Olympus OM-1

[ac6000cw]

1 hour ago, MrSMW said:

For me, the OM-1 is my preference…

Positives = more compact, lighter, better AF, probably a better hybrid.

That's my view too (for the same reasons).

They are both the same price at the moment in the UK, so it's very much head-to-head marketing on price, but in reality they are appealing to different areas of the market.

[John Matthews]

I'm rather curious to see how the OM-1 and the GH6 compare in terms of detail (not that I car that much about that) in photo mode. I've heard reports that the OM-1 got a resolution increase, but it remains to be seen if it's the same increase that the Gh6 got.

[jgharding]

So far all the OM1 clips for AF have shown it focusing brilliantly, and I just saw Gerald's AF test for the GH6 and it is a pulsing nightmare.

Its a weird thing to to just keep going with something that doesn't work, when everyone tells you it doesn't work, and you can actually see it doesnt work haha 

Oh well...

But yes the OM looks better and better, I think it could be the surprise of the year.

[bjohn]

If you were to set aside autofocus (something I have never used in video and likely never will; I don't even have any lenses capable of it apart from one Panasonic that I don't use anymore), how do these two (GH6 and OM1) stack up against each other?

[jgharding]

5 minutes ago, bjohn said:

If you were to set aside autofocus (something I have never used in video and likely never will; I don't even have any lenses capable of it apart from one Panasonic that I don't use anymore), how do these two (GH6 and OM1) stack up against each other?

In that case my instinct is with GH6 due to it's similarity with the S1H and its clear focus on video. Typical of Panasonic the settings, menus and so on appear to include pretty much everything you can do with a camera.

They're done everything they can to mitigate the physical issues of a small sensor, including implementing the dual-gain architecture, so for manual use I'd whack a speed-booster on the GH6 to boost the light input and sensor size and use that TBH.

I've not used either so I'm going off the available YouTube reviews etc

[ac6000cw]

I think you could say the OM-1 is a stills camera with good video capability and the GH6 is a video camera with good stills capability - both very, very capable but designed to appeal to different market areas/users. (The G9 versus GH5ii is a similar situation in the m43 world).

[John Matthews]

45 minutes ago, ac6000cw said:

I think you could say the OM-1 is a stills camera with good video capability and the GH6 is a video camera with good stills capability - both very, very capable but designed to appeal to different market areas/users. (The G9 versus GH5ii is a similar situation in the m43 world).

IMO, although I've never really used any of these cameras, wouldn't the biggest competitor to the GH6 be the GH5s, not the OM-1? If you're willing to pass on great PDAF (and really, I doubt the GH6 is that bad), it would seem the GH5s or even the BMPCC 4k are good alternatives. The OM-1 would seem to be the run and gun, smallish body that can do everything whereas the GH6 is more for thought out, prepared stuff. I'm sure it could also do run and gun too in the right hands, just maybe not as well as the OM-1.

I'm rather amused by the YouTubers coming out and trying to VLOG on a GH6 and in terms of weight (if you're holding it out there), it's not the best fit.

[ac6000cw]

1 hour ago, John Matthews said:

IMO, although I've never really used any of these cameras, wouldn't the biggest competitor to the GH6 be the GH5s, not the OM-1? If you're willing to pass on great PDAF (and really, I doubt the GH6 is that bad), it would seem the GH5s or even the BMPCC 4k are good alternatives. The OM-1 would seem to be the run and gun, smallish body that can do everything whereas the GH6 is more for thought out, prepared stuff. I'm sure it could also do run and gun too in the right hands, just maybe not as well as the OM-1.

