Olympus E-P1 hands-on, test shots, and mini-review
By Joshua Topolsky 
posted July 1st 2009 2:19PM
posted July 1st 2009 2:19PM
Hardware
The hardware on the E-P1 is obviously gorgeous. At first glance, you can't help but be somewhat taken by the styling, which pays clear homage to Olympus cameras from the 60's and 70's -- in this case, the original "Pen" line of small, fixed lens and SLR models. The build quality doesn't disappoint either; the camera feels solid in your hands, though not so heavy or bulky that you couldn't throw it into a bag or shoot one-handed. In fact, we were pleasantly surprised with just how compact the device feels in your hands and when compared with an average DSLR.
The E-P1 has a large, 3-inch LCD display which was clear and crisp indoors, though we found it to be almost impossible to use in daylight. That wouldn't be an issue, except that the camera has no viewfinder, so under bright (or even overcast) light, you pretty much have to cross your fingers. This was kind of a big issue for us -- not being able to tell how an image will look in daylight is a bit of a downer when you're out shooting photos. Still, we found ways to compensate, but nothing that made up for a dedicated viewfinder.
Olympus does offer a $100 viewfinder attachment, though it's not going through the lens. It will help a bit in these situations, but doesn't really give you much wiggle room (or the accuracy you'd get with standard DSLR).
Thankfully, Olympus puts most of your go-to settings just a button press away, though the company does tuck away f-stop and shutter speed controls in menus accessible from the wheel on the back. We found getting into manual mode and flipping between settings to be relatively painless -- most of the functionality is obvious just by glancing at the back of the camera and controls up top.
Software
The E-P1 was a cinch to set up and start snapping pictures with. We found the menu layout and navigation to be quite easy to figure out after a few quick guesses (though we have the advantage of constantly looking through the menus of new gadgets). Olympus is clearly aiming this model at the casual photographer set, offering lots and lots of preset modes that let you quickly get to snapping. We didn't need to use many of them, though the variations that we tried produced excellent results.
Those presets are a nice touch from the company, and will make this camera much easier to position to moms and dads that want to take nice family shots without a lot of fuss, or the amateur photographers who are looking for something easier and quick than their DSLR. More serious shooters will still have all the options they're looking for, but it's obvious that this is targeted elsewhere.
Still image quality
Our early impressions of the image quality from the E-P1 are mostly positive, though we do have a few issues with the camera that sap a tiny bit of our excitement.
Using the stock 14-42mm lens provided plenty of range for shooting, and we found the speed and accuracy of the autofocus to be rock solid (it wasn't quite D90 quality, but excellent nonetheless). As we mentioned before, indoors shooting was a snap, but going out-of-doors took a little adjusting. Once we got comfortable with the "hope for the best" angle of using the LCD, we ended up with some pretty decent shots. One big issue we had, however, was with color saturation and tint. We found much of the red and pink in our photos to be exaggerated in an unflattering way, with some reds even coming off as over exposed and nearly hot pink in hue. This doesn't feel like a dealbreaker (it obviously can be compensated for), but coming out of the box with noticeable color issues wasn't a plus in our book.
For low light / high ISO shooting, we came away pretty impressed with the noise levels we saw. The E-P1 has an ISO range of 100-6400. At the top end (and with a sensor this small) we expected more noise than we actually got. Compared with similarly sized point-and-shoot cameras, we thought this model did a brilliant job at tackling ISOs that would be unusable on some of the competition.
ISO 1000 vs. ISO 6400
Overall, we're not about to pass final judgment on still quality -- we've only given the camera a short test, and we expect to see better (and more interesting) results once we've spent more time tweaking.
Video image quality
When it came to video, we were frankly blown away. The 720p output is nothing short of breathtaking, and we're looking forward to shooting some serious cop dramas with this thing. Unfortunately, we do have a bone to pick with Olympus on the audio -- the stereo sound is excellent, but while using continuous focus (a nice touch, and it looks great), the sound of the lens makes the experience somewhat less heartening. It's not unusable, but to have your gorgeous video marred by the shhhk / click of the lens is a bit annoying. That whole issue could easily be circumvented with an external audio input... but Olympus doesn't provide one here, meaning you're stuck with what's onboard.
