28 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
Great Camera, Great Lenses and Features Galore
The E-520 is my very first DSLR and I have had it now since April '09 (the Easter Bunny brought it :-) and I can't say enough good things about this camera or this combo.
The camera body is lightweight enough to carry all day without getting tired but sturdy enough to not feel "cheap". The two kit lenses cover most of the distances the average user will...
32 of 38 people found the following review helpful:
Very Disappointed
I have been an Olympus fan for a very long time. My first Olympus was the OM-1. I migrated to the OM-2 and then the OM-4. I also owned and used an OM-10 and Olympus XA. I've had excellent results with all of the film cameras. I've also been very pleased with my digital cameras from Olympus right up until I bought the E-520. I previously owned a C-3040 and still own...
The E-520 is my very first DSLR and I have had it now since April '09 (the Easter Bunny brought it :-) and I can't say enough good things about this camera or this combo.
The camera body is lightweight enough to carry all day without getting tired but sturdy enough to not feel "cheap". The two kit lenses cover most of the distances the average user will want or need, and again neither one is a back-breaker. I use the 40-150mm when I am going to spend a day at the zoo to bring the animals closer to me (since they won't let me get closer to them :-).
One really nifty feature that the camera offers is the ability to use Live View Boost to focus and frame pictures with an infrared filter in place on the front of the lens and to actually see what the camera will record. Pretty cool.
The controls are easy to use and I think the only challenge I have encountered where they are concerned is not in using them but in remembering what to use when and to remember what menu it is under. Fortunately, most of the things you will need most often (wb, AF, Flash, ISO, etc.) also have dedicated buttons easy to find right there on the camera body. You can also set your own custom profile combos to allow you to quickly switch from one set up to another without having to remember what you did the last time that you liked.
The 20 scene modes make life very easy especially when you are just starting out or if you don't want to think and just want to shoot. And the ability (with the optional waterproof housing and light) to shoot underwater would be a really cool thing to do.
Color is great, clarity is great, the ability to remotely control the FL-36R or FL-50R flash units without having to have them attached to the camera by wires of any kind is great too.
A word about the proprietary XD card (the camera supports three different recording formats, CF, XD and Microdrive (But who uses those really?)) you can have the card in the camera in addition to the CF card and I would recommend having one just for the panoramic assist option which is only available if you use the XD card. The panoramic assist supports horizontal and vertical pans and the stitching software is built into the Olympus Master software that comes standard with the camera.
The only down side to having this camera is that you may find it difficult to find all the different lenses available at your local camera store (but there is always Amazon) as Nikon and Cannon have much better marketing. Oh, and one more word about lenses, you can get adapters which will allow you to use not only Olympus OM mount lenses from your SLR but also Pentax, Minolta, Nikon, Cannon, Miyama, and all the rest. Olympus only makes the OM mount adapter but you can find all the others aftermarket. You will need to be able to manually focus and set the f-stop on the lens itself as those features won't be supported through the adapters but it sure opens up options.
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I have been an Olympus fan for a very long time. My first Olympus was the OM-1. I migrated to the OM-2 and then the OM-4. I also owned and used an OM-10 and Olympus XA. I've had excellent results with all of the film cameras. I've also been very pleased with my digital cameras from Olympus right up until I bought the E-520. I previously owned a C-3040 and still own (and love) a C-5060. I've been a loyal and enthusiastic Olympus fan.
The E-520 has been major disappointment. The principle reason is its auto focus. In almost all low contrast situations it has significant problems. This means(for example) that when trying to take shots of birds on an expanse of water the auto focus function will cycle back and forth repeatedly and then lock up making it impossible to take a picture. I have to turn the camera off and back on and then try to "fool" the auto focus or focus manually. This is a major hassle and often results in an opportunity missed. I recently took a cruise to Alaska and repeatedly faced this problem when shooting birds on the water, flags against a overcast sky, and the moon at night, etc.. I would not recommend this camera to anyone that wanted to take nature or landscape pictures.
When the auto focus works properly the pictures are excellent. The colors are crisp and as bright as they should be and the images are razor sharp. There is a possibility that the camera is defective and I intend to take my complaint directly to Olympus. I'll update this review when they respond.
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I shopped and I compared before buying. While the E-520 is not my first SLR--I have owned and shot with Nikons and Canons for many years--it is my first Digital SLR. I am very comfortable with it. It is sturdy, good looking, flexible and efficient.
The main complaint I see regarding the E-520 is its ability to focus. That is a valid complaint. However...
First, every lens that Oly makes is different in its auto-focus characteristics. Yes, you will have to become familiar with each lens separately, but this is true of all SLR cameras and lenses.
Second, some lenses are better than others at AF. Most of the complaints I see come from birders, and they are probably using the 40-150 kit lens, or the 70-300 lens. These lenses do take some getting used to.
I was shocked when I received the 70-300. It's a monster! But I have been able to focus on a wire 100 feet away, then move the camera and focus 200 yards beyond that within a split second; same with the 40-150 kit lens after a little practice.
In low light, I recommend that one ALWAYS focus manually.
As far as the quality of the image produced by the E-520 (once you master the focusing aspect), it is spectacular. I have spent hours comparing images from the E-520 to those from Nikons and Canons. There is virtually no difference. (Check out the review and compare images at: [...]
If you're willing and able to spend $8000 for the top Nikon body (and another $10,000 or so for lenses), you will get that little bit of extra resolution and snappy auto-focus. But you didn't spend $18,000 for the Olympus E-520.
Is it fair to buy a $25,000 Pontiac Solstice and expect it to perform like a $160,000 Ferrari?
The E-520 is an amazing camera. Period. Full stop. It's even more amazing when you consider that you can buy it with two kit lenses and add the 50mm "Pro" lens and still have spent under $1000.