The GH5s doesn't have IBIS (and it's got a different, lower pixel count/larger pixel area sensor versus the GH5/GH5ii/G9)

[jgharding]

1 hour ago, John Matthews said:

 (and really, I doubt the GH6 is that bad),

Sadly if you go and check out reviews, it's pretty bad AF still. Still does that hunting at the end of pulls, still pulses constantly on interview setups,

People just need to pick based on that I guess. It is a proper bullet in the foot from Pana though. It's the only thing that stops these cameras absolutely dominating, and does make you think in a paranoid way that Sony probably just don't let them have PD on purpose

Hopefully since it's "AI based" they can improve it incrementally with firmware updates

[jgharding]

I have to say the tendency for youtubers to test IBIS in ultra slow motion (basically pointless) and autofocus by THROWING THEMSELVES BACK AND FORTH SHOUTING is really starting to grate on me

It's pretty saturated out there and getting hard to tell the difference between one channel and the next these days

actually just the shouting alone is doing my head in going through these videos.  🤣

[Borbarad]

6 hours ago, jgharding said:

So far all the OM1 clips for AF have shown it focusing brilliantly, and I just saw Gerald's AF test for the GH6 and it is a pulsing nightmare.

Its a weird thing to to just keep going with something that doesn't work, when everyone tells you it doesn't work, and you can actually see it doesnt work haha 

Oh well...

But yes the OM looks better and better, I think it could be the surprise of the year.

Well, even I as somewhat as Olympus Diehard user, is very very positively surprised by the OM1. The amount of refinements OMDS has pulled off is close to awesome. They fixed a lot of old quirky drawbacks a Oly had and now finally delivered on the CAF and Tracking Front.

Setting sensor size and the “20MP” aside, the feature list is long…

BSI Stacked Sensor
8ms Rolling Shutter  
1053 Cross Phase AF Points
AI Tracking
Starry AF
50 FPS CAF
120 FPS SAF
ProCapture
Freece and Weather Proof IP53 certificated body
SSWF
LiveND (64)
Live Composite / Live Bulb
(Hand-held) HighResShot
Focusstacking / Bracketing / HDR / etc.
C4K 60 10 Bit 4.2.2 intern
C4K 60 RAW 12 Bit 4.4.4 Extern
5,76m 120 FPS EVF at 0,82 Size 
1,6m dot 3" Display
WLAN Control and New OI Share
USB-C PD
Completly revamped Software /Menu and even a dedicated Movie Super Control Panel when you are in movie mode.

OM Workspace 2.0 on top….

 

I order mine when it was available for order and cannot wait for the 07.03. delivery. There are reports that the first delivery is sold out or close to be sold out for DACH and UK.

 

So, i think  this OM-1 can pull something off. Interesting OMDS Stream tonight on Wildlife and OM1 (German Only):

 

B

 

[Marcio Kabke Pinheiro]

8 hours ago, John Matthews said:

I'm rather curious to see how the OM-1 and the GH6 compare in terms of detail (not that I car that much about that) in photo mode. I've heard reports that the OM-1 got a resolution increase, but it remains to be seen if it's the same increase that the Gh6 got.

From the O-M1 reviews that I saw and quick glances in the GH6 reviews:

- O-M1 had a increase in low light sensitivity and, albeit being the same 20mp, lots of reviewers are saying that they found the IQ slightly better than the previous OM-1s. Guess from my RFMY sources (a.k.a. "Right From My Ass') - since it is a 80mp Quad Bayer, but each 4 pixels are treated like a single one (even having a single lens for the group), maybe some sort of trickery are being doing using thes 4 pixel - like a "4 pixel downsampling".
 

- Just saw some stills, but REALLY it looks like a different sensor supplier. Colors look VERY organic, some shots remembered me Fujifilm A LOT. The resolution bump is noticable too, and the dual gain cuold be used for stills too.

For stills, it looks like a mixed bag - FPS behaviour is strange, DFD still somewhat struggles for C-AF (for S-AF, I think that DFD is amazing - my GX9 in S-AF easily beats my X-S10), 5k ohotos modes are gone (as their version of Pro Capture), but IBIS looks fenomenal and they gone from no Handheld High Res mode to the best one - 100mp images, and looks like it works very well.

For me, it is a sign to a G10 down the road.

[Andrew Reid]

25 minutes ago, Marcio Kabke Pinheiro said:

Guess from my RFMY sources (a.k.a. "Right From My Ass') - since it is a 80mp Quad Bayer, but each 4 pixels are treated like a single one (even having a single lens for the group), maybe some sort of trickery are being doing using thes 4 pixel - like a "4 pixel downsampling".

