Olympus OM-D E-M1X test: rugged and ready

The OM-D E-M1X is a top-end Micro Four Thirds camera with an integrated handgrip aimed at action and nature photographers. However, this innovation-packed, high-performing camera is likely to have a much broader appeal

Last September, before all the rumours (about what turned out to be the OM-D E-M1X) started circulating, I had a one-to-one chat with an Olympus executive. Against the background of three full-frame system launches, I was obviously curious  if Olympus would do a Panasonic – ie go full-frame while continuing its commitment to Micro Four Thirds. The short answer was ‘no’, followed by generous use of the word ‘mobility’ and its importance when it came to Olympus cameras.

So, now we have the OM-D E-M1X, with its integrated vertical handgrip – the biggest Olympus Micro Four Thirds camera we have seen to date. It is a rugged camera with, according to Olympus, world-leading dust, splash and freeze proofing, signalling the start of a new dynasty. Existing pro models like the OM-D E-M1 Mark II and optional HLD-9 vertical power grip continue to be available. So, reading between the lines, we’ll still see pro-level products with body and grip available as separate entities and more cameras with integrated grips. The latter will probably depend on the success of the E-M1X.

It is interesting the E-M1X and E-M1 Mark II share the same 20.4-megapixel sensor. Given the E-M1 Mark II was announced in September 2016, it is perhaps a surprise we didn’t see a new sensor in the new camera, maybe with more megapixels or much better high-ISO performance. It would, for example, provide a very clear user benefit to those using older cameras – an obvious reason to upgrade.

But that is not the case, so we have what we have. The E-M1X’s sensor does have an updated coating for improved light sensitivity and works with a pair of TruPic VIII processors. Having dual processors gives the E-M1X a faster performance in key areas: quicker start-up, faster recovery from sleep mode, support for two UHS-II SD card slots and features like Subject Detection AF and High Res Shot modes, including a handheld shooting option, in-body image stabilisation (IBIS) and Live ND.

The E-M1X integral grip means all the key controls for horizontal shooting are precisely replicated for vertical shooting, and that is a good thing. There’s also room to accommodate two batteries. The benefit of two batteries (it can run on one) is shooting capacity instead of shooting speed. Two fully charged BLH-1 cells allows for more than 2500 shots. I had three days with the camera and got the impression this figure was generous based on the 600-odd shots I took on each day. But then I was previewing a lot of my shots, exploring the menu a great deal and shooting quite a few shots using the High Res Shot modes – so perhaps not a true reflection of battery capacity in normal use.

The good news is the batteries can be charged via the camera’s USB-C socket using a power bank, with LEDs to indicate charging. I think USB charging should be made compulsory on all new cameras, because it is such a handy backup to have. Well done to Olympus for including it.

The E-M1X is a chunky-looking camera but there is nothing wrong, in my view, with the control layout. The on/off switch is on the left side, around the base of a control dial mode that has three function controls, drive/flash, bracketing and AF/AE settings. The dominant dial on the right is the lockable exposure mode dial, with four assignable custom settings plus the usual PASM settings and a movie setting. The remaining controls on the right are the movie record button, shutter release and, very usefully, the ISO and exposure compensation buttons. Having the compensation and ISO buttons next to the shutter release is ideal – the ISO button even has a dimpled finish so you can tell the difference by touch. It’s an unfussy layout and, along with input dials, front and rear, I thought handling was intuitive. The rear is dominated by the 3in touchscreen, which is surrounded by various buttons and controls. Push the menu button and you’ll see a deep menu structure, from A1 to J3, totalling 123 options. It is useful you can create your own menu comprising up to 35 separate items. As you would expect, there is plenty of customisation potential to set up the camera to your liking.

I was, however, a little perplexed by the inclusion of a card button. With dual slot cameras, I have all images saved to both in case of card failure. That’s it. Touch wood, I have not had that particular experience, but that is my set-up. Very rarely have I had to decide to save to one card or the other, but that is what Olympus has dedicated a button to. I would understand it much more if the card button let me, on those rare occasions I felt the need, save Raws to one and JPEGs to the other, or change my saving options, but it doesn’t. Those options are available through the menu H1 Card Slot settings, but perhaps that will change with a firmware update.

You do need fast C SD cards to benefit from the E-M1X’s dual processors, which have enhanced shooting speeds. UHS-II SD cards can be identified by their two rows of electrical contacts. The camera can capture Raws at 60fps with exposure and focus locked, and shoot up to 18fps with AE/AF tracking. With the dual processor and fast cards, at 10fps you can shoot 280 Raws in a single burst with AE/AF tracking and no buffering. At 15fps, this drops to a burst of 148 Raws without buffering.

I didn’t get to truly check out the camera’s action shooting prowess in the time I had the camera – even the ever-dependable horse racing was off – so I made do with the nearest motorway. I certainly didn’t manage to get to the point of buffering, and I’d imagine the figures quoted by Olympus would be more than enough frames for all but the most enthusiastic machine-gunners.

