William Royer Loc: Kansas

A question, if I may, for those who use this Olympus camera system. I am seriously considering changing systems from Nikon D810 (or, 850) to Olympus EM 1MkII. After many years of using/enjoying Nikon, am just tired of the increasing size, weight, intrusiveness and costs of its top camera/lens combinations. From what I’ve seen so far, I very much like EM system in those categories.
My lingering question is image quality when enlarged. I know that the math of a 4/3 sensor will never be the same as that of a D810/850 sensor. But, when I want to print at sizes from, say, 16x20 to 24x30 for gallery showing on either fine art paper or on canvas, can one readily achieve a clean, detailed, non-pixelated result from this camera and one of the Olympus “PRO” lenses? A common subject matter would be landscape.
Thank you for any feedback from your experience.

Morning Star Loc: West coast, North of the 49th N.

If I could justify the cost to myself, I would promptly switch to the OM-D E-M1 Mk II !! My brother has it, and spent 4 weeks with us this summer.
I am amazed at the quality of the photos, even compared to my camera, the "old" OM-D E-M1.
Yes, he occasionally has some photos printed in these large sizes and they are proudly displayed in the foyer of the apartment building where he lives. AND receive lots of compliments about both the subject matter and the quality of the images.
He's had requests to sell some of them, but refuses because, as he says, "that makes it work and I want to keep it as a hobby!"

Rhl0630

I made a 20x24 razor sharp with 12-100 lens

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

Good luck with that!

I wouldn't rush to sell your Nikon gear . . .

Side by side, there is no comparison. You have to magnify the M4/3 image 200% more - to get to the same print size. If you don't crop, and you use a low ISO, I suppose it will be ok, especially on larger print sizes, but the 8x10s will tell a different story.

Cdouthitt Loc: Traverse City, MI

I’ve printed on metal recently with the em1ii a 24 x 36 with no pixelization. I also regularly print 16x20 canvases with no issues either. Cgproprints does an excellent job with both. None of my shots were done in high res mode...just the standard res with either the 7-14, 12-40, or 75.

Rhl0630

Me again. I’ve compared my oly with my canon 5d mk3 with L lenses. I have 12-40 12-100 100-400 and a dozen others. Also 10 or so L lenses. I am shooting almost exclusive with the oly. Only use the canon in very low light. I’m very pleased with the oly. When (not often) high res mode comes into play it blows away the canon. I suspect 30x40 or larger would not be a problem

Jerrin1 Loc: Wolverhampton, England

I have owned an Olympus EM1 mark II for very nearly 12 months and have no issues with the IQ. I often have difficulty distinguishing between shots taken with my EM 1.2 and my Nikon D500 (I appreciate that you are using high end FF cameras). Though I do not print images, I am a member of the E-M1II group on Facebook. A number of my fellow members have changed from Nikon and Canon FF cameras and have documented their exprerience on the site. From what I gather, none have experienced any noticeable reduction in IQ when printing at the sizes you quote. May I suggest you take a look at the Facebook site and see for yourself. I only use two Olympus lenses, a 12 - 100mm f4 PRO and a 300mm f4 PRO + 1.4 TC. I believe them to be excellent lenses. Previously, I owned 2 x EM1 bodies together with Olympus 12 - 40mm f2.8 PRO and 40 - 150mm f2.8 PRO lenses. Again, I rated them both as being excellent. The only area my EM1.2 does not fully match my D500 is in capturing birds in flight: but one great advantage it has over the D500 is the ability to ser up three pre-sets on the top dial. As a wildlife photograper I find this invaluable, especially when changing between perched birds and birds in flight.

phlash46 Loc: Westchester County, New York

William,
I am a recovering Nikon user going back to the Nikon F and progressing through several cameras to the D700 (best damned camera I ever owned!). At nearly 72 the size, weight and price started to get to me as well and, when the EM-1 came out i switched; never been happier. The lens selection is excellent and continues to grow, and the EM-1 II is exceptional. I have printed up to 24X30 with no problems. If you can get past the DOF limitations (I have) and can deal with the not quite top end DSLR ability to follow fast, random action and not as good low light capabilities, you'll love it.

