Glad to see a review that isn't done by an Olympus Ambassador.

OM 1.2 is a BIG IMPROVEMENT for me. And that’s the key… What features do you desire? I still have my OM 1.1 which I have truly enjoyed since the first day, yet the upgrades to the OM 1.2 seem to tailored specifically for my applications. A short list of my fav upgrades is quicker & stickier focusing, especially when there are obstructions/distractions. Also the ability to choose a subject from a group for AF/subject detection to follow is sweet…and human detection..wow. Larger buffer is a benefit to me since I shoot lots of action and often both raw and JPEG. Gradient ND is really nice too. As with all tools, what tool is right for you. OM Systems has been listening…they have created an amazing tool for me. Cheers.

What a cliffhanger! I appreciate the honesty, taking the time to review a camera is essential to have a unbiased opinion. Thank you!

Thanks again, Mike 👍 I recently bought a G9 Mk2 to use alongside my OM1 Mk1, I'm more impressed with the Lumix holding onto the subject in difficult situations ie: busy backgrounds, moving behind trees etc even though it's initial focussing can be a bit slower than the OM1. I think OM have jumped in with a poorly executed plan when they could, and probably should, have continued updating the original!

Great to hear a detailed review from someone who isn’t an ambassador but is very experienced and practical. I only need better AF for video and ProCap. With the latest FW 1.6 I believe the OM1 finds birds hidden in foliage a little better. My ProCap hit rate seems to have improved. Needs more testing -which could take weeks -maybe it’s just wishful thinking because FW 1.6 doesn’t even mention AF improvements. AF improvements are promised in autumn.

I think that you do the best real world reviews ... period

I agree with you on all points. What has actually gotten noticeably better is human autofocus. That was also the reason why I bought the camera. I also have to photograph the family.🤣

Looking forward to next weeks video.👍

You nailed it - again! I would say the FW update to 1.1 for the Mk2 has improved the AF and Subject Detect a lot IMO, same update I believe for the OM1 takes it to 1.6, I would be interested in your take on that update. Keep up the good work, thx

What a refreshing change. An honest unbiased review

I really appreciate your even-handed (and Eagle-eyed) reviews. While many of your peers are obviously playing to the manufacturers, I really appreciate the fact that you seem to have maintained your objectivity. I worked for almost 50 years in the computer technology industry, many as a consultant and industry analyst, and the same dynamics applied - some people were sock-puppets for the vendors and others attempted to maintain some dignity and independence:) I own an OM-1 with the 100-400 lens, and your comparison review vs the 150-400 was instrumental in my deciding to defer purchase and rent it for "big trips" to Costa Rica and Ecuador. Have you done anything on the new 150-600 lens? I can't find it, but maybe I missed it. Thanks,

Another honest and interesting appraisal. Well done.

I own two OM1 mk1 and I don't think there is enough attraction to the MK2 for me to try and change !

Thanks for sharing your impressions of the OM-1 MK2. It's very interesting, Mike. I don't think I will be rusting out to buy one; I'm still thinking of the Lumix G9II.

What I’ve noticed is a clear difference when doing stacking in camera. Now it’s possible to have nearly 100% success of not getting an error message when processing the stacking provided you are hand held but somewhat stable grip of the camera. I use it a lot when doing near macro shots with the 150-400mm lens, as well as with static subjects to get improved images in low light, high ISO situations.

Very interesting Mike, No camera is perfect, and if the Mk1 does what you want it too ,why upgrade! I certainly pleased with the Mk1 at the moment and I look forward to your next video!

Good, honest review Mike. I think the mkII is better, but only slightly.

Hi Mike… THANKS… at last a real comparison that I can believe and accept… now waiting for the next film before I jump or stick. As an aside I have just been in China for three weeks and experienced a problem with the back joystick… I cannot move the focus point anymore anywhere left of centre, no matter where I move the joystick. I’ve tried switching off and removing batteries but no way can I fix the problem. Your next film will help me decide to buy the mark 2 or not… either way my camera needs to go off for repair AT THE BEST TIME OF YEAR… 😭 best wishes Paul

Thanks for this overview Mike, very helpful indeed. Look forward to seeing more on your channel. 👍

Good honest review, I wait with baited breath for the next installment !

Thank you for the review. As for as noise, it looks to me like a clear improvement in noise in the Mark II at the highest ISO. Much smoother background. Good Test

Thank you Mike for your thoughts and real world experiences with the Mk2. I am still undecided about getting a Mk2. I will wait for your next video after you get to go over your images of birds in flight.

