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Thread: Olympus E1

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    Olympus E1

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    heard of the new digital SLR above..cost a booming $4288 bucks...have anyone tried this thing b4? is it worth the price..? how do u compare it to Canon 300D...comment pls..thx

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    heh you said it's new right? so how could anyone have tried it before? on a more serious note, it is $4K+ (you said, I'm not sure but assuming you're right) and the Canon 300D is less than $2000 with lens, so should not be in the same class. It is probably targeted at the 10D crowd.
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    http://www.dpreview.com/articles/olympuse1/page11.asp


    however. that price point ain't cost effective for fish photography.

    then again, spending 1.8k on a 300D or 1.3k on a G5 isn't cost effective even (since you don't make money from photos..)

    heh.

    however, consider that the canon/nikon line has more lenses/toys..

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    ----------------
    On 10/24/2003 4:20:03 PM

    heard of the new digital SLR above..cost a booming $4288 bucks...have anyone tried this thing b4? is it worth the price..? how do u compare it to Canon 300D...comment pls..thx

    ----------------
    Very subjective query and not many will be able to give practical comments given that the set is so new. I personally have not had the chance to play with it yet.



    However, here are some of my thoughts to share..

    Olympus had left the SLR arena and was focusing on compact cameras (which they do quite well) some years back. As such, a lot of hobbyists do not take them seriously. It's no doubt that their OM series was well respected before it was discontinued, but a camera company without an SLR offering just does not click with some hobbyist, especially gadget freaks who loves to buy lots of stuff to add on here and there. So Olympus was "demoted" to the status of Konica and Ricoh (albeit they are also good camera makers - e.g. Hexar and GR1/10).

    As such, the introduction of E1 may not be taken very seriously, especially when claimed to be a professional camera, for various reasons.

    1. The E-1 series has only 5 lenses (of which only 4 is available now) and 2 flashes (2 more macro ring flash in the works). Of course some will argue that it's new and other lenses are being developed. But photographers will want an assortment of lenses to cater to specific needs. As such, it will be hard to get converts to this system (unless it's sponsored) and new users will face cheaper competition (e.g. 300D) with a huge lens and accessory offerings during the initial phase.


    Zuiko Digital 14-55mm F2.8 – 3.5


    Zuiko Digital 50-200mm F2.8-3.5


    Zuiko Digital 50mm F2.0 Macro


    Zuiko Digital 300mm F2.8 (This baby is build to order so it ain’t gonna be cheap)


    2. The E-1 also uses a 4/3 type system for their CMOS jointly developed by Olympus and Kodak and support by Fujifilm (but not by Canon, Nikon, Pentax and Minolta – the major players). This gives the E-1 a specification of 5 megapixel. By today’s standard, it’s not big deal and most will even scoff at it. However, given the fact that this CMOS is smaller that those on a Cannon 10D/300D and that it has a potential to go up to 31 million pixel, it has potential (especially for smaller lenses and lighter body – which Canon has also achieved with the 300D using the EF-S system). However, will it be another case of VHS vs. Betamax, 35mm vs. APS (Advance Photo System), LD vs. DVD? Early adopters of the new technology often find themselves loaded with worthless equipment if the market abandons their choice.

    3. Bundled software seems to be the norm with most digital camera nowadays, but besides the view that you will get free, Olympus charges US$150 (for registered users of E-1) for their Olympus Studio software. Most folks will not find this acceptable although they may not be comparing apples for apples. But this will be a sore point.

    www.dpreview.com did an initial review and the camera performed below the Canon 10D in several areas. Although the 300D is ranked below the 10D, it does not pale in performance. As such, the 300D will be able to stand up to if not surpass the E-1 if given the right lens and flash.

    As for dedicated aquatic photography, the E-1 will probably be able to get you standard tank shots, but fish and plant macro will be severely challenging. Both Canon and Nikon will surpass Olympus in this area, although this area of photography is not a niche that the 3 companies even catered for.

    Given the
    I have dwarf cichlids in my tanks! Do you?

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