Olympus OM System OM-1 Mark II Black 2024

The OM System OM-1 Mark II is a speed-focused beast with the best stabilization we've ever tested. It's perfect for wildlife and sports shooters who value a light kit and insane burst rates. If you need top-tier low-light performance or high resolution, look at full-frame options instead.

This camera is all about speed and stability. The burst shooting hits 120fps with the electronic shutter, putting it in the 97th percentile, and the buffer is deep enough to let you spray and pray without choking. Autofocus is equally impressive, with 1053 points and AI subject detection that locks onto birds and animals with a tenacity we haven't seen outside of Sony's best. The real star is the stabilization, though. At 8.5 stops, it's the absolute best right now, letting you handhold shots at ridiculous shutter speeds. The 5.8M-dot EVF is a standout, and battery life is strong at 520 shots. The sensor is the bottleneck, delivering solid but not spectacular image quality that falls behind most full-frame competitors in dynamic range and noise control.

Stacked against the full-frame heavyweights like the Sony a1 II or Nikon Z9, the OM-1 Mark II can't match their outright image quality or resolution. But it's also half the price and weight. The Canon EOS R6 Mark III will give you better low-light performance and similar speed for a bit more cash. The Fujifilm X-H2 offers a massive resolution bump with its 40MP sensor if you want to stay in a smaller system. The Panasonic LUMIX GH7 is the better pick if video is your main gig, but for sheer burst speed and stabilization in a tiny body, the OM-1 is in a league of its own.

Pricing is a mess right now, with a spread from $2,474 all the way up to an absurd $483,193 across vendors. Ignore the crazy high end, that's clearly a listing error. At the low end, around $2,500 for the kit with the excellent 12-40mm F2.8 PRO II lens, it's a fair deal for a specialized tool. You're paying for speed and ruggedness, not sensor size. If those are your priorities, it's worth it. Just make sure you're buying from a reputable store and not getting scalped.

The OM System OM-1 Mark II is a speed demon built for the outdoors. It's a Micro Four Thirds camera that leans hard into what the system does best: compact size, insane burst rates, and computational tricks that make you feel like you're cheating. We're talking 120fps electronic shooting, best-in-class stabilization, and weather sealing that laughs at a downpour. If you shoot wildlife or sports and hate lugging heavy gear, this thing is basically a telephoto superpower in a small package.

But that small sensor comes with trade-offs. At 20.4MP, it's not going to win any resolution contests against full-frame rivals, and the low-light performance is just okay. The sensor ranks in the 38th percentile in our database, which is a weak spot for a camera at this price. Still, for its intended audience, the OM-1 Mark II is a focused, fun, and frighteningly fast tool.

If you primarily shoot in low light or need high resolution for landscapes and studio work, skip this. The small sensor just can't keep up with even mid-range full-frame cameras when the sun goes down, and the 20.4MP files don't leave much room for cropping.

This is a specialist's camera through and through. If you spend your weekends in a bird hide or on the sidelines of a soccer field, the OM-1 Mark II is one of the best tools you can buy. The speed and stabilization are addictive, and the compact size means you'll actually take it with you. Just don't buy it expecting full-frame image quality or a great hybrid video experience.