Pro wildlife photographer @wildmanrouse tests the new OM-1 Mark II showing it's amazing AF

So here is my field review of the new OM System OM-1 Mark II. I have had this camera for a month and have put it through it's paces. I do not care for politics or armchair photographers. I tested this camera as part of my professional life, where my images are the difference between a Barry Gibb style wig or my current "follicly challenged" status!!! If you want an assassination job then don't read this, if you don't use OM then don't bother either, this review is for OM System photographers out there who are genuinely interested in what this camera does.
If you want to see a more personal review, with more pics, plus my usual exclusive content of inspiring videos, image critiques and more tiger fun then check out my patreon and take a free 7 day trial of the combi membership - www.patreon.com/wildmanrouse
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[@paulbarrow9925]

That looks cool Andy. Some great improvements there. Have decided to order one and hope it is with me for April.

[@Wildmanrouse]

Fingers crossed!

[@macg33zr]

Thanks Andy. A good review of the new camera, I enjoyed this while slurping my breakfast cuppa. Your video has provided a lot of info for questions buzzing about my head on this update, it looks to be a good update of the OM-1

[@Wildmanrouse]

Breakfast cuppa I am jealous. I am on Keto this week so fasting until 12 with black coffee only! It's a good update. My Patreon channel provides a lot more and I've been answering question on there this morning you should check it out as it's a good site - Patreon.com/wildmanrouse

[@formermpc10]

It's not a review It's advertisement.

[@wilsonchee5834]

When you use the monopod to hang it down the side of the jeep, how do you AF and activate the shutter?

[@skipsaunders5974]

did you use the digital 2x tele on this trip?

[@perfjordvang1685]

Bird detecion is great, but what subject detection do you use for lions, elephants, bears, moose and other wildlife? Can you use the one for cats and dogs?

[@tonydelphi4961]

Great! I'd buy one.😊

[@Wildmanrouse]

You and me both! I ordered two.

[@narinthip3058]

Super review Andy and all jaw dropping images to boot. I definitely will upgrade but will wait a bit as I don't do this for a living. Also, I do have two OM-1 so my upgrade costs will be a bit more. But OM-1.1 is already more than a camera for my skills. I can wait. One thing about video AF, how does it do for flying birds in case you have tested it?

[@Wildmanrouse]

OMG!!! I am shocked. You mean you actually looked at my images and didn't look for faults?? Wow what are you doing on here as you sound decent and normal. OMG I am shocked that you looked at my images!!! 😂😂😂😂 come and join us on Patreon, people are nice. I have 4 OM-1s so painful for me as I'm just an outsider.

[@Wildmanrouse]

And sorry I have not tried flying birds with video but will this weekend. Updates only on Patreon now as I'm tired of the spanners.

[@narinthip3058]

Andy, I was one of the original Wildbunch member, mate. I just got really busy and couldn't really participate as much. When you have this new platform, I have yet had time to get into it. But alway miss you and the gang! Cheers, Narin

[@narinthip3058]

Look forward to see those inputs Mate, video AF. Not sure if you are still oversea but wherever you are, best of luck!

[@johnhume3932]

Great introduction to the new camera, but I really want to know how good it is at locking onto flying insects, especially dragonflies.

[@Wildmanrouse]

Not my interest John as you will know and I will try it in May locally here. Hopefully one of the macro gods will test this as I certainly am not that

[@JoeMaranophotography]

As an original Lumix G9 user I'm so jealous of all these new autofocus improvements as its been the bane of my camera even since it came out lol

[@Wildmanrouse]

Lumix make great cameras too. I can only focus on the OM stuff as it's all I know. Be proud of what you have and use it to the best of your ability, if you decide you need a change then you know where to go!

[@JoeMaranophotography]

@Wildmanrouse 100% the only real way it holds me back is the autofocus because you have to constantly chop and change settings to stand a chance and even then it's maybe 60% reliable if that for birds and fast moving subjects. Advanced animal AF from either Panasonic or Olympus would be fabulous and that 150-600 seems like a dream too!

[@sue.Holmes1960]

@@JoeMaranophotographybuy the G9ii it’s a game changer 👍

[@JoeMaranophotography]

@@sue.Holmes1960 Money is money lol

[@davehenson5390]

If tis any help, a mate has bought the G9ii (from the G9) and says the new AF is greatly improved.

[@xiaofengliu5724]

Thank you very much! Will OM -1 get the same autofocus?

