Grace is a casual team member of our Inverell store and a full time school student. Grace’s article demonstrates the ease with which a novice photographer can pick up a modern Digital SLR and take great photos. It is easy to forget that we all start somewhere and through this review by Grace you can see her hesitation at first turn into surprise and confidence to get great photos with ease. Happy reading, Warren Wilson – Editor!

I enjoy photography and I was asked if I would write a review for a Digital SLR camera.

To start with I was very nervous as I had never used a camera of this size or with these features before.  My first impressions of a Digital SLR was that they were not very modern and that it would be complicated, But the Olympus E620 I chose was lighter and easier than I had expected.

Macro mode using 14-42mm Lens

Features

I started taking photos on the automatic settings, experimenting with Portrait, Landscape and Macro modes.  I found them quite easy as the camera did everything for me all I had to do was zoom in.

I experimented with the manual settings and even though I did not fully understand what I was doing it was a lot easier than I expected. I could set the aperture ( this allowed me to decide what I wanted in focus and create depth of field ). The camera then set its own shutter speed. This also works the opposite way around if you want to set the shutter speed, for sports action shots0o, it will select the aperture for you. I had a lot of fun experimenting with these settings.

The Olympus 620 has an exciting range of filters for special effects, including pop art, soft focus, light tone, grainy film (my favourite) and pin hole.

Who is it Suitable For?

The Olympus 620 is suitable for anyone that has a keen interest in photography. Whether you would like learn more about photography and take more ‘professional’ photos, or just be more creative with your pictures, this is the camera for you. Because of its light weight, it is ideal for travelers who want to take postcard style photos or giant enlargements with ease.

Art Filter - Grainy Black & White

Conclusion

This camera is very easy to use and learn. Its guide makes it possible for first time users to follow step by step instructions to help you take fantastic photos and develop your skills as a photographer.
The features on this camera really make it possible to vary your own style of photography and creativity in your photos. I loved using this camera in the end and was reluctant to give it back.

Grace is a full time student and  currently completing yr10 at Inverell High School. Grace works Saturday mornings and some school holidays at the Inverell Eastmon Store.

Related posts:

1. Olympus E-520 Digital SLR Review
2. Olympus Pen EP-1 Pre Release
3. Olympus MJU 9000 Digital Compact Camera Review

Why the look?

Once your surprise dies away your left looking at a camera that someone could well have pulled out of their dusty old drawer. In that respect you would be right because the look and design is based around the very popular Olympus Pen, 35mm half frame camera first launched in 1959. The Pen was designed to be a simple, high quality precision made camera to be taken with you everywhere, much the same as a writing pen in those days.

Major Changes

Trying to recreate history is a difficult task for anybody and Olympus have tried very hard to capture the essence of the old in this new camera. The major change in thought for this new DSLR is that, it is not really a DSLR. It is SLR like in many of it’s features, however the characteristics have changed. At the most basic level, gone is the viewfinder to be replaced by a LCD screen only, unless you purchase the optical viewfinder that sits on the accessory shoe. The LCD screen is quite impressive being a giant 3″ with a 176° viewing angle. The lack of a viewfinder means the physical size of the camera can be greatly reduced in size, a good thing if your travelling light, but it is not going to appeal to the purists.

Lens System

Interchangeable lens are still part of the deal with this new design although there will be a new range of M.Zuiko lenses made specifically for this camera. Coming standard with the camera will be the new M.Zuiko 14-42mm zoom (28-84 35mm equiv). You will also be able to purchase a MMF-1 Lens Adapter that enables you to use all the current Olympus E-System SLR lenses with full functionality.

New Sensor options

E-Series lens with MMF-1 adapter

The sensor is a 12.3 megapixel 4/3rds sensor similar to the sensor used in the Olympus E-620 and uses the new Trupic V image processing engine. Capable of shooting up to 6400 iso, you can also select the image format shape from 4:3 standard, 16:9 widescreen, to the unusual 6:6 square and 3:2 35mm shape.

The Olympus Pen EP-1 also comes with the usual array of Olympus DSLR features, such as creative ART filters, 14 scene modes, manual, aperture priority, shutter priority and program. Intelligent Auto (iAuto) makes its introduction into SLR photography and teamed with face detection and built in sensor image stabilisation, the Pen starts to become a formidable opponent to many big zoom compacts or introductory SLR’s.

Continuous Shooting & HD Movie

Continuous shooting at 3 frames per second as well as continuos AF for the action photographer makes it fast enough for most of us to capture those fleeting moments. HD Movie recording with stereo sound and autofocus is new to the Olympus range of SLR’s and is a welcome addition for those looking for a high quality hybrid camera you can take anywhere. Combine that with a built in HDMI interface and you can watch your movies or stills in high definition straight from the camera.

Summing up

E-Series lens range

While we all wait to get our hands on this new camera, it won’t be the professional reviewers that create the success or failure of this new camera. It will be the normal person trying to find a camera that adequately fill their needs and produce the results that let us remember those great moments and captures the expression of our talent in taking great photos.

The Olympus Pen F, introduced in 1959 went on to sell millions of cameras around the world and if you know anyone that owned one they will speak of it with great delight as it really was one of the great cameras. The new Pen EP-1 has big shoes to fill, it may just be pointing to the future of cameras, however I think it would speak louder if it looked a little more modern, after all the Olympus Pen F was very modern for its time.

Related posts:

1. Olympus E620 Digital SLR Review
2. Olympus E-520 Digital SLR Review
3. Olympus MJU 9000 Digital Compact Camera Review