Digital Trends

Olympus Evolt E-510

August 27th, 2007 | by David Elrich

Testing and Use

Testing loads of cameras—point-and-shoot as well as D-SLRs—one can readily see why more expensive models with interchangeable lenses are catching on. Speed is one of the best features of any D-SLR. From the moment you turn on the power to snapping the shutter, there’s practically no lag. Just zoom in, focus and click away. Anyone who has twiddled their thumbs waiting for an aim-and-forget camera to focus and save images can appreciate this real-world benefit. Of course you have to spend a lot of cash to get this convenience but if you’re really into taking photographs, it’s hard to overestimate what this fast performance does for you. Like its competitors this new Olympus is a quick performer, even though it’s a 10-megapixel camera.

The Olympus E-510 saves 3648 x 2736 pixel files in RAW and JPEG. Make sure you use a high-capacity, high-speed card of at least 2GB since a single RAW file is 11MB. And if you shoot RAW+SHQ JPEGs it’s almost 20MB a pop. The camera will take up to 8 RAW shots before gagging and blitz through 3 frames per second in JPEG, about the same speed as most D-SLRs in its price range. Helping speed things along is Olympus’ new TruePic III processor. Note: the camera has a Supersonic Wave Filter that “shakes” dust off the sensor that can cause annoying spots on your shots. This slightly slows down the start-up and power-down but it’s well worth it.

As usual I started in Auto then moved to the many manual options available. I also shot in the IS1 setting which meant image stabilization was on all the time and switched between both kit lenses. As an uber point-and-shoot digicam, the E-510 was fun to use. It felt very comfortable and all of the controls were logically placed. Basically there’s very little learning curve for simply using the camera as a point-and-shoot. And the quick response is a pleasure.

Once you move out of Auto things fall down a bit. The Olympus menu system does a good job with Scene modes as mentioned earlier but it looks very dated and is not as intuitive as it should be when adjusting the many manual options. And there are plenty of them which is a good thing. The printed Owner’s Manual is a real plus here and I’d make sure to carry it with me.

Image Courtesy of Olympus

Now on to Live View, one of key features that separates this camera from other sub-$1,000 USD D-SLRs—I don’t like it. It dramatically slows the camera down and images on the LCD screen are a smeary mess (because of poor refresh rates). Auto focus takes a long time and the camera makes a loud clunk every time you snap a shot. I know the Live View is supposed to give you additional shooting angle options but I’d rather crane my neck to use the viewfinder instead of the LCD screen. Olympus does say Live View is best used with stationary objects but I don’t get what the hype is all about. Maybe that’s just me—any happy Live View users are welcome to send an email.

I took a ton of shots indoors and out, then proceeded to turn out full-bleed 8.5x11 prints. And how was the quality of the photographs? Simply stated they were very good. Colors were very accurate particularly the subtle shades of my orange tabby’s fur and his copper eyes. Detail was also very good with nice detail even in shadows. Noise didn’t become an issue until hitting ISO 800. The sensor-shift stabilization did a good job holding steady focus even in dim settings.
There have been some reports on various sites about the relative softness of the images in the default settings but I didn’t find this annoying at all. That said there are enough tweaks on the camera to dial it in to your liking. 

Conclusion

I have no problems recommending the Olympus Evolt E-510 two lens kit for D-SLR newbies or those who don’t have an extensive collection of older lenses. However if you have a collection of glass, go with similar 10MP Canons or Nikons. And, as noted, any fans of Olympus’ Live View let me know what I’m missing.


Pros

• Solid image quality
• Quick response
• Live View

Cons

• Live View
• Menu system needs updating