Rating: 
Summary: Film is dead --- long live digital
Review: I've had a Minolta SLR for the past 10 years and been very happy with it, but after buying the my "other half" a Canon Digital Elph, I found the ability to immediately review photographs compelling. So, I looked for a digital SLR.Olympus has hit the price/performance sweet spot with this camera. Competitive digital SLRs cost 50% more than the E10 for the body alone -- i.e. before you've bought any lenses. However, I was concerned that the E-10 would be an adequate replacement for my film SLR. So, The E-10 passed with flying colors. What's good about this camera: terrific image quality, great lens (f2.0-f2.6!), all the control you could want (white balance, focus, zoom, exposure, flash), support for compact flash and smart media, and ability to take up to 4 shots in rapid succession, easy upload of images to a PC, Adobe Photoshop LE included and good battery life on Olympus NiMH AA batteries. I took scores of pictures every day and was generally pleased with the results. The camera functions well in program mode, but immediate image review on the camera enables you to use more control if you don't get the shot you need. And with digital, you can just keep on taking shots until you get it right without worrying about film. The ability to take 4 shots in rapid succession is useful when trying to capture spontaneous events -- like the procession of flag throwers (a Tuscan tradition that goes back over 700 years) out for a practice early one Sunday in Siena. Other digital cameras have big problems with both "shutter lag" (time from pressing the button to capturing the image) and the interval between shots -- especially with a 4 megapixel CCD where images take longer to write to flash. I made extensive use of a polarizing filter to cut glare under the Tuscan sun, and the images came out with strong colors as a result. The E10 seems a little "flatter" in its color balance than Canon cameras, but color saturation can be easily tweaked in Photoshop if this is a problem for any given image. I never managed to run the Olympus AA NiMH batteries (purchased separately) flat during a day's shooting, so camera power consumption seems to be excellent -- short battery life is a killer for many digital cameras. The lens is very impressive. It has a great zoom range, and as the camera was designed for digital from the ground up there are none of the multiplying effects of film cameras converted for digital use (e.g. Canon D30). This means that the E10 has great short-range capability as well as telephoto without having to switch lenses. This is very important if you want to travel light, as I did. What's not-so-good: problems with IBM Microdrive, autofocus requires care to avoid misfocus errors, viewfinder image location leads to orientation errors, general operation could be a lot faster, and the optional Olypus case is poor. The E10 requires the photographer to carefully monitor whether it has successfully locked on the subject. Early on, I got several poorly focused shots because the AF didn't focus on the subject. It's easy to miss this in the viewfinder or on the LCD image preview -- you only find out when you get home... However, once you learn to watch for mistaken AF lock, it is possible to re-focus and avoid this. Still, after Minolta's exemplary AF system, this was an unpleasant surprise. I also used an IBM Microdrive with my E10, but discovered that it does not work properly. I would be able to take several photographs, and then the camera would suddenly complain of flash card errors. It's easy to miss candid shots when you're wondering why the camera isn't working, then realizing there's a flash error, switching to smart media... so the Microdrive went back. Get a 256MB flash card instead. The viewfinder image is large and oddly focused -- it's easy to tilt the camera about a degree and not notice -- until you get to image review. This can be fixed in Photoshop, but it's annoying to have to fix it. Finally, the Olympus feels slower than many point-n-shoot cameras, and this is likely down to the embedded processor used in the camera. It takes several seconds before an image can be previewed, and it is slow to move around in image preview mode. Also, it seems to take a long time to compress an image and store it to flash. The 4 image buffer dramatically reduces the impact of this, but not entirely -- especially when you want to take one photo and see how it came out straight away. Finally, don't buy Olympus' case for the E10. It is very cumbersome and you'll end up wishing you never brought it. I left it at home or in the car most days. You cant open up the case and leave it hanging off the camera -- it gets in your way. That means you have to totally remove the camera from the case and either put it down, stuff it in a bag or squash it under your arm while you try to take photographs. The net is that I can't see why I'd go back to a film SLR. Although the Olympus E10 has its quirks, and Microdrive incompatibility is a drawback, it is a very good digital camera at an excellent price point for the value you receive. Olympus really doesn't have any competition for the money.