[@Wildmanrouse]

Pleasure. As I understand it There are currently no plans to do so.The OM-1 Mark II has increased internal memory and new optimized memory controls compared to the OM-1. As a result, it is not possible for the new features like Live GND and human subject detection to become available via a firmware upgrade to the OM-1. That's as I understand it but it's not really something I deal with as I'm just a lowly pro photographer

[@HokKan]

Fewer people will buy the new camera if existing users can just upgrade the firmware to get the same AF performance.

[@erwin2912]

Fewer people will by an OM camera if firmware isn't continually improved. Human AF detection is a must for an expensive camera@@HokKan

[@HokKan]

@@erwin2912 I doubt it. Sony is doing pretty well. If the camera is good, people will buy it.

[@meshackgaolathe6492]

Are there any improvements in the dynamic range at all

[@Wildmanrouse]

I don't think so although I understand hires shot can now save 14 but which should give the same effect. Not my area of expertise though so sorry could not be more help. Thanks for asking decently shame a lot can't.

[@oppyoko]

1 MK2

[@nikaberzina2478]

Why haven't they given us what we want from the start, in OM-1 ? Are we pursuaded to throw that camera away now and buy mk2 ? or maybe OM1 is elegible for firmware update ?

[@Wildmanrouse]

Did you actually watch and listen to the video. I mean listen to what I had to say from 25 years of pro experiences?

[@nikaberzina2478]

@@Wildmanrouse Sry, I didn't, I am too impulsive.

[@formermpc10]

Kind of grumpy for an influencer trying to sell OMD products!

[@danieled.2583]

The updates were promised on the OM-1 but they saw fit to provide them on a new model and this is incorrect.

[@Wildmanrouse]

Nothing to do with me. I just use a camera in my professional life.

[@vermis8344]

Your OM-1 is completely useless now. You might as well hammer a lens into a big King Edward! Throw it out! Throw it out!

[@jpdeardenphotography]

Wow. Fantastic review. Stunning photo's and what a location. So jealous would love to go there but being wheelchair bound its a stuggle to get on a safari and cant afford the cost. . Im a wildlife shooter too and the AF improvements look really good. I have the OM-1 mk1 also and absolutely love it. Cant wait to test out the new canera an the 150-600 lens.

[@Wildmanrouse]

Thanks so much and I used to talk to a wheelchair photography club in a college in Alton. It was so inspiring. So please continue to love wildlife and your photography.

[@jpdeardenphotography]

Thank you. Oh I will. Its my therapy. I was paralyzed in 2019 and struggled to come to terms with it and I suffer from severe depression and anxiety. So in the hipe to inspire others I started a youtube channel depicting my days in the life of...and reviews of OM SYSTEM samsung, Nikon and photo editing software. But my main is OMSYSTEM how being lightweight and compact is perfect for me . I do days out, mental health talk and disabled equipment. Looking forward to seeing more of your videos

[@d-entrecasteaux]

@@jpdeardenphotographyinspiring!

[@jpdeardenphotography]

Thank you

[@michaelhall2709]

@@jpdeardenphotographyYou are an inspiration, sir. Be well.

[@robertharrison9720]

The OM-1 had a major issue with C-AF drifting in and out of focus on static birds when using single point focus, has the Mk2 resolved this?

[@Wildmanrouse]

Explained in the video

[@robertharrison9720]

@@Wildmanrouse Must have missed it, what time position?

[@RoderickJMacdonald]

@@robertharrison9720I think about 1:40. He does not use the word “continuous”, but he mentions tracking the subject behind grass, etc.

[@mikeg5121]

Has the om1, not the mark 11, got the nd grad and nd filters in the menu .

[@Wildmanrouse]

It has everything in the menu because that's where you access them? Not sure what this question means sorry.

[@mikeg5121]

@@Wildmanrouse it was about the nd grads, and the nd filters. I was not sure if the om1 has both, as the om1 mark 11 does.

[@EugeneMaynard]

👍🏾 🙏🏾 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇸🇪🇹🇹

[@d-entrecasteaux]

Pity they didn’t improve the video features- like 4K 120p and stickier video 🦢 detect C-AF. Also, I never wished for a deeper buffer. Waiting for it to clear will mean missed shots like my G9mkii. Is C-AF better when birds fly toward the camera? This is what I’d like to know. Please post some specific real world, everyday, pro user samples proving how good the C-AF focus improvements are. Many thanks 😊

[@Wildmanrouse]

I showed plenty of pro user samples as I'm a pro. Therefore my images are pro and anything suggesting they are not is insulting!

