(This review was originally written in January 2023.)
Introduction
I got the OM-5 as my birthday present and upgraded from EM5.3, and had some indoor shots of cats. Here is my mini review after using it for a day of shooting. I mostly focus on comparison with the EM5.3.
Excellent Build
I have no problems with the solid plastic build of EM5.3 after using it for 2 years, and I expect the same for OM-5. It is the same exterior as the EM5.3, and thus I am immediately familiar with it.
Most importantly, it is small and light as ever, and one of the most powerful small M43 ILC in the world (for now). You may consider it a "mini" EM1.3. I could easily put it in my Furla 1927 crossbody bag just as the EM5.3.
Accurate Indoor White Balance
Compared to the EM5.3, the OM-5 gets more consistently correct WB. For indoor lighting, we usually use approximately 2700K - 3000K light source. While EM5.3 would often get warmer photos despite the WB Keep Warm Color is set to Off, the OM-5 consistently gets WB right, and I found myself not needing to correct WB in post.
Nice background blur indoors
Fast Operation
While the EM5.3 is no slouch in terms of operations, the OM-5 just feels smoother overall. Of course, I do not have any "benchmarks" for performance of cameras, but in the day of using, I encountered no sluggishness in operating the camera.
By the way, auto focus is good for indoors despite inadequate lighting. The EM5.3 often struggles, but OM-5 mostly gets it right. It is unfortunate that the camera does not get subject detection like the OM-1, but overall the auto focus performance is very acceptable.
Acceptable Auto Focus
AI Noise Reduction
Kudos for DxO PhotoLab for supporting OM-5 quickly. For indoor shots with inadequate lighting, it is easy to get some noisy images. However with supported computer hardware, you can enable DeepPRIME / DeepPRIME XD in DxO PhotoLab.
Just in case you do not have DxO PhotoLab, with supported hardware you can also enable AI Noise Reduction in OM Workspace.
Noise Reduction at work
Soft Images
I sent the images to Topaz Photo AI, and Photo AI suggested me to Sharpen all of them. This suggests the RAW images produced are a little soft.
A Bit Expensive for Now
With the introductory price, the OM-5 is a little expensive, especially when you compare it to the EM1.3. In fact I can get EM1.3 for a bit less than OM-5. So I do not suggest you to get the OM-5 at full price except when you want a powerful compact ILC.
Conclusion
A really nice birthday present for myself indeed. I think I am going to stay the M43 world for quite a few years with this powerful little camera.