Olympus E30 Digital Camera – Olympus Best Digital SLR
The E-30 is the long-awaited high-end enthusiast model that fills the gap in the Olympus E-Series lineup between the E-520 and the ostensibly professional level E-3. Such is the pace of change in the digital camera market that the new model leapfrogs the E-3 by offering a much higher pixel count (12MP), larger screen and improved contrast detect AF system – as well as introducing several novel features including a digital spirit level, multi exposures, aspect ratio options and a handful of built-in special image effects (‘Art Filters’ as Olympus calls them). It loses the E-3′s class-leading weather sealing and has a slightly smaller optical viewfinder, but otherwise offers almost exactly the same features and performance in a slightly lighter, very slightly smaller and – at launch – similarly priced body.
Since this review was started Olympus has fleshed out the middle of its DSLR range even more with the announcement of the E-620. The E-620 takes a slightly cut-down version of the E-30′s feature set and squeezes it into an incredibly compact body that isn’t considerably bigger than the E-420. The E-30, in turn has seen hints of a coming price ‘realignment’ to a level much more consistent with its market position.
The E-30 goes head to head with the Nikon D300, Canon EOS 40D/50D, Sony Alpha 700 and Pentax K20D, and – on paper at least – offers a compelling feature mix in the most attractive Olympus body for a long time. But does it have what it takes to do battle with the big beasts of the digital SLR jungle, and does it really offer a viable alternative to the E-3? Let’s find out.
Although designed to sit between the E-520 / E-620 and E-3 in the E-Series lineup the E-30 is far nearer to the latter than it is to the consumer level models – with the added beneft of a year or so of development, meaning the E-30 gets all the new toys introduced since the E-3 (most important being contrast-detect AF). The biggest differences are the body material and weatherproofing (where the E-3 wins hands down), the viewfinder (the E-3 is again the winner, though anyone moving from one of the consumer level four-thirds SLRs is going to see a huge improvement in both size and brightness) and the sensor – up from 10 to 12 megapixels.
Olympus now offers one of the roundest, fullest digital SLR lineups on the market, with a relatively logical progression from the entry-level E-420 to the flagship E-3. Where Olympus is slightly different to other manufacturers is that you rarely see much difference in sensor resolution from model to model (we’d expect the entire range to be 12 megapixels by the end of the year – and to stay there for quite some time). Instead moving up the range gets you gradually better viewfinder, gradually more advanced features and some more sophisticated controls, higher performance, and an increasingly large body design with increasingly robust construction.
And compared to some manufacturers Olympus doesn’t tend to dumb down its entry level models quite so aggressively, which means that the three cameras here actually share quite a lot of features. The main differences for most users are going to be the viewfinder, screen, continuous shooting and physical design, though you also get gradually more customization options as you move up the range.
Olympus DSLRs keep getting better, and the buy Olympus E30 is undoubtedly the best yet. Despite only twelve months gap between them the E-30 is a considerably more appealing camera than the E-3 (which, thanks to its tank-like construction, still sits above it in the range). This isn’t because the image quality is better (which at lower ISO settings it arguably is – certainly it has more highlight dynamic range and a touch more resolution), but because it’s just so much nicer to use. The controls just feel like they’re in the right place, and it handles as well as anything in this class – and a lot better than some.
The Olympus E30 body is also packed to bursting with features; some (in-body IS, articulated screen) you’ll appreciate every day, others (live view magnification that actually shows something useful, digital ‘spirit level’) that will prove more useful to some than others, and a lot (Art Filters, Multiple Exposures, wacky Aspect Ratio options) that veer dangerously close to novelty status, especially on a camera at this level. That’s not to say they won’t be appealing – or useful – to many people (some of the Art Filters are actually pretty cool and produce formulaic but not tasteless results), but we’re not sure just how much value they bring to a product that’s priced to compete with the semi-pro models from Canon, Nikon et al.
But let’s not allow Art Filters and other fripperies to distract us from the fact that there is much to like about the E-30 – far more than there is to complain about. It has a superb set of photographic controls that make the bit that matters – taking pictures – enjoyable, fluid and intuitive. The differences are small, but compared to the E-3, which I often felt ‘got in the way’ of the picture taking process and sometimes left you feeling clumsy, using the Olympus E30 Digital Camera felt like slipping on a well worn glove, and everything I needed was exactly where it should be.
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