O
LYMPUSCELEBRATESITS 100 th
anniversarylaterthisyearandhas
markedsucha momentous
occasionwithits mostadvanced
professionalcameraever.The
OM-DE-M1Xis thelargestandmost
expensivemirrorlessmodelyet andsits as the
newflagshipin therange, offeringplentyof
featuresthat,whilesuitedto allformsof
photography, willappealprimarily to thosein
searchoftheultimateforspeed,namely
sports,actionandwildlife photographers.
Witha body-onlypriceof£2,7 99 , the
OM-DE-M1Xistwicethecostof theOM-D
E-M1MarkII, whichit replacesas theflagship
model. But whileitsharescharacteristicswith
theoldercamera,it'sa completelydifferent
beastwitha buildanda rangeoffeaturesthat
comparesfavourablywithothersimilar
specifiedprofessionalmodelsfromthelikes
ofCanon,NikonandSony.
Whilerelativelylarge fora mirrorless
camera,thesizeof theOlympuscompares
favourablyagainstrivalDSLRs,whichare
bulkierandheavier.TheOlympuslookslikea
pro-DSLRthanksto thelargedual-gripthat
makesit easier to usethe camerawhenheld
in portraitformat.Thisgripoffers a dualsetof
controlsandhousestwobatterypacksto
increaseshootingtime.At justshyof a kilo,it's
not as heavyas youmightexpectandthe
gripsprovide a verysecure,balancedand
comfortablehold.Thebodyfeelsincredibly
solidandOlympusclaimsthatitoffersa
water-,dustandfreeze-proofprotection
that's superior toany other model.One drawback that you'llfindin the
camera'sextensivespecificationis the
numberof buttonsthatyou'll needto get
yourheadaroundto makefulluseofwhat
theOlympushastooffer.Prettymuchevery
partof thebodyhasoneormorecontrols,so
it'sdefinitelya camerarequiringa periodof
learningto establishitsoperation,evenif
you'reanexperiencedphotographer.Once
yougetacquaintedwiththecontrols,you'll
findthatbecausesomanycoverthemajor
functions,you'll needto spendlesstime
searchingmenusto make changes.With
aroundadozencustomisablebuttonsto
choosefrom,settingupthecameraforyour
ownpreferencesshouldn'tbeanissue.
TheOlympussportsa largeviewfinderwith
a thickhoodthatis verycomfortableto use.
The 2 .3 6 -million-dotLEDscreenprovidesa
bright andsharpimage, minimallagand awealthofinformation,butcontrastis
relativelylowandit'snotas niceas rivalOLED
screens.TheLCD monitorprovidesa bright
andsharpdisplayandboastsa touchscreen
andexcellentvari-angle articulatingplatform.
TheOM-DE-M1Xfeaturesa
2 0.4-megapixelresolutionsensor,thesame
as theOM-DE-M1MkII.TheMicroFour-
Thirdssensoris aroundhalfthesizeof APS-C
andone-quarterthatofafull-framesensor,
givinganeffectivefocallength increaseof 2 x.
TheOlympusboastsnotonebuttwoTruePic
VIII imagingenginestooffer improved
processingpower,it alsoprovidesa sensitivity
rangeof ISO 6 4- 25600 andallowsfor4K
videotobe captured.Thedualprocessorsare
alsorequiredtopowerotherfeaturesonthe
camera.Oneof theseis theHigh Resmode,
whichallowsfor 80 -megapixelRawfilesto
becapturedwiththecameratripod-
mounted,or50-megapixelwhenthecamera
is usedhandheld.
LiketheOM-DE-M1MkII,thisnewmodel
sportsanimpressiverange ofoptionsfor
continuousshooting.WithcontinuousAFit
firesat tenframes-per-second,whilethis
increasesto 15fps withthefocusfixedat the
startof thesequence.TheProCapturemode
recordsupto 35framesat 60fpsbeforethe
shutterbuttonisfullydepressed,allowingyou
to captureunpredictablesubjectsbefore
you're able tofully react.ear Professional mirrorless camera
ThelatestOlympusflagshipis all
aboutspeed, offeringsportsand
wildlife photographerswitha more
affordablealternativetopro DSLRsTest:DANIELLEZANOSPECIFICATIONS
GuidePrice:£2,799(bodyonly)
Image sensorFour-ThirdsLiveMOS(17.3x13mm)
Imageprocessor: 2 x TruePicVIII
Resolution: 2 0.4-megpgapixels
Maximumimage resolution: 8 160x6120pixels
AFsystem:TTLphasedifferencedetectionand
contrastdetectionAFsystems(121-points)
Meteringpgpatterns:ESP(324-zone), sppot
andcentre-weighted(plusHighlight & Shadow)
ISOrangge:ISO 6 4- 25600 pplusAuto
Shuttersppeeds: 1 /4000sec-60seconds& Bulb
LCD: 3 in 1, 0 37, 000 -dotvari-angle touchscreen
Framerate: 15 frames-pper-second
Storagge:DualSD(SDHC/SDXC)
Size(WHD): 1 44.4x146.8x75.4mm
Weight: 997 gincludingbattery&card
Website: http://www.olyypmpus.co.uk98 Digital SLR PhotographyJuly 2019
OLLYMPUS
OM-D E-M 1 X
Above:TheOlympus OM-DE-M1Xis a pro-specification
mirrorless camera with a chunkybuilt-inbatterygripthat
shouldn't feel too dissimilartoprofessionalDSLR users.