The Olympus Pen E-P1 has DSLR (digital single lens reflex) like quality that offers even the novice photographer a powerful easy to use camera with a compact look and feel.

In this article, we will look at the top 5 reasons why it might be worth considering investing in this digital camera.

1. The image quality is impressive. You will find excellent color with quality saturation levels. When taking photos of people, you will find quality skin tone levels. The Olympus Pen E-P1 gives a good selection aspect ratios (including 4:3, 16:9, 3:2 and 6:6) and a range of compression which includes RAW, metering, exposure and white balance. So all in all, a good image quality, with a low noise and high levels of sharpness and detail.
2. You will like the sleek look with a compact retro design. The camera features are really easy to use for beginner photographers. If you are new to photography, the Olympus Pen E-P1 will give you all the features a heavy duty SLR will have in an easy to use design.
3. The E-P1 digital camera has interchangeable lens that is retractable. Just like a compact camera where the lens can retract into the camera body, the E-P1’s lens can collapse into the main lens which makes it really easy to store. For someone who enjoys traveling light, this is ideal.
4. This Olympus Pen E-P1 has an excellent playback mode. Browse photos with a 14x magnification, and playback video with sound. Something else you will find quite cool is A ‘Multi Exposure’ playback feature. This allows you to stack two to four pictures combined into a single photo.
5. HD movie mode is good. The camera records at 30FPS with stereo sound. If you want to avoid taking a digital camcorder on your travels, the E-P1 is more than capable of shooting short videos, but it should not be considered as a replacement for your camcorder.

Are you considering buying an Olympus Pen E-P1 digital camera? This stylish, yet powerful SLR feature like camera is ideal for on the go photography. So whether it is a wedding, or a holiday you can be sure to travel light but still have the tools to take quality image where ever you choose.

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Olympus PEN E-P1 FAQ:

Question: Can I use Nikon lens on the Olympus PEN E-P1?
And what adapter do I have to buy if I have to buy any?

Answer: No. Look at the distances between the focal plane and the bayonet on the Nikon and the Olympus, you will see that they are very different. Add some kind of adapter and the difference is increased. That means even if you did find an adapter, the Nikon lenses would not focus at infinity.

Just find some good used Olympus lenses and use them.

Question: Can anyone tell me why they made the olympus pen e-p1? Looks like a gimmick to me.

Answer: Canon and Nikon have a near lock on traditional dSLR design sales. Olympus and Panasonic are trying to discover and/or create greener pastures for themselves.

It’s a darn sexy looking camera but 4/3 sensors always struggle with the noise issue. This will likely end up being an orphan format.

Question: Need advice on Olympus Pen E-P1?
I am a amateur photographer, before I was looking for a superzoom prosumer camera, particularly interested in Canon SX10 (20X zoom). Then out come this attractive Olympus Pen which is small in size but have all capabilities of a DSLR. Since zooming is an important factor to me, can any one enlighten me what zooming capabilities does the two kit lenses (M. ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 14-42mm 1:3.5-5.6 lens and M. ZUIKO DIGITAL 17mm 1:2.8 Pancake lens) possess? How far can they zoom, ie, are they equivalent to a PNS camera 2X, 3X, 4X or?

Answer: You won’t get anything like you want with a Pen… go back to the SX-10. To get lenses equal to the range of the SX-10 on the Pen will cost you much more, make the camera much larger and heavier, and more difficult to handle.

Question: Olympus E-P1 or other DSLR at same price?
I want to buy a DSLR camera. Then I see Olympus E-P1. Now I’m confused either to buy PEN E-P1 or other DSLR at same price!

Answer: To be clear the E-P1 is no dSLR. It doesn’t have an optical through the lens viewfinder… the (d)SLR’s namesake… or a dedicated AF sensor. However it does have interchangeable lenses, and the same size sensor as Olympus/Panasonic dSLRs.

Anyways the Micro-Four-Thirds (µ4:3) system that the E-P1 is part of is relatively new, so there are hardly any lenses available for it as of yet. Though you can adapt lenses from other systems, with certain limitations. Also this no speed demon when it comes to autofocus (depending on the lens you use, it’s somewhere in-between a compact and a dSLR). But then the main selling point of this camera is size. It’s far smaller than any dSLR. Smaller than its cousins the Panasonic G1 and GH1 as well. Particularly when using one of the two kit lens options. Plus since the image you see while composing is electronic rather than optical you get a live preview your current shooting settings (just like a compact digital).

