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Olympus C-2100 Zoom

Wow! A superb 10X, optically stabilized zoom lens on a high-quality 2 megapixel camera!

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Page 8:Operation & User Interface
Review First Posted: 10/18/2000

Operation and User Interface
We found the operation of the C-2100 fairly straightforward. The familiar 35mm styling makes the camera easy to hold and maneuver. The majority of the controls on the top and back panel are within reach of your right hand, making one-handed operation possible, but not necessarily recommended with such a long lens. The hefty hand grip is a welcome design element, as it allows you to securely hold the camera and help balance the weight of the long lens barrel.

The LCD-based menu system is uncomplicated and simple to navigate, especially if you're already familiar with the typical Olympus menu setup. While the C-2100 does rely heavily on its LCD menu to change camera settings, it offers so many features and adjustments that an LCD menu is the most efficient way to access them all. Still, many of the most basic exposure functions, such as flash mode, exposure compensation, shutter speed, aperture setting, metering, continuous shooting, and auto exposure lock, are controlled by individual buttons on the camera body, freeing you from the menu system for those functions. The only control feature we felt was slightly awkward is the positioning of the power switch directly underneath the mode dial. Most digital cameras—even other Olympus models—combine the power control with the mode dial, offering an "Off" selection on the dial. In this case, the separate on/off switch also incorporates a reset position, which can be used to reset basic camera functions when you power on the camera.

A quick read of the manual should get you started with the basics. We should also mention here that the accompanying manual offers a lot of helpful information that novice photographers may find of interest. For example, the manual explains how to shoot under specific lighting situations using the camera's preset exposure modes, and also describes how you would set up the shot in manual exposure mode. Many diagrams, charts, and detailed instructions throughout the book will help guide you to better pictures.

Control Enumeration

Shutter Button: Located on the camera's top panel, and encircled by the zoom control, this button trips the shutter when fully depressed, and sets focus and exposure when halfway depressed. When the camera's self-timer is enabled, a full press of the shutter button triggers the 12-second countdown.

Zoom Control: Resting underneath the shutter button, this sliding, circular switch controls the 10X optical zoom when the camera is set to any capture mode. When the 2.7X digital telephoto is enabled, the control also zooms into the digital telephoto range. In Playback mode, this switch controls the playback enlargement and index display options. Sliding the switch toward the "W" pulls up an index display of the captured images on the card (up to 16 thumbnail images on a page), while sliding the switch toward the "T" enlarges the currently displayed image. Once enlarged, you can scroll around the image with the arrow keys to view different parts of the image. Pressing the zoom switch back toward "W" cancels the enlargement.

Pop-up Flash Release Switch: Positioned on the left side of the pop-up flash unit (opposite the shutter button), this sliding switch releases the pop-up flash from its compartment.

Mode Dial: Situated on the right side of the camera's top panel, this notched dial controls the camera's operating mode, and offers the following choices:

Movie Mode: Sets the camera to record moving images with sound, at approximately 15 frames per second.
Scene Program: Offers preset exposure modes for shooting under specific conditions. Presets are Portrait, Sports, Landscape, and Night Scene.
Manual Mode: Allows you to control both the aperture and shutter speed settings, as well as all other exposure options (except for exposure compensation, which is only meaningful for automatically determined exposure settings). Shutter speeds range from 1/800 to 16 seconds, and aperture settings range from f/2.8 to f/8.0.
Shutter Priority Mode: Lets you set the shutter speed from 1/800 to 1/2 second, while the camera selects the corresponding lens aperture setting.
Aperture Priority Mode: Gives you control over the lens aperture setting (from f/2.8 to f/8.0), while the camera chooses the most appropriate shutter speed.
Program Mode: Places the camera in charge of both aperture and shutter speed. You maintain control over the remaining exposure options.
Playback Mode: Displays the captured images on the memory card. You can enlarge captured images, delete or protect them, view an index display, or set up images for printing on a DPOF compatible device.

Power/Reset Switch: Positioned under the mode dial, this switch controls the camera's power. A "Reset" position, accessible by pushing the switch forward past the "On" position, resets the camera's settings to their factory defaults.