I suggest you rent an EM-1II and the 40-150 PRO lens and try it out. Let us know how it goes.

Bruce

Cdouthitt Loc: Traverse City, MI

To the OP: who do you typically use to print? How good are you at setting up your files in photoshop to prep for printing (having it sized properly and at the proper resolution requirements by your printer)?

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

I shoot wildlife with fast long heavy lenses. Sony offers "0" 2.8 long lenses. How many does Olympus offer? And, with the fast 2.8 lenses you would have in essence a lens, the body would be so light it might be unmanageable for me anyway.

minniev Loc: MIssissippi

I have a gallery show up now at a state museum, all shot with the Olympus EM1's, v i and v ii, with the consumer 75-300 and an ancient 50-200 lens with an adapter. The images range from 18x24 to 24x36. Some of them were significantly cropped before processing and enlarging. The paper I used for most of the collection was Hahnemuehle German Etching, an interesting art paper that turned out great. I was worried about image quality since I'd never done framed fine art prints this large from cropped images, but the detail was excellent. (I have printed on canvas this large and larger, but canvas is more forgiving.) I put in a lot of time in front of the computer enlarging test files to check for detail before I turned the files over the printer, but they turned out great.

Morning Star Loc: West coast, North of the 49th N.

How long?
I have the Oly 40-150mm PRO, f2.8(constant aperture), with a 1.4x TC.
Love the combination. It gives me an effective field of view of 112 - 420mm on the OM-D E-M1.

camerapapi Loc: Miami, Fl.

If you had been in Miami two nights ago you would have participated in a "show and shoot" by Olympus and Pitman Photo our elite camera store. All Olympus camera bodies were there to borrow and there was a model under studio lights to test cameras and lenses.
I had the EM-1 Mk II in my hands and since I am familiar with it I can tell you it is a hell of a good camera. My lesser body, the EM-10 Mk II is indeed all I need and sports the 17 Mp. sensor that has been steadily improved by Olympus and their new cameras operating system.
There are 24x30 images hanging at Pitman shot with Olympus cameras and lenses. I have not seen them but a gentleman attending the Olympus show told me that they look spectacular. I do not enlarge to those sizes and you will find me enlarging to 13x19 when I need to and the images made with my now gone Olympus EPL-1 and the kit lens look spectacular at that size to my eyes.
Renting the camera is a good way to test it although you could save your money to buy it. It is a great tool and I bet that after you use it you will not look back.
The assortment of excellent lenses compliments the camera very nicely.

markmmmm

I was a strict Nikon user since 1971. I switched to an Olympus E M5 II about a year ago. I had a great Nikon Camera with super expensive, great Nikon Lenses. I switched because it was a super pain in the butt to take pictures. 4 lb lens, 2 lb camera lugging 5 miles into the woods. I can take the olympus anywhere with a lumix 100-300mm lens and shoot eagles, 300 feet away with grand results. Was the Nikon stuff all around better. Yes. The bottom line is I'm taking my camera everywhere I go. The pics I am getting are fantastic. There are trade offs, I dont use AF continous, I dont crop much but anything 11x17 is never a problem. If you are serious on olympus, wait for the M1 III or M5 III. They will have somewhat bigger/better sensors. Good Luck!

RKL349 Loc: Connecticut

I am both a Nikon user and have recently invested in the Olympus brand. I originally purchased the Olympus to be able to travel with something more compact. I am very satisfied with image quality. While I do not own an EM 1 MkII, the top of the line Olympus, I understand that National Geographic photographers regularly use these bodies and lenses with great results. You cannot go wrong with Olympus if you decide to invest in that brand.