Performance
Outside of Live View mode, the E-510
performed well in our tests. The camera took 1.3 seconds to start and
capture its first JPEG. Subsequent JPEGs took about 0.6 seconds between
shots with the flash turned off and 0.9 seconds with the flash turned
on.
It took about 0.8 seconds between raw images with the flash turned off. Shutter lag measured 0.4 seconds in our high-contrast test and 1.3 seconds in our low-contrast test, which mimic bright and dim shooting conditions, respectively. In our continuous shooting test, the E-510 lived up to Olympus' claim of three frames per second. We were able to capture 3.1fps at the camera's smallest JPEG setting, and 2.9fps at full resolution.
Image quality
While you can achieve very good image
quality with the E-510, out of the box we saw the same issues with the
E-510 that we saw with the E-410. In its default settings, and with
Firmware version 1.0, the E-510 underexposes and overblurs photos.
Switching the Noise Filter to Low or Off will fix the blurring problem,
and using a shooting mode other than Program can help overcome the
exposure issues.
Also, when faced with incandescent lighting, the E-510's automatic white balance tends to produce overly warm images, you're better off with the camera's tungsten preset in this situation, or better yet a custom white balance. This is somewhat strange, given that Olympus' significantly less expensive FE series cameras usually do an excellent job of automatically setting white balance.
To its credit, the E-510 does a good job of keeping noise under control across its sensitivity range. While noise becomes noticeable at ISO 800 and is clearly apparent at the top setting of ISO 1,600, you should still be able to get acceptable prints throughout the camera's sensitivity range. We just wish that the camera went beyond ISO 1,600. Even an entry-level SLR should reach at least ISO 3,200 at this point.
Conclusion
While the exposure quirks mentioned above
might sound bad, you really can create very good photos with the E-510,
though it can be a bit frustrating when compared to competitors, such
as Canon's EOS 400D or Nikon's D40x.
However, if you like the idea of this E-510's Live View mode or
built-in Image Stabilisation (something neither of the aforementioned
competitors have), then you should give the E-510 a look.
Additional editing by Shannon Doubleday
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Jaffa-son 22 July 2008
Good: The live view facility and the ease of setting camera modes
Bad: The digital lens (14-42mm) quality seem inferior to OM system lenses
Comment: Having owned an OM-2 & OM30 and built up a collection of OM lenses over the last 20 years I wanted to upgrade our Canon 4MP A80 to a digital SLR. I purchased an E-510 with 14-42 lens Jan 08 and gambled by acquiring an MF-1 adaptor and testing these old lenses.
Don't get me wrong here the 14 - 42mm is a fine lens and gives excellent results. I find A4 size prints are close in quality to those of my OM2/50mm F1.4 camera. The camera has just about adjustable everything and I am still learning/experimenting with it. The up to 10x zoom facility on the LCD is really useful to check after each shot.
Now before I sell off my OM lens collection (at a fraction of the cost - I sold a now vintage car to buy one of them) and start building a collection of digital lenses I want to be sure that its the best option!
Yes with these lenses/MF-1 adaptor you do lose the auto mode and in manual mode you have to focus and then stop down (with the longer focal lenses). Having the LCD screen on its brightest setting aids the use of these lenses.
The results with the 65 - 200mm (130 - 400mm on the E-510 body) are excellent. Even with the 2x-A converter fitted making the top end 800mm and using a tripod and additional lens support (the E-510 is not as rigid as the old OM's) the results are very impressive.
A direct comparison performance of the 50mm F1.4 (100mm on the E-510, stopped to F5.6) with the 14 - 42mm (F3.5 - 5.6) set at 84mm showed the OM lens capable of producing an A3 print with the same detail and definition of the digital at A4 size on my premium quality HP printer with several close and distant subjects. (This testing cost me a 57 & 58 cartridge (£40)!
Conclusion - this may be of interest to others out there with old OM lens collections. There is life in them yet with the E-510/MF-1 adaptor.
If you have no OM kit the E-510 is a great camera but I cannot comment on the longer focal zoom lens. I find up to A4 print size this digital camera produces as good as most analog SLR prints and results are very good when displayed on a 40 inch Sony HD
I have just purchased a 10MP Leica D-Lux 3 (for the wife) so I can see a further review coming on in a few weeks time.
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