Olympus EVOLT E-510

Olympus-Evolt-E510 The Olympus EVOLT E-510 is a 10 megapixel DSLR that comes with built in mechanical image stabilization and a 2.5 inch LCD.

The E-510 features Live View LCD, TruePic III, new ergonomic design, dust reduction technology and is one of the lighter and more portable DSLRs going around.

The Olympus EVOLT comes in a number of different configurations and price points:

E-510EVOLT E-510 Body Estimated Street Price: $799 USD
EVOLT E-510 with 14-42mm f3.5/5.6 Zuiko Digital Zoom Lens Estimated Street Price: $899 USD
EVOLT E-510 Two Lens Kit (Body, 14-42mm and 40-150mm Lenses) Estimated Street Price: $999 USD

Get a Price on the Olympus Evolt E510

Olympus EVOLT E-510 News Release

OLYMPUS EVOLT E-510 DIGITAL SLR OFFERS MECHANICAL IMAGE STABILIZATION FOR SHARP, BLUR-FREE IMAGES

2.5-Inch Live View LCD, 10-Megapixel Imaging Sensor and Proven Dust Reduction System for Clear, Spot-Free Photographs

CENTER VALLEY, Pa, March 5, 2007 – Olympus today unveiled its EVOLT E-510, a portable digital SLR (single lens reflex) camera with advanced technologies for photo hobbyists and those that are serious about their photography. While easy to use, this new digital SLR appeals to photographers who desire complete creative control. The E-510 also offers the following key features:

* Live View LCD enables users to compose shots from a variety of angles other consumer digital SLR cameras just can’t match;
* 10-megapixel Live MOS Image Sensor for super high-resolution images that can be cropped or blown up to poster size without sacrificing image quality;
* Mechanical Image Stabilization with Supersonic Wave Drive? technology provides blur-free images – across all of the more than 30 digital-specific lenses;
* Dust Reduction System for spot-free photos, so users can spend more time taking pictures and less time removing unsightly specks from digital images with computer editing software; and
* Extremely portable, lightweight body with an ergonomic grip ensures the camera fits snugly in the hand, and the portable body is complemented by two new ultra-compact digital specific lenses that won’t weigh you down and is perfect for any adventure.

Innovative 2.5-Inch Full Time Live View HyperCrystal LCD
The E-510 features a Live View LCD to provide users with the freedom to choose how they compose their shots, using either the LCD or the optical viewfinder on the back of the camera. The Olympus Live View LCD empowers users to easily compose their subjects live on the LCD before the shot has been taken, offering a level of versatility that can not be achieved by other digital SLR cameras that only offer an optical viewfinder. By holding the E-510 away from the face and using the Live View LCD to compose, it’s possible to shoot upward from a low angle for dramatic composition, in close for detailed macro photos of a butterfly’s wings or photographing a parade over a crowd of people.

The E-510’s big and bright 2.5-inch LCD display with approximately 230,000 pixels includes HyperCrystal technology, which offers many times the contrast of conventional LCD monitors, and enables images to be beautifully displayed in vivid color – both in preview and playback. The HyperCrystal LCD also provides a wide viewing angle, which ensures images can be composed from even the most obscure angles. The larger LCD makes viewing icons and text on the camera’s menu a squint-free process.

Detailed, Bright and Colorful Photos with 10-Megapixel Live MOS Image Sensor
The E-510 is loaded with an impressive 10 million pixels for high-resolution photos. The 10-megapixel sensor gives photographers the flexibility to blow up their prints to the large sizes supported by many of today’s printers, or crop the image to print only a part of the image that is important to them. The high-performance Live MOS image sensor in the E-510 delivers excellent dynamic range for accurate color fidelity, and a new state-of-the-art amplifier circuit to eradicate noise and capture fine image details in the highlight and shadow areas.

Mechanical Image Stabilization for Sharp Images
Unlike other digital SLR cameras in its class, the E-510 employs Mechanical Image Stabilization, which compensates for camera movement. This new technology complements Digital Image Stabilization, which compensates for a moving subject. Combined, Mechanical Image Stabilization and Digital Image Stabilization provide a powerful solution, ensuring blur-free photos even in active shooting situations where photographers may encounter camera shake or a moving subject. This powerful combination resides within the camera’s body, translating to blur-free images taken with any of the more than 30 digital-specific lenses.

Dust Reduction System for Spot-Free Images
Olympus’ Dust Reduction System produces spot-free photos with the exclusive Supersonic Wave Filter. The patented ultrasonic technology vibrates to remove dust and other particles from the front of the image sensor, and captures the debris on a special adhesive membrane every time you turn on the camera. These spot-free photos liberate users from hours spent retouching photographs at the computer or sending their cameras back to the manufacturer to remove dust trapped inside.

