The original OM SLRs built a reputation for being both hardy workhorses as well as being technically excellent, so it's no surprise that Olympus would eventually introduce a line of cameras based on the company's classic (and very elegantly-designed) OM series of cameras.

For example, the best of them all, the OM-4Ti, was not only hardy (titanium top and bottom plates) but also featured an advanced ­multi-spot metering system where the photographer could take multiple spot meter readings from various parts of a scene and specify if each reading is of a highlight or shadow area, something quite revolutionary for its time.

So now we have the E-M5, the first in a planned series of OM-D (or Digital OM) cameras that brings back the styling and quality of those old OM models.