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| My updated everyday carry/travel kit. (click to enlarge) |
If you are a regular reader of this blog, you might remember last year I took a month-long 7300 mile road trip across the United States and back. On that trip I took only my Nikon Z7II and the Nikon 24-200mm f/4.-6.3 lens. I made many, many excellent images with that camera/lens combination and I was quite pleased with everything about it for that trip. I have no complaints and would take it again without hesitation. However, I believe this OM-1/Olympus 12-100mm f/4 PRO lens kit will actually make a better travel companion for road trips, holidays or vacations when photography is not the primary objective. Why? Read on.
First, the size and weight of both camera/lens combinations is about the same so there is no penalty there. The primary objective is to take the least amount and lightest gear I can while allowing me to make the images I would want to make.
Second, the OM-1 has more features than the Nikon. Many more features allows much more versatility without having to take additional gear. For example, Live ND allows me to apply up to 6-stops of neutral density filtration in-camera so no additional filters are needed. I can automatically focus stack in-camera while handholding it. There are many more. For a list of features in this camera, take a look at this post, here.
Third, the IBIS in the OM-1/12-100mm f/4 PRO lens combination gives more stability at slower shutter speeds (8-stops) thus allowing me more opportunities for photographing low light subjects. I've tested myself and I can reliably handhold the camera steady at 1/3 second. At 1/2 second, I get about 50% of the images in sharp focus. Not bad for an old shaky guy in his 70s! The slower available shutter speeds mitigates the f/4 maximum aperture in subjects that are not in motion. Also, it is a stop and a third faster than the Nikon lens at longer focal lengths.
Fourth, the 12-100mm f/4 PRO lens is a much better lens at all focal lengths which will give me technically better images. The lens is sharp across the frame, even wide open, while the Nikon lens needs a bit of extra 'help' during editing in the way of DXO's custom engineered camera/lens algorithms to sharpen up the edges at wider focal lengths. But DXO does the job.
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| The travel kit I took on my month-long road trip in 2022. As nimble as it is, I wanted to go smaller and lighter but keep versatility and image quality. This, to me, is still too much 'stuff' to take while traveling when photography is secondary to the road trip's primary intent. (click to enlarge) |
Overall, I think the OM kit is even smaller, lighter, more versatile while maintaining excellent image quality than is the Nikon kit pictured above. I will report back on how this new kit worked for the road trip I'm taking this month. Stay tuned.
Your thoughts?
P.S. A shout out to Walter in Honolulu and John in Melbourne!
Thanks for looking. Enjoy!
Dennis A. Mook
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I cannot wait until you do one of your comparisons on the OM-1 that are always very complete to what I care about- photograph quality. Your XT-5 would be a good camera to use as a comparison on 16x20 prints to the OM-1. Have fun on your trip.
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteHi Dennis, it will be interesting to read your thoughts once you return from your trip, and whether this combo ultimately wins out over the Nikon combo.
ReplyDeleteAt one point I had the excellent Olympus 12-40 and the Panasonic 35-100, both f2.8 lenses, and loved the image quality from both. What I didn't love so much was the frequent lens changes. I never seemed to have the right lens on the body at the right time LOL. I eventually sold both of those and purchased the 12-100, and like many felt it had a special quality in the images it produced. But for reasons I'm not sure I understand, I also sold that lens in a desire to go even lighter.
I'm like many who have bought and sold too many cameras, mostly as a victim to FOMO. One thing I will say... Olympus for me is the one camera/lens company that I usually regret selling. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but I typically end up with seller's remorse.
Thanks for your comments and story. I, too, seem to always want to go back to Olympus. There is just something magic about my Olympus gear. This is now the third time I’ve gone back and don’t plan on selling any of the m4/3 gear in the future. As I downsize over the next few years, I think the Olympus gear is west I’ll end up with. When I look in my Lightroom catalog and sort on my m4/3 images, they are outstanding. No difference from other camera brands or formats. My sense is that when shooting with an Olympus camera, the images are always precisely focused, sharp edge to edge, good dynamic range and have excellent detail. The colors are also pleasing. I’ve always been a guy who roots for the underdog. Certainly, m4/3, Fujifilm and Nikon are all underdogs in the eyes of most of the Internet influencers. I’m sure I’ll write about my experience with just the one camera and lens and compare it to the Nikon kit from last year.
DeleteHi Dennis. After reading your posts on the om-1 I decided to order the on-1 and 12-100 whic with my x100v should make a good travel kit. This will be the first time I have used an Olympus interchangeable lens camera so it will be a learning process. I am looking forward to the features on the om-1. I am sure I will by 1 or 2 more lenses. Your articles have been informative.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations! That combination has all the technical wherewithal to create absolutely wonderful photographs. In order to enjoy this camera’s full potential, I highly recommend you spend a good amount of time reading the user’s manual or buying a PDF from someone who thoroughly goes over and explains everything about the camera before taking it out on your first foray. The camera has so many features and so much capability that it takes weeks or months to discover everything about this camera if one doesn’t study the manual. Also, YouTube videos by Thomas Eisl (from Austria) and Rob Trek (Alexandria Virginia) are well worthwhile watch as Thomas takes each feature and makes a video with a full explanation and demonstration. Rob does much the same but he also answers question sent in by viewers. Trek also has live streams with other m4/3 photographers and those can be quite informative. Finally, the OM Systems YouTube channel has many, many videos, mostly about an hour long, explaining all sorts of photography and recommended settings for the OM-1 camera. Good luck and if I can be of help, email me privately and I’ll be happy to do what I can to assist you. Lastly, I would like you to follow up and let me know what you think in the next month or two.
DeleteThank you for the feedback. I will definitely check out the two YouTube channels. I have a trip planned to a pumpkin patch with the grandkids so I have some learning to do. Enjoy your up coming trip.
DeleteThank you and enjoy your time with the grandkids. I’ve done that very same thing with mine.
DeleteWelcome back to Olympus, Dennis! I share your assessment of the OM-1, having rented one for a weekend. I found it to be an evolutionary enhancement of the EM1-3 that was quite enjoyable to use. But while I like my Olympus gear and have no plans to ever sell it, I recently purchased the Nikon Z50 to try out as my light and compact camera. It weighs a bit less than my EM1-3, and paired with the new Nikkor 12-28mm, gives me a very wide-to-standard camera/lens in a compact package. Plus it also lets me use the F/Z lenses I already have for my D810 and Z6-2. Have a wonderful adventure with your friends and I'm looking forward to your report on the OM-1.
ReplyDeleteJust finished a 10 day trip to Maine shooting with the OM-1 12-100 combo.. Trip to Acadia NP, various lighthouses, wandering through Boothbay Harbor, Bath, and several other locations along the coast. Great travel combo no doubt
ReplyDeleteOne of my deciding factors between cameras is the 4:3 aspect ratio. I prefer it to 3:2 so images take less cropping to appeal to me. Sony aps-c allows 3:2 and 16:9.. my two least favorite choices of the usual four.
ReplyDeleteJim, thank you for commenting. I used to the prefer 3:2 of 35mm but I now prefer the 4:3 format of m4/3. Often times I find myself cropping my other cameras’ images to the 4:3 format, especially verticals.
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