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Olympus Camedia D-40 Zoom Super-compact 4 megapixel model takes great pictures! Select a topic Reference: Datasheet Camedia D-40 Zoom Sample Images --------------------------------- 1. Intro and Highlights 2. Executive Overview 3. Design 4. Viewfinder 5. Optics 6. Exposure & Flash 7. Shutter Lag & Cycle Time Tests 8. Operation & User Interface 9. Camera Modes & Menus 10. Image Storage & Interface 11. Video, Power, Software 12. Test Results & Conclusion --------------------------------- Print-Friendly Review Version Additional Resources and Other Links Reader Comments on Camedia D-40 Zoom Review --------------------------------- Digital Camera Comparometer (TM) --------------------------------- <-- Digital Cameras (Home) <-- Digital Camera Reviews Index <<Design :(Previous) | (Next): Optics>> Page 4:Viewfinder Review First Posted: 10/8/2001

Viewfinder
For composing images, the D-40Z offers a real-image optical viewfinder and a 1.5-inch TFT color LCD monitor. The optical viewfinder features a central autoexposure cross hair target, and the viewfinder's position above the lens means that its view is only visible when the lens cover is open. The camera does not have a diopter adjustment, but the optical viewfinder has a fairly high eyepoint. We were able to see the majority of the view at a fair distance from the eyepiece, so it should accommodate even thick eyeglasses. Two small LED lamps on the right side of the eyepiece blink or light solid to indicate camera status. The top orange light blinks if a flash is required and the flash is turned off, or when the flash is recharging. It glows steadily to indicate that the flash is ready to fire when the shutter button is depressed halfway. The bottom green light glows when exposure and focus are set and blinks when the subject is out of focus. The green lamp also blinks when the camera is processing an image or when there is no space left on the memory card.

The LCD monitor features a full-color image display made up of approximately 114,000 pixels. When the LCD monitor is engaged in any shooting mode (by pressing the Display button), it automatically shows detailed exposure information, including the current exposure mode, f/stop setting, shutter speed, exposure compensation, the number of images available in the current resolution setting, and a memory gauge showing the amount of room left on the SmartMedia card. Additional information is displayed temporarily when operating the camera's buttons or Mode dial, indicating ISO, quality setting, resolution, and function icons when engaged (i.e.: flash, macro, self-timer, etc.). A distance display shows focus distance in feet or meters when using the Manual Focus option, as well as a separate Zoom bar that shows the camera's 2.5x optical zoom in operation, and the Digital Zoom progress, when you zoom past the optical telephoto limit.

In Playback mode, the LCD monitor's information display reports information similar to that shown in Shooting mode, though it can be set to Info Off (limited display) or Info On (full display) through the Playback Top Menu. In the off mode, the information display shows the quality setting, image number, date and time it was recorded, and battery power. The monitor also shows any printing or write-protect information. When the Info option is turned on, the detailed display includes the file size, aperture, shutter speed, exposure compensation setting, and white balance setting. The Index Display is activated by pushing the Zoom lever toward the wide-angle setting to display either 4, 9, or 16 thumbnail images at a time on the LCD screen. (The number of thumbnails displayed is set in the Playback menu.) You can also enlarge captured images as much as 4x on the LCD, for checking fine details of composition or focus, rotate images, or play back images in an automated slide show.

In our tests, the D40's optical viewfinder proved to be a little tight, showing only 80 percent frame accuracy at wide angle, and approximately 81 percent accuracy at telephoto. The LCD monitor produced more accurate results, showing about 97 percent at wide angle, and about 98 percent at telephoto. Given that we generally prefer LCD monitors to be as close to 100 percent accuracy as possible, the D40 did an excellent job in this respect. We'd really like to see better accuracy for the optical viewfinder though, particularly given the D40's fairly short battery life when the LCD is used as a viewfinder.