Olympus Reintroduces RC Mode (Wireless TTL-Flash) into OM-D E-M10 Mark III

6 Comments
Due to the buzz surrounding Malaysia's 14th General Election several days ago, I have missed out on an important piece of camera related news: Olympus has released a new batch of firmware updates for their cameras and lenses. One particular update that stood out from the rest was the addition of RC Mode (enabling wireless TTL Flash control) into Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark III. I was one of the first to voice up my dissatisfaction toward the removal of such an important feature on an Olympus OM-D camera body when I reviewed the E-M10 Mark III on Ming Thein's site here. I am glad they have heard my feedback (as well as many other loyal Olympus fans) and enabled RC mode via the latest firmware update.








To me, the RC Mode is an extremely important feature, allowing me to execute my insect macro shooting technique that requires the external flash to be triggered wirelessly. Having TTL flash control off camera is a life-saver, as I have one setting less (flash power) to worry about. I was not happy that it was taken away from the E-M10 Mark III initially. I had to painstakingly use manual flash slave mode control (not the end of world of course, but it was a lot more work than necessary) to get the results that I needed. That one particular reason was enough to hold me back from highly recommending the E-M10 Mark III over E-M10 Mark II as the next camera for people asking me about which OM-D to get next. Now that Olympus has decided to include the RC Flash mode in the E-M10 Mark III, I myself am so tempted to get one for myself!

If you are using the E-M10 Mark III, kindly update your firmware to version 1.1. More information about the latest firmware update at Olympus' official site here. 

Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark III is available from B&H here.
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6 comments:

  1. I don't know much about the photography business and corporate side of things, but I figured that adding back the RC mode wouldn't be a technical problem. In the older days of computers and phones, ROM space was limited, so they would have to remove something to add in a feature that took more space than was empty on the ROM. These days, that shouldn't be a problem. I'm glad they've put it back in and I look forward to using it one day. I wish they would have also put the bracketing feature in normal modes, but maybe the next update. I've had the Mark 3 since last October and I just really love it. After pairing with the 25mm 1.8 lens, it's super fast in almost any situation. Now if only Olympus would make a 500mm that didn't cost as much as a used car, lol.

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    1. Glad to know that you have got an E-M10 Mark III, hope the experience has been good so far! To me the wireless TTl flash is very important, and I am just glad they have included it. A 500mm? I don't see why they can't make it. The only reason holding them back is the size of potential customers buying it. 500mm is not an everyday lens, hence it is not in their priority list.

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  2. Thanks bro! This was one of the reasons, I didn't upgraded from the original EM-10 to EM-10 Mark III.

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  3. I sold my MK2 and bought the MK3 because of the excellent 4K video (better highlight roll-off in video than the GH5 without V-Log) but I did miss the RC for flash photography. I've updated the firmware and I really appreciate having more advanced and versatile flash options.

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  4. I'm using a TG-5 and it also has a RC mode. I have a underwater flash made by Ikelite DS 161. This is a very powerful; flash. Ikelite also sells a adapter so you can use the flash off camera using a fiber optic cable. I use it both underwater and on land using a 10 foot cable on a light stand and a umbrella diffuser. What's the difference between one you are talking about ?

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  5. I know this is an old review but it would be helpful to list which Olympus flashes support this RF feature.

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