Thank you for an honest review. Was considering the Mark 11 however felt the minor changes did not warrant the finance. I’ll wait for the Mark 111 if I stay with OMD. 📸👏👏

OM Systems is the most advanced camera period with all its computational features... but now needs to put as much effort into autofocus as they have into image stabilization. They have made big improvements, but need to beat Sony and Canon in autofocus. Then they will win over a lot more users. Great review, BTW!!!

Excellent and sensible review as ever look forward to your update of the autofocus.

Thanks a lot dear Mike 👌🏽 I'm still very happy with my OM-1i when using it for wildlife, especially birds (I don't make videos). Looking forward to your lapwing images. One of my favourite species!

Looking forward to your follow up.

Thank you for that, but I & many others would like to know how each perform after both have updated to the recent FW updates.

Looking forward to the update with evaluation of the differences in performance for BIF - if any. Thanks

Given how much the used prices have come down recently, I plan to pick up a mk1 soon.

cheers Mike, that video just saved me a whole lot of money....I'll stick with my Mk 1 for now for birding & wildlife an incredible all round camera ,

I haven't updated the firmware yet, but the feature that I have found most useful is that I can start another Pecapture before the previous capture has finished writing. Like you , I do wish I could change modes while it's writing. Also wish it would write faster. The bigger buffer means that I'm typically waiting longer for it to clear than the version 1. Having said that I typically stay in the Pre-capture mode and don't really notice the delay in writing.

Hey Mike, can you test the video autofocus on the MK I vs the MKII with the 1.6 firmware update? Because I have never used the CF+Tracking on the OM 1 MKI because of its poor performance, but with the firmware update I really think it improved a lot. Maybe I'm imagening things though. Can't go back to 1.5 to compare now. But I did some test a few days ago and my OM 1 MK I could track birds now in almost exactly the same way as you have sown in your example footage. It even was able to successfully track a crow in flight and keep the bird in focus. I only did a few tests and it struggled when a lot of birds were around and switched between them a bit. But I think the 1.6 brought the video AF of the MK I almost to MK II level. I see nobody talking about this, maybe if you have not made the 1.5 update yet you can do a comparison?

I went to Photography School in the mid 1980’s. My primary 35mm camera was an Olympus OM-4 T. I recently had it refurbished so I could revisit the simplicity of taking pictures where I can work only on composition, focus and exposure. I have the OM-1 and I am not against all the bells and whistles but I do find myself fighting the setup at times because of the endless options. I am sure you remember using Kodachrome ASA 25, 64 and 200 for wildlife photography and the challenges, me too. I am also not against the post processing options for raw files either. However, old school I guess, I still believe the effort should still be in composing and capturing stunning originals first, not just blasting away and “fixing" in post?

Great review - thanks. I've just watched Camera Conspiracies review (of sorts) as well - I am itching to "comment bomb" with a reference to his review, under a certain brand ambassador's infomercial. 😉

I bought the om-1 mark 2 primarily for the autofocus. I find the autofocus faster and more predictable. I have tried with birds. I am pretty bad at it. But I got more keepers. I photographed the kids. The human AI is a win. They where all in focus and I didn’t pay much attention to focus while photograping the kids. I am thinking about switching my second OM-1 to a mark 2 as well.

I'd be interested to hear more on the G9ii if that's possible in the future please Mike? For photography.

in Sony you turn off the preview after shooting, then in EVF that will get rid of the blackout ECF view. not sure how OM handles it.

Thanks Mike. Very interesting and looking forward to your follow up 👍😎

Nice review of your experience, Mike.

Thanks Mike really value your honest impartial reviews the om1 is a great camera and thanks to the mkii coming out i got mine for a great price😊📷

One other update to the OM-1 Mark II that seems to be completely under the radar..... Plug the camera in via USB, turn it on and choose Webcam. No software required, works with every application I've tried it on (which was NOT true using the Webcam software for prior Olympus / OM System cameras) and it just works.

Thanks, very usefull information. Good luck in your future works!

Thanks a lot for your videos ! That tends to cement my decision to just keep my Mk1 until I get good enough to really feel limited by it (which is not going to happen soon I think lol)

Great video. Thanks for sharing.

