Olympus OM-D E-M1 II £1,499/$1,599

Good video, effective stabilisation

Olympus has not built quite the same reputation for 4K video as that other Micro Four Thirds camera maker Panasonic, but the OM-D E-M1 II still offers some powerful video tools for stills shooters. It can shoot both 4K UHD (3,840 x 2,160) and Cinema 4K video (4,096 x 2,160) at 30 or 24fps, and with a maximum bit rate of 237Mbps – pretty good for a consumer-focused crossover camera.

It also benefits from Olympus’s five-axis in-body stabilisation system. The M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-100mm 1:4.0 IS Pro is the perfect partner for this camera, with a constant f/4 maximum aperture and its own in-built stabilisation, for a combined stabilising effect of up to 6.5 stops.

Performance

The Olympus captures crisp, clear and natural-looking video with only slight rolling shutter effects if the camera is moved quickly. But it’s harder to get ‘cinematic’ depth of field with the smaller Micro Four thirds sensor size.