Happy shooting!
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I bought my E-520 in November of 2008 and we purchased this second camera for my father.
As said before in many other reviews, the E-520 is a DSLR with full control over it's features. In-body image stabilization works great and allows all 4/3rds lenses to be stabilized.
The E-520 pairs beautifully with the 50mm f/2.0 Zuiko Digital Macro.
The 14-42mm is a versatile wide angle and the 40-150mm is a great entry level telephoto.
Check out the reviews on [...]
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For the beginning to mid range photographer this is a great deal. The body is around $500, the lenses can be $100 each.
The camera is real good in manual. However I have a lot of trouble with the scene or auto modes. The flash comes up and it is confusing why it won't take the shot sometimes. Long story short, the auto metering system is too stupid for its own good.
In manual there can be a little noise at expected setting but noise filter, reduction, shock, and Image stabilization leave you with no excuse for that to become a problem. The shutter can do 1/4000 to 60"/Bulb; overall a good range. Aperture is all in the body (the lenses don't have manual aperture.) Focusing is excellent and many options are offered in that regard. There are good on board effects, sharpness, contrast, saturation, greyscale with tint balance, and many more.
The dust feature is priceless. The lenses come with respective hoods. CARD SOLD SEPARATELY (that one got had me biking up to Walmart 8 in the morning. Warning- the software for downloading is kinda sucky. I would just copy from removable disk.
Overall I say it's a great camera for the hobbies, student, or superstar on the way up! I am of the opinion that this is one fully loaded, serious piece of equipment at the top it its class.
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I have been using this for past one month now and havn't had any problems with it yet. The pictures are sharp and colors captured are live, especially in the "Vivid" mode.
The advantage is In-body image stabilizer so you don't have to buy lenses with IS, saves money on that front; and the body is smaller than the competitors, so is easy to handle too.
However, sometimes, the built-in flash interferes with the brightness of the image in auto-mode. It might be darker than it should be. But for the features you're getting at the price, I would give it 5-star...
Have fun shooting ;)
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Nikon and Canon get most of the attention when it comes to the dSLR market. And for good reason. They are great cameras. But they might not be the perfect choice for everyone. I submit that this camera competes completely with anything Canon and Nikon can bring at this price point. With features like anti-shake in the camera and several scene modes, this camera makes life a little easier for folks in a hurry. I was suprised at how well this camera is able to pull in really good shots on the fly.
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This is an outstanding kit at an unbeatable price. The lenses alone are worth the price of the entire kit. If you're really into photography and want to upgrade from a super zoom point and shoot, this is the kit to get!!. It is really a mid level featured DSLR with the price of an entry level. The only features that really set it into the entry level category are its lack of ruggedness and lower pixelage, but if you are not a journalist covering a story at a battlefield or plan to print life sized posters, you won't mind this. Optics quality is outstanding and the ease of use is way better than canon. There is no way you can go wrong with it. I've seen many people complain about the AF function, but I've had no problem with it. AF system is quite basic (3 point) but it is fast and accurate. It seems that people that do have problem with that are not used to functions like AF lock, tricks like pre-focusing, or haven't really got to know their cameras well.
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We wanted an dSLR, but did not want to shell out $500+ for an entry level with no frills from a bigger name and decided to get a $300-400 point and shoot or megazoom. While researching that price range, I found this camera and reviewed it at cameralabs.com . It is a great entry level dSLR... I have a 5yo, 2yo, and a dog... this camera captures all them perfectly, no blurring!
Pros: Cheap, fast (with the view finder in good light), high quality shots, can set up shots in live view, small size, in body stabilization, shadow enhancement lets me see my kids reflections in my black appliances, this package has a great telephoto lens
Cons: Shadow enhancement can make low light shooting slow as the camera takes 3-5 shots and combines them to show more detail in shadows, windows look white 25% of the time, no in camera red eye (or not that I've found yet), live view shots are slow and noisy because the mirror has to shut first
Better than a point and shoot, cheaper than most dSLRs... great buy!
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During my 35mm years, I used nearly all major brands of cameras. While my Canon and Nikon "pro" cameras were indeed workhorses with an impressive array of features, the Olympus OM cameras were the ones I always had the most fun using. They always just felt so comfortable in my hands.
The E520 is the same way: I enjoy just picking up the camera and how it feels in my hands. It helps that the kit lenses are compact without being cheap, as well as offering superb image quality, even compared to upgrade lenses from other brands. In body Image Stabilization? Just makes a good camera even better. If you do decide to upgrade lenses, Zuiko lenses are some of the best available. But you may never need to: the kit lenses are that good.
There are plenty of people out there who talk about technical limitations of 4/3 cameras in regards to dynamic range and high ISO noise. The limitations are there in the E520, but not nearly as bad as one might think based on photography forums and salespeople. The fact is, with a minimum of tweaking, the E520 can deliver .jpegs that are as nice looking as anyone would want except for the most demanding professional applications where only a "Full Frame" or medium format dslr will do. Or for conditions which fall outside the range under which most people take pictures.
The look of Olympus .jpegs is appealing enough to me that pixel peeping issues don't matter. I enjoy using the camera and I enjoy the results. Sure, "pro wannabes" will tell you to avoid Olympus, but for reasons that matter most to "pro wannabes". The fact is there are world class pros who use Olympus for the same reasons I do.
The best thing about the E520, other than a great feel, ease of use and top notch .jpeg quality is it's outstanding value. A solid camera with advanced features not found on most entry level dslrs. Kit lenses which are as good as other makers' upgrade lenses (giving the E520 a 35mm equivalent range of 28mm-300mm). All for a price that is often less than other cameras with fewer features and only 1 lens.
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