lenzguy
Offline
Upload & Sell: Off
|
 p.1 #1 · Olympus E-1 - Shocking results | |
Recently I went into semi-retirement from the commercial print/fashion world to pursue other photo-related projects. Having done that I also decided I wanted to "lighten the load" with my photo gear since I no longer have jobs that dictate having so many pieces of stuff and such specialized equipment. [ Just how often can you actually use a 1200mm lens? ] laughs
I've been in search of a new camera system that would give me the simplicity I wanted without sacrificing the pro-type quality I've become accustomed to. Although I considered using a simpler setup with one of my film bodies or, using a pro-sumer digital body but none of those options fully met my imaging needs. Almost on a whim I decided to try the new Olympus E-1 to see what it would do, and here's my impressions after 200 images:
On first holding the camera (with the extra battery grip already attached at the dealer) it felt as "real" and purposeful as any of my pro bodies (1D-s, 1V-HS, F3, F5). The control layout is straightforward and the control actions give very positive and predictable feedback - when you move a dial or push a button you KNOW you've just done that action.
The viewfinder is extra bright, as bright or brighter than my brightest pro body the 1D-s, and the rear LCD is also bright with great contrast and quality. In fact, it's the best LCD backpanel display I've seen on any camera, period.
Although the lens selection is weak to say the least, I chose the 50mm f/2.0 macro, 50-200mm f/2.8-3.5, and the 11-22mm f/2.8-3.5 and the EC14 1.4x converter. At the moment, the 11-22mm lens has not yet arrived at the dealer. So how does it all perform? Well...
I don't pay to post images here but I'll do my best to describe the results - those that are interested I can email examples to you directly later this week. It's a 5 meg-pix body and I expected results to be on par with the D100 or 10D, but from my own tests I think it's actually a few steps better and here's why:
First, all my images are shot RAW and converted with Olympus Studio - I read the DPreview on this and learned about the moire and other problems when shooting fine JPEG's.
Using Olympus Studio default settings, default color settings, manual white balance in camera with manual exposure based on my Sekonic meter readings, out of the camera images are...stunning. Contrast, color balance, saturation and skin tones are actually BETTER than my 1D-S! Say it aint so, not the venerable flagship of the company I've been shooting with since 1986??!! I was shocked, to say the least, but results are what they are and the images don't lie. In fact, in order to get the same great color balance from my 1D-S I have to shoot in Color space 3 - high chroma and bump up saturation in PS during conversion to get the same deep, rich color from the Canon. What??? No way!! A $7000 camera outperformed by a $1700 body? It gets better, read on.
Depending on your subject type and shooting style, digital noise from the camera is either your friend or your mortal enemy, most here I think consider it to be the latter and we're always trying to get rid of or diminish it as much as possible. Noise is both the E-1 strong AND it's weak point:
At any ISO setting there is more noticeable noise than either a 10D or 1D-S however this extra noise isn't exactly all bad - but again, this has more to do with my personal preference in imagery than actual "better technology". I'll explain:
At higher ISO settings [400 or better] noise from the Canon takes on a greenish-brown hue and affects the overall color of the image especially in low-light/long shutter exposures. In the E-1 however, noise takes on the exact color of the image, not adding or taking away color hence the noise looks exactly like film grain! Now that's the kind of noise I don't hate to have, and that can be used as a tool to create a look or "feel" to an image, especially when converting to B&W! Finally, a digital camera that acutally behaves like film would at high ISO's!! Wow. This is the first digital body I've shot [with exception to the LEAF back for my Mamiya] that produces an image that doesn't look like a digital file, in fact the richness of color is damned near the scans of some of my most favorite chromes.
Now the quality of the color balance and the noise characteristics of the E-1 are so far superior to my Canon, but it is still "just" a 5 meg-pix body and it can't compare in ultimate resolution to a 1D-S file - Canons' flagship still has the market cornered in that department. However, I've printed a 20x30 from my local pro-lab from a RAW E-1 file and there's no way you could tell it came from a lowly 5 meg-pix body, thanks mostly in part to it's colorless film-like noise characteristics.
The E-1 system cannot compare to the complexity and lens selection of any other SLR system, period. However, the ED glass Zuiko lenses are incredibly sharp and I'd say images from the 50-200mm Olympus are on par with my Canon 70-200mm IS "L".
The E-1 can't replace an entire pro system mainly due to the lack of lens selection [more bright primes are what is needed, currently the only primes are the 50mm f/2.0 and a 300mm f/2.8 but the 3 ED Zuiko zooms are perfect and cover every needed focal length] the relatively low resolution and the 4-thirds system will cause some to be wary and suspicious of image quality, but if you want an amazing all around digital system that is light, has super color characteristics and looks as close to film as possible give the E-1 a look.
Personally, after comparing this to the D100 and 10D images I've shot, the E-1 is a definite step up in image quality and I think it will become my primary camera of choce, even over my 1D-S. And yes, I'm considering selling my remaining 1D-S and Canon equip, but need to test the E-1 further...
Robert
|
I truly believe the 1Ds is a camera "to be finished" - not only problematic sensor, but also AF, metering, DSP etc. Nikon on the other hand, is a much smaller company - they set up a target and gear up with the whole company's resources working on it - same applies to Olympus ...who will release two more 4/3 DSLRs in the '04 ... I'm not only interested in the next S2 but also their 4/3 offerring ... 