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September 11, 2008
[REVIEW—OLYMPUS E-520 DSLR]
![Oly E-520[2]](http://www.dpexpert.com.au/WindowsLiveWriter/REVIEWOLYMPUSE520DSLR_8603/Oly%20E-520%5B2%5D_2.jpg)
Price: $1300 two lens kit
Light and sweet
The low-down: This 10 megapixel camera has a Four Thirds sensor as used also by Panasonic/Leica. The sensor is smaller in area than the conventional APS sized unit used by other makers. It has an aspect ratio of 4:3 rather than 3:2. Olympus have been refining “live view” since the E-330 and it now works reasonably well -- there is at least auto focussing, albeit slow and noisy. The stand-out feature of the E-520 is the highly effective in-camera image stabilisation. The wireless flash capability is excellent and unexpected at this price. Camera construction is rugged, while being small and light. The dust removal system is reassuring. The two kit lenses are among the best of the type and provide a focal length range (35mm equivalent) of 28-300mm. Storage is by Compact Flash or xD card and continuous shooting speed is 3.5 fps. There is no body-top camera status LCD.
Like: There is nothing cut-down about this camera. It has all the functions a serious photographer expects, in a small and light system of body and lenses. Focus, exposure and white balance are good. Ergonomics – the placing of external controls around the body – are good.
Dislike: The lenses are optically very good for the price but they are mechanically a tad rough. The zoom is stiff and gritty but the manual focus is smooth and well damped. The dynamic range is restricted compared with the competition and the viewfinder is small and dim.
Verdict: This two lens kit is excellent value for the traveller because it is so light and compact. Having spent a couple of days walking around with the full kit in a small bag it was a shock to the system to come back to the heavy Nikon and Canon DSLRs. Do they really need to be that big? Of course the Olympus can be small because its sensor is small and that is not always a good thing. At ISO speeds above 100 the image quality is not quite up to the standards of the competition. Still, a fine camera/lens combination for the price.
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Posted by terry at September 11, 2008 12:31 AM
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Comments
Odd statement about the imaging capability of the E520 being inferior to the competition at ISOs above 100... we regularly use shots at 400 and 800 to sell this camera over the Nikon D60... a camera also severely crippled in terms of overall function and capability in comparison to the E-520 while also being more expensive.
(not to mention the horrendous kit lenses that are sorely outmatched by Olympus's 14-42 and 40-150 in terms of what they come with and in total image clarity at a given pricepoint)
No the E-520 gets the vote for best camera value (especially at $799 USD MAP for the two lens kit) in the market right now.
Posted by: Marc Morris at September 11, 2008 08:02 AM
Image clarity is the most important aspect of the images and those who want to capture images with the awesome clarity must go and grab it today.
Posted by: amit at September 11, 2008 12:33 PM