OLYMPUS OM-D E-M10 MARK IV

The entry-level OM-D camera has always been one of the best value propositions in mirrorless cameras, and now it gets a higher resolution sensor, more speed and some handy new features. What’s not to like?

Olympus now sees itself as the chief promoter of the Micro Four Thirds mirrorless format and it’s doing everything to promote the sizerelated benefits. The fourth-generation entrylevel OM-D body is very much the spiritual successor to the original ultra-compact OM 35mm cameras. The E-M10 Mark IV is not just a pretty little thing, but now has a higher resolution sensor, more speed and some handy new features.

Camera companies probably aren’t exactly thrilled when you suggest that the entry-level model in a line-up is actually the pick of the litter. This has arguably been the case with the last three generations of the E-M10, which have balanced affordability and capability in a way that none of the higher-end OM-D models have really been able to match. Since then, though, Olympus has upgraded both the E-M5 and E-M1, so there’s now some clear differentiation between them and the new Mark IV version of the

E-M10. Moreover, the price has crept up a bit too, and that’s put the E-M10 Mark IV up against some stiff competition, including Fujifilm’s X-T200, the Canon EOS M50 and, from the M43 stable, Panasonic’s Lumix G100.

Of course, the Mark IV camera is offering quite a bit more than its predecessor, starting with a new M43 Live MOS sensor, which has an effective resolution of 20.3 megapixels, up from 16.1MP. It keeps the same dual quad-core TruePic VIII processor as before, but there have been small upgrades to a number of key specifications, including the maximum continuous shooting speed and the correction range of the in-body image stabilisation. There are also some tweaks to continuous autofocusing – specifically with subject tracking – and a number of new features that brings Olympus’ entry-level

OM-D model up to speed with what’s happening across the industry – namely the addition of Bluetooth wireless connectivity to complement Wi-Fi, in-camera battery charging via USB (and an extended battery range), and a rear LCD that flips down 180 degrees for vlogging or taking selfies.

However, there are also still a few reminders that this is an entrylevel camera – contrast-detection AF only, no weather sealing, a shared compartment in the base for the memory card and battery, and virtually no video frills such as a stereo audio input (for the rest of the Mark IV’s video story, go to the Making Movies panel).

RESOLUTION AND SPEED

The new sensor puts the E-M10 IV on a par with the rest of its OM-D siblings in terms of resolution, but as this camera only has contrastdetection AF rather than a hybrid system, it’s presumably not quite the same imager. It has a native sensitivity range equivalent to ISO 200 to 25,600 with an extension down to ISO 100. To help make the most of the available resolution, there’s no optical low-pass filter.

The maximum image size is 5184x3888 pixels for both RAW files and JPEGs. The latter can also be captured at two smaller sizes, plus there’s the choice of

4:3, 3:2, 16:9, 1:1 and 3:4 aspect ratios. And the JPEG compression level can be set to Normal, Fine or Superfine. As is the case on all the OM-D cameras, you can preconfigure four JPEG image quality settings – via the Custom Menu – with any combination of image size and compression level that can be quickly selected when needed.

In-body image stabilisation via sensor shifting – an Olympus invention, in case you’d forgotten – operates over five axes and now is capable of up to 4.5 stops of correction for camera shake (up from 4.0 stops). Not surprisingly at this level, sensor shifting isn’t taken any further, so there’s no multi-shot high-res capture modes.

There’s also a very modest increase in continuous shooting speed when using the mechanical shutter, which is now at 8.7fps, up from the Mark III’s 8.6fps (although we managed to squeeze close to 9.1fps out of our test sample). This is with AF and AE locked to the first frame… if you want continuous adjustment, then 5fps is the limit. Using the electronic shutter, the top speed is a zippy 15fps – and with totally silent shooting – but the burst lengths are reduced to somewhere around 45 to 50 best-quality JPEGs, depending on the image content (or around 40 RAWs). With continuous AF/AE adjustment, the top speed here is 6.3fps.

