OM5 custom settings explained
Custom settings are a very powerful feature of the OM1 and OM5 cameras. However, there are significant differences between the two cameras in their use. It has taken me a while to understand the differences, and how to use the OM5 custom settings to their best advantage.
If you would rather head straight to a concise summary, the TL;DR is at the foot of the page — or jump directly to the FAQ.<\/em>
OM1 custom settings compared to OM5
The OM5 is basically a smaller version of the EM1 mk iii, with some additional enhancements. But it doesn’t work exactly like the EM1 iii, largely because it uses much of the EM5 mk iii control firmware. So in the way it works it’s a bit of a hybrid mashup. Nothing wrong with that, but it needs understanding first, not least if it’s being used as a companion camera to the OM1. This is particularly true for the OM5 custom settings.
On the OM1, there are four “hard” settings C1-C4 available from the mode dial. However, there is only one hard custom setting available on the OM5, which is identified by the C setting on the mode dial. Another three “soft” custom settings, C2-C4 can also be stored in memory. There are two different methods of recalling these settings on the OM5, which behave in quite different ways.
This was very confusing to me initially. I think I have it figured out now, so here is what I have learned.
OM5 custom settings
- On the OM5, custom setting C1 is assigned to C on the PASM dial, and works like the OM1 and EMxx.
- Custom settings C2, C3, C4 don’t have a dial assignment but can be assigned to custom buttons, or recalled from the custom settings menu.
- These custom buttons can include the top two buttons on the left-hand side of the camera, which is a considerable plus for the OM5.
- You can therefore recall either the C2, C3 and C4 settings by pressing their assigned button. However, as soon as the Menu button is pressed, the setting disappears, and the camera reverts to the basic setting. This is not the case for the C custom setting, where you retain the settings when pressing the menu.
- Because you lose the Custom setting as soon as you press “menu”, it is impossible to save changes to the C2, C3 and C4 custom settings if activated from a button.
- You can only save changes if the custom settings are recalled from the “custom settings” menu item.
- If you do this, you overwrite the basic or latest settings.
- For landscape and LE seascape work, I have found convenient to use the M manual/basic setting rather than the custom C setting. This is because the aperture setting is preserved when you switch from M to B, but changes when you switch from C to B.
- However, if one of the other custom settings C2, C3, C4 has been recalled so that it can be altered, the basic settings have been lost.
- As a result, I have assigned basic/landscape settings to C so that it can be recalled back into the basic settings.
- My startup process is therefore always to recall the C setting into memory before continuing.
Final thoughts
Although I love the camera, I was baffled by how the OM5 custom settings worked, or didn’t work. Now I have it figured out, I am quite happy, and can run a parallel set of C1-C4 settings on the little one, to match the same setup on the big one.
Being able to regularly update and save the settings on both cameras is quite important, as I change C1-C4 all the time. The process of using OI share to update settings is almost as baffling as the OM5 settings themselves. if you want help on that topic, have a look at this post.
TL;DR
- The OM-5 has one “hard” custom setting (C, on the mode dial) and three “soft” settings (C2–C4) that can be assigned to buttons or recalled from the menu — but they behave very differently from one another.
- Soft settings recalled from a button are lost as soon as the Menu button is pressed; changes to them can only be saved if recalled via the custom settings menu item.
- DMcA’s workaround: assign landscape/base settings to C so they can always be recalled, and use C2–C4 for specialist genres (BIF, macro, street) with the understanding that pressing menu reverts the camera.
- Always start a session by recalling C into memory before doing anything else — this restores a known baseline after any C2–C4 use that may have overwritten the base settings.
- Updating settings via OI Share is a separate pain point — see the linked post for a solution if you’re on a Pixel phone.
Frequently asked questions
Why does the OM-5 only have one custom setting on the mode dial?
The OM-5 uses firmware derived from the EM5 Mark III rather than the OM-1 line, so it inherits the single-C-dial architecture of that camera. The OM-1 has four hard dial positions (C1–C4); the OM-5 has only one. The remaining three soft settings exist, but require a button press or menu navigation to recall — and lose their state the moment you open the menu.
What is the practical difference between the hard C setting and the soft C2–C4 settings?
The hard C setting behaves like a proper custom mode: it persists even when you press Menu, and changes can be saved back to it normally. The soft settings (C2–C4), when recalled via a button, are active only until you press Menu — at which point the camera reverts. This makes them suitable for temporary genre switches but not for sustained sessions where you’ll need to navigate the menus.
How do I save changes to a soft custom setting on the OM-5?
You must recall the setting via the custom settings menu item rather than via a button. With the setting active from the menu, any changes you make can be saved back. If you recall from a button, the setting is ephemeral and cannot be saved that way.
Why use M (manual) rather than C for landscape work on the OM-5?
When switching from C to Bulb mode, the aperture setting changes — inconvenient for long exposures where aperture has been carefully set. Switching from M to B preserves the aperture. For landscape and seascape work involving Bulb exposures, M is therefore more practical than C on the OM-5, even though C is used for the baseline custom setting.
Can I run the same C1–C4 genre settings across both OM-1 and OM-5?
Yes — once the OM-5’s quirks are understood, it is possible to maintain a parallel set of four genre-based custom settings on both cameras. The key is always starting an OM-5 session by recalling C into memory to restore a clean baseline, and remembering that C2–C4 recalled via button will evaporate the moment you open the menu.