TruePic III for Image Clarity
Olympus’ enhanced TruePic III Image Processor produces crystal clear photos using all the pixel information for each image to provide the best digital images possible for every photo with accurate color, true-to-life flesh tones, brilliant blue skies and precise tonal representation in between. TruePic III also lowers image noise by one step to reduce noise in images shot at higher ISO settings, enabling great results in low-light situations.

Easy-to-Use, Easy-to-Handle Light and Ergonomic Design
The EVOLT E-510 is extremely portable, measuring 5.35 inches (136mm) by 3.61 inches (91.7mm) and 2.2 inches (56mm), excluding protrusions, and weighing 16.2 ounces (460 grams) body only. The new camera has a classic penta-mirror design that is light and compact enough to comfortably shoot with all day. Beyond its portable size, the E-510 delivers unparalleled ease of use – from menus that make sense and buttons on the body that are easy to understand and operate, to automatic settings for every imaginable situation.

While the E-510 includes a full range of manual control options to customize your creativity, it also has 28 shooting modes designed to provide the ideal settings for a variety of shooting situations automatically. These include Digital Image Stabilization, Night Scene, Fireworks, Beach and Snow, and Candle Light to name a few, as well as an xD Panorama mode (for use with Olympus xD-Picture Cards). Users also benefit from special color modes and the possibility to apply a variety of Black & White filters.

Accepting both CompactFlash Type I & II, Microdrives, and xD-Picture Cards, the camera provides a choice of data storage options for enhanced flexibility, and it is possible to transfer image files from one card to the other right inside the camera.

Availability
The Olympus EVOLT E-510 Digital SLR will be available in June 2007. It includes: EVOLT E-510 Body, USB Cable, Video Cable, Li-Ion Battery Pack (BLM-1), Li-Ion Battery Charger (BCM-2), Shoulder Strap, OLYMPUS Master Software CD-ROM, Manuals, Warranty card.

US Pricing / Product Configurations
EVOLT E-510 Body Estimated Street Price: $799
EVOLT E-510 with 14-42mm f3.5/5.6 Zuiko Digital Zoom Lens Estimated Street Price: $899
EVOLT E-510 Two Lens Kit (Body, 14-42mm and 40-150mm Lenses) Estimated Street Price: $999

Get a Price on the Olympus Evolt E510

Olympus EVOLT E-510 Reviews

DigitalCameraInfo has a first impressions review of the Olympus EVOLT E-510 and writes, "Olympus is steadily improving its Four-Thirds cameras. We like the styling and operation of the EVOLT E-510 much more than the E-330. We don't know about the EVOLT E-510's image quality, but there was a significant jump in quality from the E-300 to the E-330. Our full review will tell if that trend continues, but given the state of the art at this end of the DSLR price range, we expect the EVOLT E-510 to be a player based on its features and styling."

CameraLabs has a review of the Olympus E-510 and writes, "if you’re being picky, you can certainly find fault with the E-510, and of course when you come to pick it up in person, you might simply prefer the look and feel of its rivals. But its unrivalled feature-set and affordable pricing makes it one of the most compelling – not to mention important – DSLRs to date. It propels both Olympus and the Four Thirds standard to the premier league and should be seriously considered by anyone in the market for a new 10 Megapixel DSLR."

John Isaac has a review of the Olympus E510 at the NWP Photo Forum and writes, "I was so impressed that even at 1600 ISO, the noise was very very low and almost unnoticeable, without any noise enhancement. ... For this project, I used the Olympus E-1 in the snow, dust and rain and completed my work entirely with 4.9 megapixel images. I shot some 36,000 photographs and I never had any problems with the E-1 professional camera. I am now thrilled to be using the E-510 which is a 10 megapixel camera with almost all the great features of a pro body."

DigicamReview has a review of the Olympus EVOLT E-510 DSLR and writes, "Image quality is very good to excellent, the images have excellent colour, with good saturation, contrast and detail, with low noise except for high iso images (can be altered to your tastes). Images were slightly soft straight from the camera on default settings but can be improved by setting the Noise Filter to Low. For maximum detail and colour control RAW images should be taken, although JPEG images straight from the camera were still very impressive. Purple fringing was very low, as was red-eye. The camera did a good job focusing even in low light thanks to the flash assist. I did not notice vignetting in photos, nor did I notice barrel or pincushion distortion. There is a very good range of image sizes, and a good choice of compression options (including RAW). Auto white balance and metering seemed to be good. The camera gives very good control over image quality - selecting different picture modes allows you to change the colour mode (Vivid, Natural etc), saturation, contrast and sharpness."