Rating: 
Summary: Worth Every Penny
Review: Ok - Wow. In digital photography, all you need is good photo-editing software (the E-10 comes with Adobe Photoshop LE) and a good printer - no eye-irritating chemicals and hours alone in the dark, like with film photography! Oh ya, and a good camera! Using the E-10 is functioning on a whole different plane than anything I've used before (digitally, Kodak and Sony in the $800 - $900 range). The control is total. The product is eye-popping. What pictures! I'm producing 13x19 inch prints of amazing clarity. And although there is still quite a bit of effort involved - the comfort level and the amount of ultimate control over the product is astounding. And it all starts with the E-10. To the hand, the fit and feel are unmistakably that of a 35mm SLR. Of course, there is no f-ring, and no gnarled knob dedicated to shutter speed control - too bad, I thought at first. But with some adjustment to thinking, there is an easy (actually, easier!), total control of these functions - and so much more. The zoom and focus rings are the smoothest I've ever used (and I have a couple of lenses for my 35mm that cost more than this camera). I also have the 0.8x and the 1.45x lens attachments, for wide and telephoto (or 28mm and 200mm, respectively, in a 35mm format camera). Lens extenders exaggerate chromatic aberrations, flares and distortions - and they certainly reduce the speed of the lens fairly dramatically, among other things. Regarding the Camedia extenders, though there is a reduction in speed, it's absolutely negligible. And for image quality, I performed some tests photographing newspaper (a great test pattern, believe it, or not) and found nothing to complain about - quite the opposite. This is really good stuff. Not perfect, but very, very good. The quality of the lens on the camera, on the other hand, may as well be perfect. Similar, but more precise tests performed against this lens just made me smile. There are some flares and barreling under certain circumstances, but nothing - absolutely nothing to complain about. The contrast and brightness-uniformity (condensing) of the image are as good as you can get without spending a lot, like on some of Canon's Flourite lenses. Overall, the experience is just great. The designers thought of everything. This E-10 is easier to use, and fits the hand better than any professional grade camera I've ever used. Just a couple more notes: The optical viewfinder is bright. The shutter release is perfect for handheld, low shutter speed shots in that it requires only a very light touch (but there is good travel to prevent premature release). The CCD is noise-free at any contrast (some owners claim noise at higher contrast settings, but I haven't experienced this. Perhaps, Olympus had dealt with this by the time I purchased mine). The LCD monitor really comes in handy with its multi-position feature - in making waist level and over-head shots. Olympus suggests that this camera will eliminate the need to ever return to film format cameras. I definitely agree. Digital photography really is a revolution. And this particular camera really is the beginning of the revolution as far as cost/quality combination is concerned. This is a great camera.
Rating:
Summary: A solid performer
Review: I've been a serious hobbyist photographer for more than 25 years and this is my sixth digital camera. After looking for more than a few months I settled on the Olympus E-10 for its high quality photographs. There are other cameras with more mega-pixels and more powerful zoom lens but few if any of those will come close to the quality that this camera produces. There are manual controls for everything and that big lens just sucks in the light for great low light pictures. The beam splitter view finder is sweet and the manual zoom allows for working the 4x zoom quickly. I bought the matching F-40 flash unit which integrates with the camera to expose flash pictures very well. The flash also follows the zoom lens shifting from wide-angle to telephoto as the lens is worked. This is a big solid camera that is not for causal snap shots - though when set to the "program" mode it can do that. Where this camera will excel is in the hands of someone who can put that big piece of glass, well matched sensor, and manual abilities to work.
