OM SYSTEM OM-5

Everything great about Olympus lives on in this camera

- James Artaius

The OM System OM-5 may be the first ‘Olympus camera’ not to bear the iconic name, but the familiar logo is the only thing that’s missing here – this is a camera that lives up to the Olympus legacy, and expands on it in a number of worthwhile ways.

The OM-5 is the successor to the Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark III. It’s the OM System brand’s ‘middle camera’, next to the flagship OM System OM-1 and the entry-level Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark IV (the next model of which will be rechristened the OM-10).

Where the OM-1 is the top-tier system for pros and experts, the OM-5 is built to deliver many of the flagship’s best features in a body that’s smaller, lighter, and built for those who want to go on an adventure and take photos, rather than going on a photographic adventure. So how does it compare to the best Olympus cameras?

Key features

The OM System OM-5 features the same 20.4MP sensor as the E-M5 Mark III, but it’s paired with an updated TruePic IX processor to squeeze even more computational cleverness out of the body – and this is where it truly shines.

It boasts Live ND filters, which offer a software-driven alternative to neutral density filters up to ND16 (4 stops). This means you can get those silky water shots without filters, since the in-body image stabilisation has been boosted by 15% to 6.5 stops as standard, or 7.5 stops when paired with one of the Olympus Sync-IS lenses.

All this feeds into the ethos of this camera: a body you can take on an adventure, spot a photo opportunity, and still get those great shots – even without taking a tripod, filters or cumbersome accessories.