Digital Camera Review has a review of the Olympus Evolt E-510 and writes, "Color rendition is dependably accurate and chromatic aberration (purple fringing) is very well controlled in both lenses. ... If I were buying a mid-level dSLR today I would probably purchase the competitively priced, compact, capable, and responsive Olympus E-510. For casual photographers, Canon Powershot S3/S5 owners, and Panasonic FZ7/FZ8 owners looking to move up to a dSLR – the E-510 is the camera you’ve been searching for. For Olympus E-300, E-330, E-400, and E-500 owners looking to upgrade, the E-510 is the camera you hoped Olympus would build."

DCResource has a review of the Olympus EVOLT E-510 and writes, "I like the Olympus EVOLT E-510 -- much more so than the E-410. That's not just because I like the larger grip, either. I like the optical image stabilization (on every lens), improved battery life, and the extra features (mostly custom settings) that were not found on the E-410. I do think Olympus should've shipped the camera with different image quality defaults and offered an AC adapter, but you can't have everything. The E-510 is a great entry-level D-SLR, and one I can recommend highly -- just be sure to fool around with the settings a bit. Unless you must have the small size of the E-410, I'd spend the extra $100 and get the E-510 -- the image stabilization and more powerful battery are well worth the price."

Trusted Reviews has a review of the Olympus E-510 and writes, "Despite the lousy weather the E-510 turned in some fantastic shots, thanks in no small part to the outstanding kit lens, which produced pin-sharp detail from corner to corner at all focal lengths. As usual the Olympus metering system was flawless, coping with every lighting condition I tried. Noise control was also superb, with virtually no difference between shots taken at 100, 200 or 400 ISO, and minimal noise at 800. There was some noise visible at 1600 ISO, but even at the default low noise filtering it wasn’t too bad, and did not affect colour balance at all. ... The E-510 is a superb photographer’s camera, offering superb handling, outstanding performance, a huge degree of control and first rate picture quality, in a compact and robust package and at a price which comfortably beats most of the competition. It is without question one of the best semi-pro DSLRs currently available, and a genuine pleasure to use."

PopPhoto has a review of the Olympus E-510 and writes, "Overall, the E-510 and E-410 are compact and well designed, with the best image quality of any Olympus DSLR we've tested. The E-510 will appeal to more advanced photographers who want the IS, larger grip, and additional control buttons. The smaller, lighter E-410 is for those who want a compact DSLR at a lower price, as well as underwater shooters looking for an affordable waterproof system."

DigitalCameraInfo has a review of the Olympus EVOLT E-510 and writes, "The E-510 is very similar to its competition in many ways, but it really distinguishes itself with the live-view LCD screen. This feature attracts consumers who are used to shooting with the live-view LCD on compact digital cameras and miss that feature on most DSLRs. Few DSLRs have it and Olympus was the first to introduce it on the E-330. The Olympus E-510’s live-view LCD is still flawed, though. The view blacks out so the mirror box can flip and allow the auto focus system to work: this all adds a second or two to the total time it takes to snap a picture. It really is faster to snap a picture on most live view compact digital cameras than on the E-510, so why even have a DSLR?"

PhotographyBLOG has a review of the Olympus E-510 and writes, "Stick to ISO 800 and below in the main and there are no problems to report, while noise levels at ISO 1600 are more than acceptable. Like its E-410 sibling however, you have to watch white balance on the E-510, particularly when shooting using filtered natural daylight rather than flash, which is want to give images a decidedly cool blue colour cast. So fire off a shot or two and set the white balance manually before taking a shot if you're planning on shooting a sequence."

Imaging Resource has a review of the Olympus EVOLT E-510 and writes, "It's the E-510's special features that push it over the top. Live View mode, while easily misunderstood, is actually quite useful so long as you know its limitations. Shoot with it all the time, and you'll find you miss a lot of important shots due to increased and unpredictable shutter lag; but use it properly, and you'll get a lot of shots you'd have otherwise missed. The same holds true for the E-510's sensor-shift image stabilization. Learn where and when it works, and take several backup shots, and you'll get pretty good results; certainly better than you would without it. Add the ability to manually focus on a 10x zoomed area via Live View, and the E-510 is clearly a great solution for the experienced photographer wanting a closer look at what he's about to capture."

Wrotniak has a review of the Olympus E-510 and writes, "All in all, the image quality delivered by this camera is hard to beat — certainly not in this price range, and possibly much higher. I say "possibly", because to make a stronger statement I would have, again, to use all cameras compared, and my experience is limited, with a few exceptions, to entry-level models from other makers. ... I already like this camera. The ergonomics is excellent, build quality very good, results — outstanding, period. The aspect I'm most impressed with on this front is the detail rendition with noise filter off, and the noise itself is well-controlled and very nicely structured. The colors seem close to the classic "Olympus look" I like so much, but I need more time to make a definitive statement on this."

