back finally with PDAF. Even more so when Pany finally updates firmware from 0.4 to 1.0. Thanks again and I look forward to your next vid.

Love your reviews. Love the G9 II, but for the love of all that is good, can we get a compact body to complement it??

Another brilliant video Emily. Both make very compelling cases and I doubt anyone would be disappointed with either.

Love it, very nice presentation. As a gh6 owner, i wonder if i should get the g9ii, everthing is swappable exept for the xpress memory cards

These photos are amazing! And nice comparison. Keep up the great work

Don't let the hyper-critical deter you. Great reviews and really great photos. I've got the G9II on pre-order strictly because of the 4k120 and 5.8k open gate (as cutting things into KZfaq videos + Shorts and Reels has become my normal workflow) but they both seem like incredibly capable cameras.

Probably one of the best and most entertaining comparisons I’ve seen. Well done!

Awesome Video 😁 Always enjoy your perspective 😁 You Definitely come across as a person who can identify with all users for either brand 😁 loved the life experiences found when crossing brands to use either to get the best photo-video possible 😁 many of us go through the same thing 😁 also makes me wonder about how they work with adapted vintage lenses 🤔

Congratulations for this video, and if I can add, your enthousiasm is communicative! Thank you!

Thanks for this. Keen to see a comparison of the bodies with the relevant stabilised lenses, and still waiting for an IQ / low light / DR comparison. Again though, it looks like OMS have some work to do...

Great talking and explaining!

Thank you, Emily, for the comparison of 2 excellent m43 cameras. Regarding interchanging lenses between both brands. There are still compatibility issues that unless some radical changes would be difficult to iron out. When Panasonic launched m43 cameras they did not have, or wanted to use sensor stabilization, hence the reason why Panasonic has a lot of lenses with IS. Also it is a common belief, knowledge that for longer focal lengths lens stabilization works better compared to sensor stabilization. Olympus took the opposite approach when releasing their m43 system and used in body stabilization, the reason why most Olympus lenses have no IS as they have it in the OM-D body. Panasonic held long time on contrast detect AF, which in theory should give more "precise" results in S-AF and is actually (in theory) more precise compared to phase detect. Unfortunately on C-AF this is another story. To compensate Panasonic needed step-less motors in their lenses to acquire fast contrast AF and some clever algorithms called DFD. On the sensor side Panasonic did not want to use phase detect af, as it would degrade image quality due to pixels which are used exclusively for phase detect on the sensor. This came to an end with dual pixel AF (Canon?) as those lost pixels could suddenly be repurposed for the image and phase af. To sustain high burst rates the lens should have a magnetic diaphragm motor instead of the stepped motor design. When swapping lenses between m43 brands, you loose the SDC (Software Distortion Codes) as they are not embedded (to my knowledge into the lens) but in camera, hence one of the reasons when Pana or Oly (OM SYSTEM) releases new lenses they have to release a new fw for their cameras. When the lens is optically well corrected you need little or no SDC, Yes, you can swap lenses between both systems but results will vary greatly on AF motor, diaphragm motor, and how well the lens performs optically as no SDC is available on the "foreign" camera body. This could be a problem with some lenses, but take into account the 4/3 format (Kodak?), (later m43) was implemented as a "digital" format since its inception, taking into account the more telecentric lens design to annihilate the differences you encounter with "repurposed" existing formats. Hence the trouble Leica had/have with their M mount and why they waited so long to introduce "digital" M bodies, those M lenses worked fine on film but not on digital (especially at sub 50mm focal lengths). Perhaps a long explanation, but understanding how both companies introduced their m43 system reveals why they have the same lens bayonet mount, but the underlying technology is completely different, some lenses will work fine others not. The question is, if Panasonic and now OM-SYSTEM will work together to make a "m43 alliance". With Regards, Eric

Hi Emily, what is the typical and/or largest file size for a raw photo from the G9II? Also is there a difference between raw photo shot on mechanical and those on electronic shutter in terms of file size? Thank you!

Very useful review. Thanks very much.

Gorgeous image at 12:36!

Stunning shot @ 12:37

Very good, balanced review. Well done, Emily!

