The OM System OM-1 II is a rugged, weather-sealed camera with high-speed shooting and OM Systems’ latest-generation quad-pixel AF. It’s perfect for outdoor photography and has been a big hit for bird and wildlife photography.
But there’s more to the OM-1 II than that. OM Systems continues to develop its computational imaging technologies, and this camera now incorporates improved Live ND capabilities and new Live GND feature, so that landscape photographers no longer have to carry around time-consuming and fiddly filter systems. And if you don’t think 20MP is enough for landscapes, then there’s the 50MP handheld high res mode, or 80MP if you use a tripod.
This is not just the best OM System camera right now, it’s also one of the best cameras for sports photography where cost and weight are a factor. It’s one of the best professional cameras for the same reasons, and the accessible pricing makes it one of the best cameras for enthusiasts too!
The OM-1 II’s weather sealing and compact size make it ideal for travel and adventure too, and it’s backed up by a wide range of premium quality pro lenses.
So what are the best lenses for the OM System OM-1 II? We’ve kept its outdoor/adventure/wildlife capabilities firmly in mind as we choose the lenses we think really play to this camera’s strengths. We’ve stuck to OM’s Pro lenses here because this is a professional camera and this is no time to start scrimping and saving on optics.
The good news here, though, is that OM Pro lenses aren’t just lighter than full frame equivalents, they’re a heck of a lot cheaper too, so these lenses are within the reach of amateurs and enthusiasts, and not just professional photographers.
Best lenses for the OM System OM-1 II
Every photographer needs a go-to standard zoom, and this is the one for OM System users. The M.Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8 Pro II offers a 24-80mm equivalent focal range, so goes a little further than a full frame equivalent but is of course smaller and lighter – and cheaper. This new version has the same excellent optical formula as the original lens, but with improved IP53 weather sealing to make the most of the OM-1 II’s outdoor strengths. It’s an excellent lens which you can use at any focal length or aperture without worrying about its sweet spot – it’s all sweet! It also focuses pretty close, so it can also be effective for small-scale nature shots.
See our full OM System M.Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8 Pro II review with lab results
Travel and landscape photographers might prefer a little extra reach in their standard zoom to avoid having to swap lenses (it’s always at exactly the wrong time, isn’t it?). The M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-100mm f/4 IS PRO certainly delivers on that, with a huge 24-200mm focal range but also with a constant f/4 maximum aperture. Long range zooms usually lose some definition at long range, but not this one – it delivers excellent results throughout. What’s more, it incorporates its own IS, so that in combination with the OM-1 II’s in-camera IBIS, it provides up to 8.5 stops of stabilization – we’ve seen some ridiculously good handheld long exposures from this combination.
The OM System M.Zuiko 8‑25mm F4.0 PRO is one example of just a handful of hybrid wide-standard zooms now appearing on the market, and while it might seem like an odd focal range (16-50mm equivalent), it’s incredibly useful for travel photography, where you’re often having to swap from a wide to a standard zoom just from stepping out of a building and into the street. It does seem like quite a big lens for a modest amount of glass, and it’s bigger still when its retracting mechanism is extended for shooting, but the results are excellent and this focal range is just so darned useful!
See our full OM System M.Zuiko 8‑25mm F4.0 PRO review
The M.Zuiko 8-25mm f/4 is a great lens, but if you like your focal ranges traditional, then the M.Zuiko 7-14mm 1:2.8 PRO is the best choice for your OM-1 II. It’s one of the three ‘trinity’ f/2.8 zooms for the OM system, and while it’s not especially cheap, the optical quality alone makes it worth it, together with that constant f/2.8 maximum aperture. The highly convex front element and fixed lens hood mean that you can’t fit regular filters to the front – the 8-25mm f/4 would be better for that – but you could argue that with the OM-1 II’s Live ND and Live GND modes, you may not need filters any more.
See our full OM System M.Zuiko 7-14mm 1:2.8 PRO review
On a full frame camera system you would choose a 70-200mm f/2.8 constant aperture zoom as a short-mid-range telephoto, but the OM System equivalent goes a lot further, right up to 300mm equivalent at f/2.8. Better still, it’s compatible with OM Systems’ 1.4x and 2x teleconverters, so it could also be used as an effective 600mm f/5.6. It is a pretty substantial lens, so you might be glad of the detachable tripod foot, and the corner sharpness drops a little at 40mm – but then with a lens like this your subjects will be in the center anyway. This is a great short-telephoto zoom at a great price.
See our full OM System M.Zuiko 40-150mm f/2.8 Pro review
OM System users have a couple of choices when it comes to super-telephoto zooms – there’s also a cheaper 100-400mm lens – but the M.Zuiko 150-600mm f/5.0-6.3 IS is the one with serious reach. In full frame terms it’s equivalent to a 300-1200mm lens, and you don’t get many of those. You can extend the range even further with OM System teleconverters but we probably wouldn’t do that because it looks as if the optics are stretched to the limit already, as our lab tests produced somewhat disappointing resolution results. Having said that, super-telephotos aren’t designed for close-range test charts, and out in the field the M.Zuiko 150-600mm f/5.0-6.3 IS produces impressively crisp and detailed images.
See our full OM System M.Zuiko 150-600mm f/5.0-6.3 IS review
It’s well understood in sports and wildlife photography that you’re going to get the best image quality (and the widest maximum aperture) from a prime lens – and that’s exactly what you get with the M.Zuiko Digital ED 300mm f/4 IS PRO.
It’s not a cheap lens, but remember this is equivalent to a 600mm f/4 in full frame terms, and these are very literally many times the price. You are restricted to a fixed focal length with this lens, but it is compatible with the OM System 1.4x teleconverter, which will take it right up to an equivalent 840mm f/5.6. Not bad, right?
OM macro photographers are spoilt for choice. There’s the classic 60mm f/2.8 lens, which looks odd but performs brilliantly, and a newer, cheaper 30mm macro that’s also really good. The star of the show, though, is the M.Zuiko 90mm f/3.5 Macro, especially for timid subjects like insects where its 180mm effective focal length lets you shoot from further away. Just be aware that you might find this focal length a bit ‘long’ for some subjects, especially in confined spaces, and the size, weight – and the precise focusing needed – mean this is probably going to work better on a tripod than handheld. If you take the trouble, though, this lens can deliver spectacularly sharp macro shots.
See our full OM System M.Zuiko 90mm f/3.5 Macro IS Pro review
See also the best Micro Four Thirds lenses
