Olympus E-500

Pros: Olympus combined with Zuiko glass is without peer. The combinations of utility and user override, great shooting controls and features, the Olympus Evolt 500 is a complete digital camera. 14 shooting modes, very capable AUTO programming, and the full gamut of user selected control makes this camera sweet to operate. I have NEVER had a moment that I was not able to get this camera to do what my intentions were to do. Self-cleaning feature is incredibly effective. I've yet to see any unwanted elements in my captured images. 4/3rd lens size availability is excellent, and other manufacturers are upping the inventory of available glass for the full Olympus 4/3 digital camera lineup. The 500 was lone camera in a field that now boasts 5 different Olympus DSLR cameras. This camera is easy to use, easy to create beautiful images with, and for the price relatively easy on the pocket book. Sets with lenses have always been a great deal. The set with lenses also allows the new camera owner the opportunity to get to work, putting this camera system to its limits right away. I am considering moving up to the E3, Olympus' newest DSLR. I won't be getting rid of my 500, I will simply use one or the other in two different shooting modes and maximize the fun Olympus brings to digital photography. I came, I saw and I am glad I bought an Olympus - the camera has truly been a blessing for conveying my desire to share what I see. Words of advice... Go for it, you'll never regret purchasing this fine piece of equipment!

Self Cleaning Mirror.
User friendly.
14 pre-set shooting modes.
Excellent auto operation, including great focus.
Long battery life.
2 different memory storage systems built in (CF and XD).
Sturdy ergonomically built body, with great controls.
Great platform to enter the high-grade of digital imaging. Easy to learn and build skill with.

Viewfinder for TTL is small, but NOT unmanageable. I wear glasses and I am still able to get what I want viewing through the small eyepiece. The newer Olympus DSLR cameras have LIVE VIEW in the large LCD screen and that may suit you better.

My first Olympus was back in the 1960's - an Olympus Pen F/T. Olympus and Zuiko have never stopped improving upon their products.

Have not had to use "Repair." I have had the pleasure of using The Olympus Store for after market items I sought. Helpful, friendly, competitively priced and a pleasure to do business with.

This camera kit has 2 good lenses , with my favorite being the 40-150 zoom.
Easy to use and high quality prints from Costco's uploading service. The longer zoom appears to have less chroma ab's than the wide angle. I bought because I have old OM lenses, but the lenses appear "green" when processed. I am very satisfied with the battery runtime and also very happy with the camera's speed from shot to shot. Looks film-like when processed. Great Value!

Price, quality/ sensor cleaner (anti-dust), very easy pre-programmed functions, good feel.

Small Viewer, purple fringing on wide angle zoom, Above average noise levels and softness on iso 800 and above.

non/sony f717 previous camera

unknown.

The E-500 is the first DSRL that I have owned. Up until now I have shot only with film cameras. But because I am getting more serious with my photography I wanted to upgrade. What attracted the the E500 two kit lens was the price. I also felt that with the two lenses the kit would do me for quiet awhile without upgradeing or buying an additional lens later.
I have found the Olympus camera to be a very easy to use camera. The menu is easy to navigate and there are many short cut buttons, some programmable, that makes changing basic settings quick. White balance, ISO, AF features, spot metering can be changed in a flash.
You can use it in automatic settings and get some very good results. When I am chasing kids around with a camera I have little time to think of changing settings. This camera performs very well in those conditions. But when I am taking landscape pictures I like to have much more control of things and this camera can produce some stunning pictures.

Easily navagating thru the menu
Great feel to the camera, nice to carry and hold when using.
Crystal clear pictures.
Built in flash takes really good pictures, even in low light.
Comes with lens hoods for both lenses.

Camera struggles to focus on distant objects. I miss being able to focus to infinity in a hurry.

This is my first time here, but I purchased the camera in the middle of December, so I have had it for about a month. In that time, I've actually shot a wedding (as the second camera), a new year's eve party, a basketball game, a general get together, and just walked around and shot anything I thought would look good.

