Disclosed herein is an optical recording medium which includes a recording layer composed of (a) an organometallic complex having an absorption maximum in the wavelength range of 600-1200 nm, (b) a resinous binder and (c) a sensitizer capable of generating radicals upon exposure to ultraviolet rays. The recording of information on the recording layer is effected with ease by exposure to ultraviolet rays. The reproduction of recorded information is effected by a laser beam having an oscillatory wavelength in the visible or near infrared wavelength range.