There is significant innovation in the camera’s AF department. The 121-zone AF system offers plenty of set-up options, with the choice of single zone (large or small), five, nine, 25 and all 121 working. The single and zone options can be moved around the whole 121-zone layout and each pattern can be scrolled through by pushing in the AF joystick and using the front input dial. Aside from a focus joystick to move AF points around, the four-way rear control pad can also be used. If that wasn’t enough, you can also use the touchscreen, whether your eye is up to the viewfinder eyepiece or not.

There is even more potential in the A2 AF/MF menu under the item Target Mode Settings. Here, you can make your own custom AF grid using the 11×11 121 zone to suit the subject. So, you can choose a 1×9 AF pattern to photograph a tall, thin subject (a giraffe!) for example, or you can go for a horizontal 3×8 AF grid to deal with boats. Your custom grids can be added to the default list of AF patterns to scroll through.

For most users, the single point or small zone options would be more than enough, but the potential is there for more specialist users and their subjects.

Speaking of specialist subjects, the E-M1X’s menu item A3 AF/MF has a Tracking Subject option, where there’s the choice of motor sports, trains or aeroplanes for continuous AF tracking.

I tried the aeroplane tracking mode on commercial jets in the absence of anything faster and the motor sports mode on cars joining a motorway, both using the Olympus 300mm f/4 lens. Neither subject was ideal in the context of what Olympus had in mind for this feature, but it was the best I could manage in the time I had.

In both cases, you could see the focus zones picking on the subject, but I could see zones missing, too. It is an interesting concept, but I would have thought pro shooters would prefer something more controllable and predictable and stick with single or a small zone – or use their own pattern produced with the Target Mode option.

AF was generally responsive, quick and sensitive in low light. It struggled a little on high-frequency subjects. It was more twitchy on bird feathers, for example, but most systems would probably struggle.

In better light with subjects with more contrast, AF was impressively slick and accurate, locking in with very few issues. I tried various modes, but stuck mostly with single point or small zone – and those modes delivered time after time.

In-body image stabilisers (IBIS) help you get sharp stills and video, so are very much a good thing. See Performance: IBIS system (below) for more on the E-M1X’s shake-defeating skills. A really handy benefit of IBIS is the ability to capture even more from a suitable scene.

Olympus’ High Res Shot mode – seen on the E-M1 Mark II and E-M5 Mark II – merges eight separate exposures into one for a high megapixel file. Between each exposure, the sensor is moved by a pixel or half a pixel, so you get much more data from a Bayer sensor, with its two green, one red and one blue pixel array.

The E-M1X has High Res Shot (HRS) mode with two options: Tripod HRS and Handheld HRS modes. With Tripod HRS mode, the camera takes eight sequential shots with its electronic silent shutter. In low light, this means the exposure sequence can be several seconds. In this mode, Raws are 10,369×7776 pixels (80 megapixels) and JPEGs 8160×6120 pixels (50 megapixels). This compares with normal Raw/JPEG shooting, where the file size is 5184×3888 pixels, ie 20 megapixels. You are limited to a top ISO of 1600 and the smallest aperture is f/8. And, of course, you need a stable camera and scene that is static.

Handheld HRS mode gives Raws and JPEGs of 8160×6120 pixels (50 megapixels), so still much larger than usual. In this mode, up to 16 separate exposures are taken, with the IBIS gyro and camera’s dual processors correcting for any camera movement between each shot. Then the images are merged.

The camera locks up during the merging process. It takes about 12-15 seconds for Handheld HRS, a few seconds longer than Tripod HRS.

Because the slightest camera or subject movement of even a pixel will ruin a Tripod HRS image, there is a selectable time delay between pressing the shutter button and the beginning of the exposure. This ensures the camera has fully settled down by the time the exposure sequence begins.

In Handheld HRS, IBIS detects shake and merges stabilised images, so you can have the shutter release behaving as normal – or perhaps with a brief time delay – before the camera starts shooting. You can see the IBIS system working when you take Handheld HRS shots.

For flash shooting, a time delay can also be set between each exposure to allow for flash recycling.

I tried Tripod High Res Shot mode to assess the benefits and also tried with Handheld HRS to check out the practical issues. See the accompanying panel and images to see how the OM-D E-M1X’s HRS performed.

Performance: ISO

The test shots here were taken with an OM-D E-M1X fitted with a 12-100mm f/4 lens. The camera was fixed to a Novo Explora T20 tripod and shots taken with the self-timer. No in-camera noise reduction was applied, nor was any used in processing. We did try Adobe Lightroom /DxO PhotoLab to check out the potential benefits of noise reduction.

The E-M1X showed itself to have a capable digital noise performance, even though its sensor, which is the same as used in the OM-D E-M1 Mark II, is not the latest. You can see noise start appearing in areas of even tone at ISO 500, although some noise reduction software will get rid of that. The grain effect of noise is more evident at ISO 800 and gets progressively more obvious through to ISO 3200, especially in areas of plain tone and shadows. With some diligent noise reduction, top-quality images suitable for critical use and big prints are achievable.

Venture beyond ISO 3200 and images are less recoverable in terms of noise reduction, but results are still okay until ISO 6400 and beyond, where noise and its impact on fine details becomes more significant.

All in all, the E-M1X’s sensor is capable, given its age and the small Micro Four Thirds format.

Click the images to see a larger view