Wrap-up
We still have plenty more to explore on the E-P1, such as the in-camera editing, slideshow options, and lots of little perks that Olympus has smartly added, but at a glance, we're impressed with much of what the company has delivered.
Obviously some of the detracting factors here should give pause before you put down your $799 for the basic kit, but you should know that there are also a lot of really outstanding features and impressive performance packed into this small and extremely attractive package. The E-P1 would be an excellent pick for anyone getting serious about photography who wants something easy to use, but still powerful enough to take really striking pictures and video. And for the gadget lovers out there... well, let's just say our wallets might be getting about $800 lighter pretty soon.
If you want to read more on the E-P1, take a look at Gadling's informative multi-part review right here.
Agreed, it really isn't a DSLR in any way, shape, or form. The only part of DSLR it meets is "Digital", but it's not a Single Lens Reflex camera.
If you're going to compare it to any "classic" camera format, it's clearly much more comparable to a rangefinder in terms of form-factor, although it's not one of those, either.
It should be called exactly what it is - an interchangeable-lens Point & Shoot. Sensor size has no bearing on what we call the thing, Sigma's DP-series have APS-C sensors, same as Nikon DX, and manual controls, but they're solidly in the P&S category.
Point and Shoot
adj.
"Of, relating to, or being a camera that adjusts settings such as focus and exposure automatically."
Sure you could use this camera in that way. But then so could you with most modern dSLRs. And this camera does offer full manual controls as well. In fact it seems to outclass many entry level dSLRs in this area (eg. two command dials, quick access to ISO/WB/Shooting Mode/AF). Plus it has the bigger sensor AND interchangeable lenses.
"No inherent compromises"? Is that a joke?
No mirror means no dedicated autofocus sensor, which means painfully slow and often inaccurate autofocus. Panasonic had a good solution to this, Olympus does not. No mirror also means no dedicated matrix metering system, which leads to questionable auto-exposure. With a DSLR, I can press the shutter in very low light, and I'd be fairly sure to get accurate focus instantaneously, with good exposure at that. Try that with the Olympus.
The attachment is a separate entity, and is in no way TTL (through the lens). You're only getting framing help and nothing else, and you'd have to buy a different attachment for each lens you use (if they ever make any more). With a real DSLR, you get framing, pic info, DOF, focus confirmation/info, and battery life. To make comments like this means that you've never really used a DSLR. An LCD is nice, but for many, it's not enough by a long shot. Even for the common Joe, he'll find that it's lacking when he's taking pics on a sunny day.
This is not to mention the many other compromises attributed to this camera/format. It's the middle ground between DSLRs and P&S, but to say that it's essentially a DSLR is a BIG mistake. You could say a P&S is essentially a DSLR, too, then. Yes, you can change lenses on the Olympus, but if you go beyond the "pancake" and some smaller lens, you're throwing away the portability advantage, which leaves you with a very limited selection indeed.
It's a nice camera, but far from perfect, and very far from actually being a DSLR.
We need MORE information about the *video* mode!
1. Does it have shutter, aperture, iso control in video mode? Any of the 3?
2. Does it have exposure compensation AND exposure locking in video mode?
3. Can you manipulate the colors/saturation/contrast/sharpness in video mode?
No, no, and no, apparently.
TERRIBLE rolling shutter on that video. Sorry, but you can't call that "breathtaking". It makes me dizzy.
This looks cool!
no need to check photos right away on the lcd. in fact, dslr lcd's aren't accurate enough to trust. use RAW and the histogram and you should be fine out in the field. color, wb, brightness, etc can then be adjust in post.
Viewfinders are ancient. Nobody uses them anymore.
I hope that was sarcasm.
This camera seems good, but 800 dollars good? I'm not so sure about it, yet...
use film
I use both film and digital. They each have their own advantages and drawbacks. Neither is a perfect substitute for the other IMHO.
dpreview has a far more thorough review of this thing.
Wow this thing looks great. It would be nice having a smaller camera that takes photos and videos of this quality. The auto-focus on the video is pretty annoying though. Even if the sound wasn't there, you still have the abrupt focusing that makes it look very jumpy. I would prefer if the focus was slower on video.