It doesn't have a quad bayer sensor.

It has some sort of quad pixel AF.

Not looked into that too deeply yet as still waiting for somebody who isn't a complete shill to handle the OM1.

[MrSMW]

4 hours ago, bjohn said:

If you were to set aside autofocus (something I have never used in video and likely never will; I don't even have any lenses capable of it apart from one Panasonic that I don't use anymore), how do these two (GH6 and OM1) stack up against each other?

If reliable (or any) AF is a non-issue, but otherwise video is, then easily the GH6. That one is a no-brainer. Per the specs, reviews & info so far anyway, but I think will be the case regardless.

For stills, the jury hasn’t turned up yet.

As a compact, all weather, hybrid, the OM-1.

Not quite rivals IMO. Some crossover, but otherwise…

[Andrew Reid]

I prefer the OM-1 body design and huge EVF, in terms of having some photography DNA aka Leica, it does well, and AF system looks promising.

I prefer the specs sheet of the GH6 for video and anamorphic shooting.

But I am so far beyond just specs these days.

[MrSMW]

5 minutes ago, Andrew Reid said:

But I am so far beyond just specs these days.

Yup.

These days I go on instinct and my own real world actual needs.

The rest is just waffle and opinion.

[kye]

On 2/22/2022 at 11:13 PM, John Matthews said:

IMO, although I've never really used any of these cameras, wouldn't the biggest competitor to the GH6 be the GH5s, not the OM-1? If you're willing to pass on great PDAF (and really, I doubt the GH6 is that bad), it would seem the GH5s or even the BMPCC 4k are good alternatives. The OM-1 would seem to be the run and gun, smallish body that can do everything whereas the GH6 is more for thought out, prepared stuff. I'm sure it could also do run and gun too in the right hands, just maybe not as well as the OM-1.

I'm rather amused by the YouTubers coming out and trying to VLOG on a GH6 and in terms of weight (if you're holding it out there), it's not the best fit.

The way I see the OM-1 / GH6 / GH5S / P4K distinction is how flexible they are for video (ie, shooting video in uncontrolled conditions.

From this perspective the OM-1 and GH6 are in the "very videography ready" category because they has IBIS and the others don't, with the OM-1 having the advantage because of its PDAF.  It's all about speed, and shooting with sticks, or even a monopod or gimbal is a much slower and heavier way to shoot than handheld, so this is really the defining feature that separates these from the GH5S and P4K.

The "somewhat videography ready" category has the GH5S in it because it can expose with the shutter up to very short exposures - enough to shoot wide-open in full sun, whereas the P4K doesn't have this capability.  This means you don't have to use NDs, which also slow the shooting process.  It can also take photos, which videography frequently coexists with and is expected from the same camera.

The "it is actually a cinema camera" category is the P4K without IBIS or fast shutter speeds available.  It's not the least useful for video out of all cameras due to its good high ISO performance, unlike true cinema cameras where they basically never get changed from their base ISO, but it's still much better suited to shooting where you have control of the conditions and have time to setup and expose and bend the subject to the camera.

There are obviously other factors in here that effect things, but if you got tasked with shooting an event video that was completely chaotic with things changing at every moment, where you had to get everything and had no re-takes, I'd much prefer the OM-1 set to full-auto than the P4K.

On 2/23/2022 at 12:20 AM, jgharding said:

Hopefully since it's "AI based" they can improve it incrementally with firmware updates

I'm sure they'll tinker with the GH6 AF but I'm not optimistic about it getting that much better.  I'm no expert, but AI typically gets better as a function of how much processing power you give it, which I think is why it's better than the GH5, but there's a real limit to it I think.

[ac6000cw]

There are a couple of (as far as I can tell) SOOC downloadable video files at the bottom of this page on Photography Blog - https://www.photographyblog.com/previews/om_system_om_1_photos

They are 10-bit HEVC, 4k 59.94fps so will be either OM-log 400 or HLG (AFAIK those are the only options on OM-1 when using HEVC).

