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Olympus C-5500 Zoom Review
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Review
Date: Apr 14, 2005 |
Category: Serious
Amateur
HANDLING & FEEL
Inside
BCE
7.9mm (38mm), Program, Multi-Pattern, 1/30 sec.,
F2.8 and ISO 122
The Olympus Camedia C-5500 Zoom is a medium
compact digital camera that just feels right in
the hands. It won't fit into your pant pockets
but you won't mind if it's a comfortable camera
you're looking for. Its handgrip is well designed
with your index finger coming to rest naturally
on the shutter release button and ample space
at the back for your thumb, providing a very comfortable
handling. Construction is solid with a clean and
organized feel. Its dimensions are 110W x 67H
x 47D mm (4.9W x 3.3H x 3.9D in.), and it weighs
267g (8.6 oz.).
The very first thing you notice as you turn
the camera on and take a couple of test shots
is that this camera is fast, in both startup and
operation. There is no practical shutter
lag. The Olympus C-5500, like a number of
newer digital cameras, are making shutter lag
a non-issue, which is a most welcomed development.
The controls button are precise and easy to use,
though most functions are menu bound. The menu
is pretty well organized and you can find your
way to all the important functions very fast.
One function you won't find by going through the
Menu choices is Manual Focus. You access Manual
Focus by pressing and holding the OK button down
for more than 1 second. A black strip displays
along the left side from top to bottom with distance
markings. Otherwise, all other functions are pretty
much easily accessed through the Menu. I would
have preferred that some of the most used functions
be accessed through dedicated buttons: AF Area,
screen info (incl. histograms), and even Frame
Assist.
Exposure Compensation at +0.3 EV
The Exposure Compensation defaults to the Left
and Right Arrow Keys on the Four Way Controller.
It is therefore easy to inadvertently dial in
an exposure compensation if you are not used to
this arrangement. Once you get used to it, though,
this becomes very convenient and makes for fast
operation. I make it a habit of checking the exposure
compensation value on the LCD monitor before taking
a picture.
The onboard flash is positioned at the top left
edge of the camera (viewed from the back), exactly
where your left index finger normally rests, and
it becomes difficult to hold the camera steady.
Olympus is aware of this "feature" since
its Advanced Manual diagrammatically shows you
how to hold the camera when the flash is popped
up (Advanced Manual, page 22). The flash is manually
popped up (which is something I prefer), and this
is a good thing for you do not run the risk that
your finger is inadvertently blocking it if it
were the automatic pop up type.
The semi-transmissive TFT LCD monitor on the
Olympus C-5500 is 2 in. with a resolution of approx.
110K pixels and a fast refresh rate. It does not
gain up in low-light; fortunately, there is an
optical viewfinder to allow you to compose in
low-light situations.
The movie mode (with sound) is 320 x 240 pixels,
and has an interesting feature: as is common in
digital camcorders, an anti-shake function reduces
camera shake when recording movies for clearer
results.
The Olympus Camedia C-5500 Sport Zoom packs
a lot of features in a medium compact design,
making it a good carry anywhere digital camera
for the serious to advanced amateur photographer.
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