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Reviews
Olympus C-5060 Wide Zoom
Olympusā trunk-line C-series has done very well in the market;
you see their distinctive, retro-rangefinder lines everywhere. Keeping
up with the many variations on this theme is a challenge, as the
company releases several every year. While their compact dimensions
may lead you to equate them with The Common Plastic Digicam offered
by dozens of me-too makers, the C series is all about packing the
most innovative features into a comfortable midsize body and selling
it at a competitive price. At this, Olympus has succeeded very nicely,
with the lions share of their number two worldwide sales position
coming from C series cameras.
So
itās no surprise that the new C-5060 Wide Zoom is attracting a lot
of attention among the digirati, with stores selling out of 5060
stock regularly. Offering essentially every feature known to modern
electronic photography in an attractive sub-$600 package, the 5060
deserves all the attention, and serious consideration as your next
camera.
Rather
than waste energy making radical design changes to the C camera
line over the years, they have wisely chosen to continually refine
the original C-2000 winning combination of size and performance.
The 5060 is a bit taller than older C models in order to accommodate
the newly redesigned articulating LCD mechanism, the larger lens
body, and the autofocus assist beam emitter and more powerful flash.
Iād have to rate the new cameraās looks as the most professional-looking
consumer Oly to date, with several design cues seemingly taken from
their high-end E1 line of pro cameras and lenses. The only aesthetic
criticism I have is the polished metal ring on the face of the lens,
which is pure flash that serves no purpose. There is a reason why
pros prefer their cameras to be matte black: the possibility of
an unwanted reflection ending up in the final image is bad for precise
studio work, and shiny surfaces gives can away your position during
field work.
Previous
Oly C models such as the 5050 offered ultra-fast f1.8 lenses, but
the 5060 offers a more conventional f2.8 maximum aperture in exchange
for a 27mm-equivalent wide-angle view. There are precious few digicams
(or film cams, for that matter) that offer such a view, so it is
good to see Olympus add this feature to their line. There is nothing
like a wide-angle to capture a subject surrounded by its environment,
or a large group of subjects without clustering them unnaturally
together.
I could
write paragraphs listing the dozens of cool features offered by
the C-5060, but that would be too easy. Instead, Iāll bring to your
attention the most interesting. Rest assured, if there is some particular
obscure feature I havenāt discussed here, it is probably in the
5060.
Model-Olympus C-5060 Wide Zoom
List price-US$649
Sensor res-5.1 megapixels
Image dimensions-2592x1944 down
to 640x480
ISO-80/100/200/400 or auto
Lens-F:2.8-8
Lens focal length-5.7-22.8 mm (27-111mm
equiv.)
Shutter-1/4000 to 16seconds
Exposure compensation-N/A
Storage-CF + xD Card (32MB incl.)
Focus-TTL contrast, spot, manual
LCD screen-1.8 inch daylight TFT(134k)
Flash modes-7 modes
I/O-A/V, USB
Battery-BLM-1 Lithium-Ion
Weight-15.2 ounces w/o batteries
Dimensions-4.6 x 3.4 x 2.6 inches
Included-Camedia, strap, cables,
remote |
The
Movie mode is particularly interesting. Not only does it capture
at a nice big 640x480 at 30fps, it allows you to zoom while you
shoot. Theyāve even disabled the comparatively noisy mechanical
zoom in favor of the competent digital zoom when you have sound
recording on. You can capture as much as your storage card (xD or
CompactFlash) can hold, with a countdown in the finder.
In
addition to the well-designed articulating LCD, the panel itself
is now daylight-readable and higher density to boot. With a coverage
of 97% compared to the what the newly upsized CCD imager is actually
capturing, you can frame very accurately. (The optical viewfinder
only covers a disappointing sub-90% view.)
I particularly
like the handy AEL (autoexposure lock) button that lets you lock
in exposure without depressing the shutter to achieve autofocus.
Most people seem to think AF and AE are a single operation, but
experienced shooters know how important is can be to separate these
functions in challenging lighting situations. I am also fond of
the multi-pattern AF setting which uses up to eight spot readings
and intelligently averages them for you. This is a real time saver
when you just donāt have time to fuss with taking readings off of
individual objects or grey cards, northern sky, or whatever you
usually use. My tests delivered extremely well exposed shots with
zero planning ÷ a real plus when you have an active five year-old
daughter zooming around on a swing.
Most
folks buy a camera to take good pictures and thatās the end of it.
For them, any number of fine digicams can deliver the goods for
less than a car payment. For those of us who want all the features
and as little of the weight and bulk as possible, there is the Olympus
C-5060.
öEdison
Carter
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