I used to care what my gear looked like.
The bigger the better - because the big cameras were the professional ones. I wouldn’t be caught dead without something “pro” like the old (giant/heavy) Canon 1D cameras.
Fast forward to today… and I STILL care what my camera looks like. Only this time, the less “pro” the better. Enter the Om-System OM-3, a camera Flava Flave would love.
It’s a camera with an old-school brick-like design, a bold “creative control dial” on the front, and some serious, professional-level speed under the hood with a 20-megapixel stacked micro four-thirds sensor (the same as you’ll find in their flagship OM-1 Markii cameras). There is a LOT of technology packed into this thing, including unbelievably effective in-body stabilization, all the computational modes that makes M43 so much fun, and a battery that lasts forever.
It’s also really expensive, at $2,000 for the body alone… it has an older, lower resolution EVF, on the lower end of megapixels (20), and isn’t fun to hold with larger lenses.
There’s a lot to love and a lot to complain about… and I’m going to make a bold claim at the end of this review!
FIRST, the elephant in the rooom… MICRO FOUR THIRDS????? Really?
Yes, really. This is seriously not a big deal in 2025.
M43 is a mature, sensationally powerful system that can produce world-class results in many photographic fields. Marketing has led us to believe only full-frame sensors are worth our time and can be labeled as “pro.” This is just not true, and I’ve made plenty of sales from M43 sensors, like this one installed at Children’s West in Omaha, Nebraska:
And this one of a Goldfinch photographed with an Om-1, printed at 65.” The detail on the print is stunning:
So if we can move on away from the conversation of whether micro four-thirds is powerful enough for a professional like me (it is), then let’s get to the camera and look at it in a few ways:
1. The Om-3 as a daily creative tool.
2. The OM-3 in use/general operation and autofocus.
3. Who is this for? Is it worth the $$?
1. THE OM-3 AS A DAILY CREATIVE TOOL.
I’ve been reading Rick Rubin’s “The Creative Act” quite a bit these last few years, and also delving deeper into how to push my creative boundaries with a camera.
I don’t have it figured out yet, but I do think the Om-3 might help me get there… because that front dial? It’s a lot of fun to use. Check out these four wildly different looks you can get in-camera, just by twisting that dial:
The looks are unique, and it takes a split second to get into a menu and change the settings on what each of the marks on the creative dial do.
1 - Mono
2 - Color
3 - Normal (Whatever normal camera settings you’ve set)
4 - Art
5 - CRT (Creative Color)
There are many options to change the look of jpegs in-camera, including a "cross-process" filter combined with a film edge - all done in-camera.
Computational Awesomeness
One of the main reasons I’m so excited about the possibilities the Om-3 can open up is all the computational options available. These are no-joke powerful and include:
In-body ND filter.
Hand-held and tripod high-resolution modes.
In-body graduated filter for skies.
In-body focus stacking.
Once you start using these modes, you’ll open up some fun options for creativity and flexibility.
2. The OM-3 in General Use (Autofocus, Design, etc.)
The Om-3 is a fascinating camera because I can’t believe it exists. This is an all-out assault by OM-System to put as much tech into this camera as possible… except in the EVF (electronic viewfinder). The EVF only has 2.36 million dots. In 2025, that's just low and presents us with a lower-resolution view of the world.
Why isn’t the EVF better, OM System?
In truth: it’s not horrible. I find it fine most of the time.
However… the Om-1’s EVF is much more pleasing to use. I get that they wanted some differentiation between the Om-3 and the “flagship,” but the EVF on the Om-3 is just a bit of a disappointment. The world doesn't look as sharp and vibrant as it could, and compared to the competition, it’s just not as nice.
While the build quality and look of the Om-3 speaks to a sophisticated, luxury design, the EVF doesn't follow through on that philosophy and it's disappointing.
Outside of that, that though?
The Om-3 is a real joy to use.
It’s as responsive as any camera I’ve ever operated, and it feels great in manual mode. The top two dials spin well with some great tactile feedback when changing shutter and aperture, and the “fn” button is one I assigned to ISO, so operating the exposure triangle is wildly fast.
It’s a shame some of the Panasonic lenses don’t operate using their aperture rings on OM-System cameras. It would have made the physical use of the camera just a touch more enjoyable.
Holding the camera.
Build-quality wise, this thing seems like the people's champ. It feels incredible to hold: every aspect of the camera looks and feels like it was precision crafted.
The classic design, though, means ergonomically... it’s not great sometimes.
With smaller lenses like this Leica 15mm f/1.7, the Om-3 feels fantastic. My hand uses the creative dial to rest a finger or two on, and it feels great.
The Om-3 suffers though with bigger lenses. It just doesn’t feel that great to use for long periods of time. Without more of a grip or place for my thumb, some hand fatigue did set in when using a lens like the 40-150 f/2.8.
The autofocus? It’s blazing fast and responsive. The Om-3 is much more responsive than my time with the Om-1 (mark 1), and I’m truly impressed. I have to do a lot more testing, but so far the autofocus is really solid.
My favorite way to use the camera is a dream come true. I leave the Om-3 on continuous autofocus with tracking enabled, and the camera hasn’t let me down yet. In the previous models tracking was a joke - but now it’s working as well as I could hope. In the following photo I just used continuous autofocus and tracking - the camera kept him in focus the entire time.
The SPEED is great for HHHR (Hand Held High Res). The following shot was done in-camera with the 50 megapixel mode. The camera moves the sensor a little bit and takes a series of photos - and combines them for a larger resolution image like you see here.
For certain scenes (ones without a lot of movement) like this one, it works really well. The speed and power of the Om-3 means it takes and processes the HHHR images quicker than ever before. That's a good thing, because the HHHR mode does a fantastic job in some scenes.
The next photo is a 100% crop of the previous high-res image. There's a ton of detail not present in the 20-megapixel version.
The Computational Photography Button
This is VERY useful. Just click and hold the button to quickly choose the computational mode, and rotate the dials to change modes and settings. It gets us into these powerful modes quickly.
3. The Om-3. Who is it for? Is it worth the money?
The Om-3 is a hard camera to recommend to most people.
At $2,000 for the body alone, it’s more expensive than a full-frame Nikon Zf. It’s more than the X100vi, X-T5, and just a few hundred dollars cheaper than OM-System’s own best-of-the-best OM-1 MarkII.
However, the OM-3 offers a wildly unique proposition: unparalleled performance in a small, retro, insanely well built, weather sealed body with so many features and powerful modes that this camera can probably be the only camera you ever need... IF you dig the retro body and a slightly disappointing EVF.
There’s just nothing like it, and it’s one of the most interesting cameras I’ve ever used. Some of the power in this thing is situational - and other cameras can beat it easily in single-image comparisons.
However, in the right situations, this camera can do so many things, and opens up possibilities other cameras just don't have.
I don’t think it’s for most people though. It's not the "easiest" camera to use - you have to work and know what your'e doing to get the best results. The OM-3 is for a pretty hardcore photographer who doesn’t want to sacrifice much for the smaller profile and attractive camera body... and who absolutely knows the camera inside and out to get the most out of it.
It’s also for someone like me who is going to really dig into the creative possibilities this camera can bring. The computational modes are awesome, and with a body this fast and rugged, I don’t have to sacrifice anything in a take-it-anywhere and do anything attitude I’m going to use this camera with.
So far, I love this thing.
This is only a short term initial reaction - but if the body holds up well, I can’t help but think this is one of the more exciting cameras I’ve used in a long time.
MUCH more to come.
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