Camera Labs

Thanks, this is quite informative, Davis! So you think the e-30 has somewhat more noise than the e-520 at iso 800 and 1600? But it doesnt show up in 8 x 10 prints? Also, people talk about banding with the e-520, but I never could see much of it at iso 800 or 1600, what about you? I would think you couldnt tell any difference in an 8 x 10 print between an e-30 and an e-520?

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https://www.photoshop.com/user/alex_the_great

From the 100% crops that I've seen, the E-30 has more noise, but it isn't really a big deal from the results I've seen with the camera, which have been great. I personally was considering purchasing the E-30 until I considered some trips I was thinking of going on and a great deal on the E-3 that I just couldn't pass up.

I have printed iso 800 & 1600 shots from my e-520 and they look great. I was initially worried because I noticed the noise on my monitor, but the images came out really clean. This is before I even got my noise reduction software.

On an 8x10 print, I believe an e-520 & an e-30 shot will both look great, as long as you get the exposure right and/or fix/edit anything you think you need to once you import it into your computer (only if you think it needs to be fixed/edited. if not, great!).

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aim s/n: idotddot

When viewing on monitor, you're essentially looking at a 3 foot print. This is why all talk about noise is purely academic as they do not affect real everyday usage. In my experience, the biggest noise issue is chroma noise, where you get unsightly colour specks that turn up in print (you see colour specs in the black areas, for example). Since the E-30 is very aggressive at chroma noise suppression this is not an issue.

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PhilipGoh.com

Thanks, this is really informative. One thing I was initially worried about was when I looked the e-30 up on dxomark, they seem to indicate that the e-30 overestimates its iso. Now, I dont know if this is true or not, but if it is, the same would probably be the case with the e-620. When you shot the same scene with the e-520 and the e-30 at the same aperture, at iso 800 or 1600, did you notice any kind of difference in terms of shutter speed? According to dxomark, the e-30's iso 800 is actually iso 500, iso 1600 is actually iso 1000, and iso 3200 is actually iso 2000. I dont know if this has been verified or not....

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https://www.photoshop.com/user/alex_the_great

Oh I don't use the E-30, I use the E-3. The reason I speak highly of the E-30 is because of numerous results I've seen with it. There are a few users on this forum who use the E-30 and have taken some fantastic shots!

There's an E-30 user review on the forum. Here is the link: http://www.cameralabs.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=14976

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www.iandavisphoto.com
aim s/n: idotddot

Thanks, thats a great review-- I agree, the DR is definitely better with the new generation of cameras. One thing I was wondering about was where he said this:

This process is added by the enhanced liveview mode compared to the E-510. The new hybrid focus mode that works with every lens without flapping the mirror makes liveview really usable, especially in combination the the turnable LCD screen. It makes composing shots from special angles so much easier and I found that the portraits I did with the E-30 are just so much more creative than the ones I did with the E-510.


Did they introduce a new mode with the e-30, or is he referring to Imager AF, which is also on the e420/520? I think Imager AF is a bit faster on the e-30 and e-620, then the e-420 and e-520... I dont know how much faster though.

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https://www.photoshop.com/user/alex_the_great

Does the e620 have the same kind of live histogram feature as the e520 or did they add the overexposed blinking highlights (in blue) and underexposed areas blinking (in red) that the old c8080 and c7070 used to have-- in preview?

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https://www.photoshop.com/user/alex_the_great

I'm comparing it to the E-510. I think the E-520 has the same Imager-AF.

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Olympus E-30, ZD 9-18mm 4.0-5.6, ZD 50mm Makro 2.0, ZD 14-54mm 2.8-3.5, ZD 70-300 4.0-5.6

Light travel equipment:
Olympus EP-2, µZD 14-42mm , Panasonic 20mm 1.7 pancake.

Cullmann Trento IT Daypack

Thanks! I see the manual mentions overexposed areas blinking red and underexposed areas blinking blue... is there any way to get this in the live preview on either the e30 or e620 or is this only available in playback?

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https://www.photoshop.com/user/alex_the_great

Hi everyone, we've just posted our full review of the E-620!

http://www.cameralabs.com/reviews/Olympus_E-620/

There'll be a video tour following soon(ish), and because this review was the last of the three rival DSLRs (500D / T1i, D5000 and E-620), I'll make sure I do the E-620 video first! Hey, it's only fair!

Gordon

Nice review Gordon! Now that I have you here-- I have the e520, and I want to know whether its worth upgrading for me. I do iso800 and 1600 shooting occasionally, and Id like to know if higher iso noise is better, worse, or unchanged from the older model. Also, if you could compare the sensitivity of the e620 to the e520 under similar settings-- as according to dxomark the e620 is rated 2/3 too sensitive, in other words, iso3200 on the e620 would be iso2000 on the e520 (if the e520 had that setting.) I guess you could set them to the same iso and aperture and take a picture of the same scene and see what kind of shutter speed each camera chose.

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https://www.photoshop.com/user/alex_the_great

Hi ALEX, I'd love to do a side by side comparison, but it's not possible. I don't have access to an E-520, and my E-620 has also now been returned to Olympus. So all I can do is ask you to open the results and gallery pages from each review and compare the images for yourself.

In terms of features, I've compared them in my E-620 verdict page. While there's many benefits to the E-620, I think existing E-520 owners looking for a significant upgrade would be better-off making the bigger jump to the E-30, or buying new lenses.

Unless of course they like the idea of a slightly smaller body with an articulated screen, in which case, go for it!

Thanks Gordon. One other thing I was wondering about was that, when I download the e620 user manual, it mentioned something about overexposed areas of an image being shaded in red, and underexposed areas in blue. I was wondering if this was a live view feature that you could use before taking the image, or if this was something that could only be used after the image was already taken.

Also, I noticed this camera has an external white balance sensor, which the e520 doesnt have, and I was wondering whether this can be used with Live View / Imager AF or whether its for use with the viewfinder only.

One other thing, I just read the part of your review regarding Imager AF and how slow it is-- did you find it to be just as slow as the e520? From the wording of the review, it sounds like it is just as slow.

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https://www.photoshop.com/user/alex_the_great

Oh, and one other thing... dxomark has their results page up for the e30, which I would assume the e620 parallels... and their iso results are interesting. Basically they said iso400 on this camera is actually more like iso256, iso800 is iso500, iso1600 is iso1000 and iso3200 is iso2000.

When you did your comparison in the high iso test against the other cameras, did you find the e620 about 2/3 ev slower than the Nikon? I ask specifically about the Nikon because that camera seems to be closest to rated iso on dxomark, while the Canon also overestimates its iso, but by 1/3ev, rather than the 2/3ev dxomark claims the e30 does.

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https://www.photoshop.com/user/alex_the_great

The white balance sensor is always functional assuming you are using Auto White Balance.

I dont know how effective it is on the 620, but AWB on my E3 is terrible.

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E-3!
12-60 2.8-4.0
12-60 2.8-40 [Also going]
40-150 3.5-4.5
70-300 4.0-5.6
Fl-48