Olympus Stylus 780

Reviewed August 2007

Ergonomics

The Stylus 780 (called Mju 780 in Europe) is a camera that offers a 5X optical zoom image stabilization, a 7.1 megapixel resolution and a 2.5-inch LCD monitor, all of it in a metal all-weather body.

The front of the camera has a brushed finish that contrasts with the shiny chrome of the lens barrel. The Olympus logo is positioned on the front, part of a raised area that serves as a grip. The back of the camera is finished in a metallic brown colour with bright metal controls, and when the camera is powered on, or when one of the controls is used, the icons or text that label the cluster of controls below the zoom control on the back of the camera briefly light up yellow.

Three controls are on top of the camera: on the left the round power switch is recessed slightly into the surface so the camera cannot be turned on accidentally.

In the middle, the rectangular 2-stage shutter release focuses the lens and establishes the exposure parameters when pressed to the halfway point. And all the way on the right, the button labeled serves to control the image stabilizer which operates at the level of the CCD. Two settings are available, On or Off, the latter being valuable since when the camera is mounted on a tripod and the stabilizer is left on it can cause interference.

All the other external controls of the Stylus 780 are on its back, on the right of the 215,000 pixel, 2.5-inch monitor.

At the top left is the zoom control that not only serves to adjust the focal length, but also serves in playback: when pressed on the wide angle side, W , it serves to see captured images as an index (4, 9, 16, 25 images per screen or in a calendar display that allows seeing images based on their capture date) while the telephoto side of the zoom control, T , allows zooming into an image up t 10X.

All the way on the right is the mode dial a toothed dial that extends slightly past the edge of the body so it can be turned with the thumb. The mode dial has 6 positions, the capture modes being identified by white icons while the playback modes are green. Starting with the capture modes, the dial provides the following modes:

	This position serves to access two capture modes, the choice of which is made in the FUNC. menu (see further): Program selects the most appropriate aperture and shutter speed so as to obtain a good exposure. This mode allows the user to modify all other capture parameters. Auto handles all camera settings, all the user has to do is point, and shoot.
SCN	Serves to access any one of the 22 Scene modes of the camera. These modes optimize camera settings according to the scene about to be photographed: Portrait Landscape Landscape + Portrait Night Scene Night + Portrait Sport Indoor Candle Self portrait Available Light Sunset Fireworks Cuisine Behind Glass Documents Auction Shoot and Select 1 Shoot and Select 2 Beach and Snow Under Water Wide 1 Under Water Wide 2 Under Water Macro
GUIDE	The Guide position presents a shooting guide to help users capture better images. Fourteen different situations are covered, all of which optimize the camera according to the given situation. Once a selection of one of the situations is made, the camera presents a screen divided into four images each of which is a variation of the selected situation. Therefore, for example, selecting "Brightening Subject" presents a screen with the subject to be photographed at 4 different levels of brightness. Selecting one of these immediately captures the image chosen.
	Set to the Movie mode the Stylus 800 captures AVI format movies with mono sound at any one of three frame sizes: SHQ: 640 x 480 pixels, HQ: 320 x 240 pixels, SQ: 160 x 120 pixels. All recordings are done at 15 frames per second and the length of the movie is only limited by the capacity of the memory card. During the recording, the zoom and focus are locked at the first frame, but the exposure and white balance are adjusted as needed. A 5.6X digital zoom is available, once activated in the menu (see the Characteristics section of the review).

The Stylus 780 has 2 playback modes, which take up the last two position on the Mode Dial:

	The classic Playback mode displays the last captured image and serves to review all the image images that have been captured.
	The second mode is a playback mode that only displays images that have previously selected as Favourites, a step that requires the use of the standard playback mode (see the Characteristics section of the review for more details on the options contained in this menu).

The remainder of the Stylus 780's external controls are below the Mode Dial and the ones above and below the 4-direction control called the Arrow Pad on this camera are designed like rocker switches. Starting above the Arrow Pad, the one above controls three functions:

• The side of the switch labeled MENU displays the menu that corresponds to the camera's current mode, or when the camera's Mode Dial is set to the SCN position, the selection screen for all the scene modes, and when the Mode Dial is set to the GUIDE position, the selection screen for that mode.
• The side with the icon puts the camera in the Playback mode, irrespective of the Mode Dial's position, the button can be pressed again to return to the capture mode. in addition, when the camera is connected to a PictBridge compliant printer, the button serves to start the printing process.

• P: serves to select the capture mode Program or Auto.
• WB serves to set the white balance: Auto, Sun, Cloudy, Tungsten (Incandescent), Fluorescent 1 (daylight), 2 (neutral) or 3 (cool).
• ISO serves to select the CCD sensitivity: Auto, Auto High, 80, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600 ISO.

• Drive serves to select the sequential or continuous shooting modes:
  • one image at a time.
  • is a burst mode where the focus, exposure and white balance are locked at the first frame, and the shooting speed varies according to the image size and quality setting currently set.
  • operates like the other burst mode but at a higher rate as it only operates at the HQ or SQ1 and SQ2 image sizes/qualities.

• ESP serves to select the metering pattern:
  • ESP: meters the brightness at the centre of the monitor and the surrounding area separately to capture an image with balanced brightness. This metering pattern is not well-suited to subjects that are strongly backlit.
  • Spot, only takes a small area into account to establish the exposure, making it well suited to subjects that are strongly backlit.

While the Arrow Pad serves to navigate the menus and review images, its four directions also support additional functions:

	The up direction controls Exposure Compensation over ±2 EV in 1/3 EV increments.
	The right direction serves to choose the mode flash: Auto, Auto with Red-eye Reduction, Fill-in or Forced Off.
	The down direction controls the Self-Timer, which offers either a 12 second delay before the shutter is released.
	The left direction serves to start either the Macro or Super Macro modes. The standard Macro mode allows the camera to focus on a subject that is 20 cm (8 in.) from the lens at the wide end and 60 cm (23.6 in.) at the telephoto end from the front element of the lens. The Super Macro mode locks the zoom at the wide angle end and allows a minimum focus distance of 3 cm (1.17 in).

The remaining controls of the Stylus 780 are below the Arrow Pad. A rocker switch, similar to the one above the Arrow Pad, serves to control 4 functions:

The right side has a dual function:

With the camera set to a capture mode, the button controls the Technology Shadow Adjustment. This function automatically adjusts, post capture, the brightness and contrast of dark image areas adjusting the image without affecting the highlights of the image.

The left side, labeled DISP. serves to change the level of detail superimposed on the image, whether the camera is set to a capture mode or to the playback mode. By pressing the button repeatedly more detail about the image can be displayed, or a composition grid can be overlaid on the image coming from the lens, or a real-time histogram showing the distribution of brightness throughout the frame can be displayed.

In addition, while a menu is on-screen, this button takes on another role indicated by the icon, display a short text explanation of the currently highlighted function.

Olympus Stylus cameras have, for quite a while, been cameras that offer a good ergonomic design in a compact size. These are cameras that have well-positioned controls that react quickly and have no noticeable shutter delay once the auto focus has found its target. Moreover, the monitor remains very visible, even when the sun strikes it directly.