The
Olympus E-1: A Digital Camera to Watch
By Russell Abraham
Building miniature cameras for professionals has been a
goal for Olympus since just after the company was founded
in 1919. While shying away from professional-level cameras
for the last decade or so, Olympus has produced a plethora
of consumer-oriented boxes that defy description. But all
that has changed in the last year.
New DSLR Is Serious Contender
The digital bug has struck the folks in Tokyo and they have
come up with a professional-level camera that can hold its
own against the best of what Japan, Rochester, and Stuttgart
have to offer. The Olympus E-1 is a serious professional
tool that any pro should consider as part of his or her digital
arsenal. While the file sizes tend to be small, the sensor
design and optics--optimized for digital imaging--produce
images of superb quality in a unique 4:3 format.
Rather than sticking a CCD into a 35mm SLR body and calling
it a digital camera, Olympus decided to take a serious look
at the numerous issues of digital imaging and design a camera
with optics and an operating system that were built specifically
for digital imaging.
In the film world, Nikon built its reputation on indestructible
cameras that would perform under the most extreme circumstances.
Canon built its reputation on cameras that were optically
and technologically ahead of the pack. Olympus was something
of an "also ran" in the world of film based SLRs; but, it
has come back with a vengeance in the DSLR world.
Details, Details, Details
Any pro who works in digital understands that there are
myriad parameters to adjust when shooting digitally, e.g.,
color balance, contrast, noise reduction, resolution, ISO,
and so on. In many digital cameras, the lion's share of these
critical adjustments is located on the LCD menu on the back
of the camera. Olympus decided to give most of these functions
an easily accessible button on the body of the camera.
Take white balance, for example. The E-1 gives you a variety
of options to white balance a scene, but the white balance
button on the front of the camera will handle the most challenging
color correction chore in seconds. Shoot a white card under
the "mystery lighting" and you are done.
Olympus has addressed dozens of problems with digital imaging
and come up with clever, sensible solutions. Dust has been
a problem with many DSLRs. Olympus' solution is to send an
ultrasonic wave over the CCD at the precise moment of exposure
to whisk away any dust. It works. I have shot hundreds of
images on three different Olympus bodies and have never incurred
a dust problem.
New Lenses Designed For Digital
Olympus did not stop with the camera body. They realized
that any serious digital camera needed serious digital lenses,
so they set out to make a few. Because of the nature of a
digital capture chip, it does not respond to light the same
way as film does. Many DSLR manufacturers are just now redesigning
their optics for digital capture.
Olympus realized this from the start and designed a small
group of Zuiko lenses specifically for digital photography.
The results are impressive. The lenses produced virtually
no color aberrations and no barrel distortion even at extremely
wide angles of view.
I shoot mostly architecture and interiors so having images
that are orthographically correct is very important. Olympus
delivered with a wide-angle zoom that was virtually distortion-free.
Being able to shoot at a field of view of 85 degrees with
no distortion is quite a liberating feeling.
Room For Improvement
The Olympus E-1 is not perfect. Its autofocus has problems
with flat surfaces and very long lenses. Manual works better
in these situations. While the metering system offers three
different options and does well most of the time, it could
take some retooling.
Olympus has introduced a sister camera aimed more at the
'prosumer' market that accepts the same lenses but has a
CCD with three more megapixels. I suspect that Olympus will
be upgrading the E-1 to this more robust chip within the
year. That being said, the E-1 is a tremendous value and
offers a platform that Olympus will hopefully build upon
and support in the years ahead.
The E-1 From A Nature Photographer's Perspective
By Robert Ankrum
I had the opportunity to test-drive an E-1 as well and agree
with Russell's assessments of the camera's quality, handling,
and ease of use. This was one of my first extensive forays
into the digital realm (not to mention avian photography),
and I really appreciated the immediate feedback of the LCD-particularly
when I was shooting wildlife.
Like Russell, I had difficulty with the autofocus feature.
In one instance, I locked my focus on a red-tailed hawk soaring
about 200 yards away. However, as he flew directly overhead
at about 50 feet, I couldn't get the autofocus to refocus
on him. The camera gave it a valiant effort; however, it
never succeeded in capturing the moving target. I spoke with
the Olympus representative, and he said that he had a similar
experience while shooting the Blue Angels. So I suspect this
is something Olympus will be working to improve.
Larger Capture Would Be Nice
I like to have the option to print my images at 16x20 or
larger. Unfortunately, shooting in Olympus' version of RAW
produces a file that is only about 11 megabytes. This limits
print size to 8 1/2 x 6 1/2 at 300 dpi without interpolation.
This smallish file also could hamper distribution options
because some stock agencies require files of at least 48
megabytes.
All in all, it's nice to see a manufacturer being innovative
to solve some of the problems inherent in digital photography
while still being competitive. And if the E-1 is any indication
of their commitment to digital, I think Olympus will continue
to make inroads in the marketplace.
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