Olympus C-5050 ZoomTheir best camera yet? - Olympus introduces a top-of-the-line five-megapixel model with noise reduction technology, optimum image enlargement, an improved interface, and support for three memory formats.<<Design :(Previous) | (Next): Optics>> Page 4:ViewfinderReview First Posted: 01/09/2003 |
Viewfinder
The
C-5050 Zoom offers both an optical, real-image viewfinder and a rear panel,
1.8-inch, wide view, 114,000 pixel, TFT color LCD screen. The optical viewfinder
accommodates eyeglass wearers with a diopter correction adjustment and a comfortably
high eyepoint, leaving a reasonable amount of room between your eye and the
finder for an eyeglass lens to fit. I don't have any way of measuring the
range of dioptric adjustments, but can say that the one on the 5050's eyepiece
seems to range much more in the "farsighted" direction than in the
"nearsighted" one - It really didn't come close to being able to
cope with my own 20/180 vision.
While the optical viewfinder zooms along with the lens, it does not show the
operation of the digital zoom, which can only be enabled when the LCD monitor
is on. A central autofocus target helps to center your subjects, and two LED
indicators (one orange and one green) are adjacent to the viewfinder window,
indicating camera status with either glowing or blinking lights. A blinking,
green LED indicates trouble with either the memory card or the autofocus.
A solid green LED indicates that focus is set and the camera is ready to snap
the picture. A flashing orange LED means that the flash is still charging
or that there is a potential of camera shake, while a solid orange LED shows
that the flash is fully charged and ready to fire.
As
described earlier, the C-5050 Zoom's LCD monitor tilts upward 90 degrees,
once pulled out from the back panel slightly. It can also tilt downward approximately
30 degrees. A detailed information display reports a number of exposure settings,
including the currently selected f/stop, shutter speed, and exposure compensation
adjustments across the top of the screen. When first entering a record mode,
a more detailed information display appears for a few seconds, showing the
image attributes (contrast, sharpness, and saturation), flash exposure compensation,
ISO, flash mode, drive mode, and focus mode settings. In Aperture and Shutter
Priority modes, the chosen aperture or shutter speed appears as a constant,
while the second, automatically determined exposure value changes whenever
the Shutter button is half pressed (based on exposure compensation and changing
light levels). The Manual mode displays both the selected f/stop and shutter
speed values (adjustable with the left / right and up / down Arrow buttons,
respectively), while the exposure compensation value is reported in the upper
right corner, showing the amount of over- or underexposure. The exposure values
flash red when the camera disagrees with the setting. In Manual Focus mode,
a distance display scale appears on the LCD monitor, which helps to adjust
focus in low-light situations.
The C-5050 Zoom's LCD monitor
also offers a live histogram display in record mode, which is helpful in determining
any over- or underexposure. Though the information display reports any exposure
discrepancies in Manual mode, the histogram actually graphs the tonal distribution
of the image, making it a little easier to see how the exposure will balance
out.
Pressing
the Quick View button on the camera's back panel turns the LCD viewfinder
on and off, but also optionally cycles through a position in which a detailed
list of camera settings is shown in lieu of the viewfinder display. This display
is very reminiscent of the back-panel display of Olympus' E-10 and E-20 SLRs,
and provides a wealth of information about the camera's settings and status.
(This display is enabled by turning on the "Dual Control Panel"
option in the camera's setup menu.)
The C-5050 Zoom's optical viewfinder proved a little tight in my testing, showing only 86 percent frame coverage at wide angle, and about 87 percent at telephoto. This is pretty typical for consumer and prosumer digicams, but I really wish the manufacturers would make the optical viewfinders more accurate. This would be particularly nice on Olympus' cameras, which typically show almost no power drain at all when turned on and left in a record mode with the LCD turned off. - A more accurate optical viewfinder would let you spend more time with the LCD off, greatly extending battery life.
The LCD monitor proved to be much more accurate, showing almost exactly 100%
of the final image area. Given that I like LCD monitors to be as close to
100 percent accuracy as possible, the C-5050 Zoom performed well here, although
the LCD viewfinder's image seemed to be shifted very slightly to the right
relative to the final image area.
When
using the LCD monitor to review captured images, you can zoom in on displayed
images up to 4x, and then scroll around the enlarged image using the Arrow
buttons. This is extremely handy for checking focus, small details, or precise
framing. There's also an Index display option, which shows either four, nine,
or 16 thumbnail images at a time, as determined by a menu setting. A Playback
histogram display shows the tonal distribution of the exposed image, with
a list of basic exposure settings off to the right. A very handy "Quick
View" function lets you check the last picture taken in Shooting mode
by pressing the Display button twice in quick succession. The image will remain
displayed on the LCD monitor until you revert back to Shooting mode by pressing
the Display button again.
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