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Category: Serious Amateur

Executive Summary

This Olympus Camedia C-5500 Zoom Review is based on a production model. All sample images are unretouched, except where specified.

Flatiron Building (aka Gooderham Building), Toronto, ON, Canada.
Not quite as tall as the same namesake in NY (aka Fuller Building),
but the tall towers (TD and BCE) in the background provide a more dramatic contrast.
The CN Tower is partially visible on the left, and the Royal Bank
peeks between the two towers.
12.1mm (58.2mm), Program, Pattern, 1/800 sec., F4.0 and ISO 80

The Olympus Camedia C-5500 Zoom is a full-featured digital camera with excellent image quality, very low noise and fast operation with no practical shutter lag. It is all put together in a camera that is both comfortable to hold and operate.

It is extremely easy to take good pictures with the Olympus C-5500 and, after one month's constant use, the overall feeling is that this is a camera that delivers for beginner and serious amateur photographers. It is put together well and pretty intuitive to use, despite Olympus' traditional reliance on the menu.

The Olympus C-5500 is not compact enough to carry in your trousers' pocket, but a coat pocket will do. I've been carrying it in my jacket pocket and whip it out instantly for a photo opportunity.

It has two live histograms (including a unique "direct" feature), AF Area selection anywhere on the screen, AF Illuminator, and very good macro capability at 2cm. For serious photographers, there is One-Touch White Balance, Multi-Metering, Manual Focus, and of course, Shutter-Priority and Aperture-Priority modes.

The Olympus C-5500 has all of the three criteria we use to judge digital cameras: excellent image quality, low noise and fast operation. It feels right in the hands and in its operation, letting you concentrate on taking the pictures. If you are learning and want a full-featured digital camera, the Olympus C-5500 has everything you need to learn and grow at a very attractive price.

See if you fit the Olympus Camedia C-5500 Zoom User Profile below: