1
- The Good: Can come with two lenses instead of one. Up to 25 dedicated shooting modes. 10-megapixel resolution. Image quality is very good, both in JPEG and RAW.
- The Bad: The smaller default lens isn't as good as it could be. A little bulkier than the 400 series. Image stabilizer still isn't optical.
- The Verdict: A great fit for anyone looking to enter the dSLR world
I knew that testing the Evolt E-510 from Olympus would be an interesting experience, even if the main reason was because it would be in Morocco. The North African locale seemed like the perfect place to try out the camera maker's first 10-megapixel digital SLR.
The E-510 may not have the tilting LCD screen of the Evolt E-330, but it does three important things together. The live view of the E-330 is back giving you a look at the action just like any point-and-shoot digicam. It also has supersonic sensor cleaning so that dust doesn't become a problem inside the camera. And last but not least, it has image stabilization.
What's old is new again
One of the nice things about the E-510 is that it had the same sort of feel that other Olympus dSLRs have, except the body has been slimmed down a bit. It does away with the overly retro look of the 400 series and tries something a little different. As is, it doesn't look a whole lot different than anything else that's out there. The menu system has also utilized the LCD screen, expanding on an idea that was toyed with in prior models.
Rather than flip through pages of menus, everything has been simplified into one main one where you can choose what you want to change among 17 settings using the directional pad buttons. This means that you can change ISO just as quickly as flipping through an XD and CF memory card (the E-510 holds both).
The great thing about this is that minor tweaks can be made on the fly a lot faster. And while that may be more a boon for advanced amateurs, even novice users will quickly learn how to get more out of the E-510's options. Or at the very least, they'll gain a curiosity about them.
But there are also a whole bunch of set scene modes that make it a lot easier to shoot specific things. These aren't new, by any means, since they come in just about every Olympus camera, including point-and-shoots. But they are a great way to take good photos of fireworks, candlelight dinners and low-light settings, among many others.
The most important of all these is arguably the image stabilizer mode. Using this means that you don't have to worry about using the right settings in order to freeze action shots. I tried it in Morocco in crowded souqs and while standing near a snakecharmer's cobra proved that it can freeze time but also bring out the best colours and detail as well. Chances are, you will use this mode the most when shooting just about anything.
The lens factor
The E-510 body comes with two lenses instead of one, which is a nice touch from Olympus (though you can get the E-510 with just the body or with just the 14-42mm lens). There is the smaller 14-42mm one that is just like the standard lenses that ship with other dSLRs. The 40-150mm is the other and naturally has a longer range.
In a dSLR, the lens is probably the most crucial component, and it's easy to see why. If you use a lens that has no range, then it would naturally be tough to shoot something that's far away. If you use a zoom lens, then it would be just as tough to shoot something really close or in macro mode.
The pattern is obvious, but there's more to it. The default lens is not particularly great in low-light settings and just doesn't bring out the kind of detail you come to expect from a camera like this. And that's even when shooting in macro mode. It's truly the difference between a mass-produced lens that ends up being a throw-in and a separate lens that can run you half the cost of this package here.
You shouldn't necessarily expect continued brilliance with the lenses Olympus gives you, but they're still good enough to make any novice a better photographer. The zoom lens, in particular, performs well and will teach you to be sturdy and steady when snapping photos at the full range.
The key with this camera is that you have a lot of control over what kind of shot you want to take. The dedicated modes are already there, but even manually, you can play around with this thing for hours.
Taking good photos
You can shoot in RAW if you want to, but it seems to only make it easier to output images in larger sizes. Comparing a typical JPEG with a RAW image, both onscreen and in print (at the same size), doesn't seem to show a notable disparity.
This is good news. The common denominator here is that the E-510 takes good photos and does so consistently under varying conditions. Shooting in RAW is something that more serious amateurs or professionals prefer, so it's hard to say whether or not the average user would even care.
A job well done
Olympus has put together a very nice camera here in the E-510. The dual lens kit is also attractive, since it gives you two lenses to play with. And naturally, the live view is a feature anyone can get used to.
If you're in the market for a dSLR, the E-510 is worth the investment. It has a high megapixel count, plenty of scenes and features and easy access to the camera's key functions. You can't go wrong with that.
