As I noted in my message the satellite icon has shown on at least two versions of my Olympus EM cameras as well a the OM-1. Of course, I have to link the camera to my iPhone via the OI Share App before it shows up. If I mistakenly close my Olympus OI Share App the icon disappears. Earl

As other posters, noted that symbol is the satelite symbol indicating GPS recording. In my Olympus EM series and OMD cameras that symbol only comes on when I have linked the Olympus Share app with the camera so I can use my cell phone for tracking. After a day's shoot I will then download the GPS coordinates to each photo via the app--on my EM cameras. In my OM-1 once you link the camera then as long as the camera and the cell phone are near each other the app adds a GPS coordinate to the image. Hope this helps. Earl

My wife and I just returned from a trip to Uganda several months ago where we went on two gorilla treks. Visited a family both times. In Uganda you are limited to one hour with the gorillas although you may spend three hours+ finding them. Earlier in the trip we went on two chimp treks and on these two occasions I tried out several combinations of lenses. When we got to the gorilla area I understood several things: dense vegetation, difficult hiking conditions, high chance of rain, low light conditions and you will be so close to the gorillas that you will be astounded. Since I use Miro 4/3rds (OMD OM-1) you will need to correct these lens descriptions for your own camera set-up. What worked best for me was my f4 12-100 lens although I also brought my f2.8 40-150 lens--both of these lenses are "water resistant". I seldom used the larger lens owing to the proximity of the gorillas. I also brought several dry lens wipes in a baggie to remove the moisture from the lenses. I left my larger birding lens back at the lodge as the climb up to the gorillas is quite arduous and, although I could hear birds, I could not see them. I hope that this helps. Earl

I moved from Nikon DX cameras almost 10 years ago to the Olympus line and went through the entire EM series. When the OMD (Olympus successor) OM1 came out I got it and have been very pleased. The camera body is smaller and lighter but packed with features. Some users find it a bit too small in their hands. If you have the opportunity, go to a local camera store and hold one. I'm a large man (78 yo) with medium size hands and the camera fits into my hand well. I have no problem with the buttons, a complaint I have frequently heard.

As another responder notes, lenses are often the bulk of the weight of a camera setup. I routinely use the OM1 with the Zuuiko 12-100 zoom (a fantastic lens) and it is a relatively compact unit. I also use the Zuiko 100-400 for my wildlife photography. This superzoom is much smaller than an equivalent full frame or DX lens. Also, the equivalent reach of the Zuiko Micro4/3 lenses is 2X a full frame. I restrict my ISO to a max of 6400 that is easily coped with in post-processing. If you have a chance, try out the camera and the lenses that you want at a local camera shop. Earl

***************
AikenMooney,

Your camera experience is almost exactly like ours. I used Nikons for years (as I used in Croatia 10 years ago in my previous post); however, I have since moved to the Olympus/OMDS system and now take my OMD OM1 plus the 12-100 f 4.0 and 7-14 f 2.8. My wife carries my older EM1MkII with the 14-150. It works out fine for us on trips in cities and countrysides. For our upcoming safari trip to Africa in two weeks, I will drop the WA and add my 100-400 5.0-6.3 for daylight animal shots and my 40-150 f 2.8 for low light conditions. The stabilazition afforded by the Oly lenses and OM 1 camera makes taking low light images at lower ISO much easier. Now, if I can get that night animals to stop moving that would be great! Earl
*********************

*********
When I visited Plitvice NP over a decade ago I visited a truly spectacular site. When I was there it was fairly crowded and the trail/boardwalk through the falls area was somewhat crowded. However, I lingered as good people gave me a chance to set up and take a shot. A wide angle might come in handy for an overview of the falls area but what I liked the best was the chance to take close-ups of the colors of the smaller falls. I brought my small pocket tripod and used it, in the days before camera or lens stabilization, to take some long exposure shots of the small falls going over brightly colored limestone or algae. With a modern stabilized camera/lens you might be able to get these shots free hand.

In Dubrovnik I used my wide angle quite often. However, a moderate telephoto, up to about 150 would be useful to bring close some of the building detail. As with Plitvice, Dubrovnik was very crowded with swarms of tourists. Try to get out in the city in the early morning for some great light.

Have fund.


Earl

I’ve had Oly (OMD) gear for 10 years replacing FF Nikon gear. The early EM1s were somewhat primitive but the EMIII and OM1 are fantastic especially with the Pro lenses. The menu on the OM1 is still chock full if features but it is easy to navigate and my favorite options are programmed in for immediate use by button or dial.