COLOUR AND CONTRAST

The in-camera image processing options include all the usual

OM-D fare, starting with a choice of six Picture Mode presets with adjustable parameters for sharpness, contrast, saturation and gradation. The monochrome preset replaces the colour adjustments with contrast filters and toning effects, including sepia.

The choice of Art Filter special effects increases to 16 with the addition of Instant Film, and any of these can be combined with one of nine Art Effects. As all the Art Filter variations bring the total number of possibilities to 31 (and you can also adjust the level of each and every one), you can have a bit of fun here, although whether you’d use anything on a regular basis is debatable. You can use the Art Filters as standalone modes, in which case Olympus has now added an exposure adjustment with a range of plus or minus five stops. Alternatively, they can be applied to any exposure mode, and you’ll find them in the Picture Mode sub-menu, which is when you’ll probably realise that Olympus tends to do its own thing when it comes to the organisation of its camera menus.

Fortunately, there’s the option of a Super Control Panel display or the slightly less comprehensive Live Control display, both of which enable quicker access to a range of functions. In fact, in some instances, settings are exclusive to these displays, such as the Colour Creator and Highlight & Shadow controls. Both allow for further tweaking of an image’s look, but first you have to know where to find them – Colour Creator is in Live Control and Highlight & Shadow in the Super Control Panel. What do they do? Colour Creator enables adjustments of hue and saturation via the front and rear input wheels respectively. The Highlight & Shadow control allows the brightness of the highlights and/or the shadows to be adjusted around a central point. The front input wheel tweaks the highlights, while the rear control works on the shadows.

As was introduced on the

Mark III model, a bunch of more specialised functions can be found under the banner of Advanced Photo, which had its own ‘AP’ position on the main mode dial.

Here you’ll find Live Composite, Live Time, multi-shot HDR capture, a double exposure facility, silent shooting, a panorama mode, Keystone Compensation and auto bracketing for either exposure or focus. Again, these are mostly exclusive to ‘AP’, although a couple can be accessed elsewhere, along with provisions for greater manual control.

Live Composite, Live Time and Live Bulb are Olympus

OM-D specialities, combining long exposures with real-time monitoring of the image via live view. Live Time and Live Bulb do exactly the same thing, but with either ‘B’ or ‘T’ shutter operation, while Live Composite captures and combines multiple images incamera, with the exposures after the first one only recording any areas that change in brightness… so it’s ideal for subjects such as star trails because the foreground won’t become overexposed.

In ‘AP’, there’s a set of preset exposure times (one, two or four minutes), but if you access Live Composite via the manual exposure mode – and the ‘bulb’ shutter setting – you can select an exposure time of up to 30 minutes. Olympus has now added additional Boost settings that brighten the live view image even more when shooting at night, making it easier to focus.

FOCUSING AND EXPOSURE

As already noted, the E-M10 IV retains the same contrastdetection autofocusing system as the Mark III model, but there are some key improvements, particularly in terms of subject tracking. A new control algorithm – derived from the E-M1X – is designed to enhance subject detection and also the determination of both its direction and speed… with tracking erratic

sync modes. Flash compensation of up to +/-3.0 EV can be set in 1/3 stop increments, while the manual control mode has a range of 1/64 to full power. Wireless control of remote flashes is restored via RF compatibility, giving much greater range than the old optical system (which was deleted from the Mark III model).

White balance controls start with auto correction (switchable to a Keep Warm Colour setting), supported by a choice of six presets, provisions for storing up to four custom measurements and manual colour temperature control over a range of 2,000 to 14,000 Kelvin. As we’ve noted many times before, Olympus again goes its own way here – calling the custom measurements “one-touch white balance”, and the manual colour temperature settings “custom white balance”. Fine-tuning is available for all the presets, the four custom measurements and both auto modes (using slidertype adjusters that are easier to understand than the conventional colour square), but there’s no white balance bracketing.

IN THE HAND

Where the E-M10 models have always easily beaten the competition is in their design and styling. These are perhaps the prettiest interchangeable lens cameras on the market, with the influence coming from the equally pretty early OM series 35mm SLRs. They handle beautifully too, which is further enhanced with