Macro Button: Located on the top panel of the camera, to the left of the small status display panel, this button is marked with the traditional macro flower symbol and is the first in a series of three control buttons. Pressing this button activates the camera's macro mode, which adjusts the focusing range for close-up subjects, from 3.9 to 23.6 inches (9.96 to 59.94cm). A second press of the button cancels the mode. In Playback mode, this button rotates images shot with the camera oriented vertically 90 degrees clockwise.

Metering Button: Next in line after the Macro button, this button controls the camera's metering mode. Options are Standard, Center-Weighted, and Spot. In Playback mode, this button rotates vertically oriented images 90 degrees counter-clockwise.

Drive Button: The last in the series of small buttons located on top of the camera, this button controls the camera's shooting mode, and cycles through Single Picture Shooting, Sequential Shooting, AF Sequential Shooting, Self-Timer/Remote Control, and Auto Bracket modes. In Playback mode, this button returns vertically-oriented images to their original position after being rotated using either the Macro or Metering button.

AE Lock/Print Button: Just below the mode dial on the top right of the back panel, this button controls the exposure lock function in any capture mode. In normal shooting mode, pressing the AE Lock button locks the exposure settings on a specific portion of the image, allowing you to use a different exposure setting than what the camera would normally choose for the subject as a whole. To lock exposure, you simply position a portion of the image in the center of the frame, press the AE Lock button, reframe the subject to the original composition and fire the shutter. When the Multi-Metering function is activated through the record menu, the AE Lock button allows you to select up to eight metering points within the image for the camera to determine an average exposure.

In Playback mode, this button pulls up the Print Order screen, which allows you to mark the currently displayed image for printing, or all images. You can then set the number of prints, whether or not to display the date and time on the image, and whether or not you want to crop the image slightly.

Flash Mode/Erase Button: Positioned to the right of the optical viewfinder, this button controls the flash mode in all capture modes. Pressing it sequentially cycles through the Automatic, Redeye Reduction, and Fill-in flash modes. In Playback mode, pressing this button pulls up a delete screen, where you can delete the currently displayed image or cancel the command.

Info Button: Located below the Flash Mode/Erase button, this button dictates how much information is displayed on the LCD screen in all camera modes. Options are No Information, Partial Information, and Full Information, which display varying degrees of image or camera settings information. The amount of information displayed directly affects battery power consumption.

Arrow Key Pad: Directly to the right of the Flash and Info buttons, this key pad consists of four arrow buttons, each arrow pointing in one of the four cardinal directions. In all capture modes except Manual, the right and left arrows control the exposure compensation. In Aperture and Shutter Priority modes, the up and down arrows control either shutter speed or aperture, depending on the mode. In Manual exposure mode, the right and left arrows set the lens aperture, while the up and down arrows set the shutter speed. In any capture mode, when the manual focus option is activated, the up and down arrows adjust the focus, based on a distance scale displayed on the LCD monitor.

When either the Record or Playback menu is displayed on-screen, all four arrow buttons navigate through menu options and control settings.

In Playback mode, the right and left arrows scroll through captured images. When playback zoom is enabled, all four arrows allow you to scroll around within the enlarged image.

OK/Manual Focus/Protect Button: Situated directly below the arrow key pad, this button performs several functions. In any capture mode, pressing the button pulls up the Manual Focus distance scale. Focus is then controlled with the up and down arrow buttons. In either the Record or Playback menu, this button acts as the "OK" to accept menu selections or changes. In Playback mode, this button write-protects the currently displayed image from accidental erasure (other than card formatting). It also removes the protection from the currently displayed image, if write-protection has already been enabled.

Monitor Button: Just below the OK button, this button controls the LCD display in all capture modes. When the large LCD monitor is activated, the optical viewfinder is disabled, and vice versa.

Menu Button: Directly below the Monitor button, this button pulls up the LCD menu in all capture modes, as well as in Playback mode. It also closes the menu screen.

Diopter Adjustment Dial: Located on the left side of the optical viewfinder eyepiece, this dial adjusts the focus in the eyepiece to accommodate eyeglass wearers.

Battery Compartment Lock Switch: Centrally located on the battery compartment door, on the bottom of the camera, this sliding switch locks and unlocks the battery compartment door.