File data from Mediainfo from one of them:

Quote

Video
ID                                       : 1
Format                                   : HEVC
Format/Info                              : High Efficiency Video Coding
Format profile                           : Main 10@L5.1@High
Codec ID                                 : hvc1
Codec ID/Info                            : High Efficiency Video Coding
Duration                                 : 15 s 516 ms
Bit rate                                 : 126 Mb/s
Width                                    : 3 840 pixels
Height                                   : 2 160 pixels
Display aspect ratio                     : 16:9
Frame rate mode                          : Constant
Frame rate                               : 59.940 (60000/1001) FPS
Color space                              : YUV
Chroma subsampling                       : 4:2:0
Bit depth                                : 10 bits
Bits/(Pixel*Frame)                       : 0.254
Stream size                              : 233 MiB (99%)
Language                                 : Japanese
Encoded date                             : UTC 2022-02-08 11:42:45
Tagged date                              : UTC 2022-02-08 11:42:45
Color range                              : Full
Color primaries                          : BT.2020
Transfer characteristics                 : BT.2020 (10-bit)
Matrix coefficients                      : BT.2020 non-constant
Menus                                    : 0
Codec configuration box                  : hvcC
 

 

[MrSMW]

Well I have done a total back flip and cancelled my pre-orders.

Why?

I blame Putin. He's responsible for everything else including the GH6 not having PDAF so why not?!

But seriously, I looked again at all my options and came to the conclusion that what I needed most in 2022, was stability.

I'm less than 6 weeks out from a stupidly busy season and it's not the time to make sweeping changes.

So I have somewhat reluctantly cancelled any/all plans to go M4/3 for my video needs.

The S1H has already gone. Love(d) that camera, but it's just overkill (and overweight mainly) for my needs.

Kept my S5 just in case the OM-1's arrived too late or any other such problem and the good news for me financially is actually I will come out of this next/current move financially ahead as I'm selling 3x lenses + the S1H and ordering a second S5 body.

I'm putting my new gimbal on ice for the season and will look at that again some other time after this next season is over.

It's really only the tracking AF I have any issue with in regard to the whole system and if the GH6 is anything to go by, I think there's a good chance that a further tweak for the S line in regard to AF may be coming.

And if any S2/H/R etc is in development and has CAF, they will halt all further work until a PDAF solution has been sourced. Or they go out of business.

Also, this gives me time to see how the OM-1 shapes up in reality for others over this coming year. You/they can be the beta testers! 😬

[John Matthews]

1 hour ago, MrSMW said:

Well I have done a total back flip and cancelled my pre-orders.

Why?

I blame Putin. He's responsible for everything else including the GH6 not having PDAF so why not?!

But seriously, I looked again at all my options and came to the conclusion that what I needed most in 2022, was stability.

I'm less than 6 weeks out from a stupidly busy season and it's not the time to make sweeping changes.

So I have somewhat reluctantly cancelled any/all plans to go M4/3 for my video needs.

The S1H has already gone. Love(d) that camera, but it's just overkill (and overweight mainly) for my needs.

Kept my S5 just in case the OM-1's arrived too late or any other such problem and the good news for me financially is actually I will come out of this next/current move financially ahead as I'm selling 3x lenses + the S1H and ordering a second S5 body.

I'm putting my new gimbal on ice for the season and will look at that again some other time after this next season is over.

It's really only the tracking AF I have any issue with in regard to the whole system and if the GH6 is anything to go by, I think there's a good chance that a further tweak for the S line in regard to AF may be coming.

And if any S2/H/R etc is in development and has CAF, they will halt all further work until a PDAF solution has been sourced. Or they go out of business.

Also, this gives me time to see how the OM-1 shapes up in reality for others over this coming year. You/they can be the beta testers! 😬

Sounds like a wise business choice. As a Drewnetwork VP, the policy has always been to never pre-order a camera. However, I think Drew (the president) did it with the first generation BMPC and the Sony A7S iii.