The IBIS plus lens stabilization allows me 1-3 second hand-held shots. This is very useful in the interior of buildings during our travel. And to keep ISO as low as possible.

You ought to check out the OM1.

Earl

I second the suggestion to use a Black Rapid shoulder strap. My wife and I have used them for at least 5 years to carry our cameras and long lenses. When we bought them they came in female and male versions. I also second the suggestion to keep your hand on the camera/lens setup while walking to make sure the unit does not swing into a tree, rock, etc. At my age, 77, I often use a walking stick in my right hand and hold my left hand on my camera.

There are probably other models like the Black Rapid available from other venders, so do a search on the web. Earl

Chris, I have had the EM-1, EM-1 Mk II, EM-1 Mk III and now the OM-1. I have a full array of Pro Zuiko lenses. I thought the series greatly improved through the years. However, the OM-1 is a marked improvement as other responders have remarked. The animal (or plane or car) detection is phenomenal. Image stabilization, as on previous Olympus cameras with image stabilized lenses, allows me to take images at very slow shutter speed and keep the ISO down. Image quality still suffers at higher ISO that comes into play when I am doing BIF in low light. I make use of the easily engaged High Res ability often. I've just finished two long trips with my OM-1 and have not found battery problems at all. I took many BIF images and still had juice at the end of the day. So, if you have the extra cash go for the OM-1 over an older EM-1 Mk III. Earl

I use bracketing very often, especially in challenging light situations--shadows and bright light. Just returned from Iceland where one correspondent mentioned the challenging light conditions. So, I took many bracketed shots. Considering the wide open spaces I also too a number of pano shots to eventually merge into a panoramic. I never use the in-camera HDR function in my OM-1 but rather the other option to take brackets set at set exposure stops. The in-camera HDR process is definitely inferior to merging in Aurora. Currently, I use, mostly, 3 shots set at 2 stops each. During post processing this past two weeks I have noticed that if I process my brackets in Aurora I get better images than when I process them in Lightroom Classic. Furthermore, when I do a panoramic shot of 3-5 shots using exposure bracketing for each position, I get far better images first processing in Aurora then merging in Lightroom Classic compared to combining processing the brackets and merging using the HDR Panoramic setting in Lightroom. This is not a minor improvement, but quire dramatic. I have no clue why my processing works better if I use Aurora to do the HDR process followed by pano merging using Lightroom.

We just returned from Iceland last week. I carried in our car an Olympus OM1 with the 12-100 f4 plus a 100-400 telephoto for birds. I did not bring my wide angle for weight considerations. When I wanted a wide angle I too 3-5 shots to compose a pano shot later. Remember, the Zuiko lenses need to be doubled for full frame equivalency. So, the 12-100 is equivalent to a 24-200 mm for a full frame camera. Also, I was very happy to have the water resistance characteristics of the OM1. It was very wet and windy. Take protection for your camera.

I too purchased LuminarAI several months ago. When the download became available for my Mac I tried to download it. However, I was stymied at a step involving using my account password to log into the account again to activate the program. I contacted Skylum help with the problem on Sunday morning early. Got a form response immediately telling me that they will get back to me Monday. They did Monday morning with instructions. It worked. I was able to download, activate and now use LuminarAI.

Hi, perhaps others will provide this reply. I had the same thing happen on one of my Zuiko Pro lenses. I tried the cooling trick that worked for you; however, in my hands without success. I then called a camera shop that also repairs cameras in the Portland, OR, metro area. In addition to the filter frame in too tight to unscrew, it was also deformed. For only about $5 the technician took the lens with the stuck UV filter ring into his shop area and cut it out without any trouble. It was inexpensive and quick with no damage to the lens. In case the cooling trick doesn't work quality camera shops can often do the job.

I was not clear. I never tried to reinstall a previous firmware. The first edition of the Updater did not save current settings for your camera so you were forced to go through the the time-consuming procedure of personalizing your settings after the firmware update. There were lots of complaints about this oversight. Eventually Olympus corrected this and updating became easy. However, I have never had the occasion, or desire, to try a new firmware then go back to a previous firmware edition.

I have had Olympus EM1, EM1 Mk II and just recently purchased the Mk III. Since the beginning I have periodically updated my camera, and just as importantly, the lenses. Except for the unfortunate failure to have a current settings save routine in the EM1, updating has been easy. Instead of using the Olympus Updater for the EM1 and EM 1 Mk II, you now need to download the Olympus Workspace--it has the updater integrated within this program. It worked just fine. Every time I have updated my firmware I have discovered improvements in the camera.