That was a perfect comparison for me. I come from the Lumix side and I have all 5, GH1-5. But I moved more to photography, so I changed to the OM1 and have the 40-150 and the 100-400 with the 1.4 Teleconverter from Olympus. But I have preordered the G9II with the new 100-400. I will go on an eagle safari in Canada in June and i intend to take both, the OM1 only for photography, the G9II mostly for video and some photos, in order not to have to switch lenses. So how good did the G9II 4K 120p mode autofocus, (no animal detection) keep the birds in flight sharp? All the rest just assured me, that it is a good idea to take both bodies along.

Genial mucho conocimiento de las camaras y de sus posibilidades ya lo he visto dos veces, me gusta mucho su video muy pro, felicitaciones y gracias por compartir

Hey Emily; One piece of information regarding buffer clearing on the OM-1. The writing speed slows down if yoyu are at 1600 ISO and above, even if you are only shooting RAW. I believe it is to do with noise reduction processing, but at lower ISO's I can clear the full 90 frames in around 8 seconds with my V90 cards.

You should be justifiably proud of your images! I'm very jealous. I just ordered a G9ii as a followup to my G9, easy choice for me with my set of Lumix lenses. You may have pointed me to my next big vacation though: African Safari. Thank you for the information, much appreciated!

Hi any tips for settings for using G9 mk I and lumix 100-300mm mk ii lens for wildlife photography please?

Hi Emily, i really enjoyed the comparison and the many beautiful photos/videos. You mentioned that you were using the Lumix 100-400 lens with a 2x teleconverter. Ive not been able to locate the teleconverter you mention. Can you provide a link for this? Also, any plans to do a comparison between the OM1 mkII and G9 mkII?

I'm glad to see a comparison on these cameras that is fair and impartial. Aside from the lack of lens stability options for the Zuiko lenses (which OM should/needs to address as soon as possible) it seems that in nearly every situation you presented here, you found differences between the 2 systems that are insignificant and honestly, that is pretty much what I hoping for. I would have liked to have seen a side by side of the Zuiko 100-400mm F5.0-6.3 IS and the Leica 100-400mm f/4-6.3 lenses, but I realize that packing the two of those might have been detrimental to your back.

Amazing review! And very entertaining. Not many out there who can pull that off tbh🥳🙌

Great Review 🤙🔥

Great work as usual - this is very in-depth and incredibly useful content. I prefer this instead of staring at a chart or the "pixel-peeping' that these so called photographers do. Love the practical application aspect of your videos, and the clear explanations. Great Photos as well! Long Live MFT!

OK, only just found your page, so thank you.. love it. I’m a multiple GH5 user. Weddings and some theatre shows. Basic stuff though, I’m quite traditional. Looking to upgrade. It’s either G9ii or wait for a GH6ii that may never come…..

Great video, is there any difference with the 100-400 other than the possibility of using a converter?

Great work and appreciate the time and effort you put in on your holiday. I wanted to ask you how interoperable are the G9 II and the S5 II in terms of handling and UI, features. I want to switch from Sony a7 Mark IV for the speed and computational features of G9 II (Pre Burst and Focus Bracketing the most) but I don't want to lose the 35mm FF DoF for pet portrait photography and I need reliable AF tracking and high speed for running and playing dogs. (The only other brand/combo that can do what OM-1 and G9 II can are the Canon R7 and R6 Mark II ... But Canon has barely any lenses and is stupidly expensive)

Both looked very good and some wonderful photos! Assume all your camera reviews will now be done while on safari for consistency purposes ? 😊 Love to see how the OM5 would work there as well…Enjoyed!

Very interesting video thanks. Even though I don’t have a mft system, I enjoyed it. Great delivery and as a bonus you’re English too! ❤

great comparison Emily, I'm very curious on how the Oly lenses work with the new G9II (GH6 user here) I've always wanted the 40-150 for wildlife and the 25 pro from oly but I know AF doesn't work properly with my GH6 (only my leica glass) So I've stayed away, I would love for you to consider a video about the AF with Oly pro lenses on the G9II in photo and CAF in video.

I owned a G9 before moving to full frame with the S5 and S5 ii; how do you find the G9 ii body with MFT lens; would you prefer them to have stuck with the previous G9 body shape, I remember it being so comfortable in the hand!

That's an excellent review. I like both brands. Over the years I have sometimes wished to buy an Oly but ended up with a Lumix camera. The reason is that Lumix is often cheaper with more features. I like the dual-IS too. By the way, my GX9 can do pre-burst! But it is 4k photo mode so I should not admit to ever using that 😉

This is a brilliant comparison review. I am going on safari to India and would like to use the set up that you suggest. I have an Olympus EM1 Mk2 and i have a 2x converter but can i please ask, did you use an 'Olympus ' 2x converter when you put your Lumix 100-400mm MK2 lens on your Olympus, as opposed to a Panasonic 2 x converter ?