This is "calling a spade a spade" review! The Original OM-1 is a wonderful camera and its successor definitely does not have a really evolved feature set one would have really expected and liked. Nothing quite ground breaking. Not a pacesetter by any means

Mike, I have seen some Japanese KZfaq videos showing that the bird af for OM-1 mark ii does make quite a difference in terms of acquiring focus when a bird is heavily covered in the forest even using all area af mode, the bird af can find the birds in heavy coverage. It shows the OM-1 struggles a lot more in the same situation. Maybe you can try it yourself and see whether it it the case. I reckon for BIF, the difference won’t be so obvious.

Thanks for your honest review. I'm considering one or the other for general photography with the 12-40 and I am really struggling to justify the extra money on the Mkii.

Nice comparison Mike, I'm using the Mark I and by far I never see any firmware update yet, I got it last October.

Thanks Mike been undecided whether to purchase the Mark one or Mark two currently using the M1 X and EM 1 Mark 2 so I am due a change. Big savings on the Mark 1 now so definitely going to go for that thanks again. Ps Plus it will be the last camera with The Olympus name.

here a question : Does the camera allow you to use uncoupled AE ? Meaning, Can you use the camera in AF/S/C or MF mode and enable constant metering while keeping the shutter button half pressed ( Sony offers this setting via menue ) or is it like Panasonic S series where you can only achieve "free AE adjustments" when using the camera in AF/C mode and change the AFL/ AEL setting in menu. ( Pamasonic does NOT ALLOW FREE AE when using AF/S or MF even if you sent the camera to AF/C and set the lens switch to MF ) .... no reviewer mentions this but for reportage photo and video free AE is very important not only in AFC but especially MF .... maybe you could explain how the Olympus is handling this problem ?

Thanks for the video Mike. I almost get the impression that the Mark 2 could have been firmware update 1.6 for the Mark 1. Maybe at least for wildlife shooters. Hopefully by Christmas when stocks of OM-1 M1 are depleted and sales are ok for the Mark 2, then we will get firmware update 1.6. Look forward to the follow up video.

Thx for promoting an extremely expensive software upgrade. It shows what a software upgrade can do. Too bad they attached a completely redundant hardware upgrade with as well. Sure then you know what to avoid.

I am very disappointed with the outlook of the mk2 as it does not merit the attention it seams to get. Some people argue it is merely an upgrade which could be achieved with a software inclusion, so it will be interesting what comes out with the release which comes out in the autumn. The 640 second default is for me a pain, so perhaps getting over this with an upgrade may be a bonus. I don't know where OM is going - as there does not seem to be as much innovation coming from them as we would like, especially with the release of the Sigma variant recently. Since most of us use DXO, or another software anyway, the iso quality is irrelevant.

I've had 2 EM1-mark3s for years now, one for wildlife and one for landscape...because I often see more wildlife when I'm quietly setting up a landscape shot. The first OM-1 didn't tempt me, but the mark 2 did, and it's pretty amazing for birds in flight or on a stick. I have certainly captured more "in focus" shots, but so far I haven't captured any *better* shots (meaning, something that tells a story). And it's terrible for small birds on the ground, while for animals...I've found so far that it's better in bird mode than animal mode to capture faces. As for landscapes, I'm not sure I'm going to bother. Yes, the shots seem a bit cleaner on the OM1, especially at higher ISO, but not enough to justify another $3K, and for that money it's tempting to go full frame and get more resolution. Hi res mode does seem to work a bit better on the OM1, but again, not enough to justify. In the end...I could easily have waited another 4 years for a 14-bit 24MP sensor and then upgrade both cameras.

Also looking forward to Part 2. Do you have any thoughts on the latest MK1 firmware update please?

Thank you so much for your extensive and very informative examination of the m2 version of the OM-1. I've gone back and forth about upgrading and you really covered all the bases very well. I'm interested to hear more about the auto-focus for birds-in-flight since that's most of what I shoot. I'm looking forward to your next video, which I always am anyway! Thanks again for putting the time and effort into checking out the m2 and a special thanks for your honesty and candor.

Ive seen the Mkii described as a "firmware upgrade" by more than a few users, which resulted in a very defensive response from some of the the OM Ambassadors quick to point to the memory/buffer upgrade, but like you I was underwhelmed when this camera was announced and it does just seem like most the upgrades would have been possible with a software update and the hardware memory gains would probably be of little use to me and many others. Its seems to have annoyed many Olympus/OM system customers too and the EM1 and Em1 mark ii got some major firmware upgrades in their lifecycle and other brands have been doing the same for their flagship/Pro cameras. They great customer service was major reason for my switch to Olympus in 1st place, lets hope OM Systems don't ruin that reputation.