[@wilduntamedphotography1260]

@@Wildmanrouse The more you have to say that you're a pro, the less you are ..... 😉

[@d-entrecasteaux]

@@Wildmanrouseno one is trying to insult you or ruffle your feathers. 😂 Here’s the thing- you and I know the OM1 is brilliant with bird detect AF when the bird is flying across the frame but it’s not so good at holding onto the focus if the bird is flying directly toward the camera. This is particularly evident when using ProCapture at 50fps. The question is: is the MKii an improvement in this regard or not? Many thanks, and please don’t think I don’t respect your work. I wouldn’t ask you if I didn’t.

[@erwin2912]

Your pictures do not look sharp at all.. I own the OM-1, what's the reason for that?

[@Wildmanrouse]

They are razor sharp as I'm a pro. This is a typical slate of my work. Happens always

[@wilduntamedphotography1260]

@@Wildmanrouse They indeed look very soft and not sharp, also on my screen. But one reason could also be that you're working with a full HD timeline, and not one in 4K. Therefore it also does not show your pictures in the highest possible quality. Apart from that, answering with "They are razor sharp I am a pro" is a bit arrogant. Not the way you should treat people .....

[@vermis8344]

​@@wilduntamedphotography1260 If it comes down to a pro photographer with years of experience and hands on experience with the new camera, vs. keyboard warriors who are bitter that OM didn't put 40MP on a 17mm sensor, I know who I think is justified in a little arrogance.

[@maziatr]

⁠@@wilduntamedphotography1260Andy has always been an arrogant character

[@jarrahfitzgerald2752]

Agreed. Many of the images, as presented, are not sharp. It may be that the actual photos are sharp, but they have not been added to the video at a high enough resolution. "I'm a pro" is a very odd response.

[@markwalker8374]

Your photos in this video look soft (esp the bee eater in flight) or at least low res and I am sure they are not. Is this a youtube thing ? i am viewing this at 1080p HD on my Macbook Pro.

[@Wildmanrouse]

They aren't soft they are razor sharp. Im a pro and don't take soft images. All are uploaded at HD 1920. As usual someone says this to get at what I am taking about.

[@markwalker8374]

I don't doubt that your photos are not sharp its just in the video on my laptop they appear soft or in HD. The OM-1 photos look ok and the video taken with the camera looks fine but the lion at 4.52, barbet 6.09 and bee eaters at 3.38 & 6.18 look soft whereas the elephant at 2.45 looks fine. I wondered if it was a KZbin settings or upload issue that made them appear soft. The photos in your high ISO video from 6 months ago by comparison all look ok.

[@markwalker8374]

I have rewatched the video on my Huawei P30 Pro from 2018 and the photo of the bee eater in flight when I freeze the screen does look sharp comparing them side by side with the Macbook's retina screen (same KZbin setting). Strange how the resolution differs from device to device. Apologies and please ignore my comments

[@robertharrison9720]

"Im a pro and don't take soft images" - Nothing like a 'pro' with arrogance! What an idiot you are @@Wildmanrouse

[@vermis8344]

"Your photos look soft. I'm watching this at 1080p." 😐

[@Trigger-xw9gq]

"We don't need a new sensor". Nonsense. That they wouldn't bump the resolution is lame.

[@davehenson5390]

The OM01 is equivalent to 75 MP on full frame. There is NO consumer camera with a higher pixel density so what is it you are wanting?

[@Wildmanrouse]

We don't need a bump in resolution. Why do you want it? Do you use the camera? No I suspect not!!! Just get out and take good pictures rather than slating people that know better than you!!!

[@Wildmanrouse]

Who knows Dave!

[@Trigger-xw9gq]

@@davehenson5390 Equivalent to a 20 MP FF, 60 MP FF? Which one? After coming from the Sony A1, and now using the OM-1, the sensor is the biggest disappointment. Even a small bump to 24 MP would have been something, not to mention sticking with the same old SD cards instead of CFexpress on a camera that does 120 FPS is lame. They also didn't include GPS. C'mon.

[@davehenson5390]

@@Trigger-xw9gq AsI said, if you are 'cropping heavily' then sensor size is irrelevant and it is the pixels on the bird that matter. And given that no camera has a higher pixel density than the OM1 then the 'cropping heavily' argument breaks down. What is it about the OM1 vs the A1 that disappoints you?