September 10th, 2013 – Olympus has announced the Olympus O-MD E-M1, their flagship Micro Four Thirds (MFT) camera today.
The 16.3 megapixel camera is Olympus’s second weatherproofed Micro Four Thirds camera and offers excellent features aimed at semi-pro and enthusiast photographers.
Interestingly, the E-M1 is being marketed as an upgrade from the E-5 DSLR camera, and not directly from the E-M5 camera. Olympus claims this is because they have improved the auto focus system to increase compatibility with the legacy Four Thirds lenses. In fact, Olympus is offering the Four Thirds to Micro Four Thirds adapter for free after a limited-time rebate (a $179 value!). Simply purchase the adapter with the E-M1 body by December 2nd, 2013 and complete the form to receive the rebate. For more information, check out the full instructions from Olympus. If you would prefer, the rebate can also be used to get the Olympus FL-300R Flash for free.
The E-M1 differentiates itself from Olympus’ first semi-pro MFT — the E-M5 — in its autofocus system and physical controls. One of the (small) complaints about the excellent E-M5 was a disappointing number physical buttons to control the camera’s settings. Olympus has taken care of this with the E-M1 as can be seen in the photo below.
The controls appear much more DSLR like on the E-M1 and this is an important upgrade for a camera targeted to former DSLR users. Additionally, for photographers who make extensive use of flash, a welcome upgrade on the front of the body is a PC sync port to connect the camera to studio strobes.
Overall, the camera should be the best OM-D to date. It has a great feature set and fits in a tiny form factor that provides incredible portability.
As soon as I can get my hands on a EM-1, I will be sure to update this page with a full review. Until then, check out the Specifications below.
[camspecs]44[/camspecs]