We love you too, and I sincerely hope you made it to the pool eventually! Thanks for your hard work on this one.

What a fantastic holiday and, I have to say probably the best final conclusion to wrap up this review. Both cameras are the equal of each other but obviously I will always lean towards Lumix. Its the law. I'm with you on the pre-burst mode being a deal breaker for future cameras. I never knew I wanted this feature until I learned of its magical powers with my second-hand G9. And I can't wait till I get my hands on my G9ii next month to try out the Composite mode. I do have one question though, can the G9ii replace my GH6 for video and photo duties?

Brilliant video, had micro four thirds camera since 2018, can’t believe I’ve not seen your channel before. Thanks

​ Great video, thanks, I have a question, is the new panasonic 100-400 sharper at 400mm than the olympus 100-400? Do you have experience? Thank you very much.

Awesome video, Emily, with some seriously epic photos! I just got back from a two week trip to Sri Lanka and saw a little bit of wildlife; this video has really made me want to grab a G9ii and head down to Kenya! Completely agree with the comment about the video profile being separate to the photo one; I was trying to shoot hybrid on my trip with my S5 ii but found it really cumbersome switching between photo and video settings so I mostly stuck to photo. it would be lovely to just be able to press that little red button on the top and it start capturing video the way you want, especially when something happens in a pinch! Pre-Burst looks like a complete life saver too, wow! Glad to hear that the focusing isn't perfect; obviously, no-one posts out-of-focus images, so it's easy to be under the misconception that your own camera is defective or you're bad with it; like you said, sometimes cameras are a bit stupid, but also the AF is a tool to be used by the photographer, rather than it taking away that element altogether.

An absolutely wonderful presentation and I watch a lot of these. An OM1 shooter after dumping all my full frame stuff, though I have kept my Nikon F3 and F4 for a challenge now and then. Please keep doing great work, eMILY.

Thanks for what you do! I love your enthusiasm!!! I own a em5 mkiii and a gh5ii and for stabilization the gh5 wins with dual ibis.... for autofocus the em5 wins... I will buy the g9ii or the gh6ii or whatever they are gonna call it... I own mostly Panasonic lenses seems like a no 🧠 to me... I would love to see OM step it up with affordable dual ibis lenses and real video specs then I would consider them in the running for a new camera...

Great video, really informative. Could I ask your opinion on something? I am considering a g9ii purchase but wanted to ask you how important lens stabilisation is or does it make a great deal of difference? Came to m43 from Nikon where all you get is stabilised lenses for dslr back in the day. My Olympus cameras have ibis and I thought that was a big leap from Nikon. Reason I ask is that the g9ii is so tempting but I don’t want to change my Olympus lenses, their quality is superb.(25mm, 12-40 and 40-150, all pro). I also already have some sigma and Panasonic primes too but discounting them from this. Your opinion would be appreciated.

Great comparison and photos. Thanks. To answer your other cameras with pre-capture question, Nikon has added "pre-release capture" to it's latest cameras: their Z9, Z8 and Zf, as apparently their Expeed 7 processor is fast enough and has enough buffer to support that feature. I don't have those cameras, so I cannot compare them with your m4/3 results.

This is a very nice and informative comparison. It seemed to me like the Panasonic was too heavy on the noise reduction during the handheld long exposures.

Great video 📹 ❤

Fantastic video. Thank you. Looks like G9ii is going to be best for me. 😊

Did you have Low ISO Processing set to Drive Priority or Detail Priority for the OM-1? That can have a pretty large effect on buffer performance and write speed. The card you used should be ok but there were certain variants of that card that had compatibility issues with the E-M1ii but I don't know how that would apply to the OM-1.

The 100-400ii + 2x TC results looked very soft, but I guess that's to be expected with such a small 800mm lens.

Great video....

Can you compare it with the g9 the auto focus in the animal tracking I want to see how good the g9 ii is good at tracking thank you!

Nice video... thanks for the meticulous efforts...Olympus users may find it difficult to accept that the Panasonic has caught up with OM1 in stills capability (and possibly may exceed it !) While it certainly beats it in video versatility...and with more firmware updates from Panasonic this is likely to be proved beyond a doubt.