Thank you so much for this video. I’m looking forward to the next after you’ve had a chance to look at those flight shots. When you were taking the video with the Mark II of the ducks, were you using Subject Detection or just C-AF? So far, I’m getting better results with the video autofocus on moving birds if I turn the subject detection off and just use C-AF with a Mid focus area. - Mick Thompson

And how would you compare stills autofocus between OM-1 and G9II

Thanks Mike. Most reviewers I've seen said the mark 2 was better at finding focus when shooting through vegetation than the mark 1. Have you noticed any difference? Also some have said they were able to use a wider focus area to grab the subject. Andy Rouse in his video says he uses all the focus points.

Good review Mike. Seems that an upgrade to the MKII is not really pressing at the moment. If it follows the Panasonic way then it is possible that a new OM systems OM2 might be in the works.

Very interesting, Mile Lane. Next week! Btw, I am looking to change my PC screen. What do you use, out of interest?

I’m waiting around for the promised fall firmware update before I make any decisions. And even then it’s likely to ns “no” for budgetary reasons if nothing else.

Great comparison Mike. The price difference between OM-1.1 and OM-1.2 is about $500... Not that big of a difference for a $2000 camera that one uses for 5+ years... Btw, it would be great if you could do a review / comparison for the OM 150-600mm... best regards

Great video. Very nice to have a review from a open minded wildlife photographer. I’m about to upgrade from my OM-D E-M1 II and look forward to hear your conclusion on the autofocus.

For action photography do you think om-1 or g9 ii is better?

What was that weird common pochard with yellow instead of red irises? A youngster?

Great video as usual. Where can I get a Mike Lane Mouse mat?

Mike, thanks for the video, your comments and reasoning are practically identical to mine. I would have bought the MK II if it gave me better quality images or if it would have substantially increased my hit rate. I have not read or seen any evidence to indicate that maybe and your video has enhanced my opinion. To be perfectly honest having had the Mk1 for a couple of years or so (or is it 3?) I don't find a whole lot wrong with it and since Adobe DeNoise has come along I have found a much easier processing process. Regarding the noise in the two cameras I am convinced that this is related to heat (apart for anything else) so I bought the battery pack, I put a battery in that but not in the camera so the battery is not transferring heat anywhere near the sensor. My subjective opinion is that the files are a little cleaner but I almost always adopt the philosophy or exposing to the right up to where the "blinkies" show in the subject then back off 1/3 EV. I am so content with the Mk 1 I bought a second one and I use that for macro/close up and leave the 150-400TC connected to my original Mk 1. If the Mk III gives better quality files or a significant improvement and I mean significant in AF I may consider....meantime happy days for me, I am pretty satisfied with what I have now.

Nice video Mike, I like videos that give an Honest opinion. Maybe the mk1 could become a real bargain on the used market?

I think it's the biggest rip off in camera development for years. The AF on my mk2 is exactly the same, if not worse than the mk1. Took a 1k hit selling my mk1 to get this, main reason was improved AF, especially with birds in trees etc, but not once has the mk2 nailed focus on a tricky subject, just the same as the mk1. I'm hugely disappointed, just wish they'd bring out a mk2 em1X and concentrate on a solid stills focused camera.

Hi Mike, very much appreciated some honesty here. Too many people like to blow smoke! I currently shoot with a Sony A7RV amd the 200-600 lense. I've had it for a year. I exclusively shoot birds, and the cameras shortcomings have now been discovered and I'm thinking of jumping over to om1 ii and the 150-400 +1.25 tc. I'm currently limited to 10fps with mechanical shutter and I get horrendous rolling shutter with the electric one on birds in flight. My question is, is the 50fps mechanical shutter? It's been so hard to find this out as om only seem to reference it being an electronic one.

Mike, I'm looking for a bit of advice for my next lens. At the moment I'm using the 100-400 lens with plans to buy either the 300 f4 pro or the new 150 600, which would you recommend for wildlife and air shows, I do have the 1.4 TC already. The 150-400 pro lens is out of the question as being honest it's to expensive for me, that and the wife won't let me spend that much.

I left leaving a reply for a week or more (unless my brain deserted me in the interim). Your review is once again 100% and identifies the shallow and disparaging attitude the OMDS accountants (for they *are* the root of all evil) have had to loyal Olympus users. A small buffer memory apparently prevents a fix to various focus and other issues, but allows a rip-off 'V2' camera to be put on the market. I hate accountants. Is that 'hate speech'? I don't care really.

why can't anybody do a video where they show how long it takes to turn the camera on to how it sounds in all shutter modes :)