Ultimately which is “better”… an E-P1 or a dSLR… depends on which of these aspects are more important to you.

Question: Is the Olympus E-P1 the end for bulky DSLR’s?
The worlds first micro four thirds camera (Just a bit bigger than compact) with a sensor the same size as semi pro DSLR’s. It’s all there apart from built in flash and viewfinder. But these can be added on. Picture quality RAW JPEG is equivalent if not better in some cases. HD Video is probably the best I’ve ever seen on a camera with no stutter and incredible quality. Lenses will be flying out thick and fast for this one and already comes with wide angle and mid zoom. The size is a pocket sized dimension with a retro PEN look that is amazing. But will all this be enough to convert the masses? Well I believe this is the advent of a new era in cameras. True its not full sensor but does that really matter? But every now and then in camera history there is a revolution and with the gamut of semi-pro DSLR’s on the market are going as far as they can spec wise then the change is inevitable. God bless Olympus!

Answer: With the exception of the Leica M8 and the Leica/Panasonic L-1 DSLR the Olympus PEN digital is just about the best looking interchangeable lens digital cameras available. But it’s not a DSLR.

Great size, lovely finish cool design, decent resolution and sensor; brilliant. No optical viewfinder, no rangefinder or pentaprism; not brilliant.

God bless Olympus, I agree. I’m not old enough to have owned a PEN or trip first time round, but loved my rugged little mju 2 (stylus 2) 35mm camera. They always do something different, and have actually led the market with many innovations (self cleaning sensor, live view) we now take for granted.

The sensor size is a very slight issue in that it requires very wide lenses to replicate conventional wide angles in traditional terms. It also leads to a restriction on the usability of small apertures, the future scope for resolution (not that 12Mp isn’t enough for most) and issues such as image noise.

Olympus (and Minolta) always were pioneers, mavericks, interesting to see what they are going to come up with next.

Question: Seeking advice on Olympus Pen E-P1?
What zooming capabilities do the two kit lenses have? If they aren’t gonna get me far in terms of zooming, do help recommend a zoom lens (not too pricey ones please, just good enough to start with) to go along with this camera. Also, would this camera be good for macro pics?

Answer: There are a variety of lenses available in the micro 4/3’s format, but once you start adding a longer zoom the advantages of the PEN E-P1 start to diminish and you’d be better off with a conventional DSLR.

I really like the E-P1 but I doubt I’ll like it enough to seriously consider buying one.

Are you the kind of person that hangs out in a lot of cold, wet, and sandy places? Apparently the good folks at Olympus think some of us do. So much so, that they’d like to convince you how much you need to buy the Olympus Stylus 790SW Waterproof Digital Camera. My first reaction upon reading about the waterproof, shockproof, freeze-proof (really?) and sand-proof features of the 790SW, was hey that’s a nice idea. My second reaction was what’s so special about that, and shouldn’t all cameras be built like that to start with?

Shouldn’t all cameras be able to take a little abuse? All digital cameras should be able to be dropped from four or five feet without damage. All digital cameras should be sealed well enough that sand or water won’t find a way in. It’s just a question of good build quality. Olympus however thinks this is a big revelation and a major marketing point for the Stylus 790SW. The bigger question though is, does it take good pictures?

Being a waterproof camera shouldn’t just mean you can hold the camera underwater, and it won’t leak. It still needs to take good pictures. While the 790SW can be held underwater (up to 33 feet according to Olympus), the pictures it takes are not so great. In fact, if you do take it underwater, plan on taking a lot of pictures. Most will turn out quite distorted and blurry, but the more pictures you take the better your chances of getting a few good ones. In addition, the LCD is pretty much unusable underwater, as it’s just too hard to see. You’ll have to just point, click and hope for the best.

Meanwhile, back on dry land, it appears the Olympus Stylus 790SW is really out of it’s element. If you decide to buy a 790SW, you need to be aware, that you are sacrificing image quality for durability. There are other cameras that will take better pictures for the same price. Lower ISOs are fine, but anything over 200 and your going to see noticeable image noise. Color saturation and sharpness are also below standard when compared to other cameras in this price range.

