Olympus E-410

Reviewed May 2007

Test Photos

STILL LIFE PHOTO

This subject is photographed in a room that has a mix of fluorescent and incandescent light, but which is not brightly lit. The camera's flash is used to add fill light. The backdrop is 1.95 m (6.5 ft) from the camera.

The images presented in this section were captured using the RAW format, then processed using the Olympus Master 2 software supplied with the camera, and saved as 8-bit TIFF.

The images were processed as-shot, using the settings that were recorded along with the RAW image.

ZOOM PHOTO

Now we zoom in on a specific area. The intent is to test the sharpness of the image at the zoom's maximum setting. The camera remains at the same distance as with the preceding photo.

Using the 40-150 mm f4-5.6 ED at its maximum telephoto setting — the equivalent of a 300 mm on a 35 mm camera —, The E-410 captures just a small section of the subject. Once again, the camera's Program mode selects the widest aperture available at that focal length to maximize the effect of the flash. As a result, the depth of field is limited. The level of detail the camera captures, however, is excellent.

CLOSE-UP PHOTO

Macro photos with an SLR camera usually require a special lens, or at least a lens that has a macro setting; something that neither of the kit lenses have.

To obtain this image, an inverted 50 mm f1.4 lens was mounted in front of the 40-150 mm f4-5.6 ED, and the zoom was used at the maximum telephoto setting.

Aperture priority allowed the use of a small aperture to maximize the depth of field, which is very limited with this type of set up.

BUILDING PHOTO

This image is our outdoor test. The architecture of the building, in particular the angled girders, immediately show the presence of jaggies. The shadowed entrance can also often reveal the quality of the exposure.

The ESP metering of the E-410 produces excellent exposures that are well-balanced between light and dark areas. At the widest angle and with good weather, an f8 aperture yields an image that is sharp across the entire frame. Colour rendition is flawless and there is no chromatic aberration detectable on the edges of strong contrasts.

ZOOM PHOTO

Zooming in on the entrance of the building, the shadowed entrance takes on a greater importance for the metering and can cause an overexposure of sections that are directly lit.

Once again, the 40 - 150 mm f5-5.6 ED kit lens is used at its maximum telephoto. Lighting conditions are ideal for this image, and the shot is captured with the camera handheld. Sharpness across the entire image is excellent, and there is very little pincushion distortion. This lens, like the other in the kit, shows no trace of any chromatic aberration.

NIGHT PHOTO

As this camera is capable of a long exposure, a photo taken at night is included.

With a maximum exposure time of 60 seconds in the Manual mode — up to 8 minutes if the optional remote control is used with the Bulb setting — the E-410 well-suited to night time photography.

Moreover, the camera is equipped with a mirror lock-up function that lifts the mirror prior to the shutter opening, preventing the mirror from possibly causing a vibration at the beginning of a long exposure.

For this image, sensitivity is set to 100 ISO to minimize noise and the white balance is set to incandescent to take into account the dominant light sources and obtain colours as accurate as possible.

Although an urban environment, this area is dimly lit. However, an exposure time of 30 seconds and an aperture of f3.5 were enough to capture an image that is significantly brighter than what can be seen with the unaided eye. The image is sharp, and contains almost no noise.