Alex Mustard reviews Olympus OM-D E-M5

by Alex Mustard Friday, June 1st, 2012

4. IMAGE QUALITY: ISO, RESOLUTION, DYNAMIC RANGE.

My M43 using friends have always been full of how great the format is. And I have agreed that they have taken excellent images with their cameras, but I have always felt that the image quality has lacked a little compared with current SLRs. This is not a good and bad situation. It was always a good and better one. To my eye SLRs were better at high ISO, were more subtly in colour transitions and were better at coping with extremes in dynamic range. The key word in that sentence is “were”.

The E-45 has made a big, big step in M43 image quality, vaulting it right into the ranks of the SLRs. My feeling for underwater images is that it produces overall better image quality than a Nikon D300 or Canon 7D and is a close match to the Nikon D7000. DxO Mark are yet to test it, I will be very interested in what results come out.

RESOLUTION The E-M5 boasts 16MP and is very sharp at a pixel level. This is the same resolution as the D7000, two less than the 7D and D60 and 4 more than the D300. Given how good the files look at a pixel level, it is hard not to conclude that this resolution is not sufficient for almost every use.

Image and 100% crop (off centre) showing the sharpness of the files. With 16MP and this level of pixel detail the E-M5 should be able to cover most image usage needs.

ISO High ISO performance is the area where I feel the E-M5 most demonstrably impresses, for me it is clearly ahead of the D300 or 7D. Viewing the RAW files at 100% at ISOs 200 and 400 shows no significant noise, ISO 800 has only a very minor noise level, ISO 1600 the noise is visible but still not especially intrusive and at ISO 3200 the noise is clear, but the file remains entirely useable. Such performance from 16MP of tiny pixels left me stunned.

A sequence of four flash lit wide angle shots of a diver inside a cave, with the 8mm fisheye taken at ISO 400, 800, 1600 and 3200.

These are 100% crops of the 16MP RAW file with NO noise reduction in post processing. The slight difference in the size of the diver is because of small changes in camera to subject distances. Shot at ISO 400, 800, 1600 and 3200.

When noise reduction is applied the ISO performance is even more impressive as the type of noise is easily controlled by processing software. Even images taken at ISO 6400 are perfect for online use in electronic publications or for small prints.

Above are two images and two 100% crops from images taken at ISO 3200 and 6400. In this case I have applied a low amount of noise reduction in Lightroom 4. The image quality of the files is very impressive, even at ISO 6400 you can clearly read the brand of drysuit.

The fact that this ISO performance can be used with the in-body image stabilization and the high depth of field at more open apertures makes this a powerful camera for available light shooting in low light. Although I should not that although the camera could shoot in these conditions, it would have struggled to focus if it was not for the diver’s torch. 8mm, ISO 1000, f5.6 @ 1/25th.

DYNAMIC RANGE.

I found dynamic range harder to evaluate. I certainly didn’t rate it as anything less than good, but the conditions and lack of time made it difficult to rank it even subjectively against the SLRs. My gut feeling is that it is close, but slightly behind. But I would like to perform more tests to be sure.

Shooting up towards the bright surface from depth within a school of Bluefin tuna. 9-18mm @ 9mm, ISO 200, f11 @ 1/250th.

Anyone coming from an existing compact or M43 is likely to be very impressed. Those considering a switch from a SLR will also not feel they are giving much away in dynamic range.

In conclusion, the image quality from the E-M5 is excellent and the high ISO performance is particularly impressive. The quality is such that I cannot see the sensor being the limiting factor in what this camera can be used for.

Introduction.
Olympus OM-D E-M5 camera and specs.
The Olympus housing and underwater handling.
Image quality: ISO, resolution, dynamic range.
Lens performance, autofocus & stabiliser.
Conclusion.

Hi, Just a question I have an olympus omd em5 but when I want to use mode M the exposition adjust itself, I can adjust speed and focus but no the exposition. Is it possible to change this problem?