Rating:
Summary: My Experiences with the Olympus Camedia E-10
Review: I'm sorry faithful fans of the Camedia E-10, but I must ruin the 5-star reputation of this particular digital camera. I hate to be such a party pooper, so I'll start with the good stuff, and thus, tell you all the good things that earned the 4 stars from me. First, on a superficial level, the physical design of the camera is magnificent. This camera is faithful to most SLR designs, and in my opinion, is currently the most stylish look out of all the cameras out there--including the Nikon D1. I particularly like the aluminum exterior. When it's a cold morning and your mind is completely rested, pulling that camera out of its leather case is where I receive a lot of my motivation in the morning--I don't drink coffee. To feel that cold, heavy weight in my hands makes me feel that I have a high quality, well-made camera. Second, the features are excellent, in that most of the major functions can be adjusted manually, opposed to looking through the LCD screen to set a specific function, as in most other digital cameras, like the Nikon Coolpix series, for example. My favorite feature is the manual zoom. Regular digital cameras like the Sony Cybershot F505V with automatic zoom are too sensitive. Hence, with a manual zoom, not only does it have that SLR feel, it gives the photographer much more control. Third, the E-10 has 4.1 megapixels, but honestly, there are only 3.7 that are actually used. But still, at least the images aren't interpolated. And I still love the detail in each image. Fourth, of course, the SLR feature is always a plus as far as accuracy goes in taking pictures. Always using the LCD screen to take pictures on my other non-SLR digital cameras always dissatisfies me for many obvious reasons. Fifth, the 4X zoom is pretty hot, in use with the awesome 3X telephoto lens that you can get on this sit... Using the telephoto lens, this will give you 12X, and that's great compared to the other less-expensive cameras. Slightly going off tangent, I must also say that Olympus has a good selection of accessories, although they're really hard to find all in one place and are usually on back order. The macro lens particularly impresses me. Sixth, the price is excellent. I would buy it, simply because this camera breaches into the professional category, opposed to the simpler point-and-shoot digital cameras. However, the Nikon Coolpix 990 is a good compromise, going beyond the simple point-and-shoot limitation. And lastly, I can't forget the lens. This is my favorite feature. This camera takes superb night pictures--the best I've ever seen. And in my opinion, from the reviews I've read on certain other digital cameras I haven't personally tried yet, I think that the night pictures on this camera are the best on the market. I took a picture in an extremely low-light situation. We're talking about midnight on a barely litted residential neighborhood. The camera produced pictures that looked as though it were dawn. Now for the bad stuff about this camera: First, there is some noise on the pictures--enough to get most people slightly annoyed. The worst pictures were ones taken inside my house under adequate incandescent lighting, without a flash. The pictures looked as though there were electronic bacteria on the painting on the wall. In other cases, such as outdoor pictures with good lighting, the noise lessens, but is still apparent, even at low ISO. But still, for adequate lighting, I think the camera should still perform well. But still, one must ask, what happens if someone wants to take pictures inside a dim museum? Indeed, this is the most flawed feature, in my opinion. Second, the color of the images has a good and bad side. The colors are too neutral, which makes the picture look bland. However, this is a good feature for the photographer that wants consistent-looking, real pictures. But in my opinion, the pictures look too real, almost mundane. There will be no good and bad surprises, when viewing these pictures, in my opinion. Third, the built-in lens also has its ups and downs. The good part is that you don't have to worry about dust and other blemishes getting on your lens. And trust me, that happens easily. The bad part is that, if you have a load of lenses that are dying to cross the film-bound SLR to the digital SLR camera, you're going to be disappointed and curse 'til your front tooth flies loose. This is absolutely a necessity to know for the more experienced photographer. And lastly, the fastest shutter speed is contemptible; it is 1/640th of a second. This can be somewhat fixed with a 62mm neutral-density filter, however. Without it, on a really bright day, the pictures come out overexposed--I don't know what Olympus was thinking here. And of course, taking motion pictures is another small problem worth noting. That's all folks! And remember, positive features are great to know, because we all want quality, but the negative features are what we NEED to know--they bring us back to reality and have us regret most of the junk we buy. Good luck in future purchases!
Rating: 
Summary: After using it for 2 years
Review: The camera has many nice points. These have been covered in other people's reviews. I will mention the few items that I think are less good:
- It is not very good at focusing, especially in less light environment. I had the Olumpus people look at it but they said there was nothing wrong with it.
- It is terribly heavy.
- It is slow to start up.
Dispite the recomendations from Olympus to not use the Microdrive, I have found a somewhat safe way to copy the pictures from the Smartmedia card to the Microdive. In this way, I can take several hundreds of pictures without needing to upload to a computer.
My next camera will be a Minolta - also with a Microdrive function.
