Olympus E-410 Review
Review Date: July 23rd 2007
Author: Gavin Stoker
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Image Quality
All of the sample images in this Review were taken using the 10 megapixel SHQ
JPEG setting, which gives an average image size of around
6Mb.
Noise
There are 5 ISO settings available
on the Olympus E-410 which you can select at any time if
the camera is in the normal shooting mode. Noise seems
better handled than previous generations of Olympus DSLRs
– the company doubtless
putting this down to its decision to switch from a conventional
CCD to a Live MOS sensor – although the maximum setting of
ISO 1600 appears to be a case of Olympus quitting while it's
ahead. Though coloured sand-like specks are noticeably creeping
in at this setting, noise is not horrendous, and up to ISO
800 perfectly acceptable. So stick to ISO 800 and below and
you
won't have cause for complaint. Here are some 100% crops which
show the noise levels for each ISO setting:
Sharpening
Here are two 100% crops which have
been Saved as Web - Quality 50 in Photoshop. The right-hand
image has had some sharpening applied in Photoshop. The out-of-the
camera images are just a little soft at the default sharpening
setting. You can change the in-camera sharpening
level to one of the 5 different preset levels if you don't
like the default look.
Chromatic Aberrations
The Olympus E-410's 28-82mm kit lens handled chromatic aberrations
excellently during the review, with very small levels of
purple fringing mainly present around the edges of objects
in high-contrast situations, as shown in the example below.
Flash
The flash settings on the Olympus E-410 are Auto, Red-eye reduction, Slow synchronization,
Slow synchronization 2nd curtain, Fill-in, Slow synchronization
with red-eye reduction and Off. These shots
of a white coloured wall were taken at a distance of 1.5m.
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Auto
Flash - Telephoto (82mm) |
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And here are some portrait shots.
The Auto setting caused a tiny amount of red-eye, which
the Red-eye reduction mode successfully removed.
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Auto
(100% Crop) |
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Auto & Red-eye
reduction (100% Crop) |
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Night Shot
The Olympus E-410's maximum shutter speed
is 60 seconds, which is excellent news if you're
seriously interested in night photography. The shot below
was taken using a shutter speed of 1/10 second, aperture
of f/5.6 at ISO 100. I've included a 100% Crop of the image
to
show what the quality is like.
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Night
Shot (100% Crop) |
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Overall Image Quality
I don't like to start with a grumble but here it is. Left on auto setting, the
Olympus E-410 doesn't always get white balance correct –
with interior pictures shot using natural daylight taking
on a
distinctly
tell-tale blue hue, and likewise tungsten lighting providing
that yellowy-orange cast. So remember to set the white balance
manually if you're shooting in less than bright daylight
without flash, and you'll steer clear of such issues. For getting
in close on detail and those awkward yet creative shooting
situations where it isn't always possible to get your eye
fully to the
viewfinder – low angle shots for example – the Live View
feature really comes into its own, while the ability to focus
manually given such scenarios means the camera doesn't end
up giving emphasis to the wrong part of the frame when you're
not looking. Noise also seems better handled than
previous generations of Olympus DSLRs – the company doubtless
putting this down to its decision to switch from a conventional
CCD to a Live MOS sensor – although the maximum setting of
ISO 1600 appears to be a case of Olympus quitting while it's
ahead. Though coloured sand-like specks are noticeably creeping
in at this setting, noise is not horrendous, and up to ISO
800 perfectly acceptable. So stick to ISO 800 and below and
you
won't have cause for complaint. Another niggle is that there's
some very obvious barrel distortion at the extreme wide angle
of the
kit lens – though if you're a fan of the (almost) fish eye
lens effect like I am then it will cause you less distress.
If you're majoring on landscapes however, it's more of a
pain. However, most of the audience for
this camera will likely be upgrading from a point and shoot
compact and therefore in the main wanting to shoot portraits
of family and friends with a bit more ‘pep'. It's in this
area that the Olympus E-410 excels, delivering sharp, flattering
portraits with vividly healthy skin tones. Distortion aside,
the lens is capable of delivering commendably sharp images
to boot.
 PhotographyBLOG
is a member of the DIWA
organisation. Our test results for the Olympus E-410 have been submitted to DIWA
for comparison with test results for different samples of
the same camera model supplied by other DIWA
member sites.
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