Posted by sandrine on 2016-04-06 18:32:01 Scubysnaps: Alex is used to life at the top of the food chain but my take was that the OM-D is as fast as could be reasonably expected. Few of the Gozitan dives with it were undertaken with the fast MSC lenses - like any SLR folk we wanted to try the extremes. Mostly we used the Panasonic 8mm fisheye and 45mm macro. Excellent optically but not famously fast. The D90 is one of the few Nikons I've used much so this isn't completely without a point of reference :) Like the Olympus SLRs I use a lot of the performance depends on the lens. I didn't find the D90 remarkably fast but the only ultrasonic lens I tried was the Sigma 150mm macro. Using the OMD since with the 12-50 and 14-42 I'd say it was very fast but that's not to say it works in quite the same way as an SLR. I know I can place the AF target on my E420 on the eye of a mysid or rhinophore of a nudi but the OM-D has a focus box that looks for image detail within 'video' bounded by the box and has no qualms at all in flitting from foreground to background in no time flat in a way that few SLRs can. I'd suggest that it doesn't offer/suffer from the limited/precise scope of SLR AF and that can be a strength and weakness. To make the most of it you need to plant the AF area well. I've been driven around the countryside shooting oncoming cars with it (which it'll do in SAF or CAF as well as being able to track objects around the whole screen) from an intial lock. So there's potential there for it to do great things but I've yet to try to pick a single fish out of a shoal. I think the water would need to be very clear and my reflexes superhuman! Only dives will tell how all the configurations work out but I was mightily impressed by the combination of the 12-50mm in macro mode and an Inon 165 - the most rapid macro setup I've tried. When the 60mm lens arrives it will be quite an interesting comparison.
Posted by ReallyMadRob on 2012-07-29 14:15:38 Thanks for the review Alex, and Pete for arranging it, unsure about the auto focus abilities on fast subjects, what would they be like compared to my D90?
Posted by Scubysnaps on 2012-07-19 08:56:11 Just wanted to add a thank you to all those who have commented and shared knowledge, opinions and information. Greatly improves the amount of information available here to others.
Posted by Alex Mustard on 2012-06-12 07:37:53 To clarify the port question: (as far as possible) The port is (I'm 99.9% sure) an RDX port - so there's a choice there to start with. There's an adapter - which we had out in Gozo - to allow threaded Olympus ports to be fitted. The housing comes with a standard flat port which is functionally the same as that one the first 2 Pen housings and 'suits' the 14-42mm and 9-18mm lenses. They don't say but it's a good fit of the 12-50mm as well and I'm just working on a zoom ring for that. I'd be surprised if an adapter back to Pen ports doesn't appear quite soon :-) I'm still not sure what would account for the 'pre flash delay', I didn't suffer it but we were mixing and matching strobes and modes at a furious rate :-) I wanted to factory reset the bodies before we started but time didn't allow that. I can say that I dived with it in Cornwall yesterday using the 12-50mm in macro mode along side a single RC protocol TTL strobe and suffered no such delay. Rob P.S. The strobe problems mentioned were down to a duff batch of brand new AA rechargeables - undone by the best of intentions. So it was a shame we weren't able to demo the Oly strobes fondness for macro.
Posted by ReallyMadRob on 2012-06-12 04:45:48 How disappointing the PEN lens ports don't fit out of the box. And I just bought one hoping to use it in the future for the E-M5.
Posted by Jak Crow on 2012-06-12 03:32:05 Dynamic range on the E-M5 far exceeds that available on APS-C DSLRs like the Canon 7D. In a single image, one can pull large amounts of detail from both the highlights and shadows. For an example see: http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1041&message=41718774 A raw image can be downloaded for those interested in investigating the DR themselves.
Posted by coroander on 2012-06-11 00:47:58 Alex, thanks for the acknowledgement.It was a pleasure having you and the rest of the gang aboard. Hope to see you again sometime
Posted by Ocean Dreams on 2012-06-05 07:23:36 @ Klaus - thanks for the suggestion on the shooting delay with TTL. We've discussed it a bit more in the forum and what we want to reduce is the delay for a pre-focused shot while still using TTL. Your suggestion might be the answer. Discussion here: http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=46536&st=31 Alex
Posted by Alex Mustard on 2012-06-03 04:25:34 It's a super camera and it's lesser siblings are pretty good too, That shot of the cuttlefish, as Alex has pointed out was taken on the Pen Mini, the E-PM1, what Alex didn't say was that he took it within the first 20 minutes of picking up the camera for the 1st time. He is a fantastic photographer too. Thanks for coming out Alex. :)
Posted by PeeBee on 2012-06-03 01:48:44 Alex, you mentioned "One big frustration with the flash system is TTL lag. The E-M5 does not have shutter lag, but when used in TTL mode there is a pre-flash lag before the photo is taken. On manual flash there is no noticeable delay." Might it be that you had "Anti-Shock" activated in the release options? In case it is set to ½sec in the E-menu, the E-M5 will first pre-flash, wait half a second, then fire the main flash. In manual mode there is no pre-flash, so the ½sec delay is not so evident.
Posted by KlausCR on 2012-06-02 17:57:58 Thanks again for directing this review towards DSLR shooters as well as compact and M43 shooters. I have been shooting the E-M5 out of the water since it arrived and no longer look at the image quality as being from a small sensor and just as a great image machine. This system has great glass for U/W use and new quality lenses like the just announced Panasonic 12-35 F/2.8 X keep coming. Phil Rudin
Posted by Phil Rudin on 2012-06-02 11:09:56 I went on this trip with an open mind having never shot with a M43 camera before, to say I'm impressed with these little cameras is an understatement, Alex has done them the justice they deserve in this review. Nice job Doctore!!
Posted by Nige Wade on 2012-06-02 05:50:59 I can't give you a 100% answer on the ports - as I no longer have the housing in front of me. But my best guess is no. We weren't able to use the mini-domes we had (which I guess were PEN fit). The dome we used was an Olympus one - and was old - presumably from an older Oly SLR housing - but fitted. I suspect that someone will make a port adaptor given the number of PEN users who will fancy upgrading to this camera. Sterling, thanks. I look forward to hearing what you think. I was very impressed. But didn't want to write a review totally gushing with praise because I was writing for current SLR users and felt it important to comment on both the areas it is ahead of an SLR and behind.
Posted by Alex Mustard on 2012-06-02 02:29:42 Alex, Could you answer if the PT-EP08 housing will accept the same ports from the prior PEN housings or third party ports (Zen, Athena, Precision) already in production or did Olympus use another style port connection as rumored? Thank you for the great review
Posted by devildiver on 2012-06-01 17:57:48 Awesome review, Alex. Thanks for posting. I am really excited about this camera. It's good to hear that the performance lives up to its promise. I look forward to shooting it soon. Thanks for the in-depth first look.
Posted by Sterling Zumbrunn on 2012-06-01 15:39:27