I had a curiosity and interest in the Olympus system but had never really followed up on it. I am not that much of a camera gear geek and my interest in taking the time to learn new equipment for use is minimal at best. But one day I was early for a business appointment in Los Angeles and there was a pro camera store close by, so I walked in. The Olympus representatives happened to be there doing product demonstrations.
There are a few things of interest to me about the Olympus system. For one, Olympus was the first to have an internal sensor dust removal system. If you are a professional photographer, there is nothing more annoying than having to remove dust spots from a few hundred photos when you are on a huge deadline, automated by software or not.
The Olympus system is a designed for digital concept from the ground up. That in itself seemed interesting. Then it was also built around the 4:3 aspect ratio. We are most familiar with the 3:2 aspect ratio of the 35mm cameras. But for a lot of shooting that is really inconvenient. With 3:2 you get a full size print essentially around 8x12 inches in size and multiples of that. So if you want a standard print of 8x10 or 11x14, you have to crop your image or print with borders. The 4:3 format also matches medium format which is also my shooting preference. So the uniformity was of interest to me.
Next of interest to me is the Zuiko lenses. Having a reputation for being very sharp, the variety of lenses fitting my shooting needs is almost perfect with a long reach and f/2 apertures. The camera system creates a comparative multiple in focal length as compared to other systems. So the 12-60 lens on the Olympus is the same as a 24-120 lens on another system. The lenses are also comparatively smaller and lighter than other systems. That is a big deal if you fly with your gear and of you are shooting with multiple bodies and lenses in tight places.
As I handled the camera I was pleased with the ergonomics and the big bright viewfinder. The menu system seemed simple enough as did most of the controls. The Olympus reps were concise in their explanations and truly interested in supporting the professional photographer. I found out that much like two other manufacturers, Olympus has an equipment loaner and service program for the pros. That is very important. To further evaluate the system, Olympus offered to send me out a system to try out on an actual shoot.
So a coupe of days prior to my shoots, the E-3 arrived along with the 12-60 lens. I spent a little time looking it over and found most features easy to set up and use. I gave a quick look through the manual for some more details and it all started coming together. I also downloaded the latest version of Olympus Studio 2 for RAW processing. And then it was time to shoot a few photos. I happened to be meeting a friend who is an advanced amateur photographer so I took it along.
My first real subject was Richard sitting across from me at a table at Starbucks. With the sun having set behind the mountains I did something I never do, I did a shot with the built in flash. And it was the best built in flash shot I have ever seen. The image on the LCD looked great and I was very impressed.
The next few days and again in a week were spent using the system to shoot actual national magazine features. In total the system worked flawlessly. To sum up, the photos, all shot in RAW, were the best out of camera photos I have seen except for medium format digital. They are sharp, colors are wonderfully saturated and still real and life like. Contrast and shadow detail excellent. The system was fast focusing and easy to use. The LCD on the back of the camera is the most useable in this size I have seen, big and clear and sharp. I could actually evaluate what I was shooting.
I processed my shoots in Lightroom as opposed to the Olympus software but only because I was on a very quick deadline and was not sure about using Studio 2. But I can tell you the RAW images in both are beyond exceptional. The photos were so excellent that I needed almost no post work other than standard skin blemish work. If anything that was more difficult because the photos were so very sharp. But I have never had to do so little post processing. And the auto white balance was the most accurate I have seen. The skin tones are amazing, perfect!
Now I know much has been talked about Live View which allows you to view your scenes live for shooting. However I really did not have a chance to evaluate it. I can certainly see uses for it and enabling Live View is with a very convenient and simply placed button. But I will say that being able to swivel the LCD is really convenient and the idea that it reverses and fold the LCD inward to protect it is very smart.
Another point about image quality is something that you see in medium format. In medium format, images have almost a 3 dimensional quality. More than just depth of field, I think it must having something to do with shadow details, tonality, and smooth transitions. I can very much see a lot of that quality in the images from the Olympus. Take a look at this photo from one of the gym shoots...
Also note the skin tones and colors. And finally also take a look at this photo which I shot for the cover of another magazine.
The Olympus E-3 camera with the Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 12-60mm f2.8-4.0 SWD lens lived up to way beyond my expectations. I am sure there are more points and features I am forgetting to mention but those are the things that stand out in my mind at the moment. But the biggest point more than anything else is the image quality. Everyone who saw the photos as they peaked over my shoulder as I reviewed them on the computer could do nothing more than say WOW. And if you have ever worked around your clients looking over your shoulder, you know how important that is!
There is one more point. Compared to the cost of other camera systems, the Olympus is just a bargain. If I think of anything else I will update or maybe do another post. But if you have any questions send me an e-mail to SecondFocus@mac.com.
Thanks and keep coming back if you "Wanna See More...?"
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