OM1 wildlife photography review

I’ve recently been field testing OM system’s OM1 camera in Borneo during my latest orangutan fundraising trip. Here’s a short clip of some of the results all taken hand held from my boat in Borneo. Below that you’ll find some more images and thoughts about using the OM1 for wildlife photography.  There’s also more photos from this Borneo trip here. 

First impressions of the OM1 

Small and lightweight but extremely well made. Weather proof sealing is important when I use a camera in such humid conditions. I also work in a range of other environments from dry African savannah to extreme cold and the IP53 rating on the OM1 has impressive dust, splash and freezeproof sealing.  All buttons and menus are exactly where I want them so it felt intuitive really quickly. 

OM 40-150mm 2.8 pro lens 

This was my first time using a micro four thirds camera which yields impressive reach for such a compact telephoto lens and body combination. Used in conjunction with the OM 1.4 teleconverter it gives me a zoom of up to 21o mm which is equivalent to 420mm @ 35mm. I love this portability which means my gear is just so much smaller and lighter than I normally use.  

White throated Kingfisher –  OM1 with 40-150mm 2.8 lens + 1.4 teleconverter taken at 210mm 1/500th sec; f4; ISO 100

I was photographing an insect when I heard a rustling sound above me where this orangutan was curiously watching what I was doing. OM1 with 40-150mm 2.8 lens + 1.4 teleconverter taken at 210mm 1/200th sec; f4; ISO 640

Blythe’s Frogmouth – OM1 with 40-150mm 2.8 lens + 1.4 teleconverter taken at 210mm 1/160th sec; f4; ISO 320

OM1 with 40-150mm 2.8 lens taken at 150mm /320th sec; f2.8; ISO 250

OM1 features 

20.4 mega pixels with 1 093 cross type focus points covering the whole sensor with up to 50 frames per second RAW with continuous autofocus. A staggering 120 frames per second using AF/AE lock. The pro capture feature is superb. Pressing the shutter button half way in this mode starts buffering images and will save up to 70 both before and after the trigger is pressed which is fantastic for birds taking off. Image stacking is also impressive and really came into its own for hand held macro photography in the rainforest. Oh and lets not forget the image stabilisation which gives up to 7 stops improvement. 

Two striped translucent jumping spider – OM1 with 90mm 3.5 macro lens -handheld focus stack- 8 images 1/200th sec; f4.5; ISO 1250

OM1 with 90mm 3.5 macro lens -handheld focus stack- 8 images 1/250th sec; f4.5; ISO 800

OM1 with 90mm 3.5 macro lens -handheld focus stack- 8 images 1/160th sec; f4.5; ISO 1250

OM1 with 90mm 3.5 macro lens -handheld focus stack- 8 images 1/200th sec; f4.5; ISO 1600

OM1 with 90mm 3.5 macro lens -handheld focus stack- 8 images 1/160th sec; f4.5; ISO 1000

OM1 for wildlife photography – conclusion

I just loved using this camera. Features like pro capture and in camera image stacking are so useful. But it’s the compact size and portability that’s so wonderful both for travelling and using in the field. It consistently gave me sharp photos hand held in a variety of different conditions and I look forward to using it on my next mission in the Galapagos in February. But it would probably be rude not to finish without another orangutan photo ? 

OM1 with 40-150mm 2.8 lens + 1.4 teleconverter taken at 210mm 1/500th sec; f4; ISO 1000