DigitalTrends has a review of the Olympus Evolt E-510 and writes, "how was the quality of the photographs? Simply stated they were very good. Colors were very accurate particularly the subtle shades of my orange tabby’s fur and his copper eyes. Detail was also very good with nice detail even in shadows. Noise didn’t become an issue until hitting ISO 800. The sensor-shift stabilization did a good job holding steady focus even in dim settings. There have been some reports on various sites about the relative softness of the images in the default settings but I didn’t find this annoying at all. That said there are enough tweaks on the camera to dial it in to your liking. ... I have no problems recommending the Olympus Evolt E-510 two lens kit for D-SLR newbies or those who don’t have an extensive collection of older lenses. However if you have a collection of glass, go with similar 10MP Canons or Nikons. And, as noted, any fans of Olympus’ Live View let me know what I’m missing."

PCWorld has a review of the Olympus Evolt E-510 and writes, "though its multitude of features might make it a bit daunting to some, the E-510 is a solid, flexible camera that takes very good pictures under most conditions. ... Features wouldn't be worth much if the E-510's pictures weren't of high quality, and Olympus didn't disappoint in this respect either. Color fidelity and saturation were very good, and the E-510 handled most shooting conditions easily. At lower ISO ranges, the E-510's images show very little noise; as you reach and exceed ISO 800, color noise begins to appear, though it's no worse than on other cameras of a similar price."

CNET reviews the Olympus Evolt E-510 and gives it a rating of 7.1 out of 10. They write - 'To its credit, the E-510 does a good job of keeping noise under control across its sensitivity range. While noise becomes noticeable at ISO 800 and is clearly apparent at the top setting of ISO 1,600, you should still be able to get acceptable prints throughout the camera's sensitivity range. I just wish that the camera went beyond ISO 1,600. Even an entry-level SLR should reach at least ISO 3,200 at this point. While the exposure quirks mentioned above might sound bad, you really can create very good photos with the Evolt E-510, though it can be a bit frustrating when compared to competitors, such as Canon's EOS Rebel XTi or Nikon's D40x. However, if you like the idea of this Evolt's Live View mode or built-in Image Stabilization (something neither of the aforementioned competitors have), then you should give the E-510 a look.'

Megapixel has posted a review of the Olympus E-510 where they write - 'The Olympus E-510 is an excellent amateur dSLR. It fits nicely just above the E-410 and its slightly higher price is easily justified by its additional features. The kit lens — the one used in this review — is of good quality, but the auto focus of the E-510 would likely perform even better with a slightly brighter lens such as some of the high quality lenses manufactured by Olympus. Currently, competition in entry-level digital SLR cameras is intense. And while it may not have the most attractive price, the E-510 offers a number of features that should make it very attractive.'

Lets Go Digital reviews the Olympus E510 and writes - 'All in all, the Olympus E-510 is a very good D-SLR camera. It has a nice and solid build, good image quality and it is easy to use. In addition, the camera is fairly compact, it features Live View, and is part of the FourThirds System so that you can mount a large number of lenses. One of these is the ultra wide-angle zoom lens that was included in our test. This Zuiko Digital 7-14mm performs better than we ever could have expected from such a wide-angle zoom lens. You do have to shell out quite a bit for it, but in return you get a gem of a lens.'

DPReview reviews the Olympus E-510 EVOLT and writes, "overall, especially considering the excellent pricing, extensive feature set, effective image stabilization and superb design/construction/handling, the E-510 is an impressive and hugely rewarding camera in use. The results from the kit lens are some of the best we've ever seen, the SSWF dust reduction system is the most effective on the market and the whole package shows that Olympus understands the needs of the photographer as well as - if not better than - any of its major competitors. If it had a better sensor (less noise and better dynamic range) the E-510 would be a strong candidate for category winner; as it is you'll need to decide if the slight compromises the sensor demands are going to affect the type of pictures you take."

Pocket-Lint reviews the Olympus E-510 DSLR and writes - "With a stunning feature set and great handling in a (slightly) beefier body than its E-410 predecessor, plus great image quality, the only thing left to want is a great price. Oh! Hang on; it has a great price too – in a variety of tasty-looking kits or body only. Okay, if you own a Canon or Nikon system you’re already locked into that are unlikely to swap due to the cost of switching all those lenses if nothing else, but if you’re trading up from compacts, across from film or simply need a compact yet superbly specified DSLR with anti shake, than the E-510 must be placed near the top of your list."

DPexpert reviews the Olympus E-510 and writes - "This is a camera we would recommend to anyone who wants the image quality of a good SLR without having to think too much. It’s light weight will also appeal. And now that Panasonic/Leica is in the Four Thirds camp there should be some cheaper third party lenses coming onto the market. Olympus have fitted a CF card slot as well as their own xD slot, which makes sense because CF cards are cheaper and available everywhere."

Posted by Darren in our Olympus category on March 05, 2007

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