I have to say I did a lot of research before I picked this camera. My other choices were the Nikon D80, the Sony A100, the Canon XTi, and the Pentax K10D. Luckily for me, I have a great camera shop right in my town and went down to play with all of them. The first knock off was the Canon. I just didn't like how "cheap" it felt in my hands. And I didn't like the kit lens that came with it. The Nikon went next mainly for the price (which I still feel is overpriced, but my sister in law bought one and I've got to say it is a nice piece of equipment.) The Sony seemed too soft when reviewing the photos it took and the lense wasn't the most impressive. the Pentax K10 is a great camera, but for $999, you get the body and one lense. for $1100 I got the E-500 body, both kit lenses, a 4 gig 120x CF card, a camera bag, a CF usb reader, cleaning cloth, and a FL-36 flash (complete with Sigma bounce card and four AA rechargable batteries with the charger). This also included buying an extra two year warranty. I dare somebody to beat that!

What do you really lose? The anti-shake the new cameras offer and two megapixels (that you won't notice anyway)

What I really like about the camera is its options. You can really customize it to your liking. One point people seem to put the e-500 down about is its lack of a secondary screen on top, but to me, you have the information on the LCD (in two different formats) and inside the viewfinder itself. You just have to pull the camera away from you to see what's happening, not turn it up.

It's pretty light with the 14-45mm lense, but you will feel the weight of the 40-150mm after awhile. I think the response is pretty quick and focusing is good. Many choices of how you want to save your photos is a breeze and I find myself using super high quality jpgs and Raw a lot. Although set at high quality 1.4 compression, you can shoot until the card is full. I've only gotten as many as five in a burst with Raw or SHQ.

Detail is great, but the camera really shines when you add the FL-36 flash. The whole system is digital and it shows as the lense, body and flash all work together. When the batteries are fully charged, the flash resets in from one to five seconds, depending on how bright your burst was, bounce options, etc. I get about 200 shots for the flash before I have to recharge. I get about 400-500 shots before I have to change the camera battery. More if I turn the LCD off and only use it for setting my options.

By trade I am a graphic designer and video editor as well on the side, so the 4:3 ratio made sense to me. I can take shots that will natively fit into projects that I am doing. Besides, the only 3:2 ratio in use today is photos that are 4 by 6 inches. I commonly print 13 by 19 and I've been printing out a lot of 8 by 10's of native photos from the camera with no photoshopping and the colors are marvelous, clear, and very detailed. Depth of field is good and getting some macro shots with the kit lenses works very well, but I'm sure a dedicated lense would be better.

Ease of use. You can change your settings three different ways. Find what works best for you and you can even save two custom settings for yourself.

Price point can't be beat.

Kit lenses don't feel cheap and cover a wide range 14mm to 150mm (28 to 300 35mm equiv)

Dual card slots (CF and Xd)

Long battery life

Lots of lenses to buy now.

Feels good in your hand.

Just a fun piece of equipment.

People complain about the viewfinder being too small. I don't see it and the only ones I've heard this from all seem to wear glasses (my experience only) You can buy the magnifying eyepiece for $40 that will increase the magnification by 1.2.

I don't like the camera's built in flash for AF assist. It is annoying with the mulitple burst it puts out and it can agitate your subjects. But with the FL-36, you don't have this problem. I don't even use the built in flash generally.

Takes longer to turn on than most cameras (about three seconds), but in the scheme of all things, so what.

Because of these I only give it an overall of 4, but I've yet to see a camera that's perfect.

Canon XT 300D, Nikon D80, Canon XTi 400D, Sony Alpha A100, Pentax K10D

Have no use for them yet.

I love this camera! This is my first dslr so I can not compare it to others but, I enjoy it's easy to use functions, fits well in my hands and takes excellent pictures. The lens that came with it works well enough, I get great pictures but I am regretting not getting the two lens kit. My kids are in sports and I love taking candid shots so I am a little frustrated I can't zoom in any closer but all in all this lens and camera have more than met my expectations of a dslr. I believe for a first timer, this dslr is the perfect choice! And after reading many different reviews on the 4/3 system of lenses, I am convinced that Oly has one of the best series of lenses available, and at not too high a price.

Not too heavy
Fits well in hands
Has 15 automatic modes of picture taking
Has manual setting
lens is good, nice clean, clear pictures with not a lot of noise
one of the cheaper dslr cameras

auto focus is a little slow
would rather have the 14-54 instead of the 14-45 although kit lens is a good one
really missing that 40-150 lens!

have not experienced CS yet