Olympus EVOLT E-510 - Looking back thus far....

Over the last couple of months, thanks to the great folks at Olympus, I have had the opportunity to use the Olympus EVOLT E-510 Digital SLR Camera.

Having researched various digital SLR cameras prior to finding out that Olympus would be loaning the camera to me to test it out for our new Beginning Digital Photography segment, I had become close to deciding whether I would take the plunge in getting the E-510, so the opportunity to use it for an extensive period of time before making that final decision was one that I couldn't pass up. Thanks again, Olympus!

Having always used a "point and shoot" camera, I was a bit intimidated (okay, a lot intimidated) to switch to a digital SLR, after all I have never "manually" taken a photograph. (By the way, I still haven't.) ;-) But I knew the quality of "auto" pictures would be better with the E-510 than I've taken before, and it would give me an opportunity to slowly get my feet wet in the SLR genre of digital photography. I will admit, my frustration level has not waned a whole lot, not because of the camera itself, but rather my seemingly lack of focus (no pun intended) or maybe ability to soak up what little I have learned thus far about taking pictures with an SLR, i.e., aperture, shutter speed, low light conditions, etc., or even just remembering what I’ve read in the manual.

You really can't teach an old dog new tricks, can you?? ;-)

So in the hopes that there is still some brain space left amongst all the phone numbers that I don't have a problem remembering or song lyrics from the 60's, 70's and 80's, and in particular 70's TV theme songs (aaaack!), I went ahead and purchased Magic Lantern Guides: Olympus EVOLT E-510 in the hopes that it won't be as "manual-like" as the manual. I'll report back here once I’ve received and read it to let you know if any brain matter has shifted accordingly. (Let me tell ya, the first company that creates a "pop-up style" manual with cute pictures that's not dry to read, I'm giving them all my money!) ;-)

During our last Beginning Digital Photography segment, I provided a brief overview of my experiences thus far with the E-510, including:

My Pro’s:
1) Olympus’ Live View technology (not found on other digital SLR’s).

2) Anti-dust feature.

3) Built in anti-shake capabilities, which work with any lens you attach.

4) Size. I like the size of this camera, it has a decent sized camera grip, especially in comparison to the previous E-410, which I had the chance to briefly hold and which I didn’t feel I could get a good grip on. It’s not too big or too weighty that I’m not going to want to carry it around, which is important, cuz if it’s annoying to carry around, I just won’t do it. ;-)

(Who says size doesn't matter?) ;-)

5) Settings – I love the fact that there are a variety of different ways to adjust camera settings. Sure that means more to learn, but more options are almost always a good thing. Settings can be changed through the on screen Menu, clicking the OK button, and through preset direct access buttons.

My Cons:
1) Viewfinder. Even though I was first attracted to the Olympus line of SLR cameras because of the Live View feature, I have found of course, that I'm using the viewfinder more (like a real photographer – note, I am not a "real" photographer…..yet), so I do wish the viewfinder was a little bigger; from what I have read it is smaller than rival cameras.

2) The only other issue I have found with it thus far is I tend to hit buttons I don't mean to hit (like the Fn button), even when just doing something as simple as holding the camera. I chalk this one up to user error BIG TIME! ;-)

Macworld San Francisco is looming quickly and I am really looking forward to using the E-510 in a variety of different settings and scenarios to really sink my teeth into all that this camera has to offer (ok, I doubt that I'll dive into the manual pool just yet) and will offer a more comprehensive/final review of the camera after Macworld.

Until then, check back here or in our Macworld 2008 forum for all the sights and pictures from my Olympus E-510 Macworld experience!

Sly
p.s. Since I love black and white photos so much, here is one of my most favourite quotes:

"When you photograph people in colour you photograph their clothes. But when you photograph people in B&W, you photograph their souls!" (Ted Grant)

Amen, Mr. Grant. Amen!