Rating:
Summary: Great DSLR Starter
Review: I started my DSLR career with this cam. Have a film Leica R series with $15,000 in lenses but wanted to expand horizons. This camera is great. I have had mine for 18 months, still learning new thngs about it, keep the owners manual close. I also purchased the MCON and Telephoto 1.45. Macros are really great with the MCON. Tele is okay but only gives you 200 equivalent which isn't always enough. Some of my photos have been good enough to sell in the local art gallery. Buy this camera if you really want great pictures and a great price. I paid $1200 for mine and now they are down to $700 and more than worth every penny.
Rating:
Summary: Just right for some people
Review: I am an amateur who has been taking nature and action photographs with Nikon SLRs for many years. The light is often crummy and my subjects move about. I used an Olympus C-3000 for two years and immediately fell in love with the flat response of the CCD compared to film. However, that squinchy little rangefinder, and that long pause before the image is actually recorded.. I really found I needed a large bright through-the-lens viewfinder. However, I was surprised to find that even 3 megapixels was just fine for really sharp 8x10 images unless you had to crop aggressively. For me, the E-10 was just what I needed. 4 megapixels is fine for just about anything I would want to do. If you really think you need 5, spend $500 more on the E-20. Remember, however, that more pixels means more time to record, play back, or modify each image. The viewfinder is large and bright and the diopter correction is very positive. Eye relief is good enough to use glasses. Unlike an SLR, the viewfinder light comes from a beam splitter rather than a flip-up mirror. This raises the question of what the lens speed of F2 means, since the beam-splitter will steal some light. There is a built-in viewfinder cover so you won't get stray light coming in when you take remote shots. The lens is really nice and seemed to have very low flare. The built-in macro focusing feature gets you close enough for anything but documenting periodontal surgery. Understand, though, that this camera is big and heavy compared to most modern digital cameras. Nobody who grew up on SLRs will be surprised, but remember that you are going to have to lug this puppy around for several years. Despite its size and weight, it feels very comfortable, even for a lefty. The E-10 has most of the controls a good SLR would have and several more that are completely beyond a chemical camera. The combination of exposure correction, sharpness and contrast control, and image histogram display really help in those bad light situations. So, a pro might want more pixels and many amateurs will want something smaller and lighter. However, this camera very nicely fits a significant niche market.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent camera, sturdy body and lense
Review: This has been a great camera. The body is largely metal, so there are few plastic parts to break. The battery door is located on the bottom, so batteries can be swapped out even when the camera is mounted on a tripod. The lense is not interchangable, which can be a disadvantage for some, but it ensures that no dust can get into the shutter or behind the lense. I love the dial controls. There are enough dials and buttons on the camera so that the LCD display is not required for most camera settings. There are a few disadvantages to the camera. The shutter speed only goes up to 1/640, and the aperature only goes up to F11, however the aperature can be as shallow as F2.2. Also, as time has worn on, the light meter doesn't seem to perform as well in low light as when I first bought this camera. Don't get me wrong, though. It still does an excellent job. Better than most digital cameras. Overall, I have been quite satisfied with this camera.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent choice for the semi-pro
Review: I recieved my camera about 4 months ago, and except for a few minor complaints, I have been very happy. The camera takes excellent pictures, and the manual controls are very easy to use and allow very professional looking results. Prints from the camera to a P400 Olympus printer look excellent up to 8.5X11 inches (I am sure they would look better on a bigger print, but that is as big as my printer can do). My only complaint in the LCD screen. It refreshes slowly, and takes quite a long time to preview images. Also, when zooming in and out on the pictures really takes longer then necessary (from both CF and SM). Just as one final note, although the camera literature does not specify support for the new 512MB CF cards, I use one with no problems. I have not, however, used a Microdrive as of yet.
Rating:
Summary: Great Image Quality, But SLOW
Review: Simply put, this camera is a SOLID machine that offers excellent image quality as well as photographic control. Being an SLR, I never used the LCD screen to shoot, which makes it more like using a standard 35mm. Get the battery pack/grip. Without it, the consumption of batteries is tremendous. With it, I easily got 1000 shots before needing a recharge. My major gripe, and the reason I upgraded to a Canon EOS D60, is that it is SLOW. The buffer is inadequate and I always found myself waiting for it to empty to take another shot. Viewing the images on the LCD screen takes forever. And the top shutter speed of 1/650 second is not fast enough.
|