If your favorite game is “let’s bury the camera in the sand”, then the Stylus 790SW is the camera for you. If however it’s not, here’s a few other detracting factors in mind when considering the 790SW:

- non standard XD memory cards

- grainy picture quality

- LCD is hard to read due to overly reflective coating

- automatic setting defaults are calibrated poorly

- menus slow down manual tweaking efforts

For the right person (Indiana Jones, Laura Croft, Edmund Hillary) in the right place (Antarctica, Great Coral Reef, Sahara), this Olympus Stylus is the perfect camera. If you don’t fall into one of those categories at least part of the time, then spend your money elsewhere. While the 790SW sets a good example for other camera manufacturers in terms of durability, you’ll get significantly nicer images from a number of other digital cameras.

Olympus Stylus 790 SW FAQ:

Question: I need help viewing the pictures on my Olympus Stylus 790 SW and on my computer.?
I recently purchased an Olympus Stylus 790 SW with Olympus Master 2. I uploaded a lot of pictures to my computer, but they’ve all disappeared! They’ve disappeared from both my camera and my computer, even though I didn’t delete anything. I need the pictures, so I would greatly appreciate anyone who could help me. I’ve searched my entire computer and I have no clue as to where they could have disappeared to.

Answer: Depending upon the “program” you used to transfer the images to your computer, there should be two things to look for: 1) the default file folder that the program sends your image files to and 2) the option to delete the files automatically from your cameras memory card needs to be unchecked.

That said, buy yourself a nice little under $10 card reader and copy your image files using your computer skills to a file folder you name yourself and can find again.

IF after finding the default image file folder, you find that your images are not there, you will need to get an image recovery program and a second memory card. You can use the second card until you recover the images from the first. Using the old card, will assure that you will never recover any of the old image files, because you will have “written” over them with the new photos you take.

Question: Should I get the Nikon S51 or Olympus Stylus 790 SW?
I really can’t decide! Does anyone have either of these cameras?

Answer: I have the Olympus. It is outstanding. I can take it swimming in the local swimming pool. I would definitely recommend it. Go for the Olympus.

Question: Is the Olympus Stylus 790 SW a good camera? Why do they sell $300 underwater housing for it…?
I think it looks cool and it would be one I wouldn’t have to worry about breaking but is it worth $300 and do you have to buy the underwater housing for another $300? I thought it was waterproof on its own?

Answer: Waterproof housings allow you to go *deeper* underwater.

Question: Can you change the Olympus Stylus 790 SW so it takes black and white photos?

Answer: Don’t waste your time. Direct black and white images made in cameras are inferior to converted RGB image files. Two steps: 1. set the saturation on the file to -100. Save the imge as a different name so you do not overwrite the original file. 2. Set the black threshold, white threshold and then adjust the mid-tones until the image look’s better.

Question: Do olympus stylus 790 sw’s charge with the usb cable?

Answer: No, it does not. You need to use the battery charger.

Question: Do the pictures come out grainy with the Olympus Stylus 790SW 7.1MP Waterproof Digital Camera?
I want to buy an Olympus Stylus 790SW 7.1MP Waterproof Digital Camera with Dual Image Stabilized 3x Optical Zoom but I’m afraid that the pictures will come out grainy or the quality of the camera and pictures won’t be that great.

Answer: It depends on the settings you are using on the camera. You should use “Auto” mode rather than manual mode.

Also if you use the camera in low light (indoor pictures), then most of them will be noisy unless you are using a camera which can take good low light pictures (like Nikon S700 , Fujifilm F40fd).

Question: Is the Olympus Stylus 790SW really as good as it sounds?
Anyone own this? Can you stand on it? How about dip it in water and take a picture? Which version is best?

Answer: Honestly, no its not as good as Olympus hoped. Most of the time you can go underwater to take pictures the first and maybe the second time but usually on the third, it leaks and ruins the camera. I can say that half the time they will cover the warranty, but they don’t have to if they don’t feel it was a manufacturing problem. Believe it or not the warranty does not cover liquid damage. The seals are suggested to be changed once a year and it costs over $100. These are just some things I wanted you to know.

Question: Could I use the olympus stylus 790SW to go scuba diving?
or would that just be good for more shallow water? Obviously the olympus 770sw goes 33ft and the 790 only 10ft, but would it damage the 790 if I brought the camera more than 10 ft down?

Answer: It could damage the camera if you take it deeper than 10ft. If you want to go deeper Olympus has an underwater housing that will let you take the camera deeper.