@David Vogt - no, it wasn't, actually. Every digital camera I've seen has an LCD- not every digital camera I've seen has a viewfinder. You know viewfinders were used when people still used FILM, don't you?
The only reason that TTL was taken off of low end cameras was that they wouldn't fit in the small point-and-shoot bodies. Using the back display simply replaced the even crappier rangefinder type viewfinders that were on the old P&Ss; it in no way replaces a real TTL viewfinder.
Wow that autofocus sounded like ... I dunno, but it was way too loud for video. Wouldn't buy it based on that. Makes the video feature about worthless. Unless silent films are making a comeback??!
Olympus commented that they wanted to make 14-42 lens affordable thus it wasn't specifically optimized for video.
Otherwise, if one is interested in video, there is always Panasonic's Lumix G Vario 14-140 OIS - the one designed for GH1 - with ~$900 price tag. (Though you would be overpaying for in-lens IS that way.)
Speaking as somebody who has actually owned a half-dozen Olympus Pen film cameras, this is nothing but style and sadly lacking in substance. While not as disgraceful as Minox's lame "spy" camera (and I loved my old Minox S), this does nothing for the cachet that was once attached to the Olympus name.
Forget "Pen". Look at the product itself. This is the smallest digital camera with a "dSLR size" sensor and interchangeable lenses. It's literally small enough to fit in jacket pocket with the right lens.
too bad there's not view finder.
But over all its seems nice.
and to me it looks getter than the g1.
What this review doesn't reveal is that the lens noise is dependent upon the lens in use. Obviously this review with the zoom lens gives a good idea of the combination noise.
There is another review online with the 17mm pancake lens, and the noise is 10x worse, it sounds like scraping gravel over glass.
If Oly gives the next version an EVF and deals with the noise, that will be nice.
As a Nikon aficionado, I have been really surprised by this camera... and his marketing campaign. I'm concerned that so much buzz may ruin this nice camera. As a second camera, it could sell great, especially as everybody (me included) waits for the new Coolpix from Nikon or any 'real' not China-made nor Pana-copy Leica...
But no viewfinder for a zoom, it's really pain in the @..
And how can we really take advantage of this amazing video mode without a decent noise cancellation feature for the embedded mike (or plug for an external micro...); For sure definition and depth of field are great but, remember Oly, in video there is also audio tracks and I don't want to have any rhhhh-rhhhh noise in 21st century...
I wrote some words about this Olympus E-P1 in my blog (http://www.brucekinokian.com/?p=166).
More info about video shooting would have been nice - is it possible to turn off the AF?
Also, shots showing showing the red/magenta problem described.
Thanks for the early review. It seems like a nice camera with some unfortunate compromises. I do look forward to other Micro 4/3 uses and improvements in the line and as well with Lumix.
wow that focus chatter is seriously unusable in video mode. they should contract Bose for noise canceling solution ;)
Wow I ordered mine I cant wait to test it out. Thanks Engadget!!!!
I think you should really call it Evolt-Pen rather than digital Pen.
Why did Olympus put a better sensor in this camera than the recently released E620?
Seems to me that if it gets some real peripheral support, it could be worth it.
And I have to say, I do love it's look
I have one of these in my hands right now (with the 14-42mm zoom). I've been carrying around a relatively small Olympus E-420 dSLR for the last year or so, but I think this will become "the camera in my bag" for the foreseeable future. The controls are well-placed, it's even smaller, and I can get used to that LCD only business.
Just to add a few observations to the thorough review above:
I didn't notice the red/pink oversaturation problem noted above, but I did shoot in RAW format anyway. I've discovered that the Raw ("Olympus Raw Format" or ORF) for this camera is different than the old Raw/ORF format with my E-420. Photoshop CS4, which on my PC dependably imported and "developed" the old ORF cannot read the E-P1's ORF. Nor will Google Picasa, which has always in the past reliably displayed (if not "developed") the old Raw/ORF, work entirely reliably with the E-P1's Raw format. You have to install Olympus' own free and slightly-ponderous "Olympus Master 2" program to accurately review and export the E-P1's Raw files.
Also, that 14-42 m3.5-5.6 Micro Four Thirds lens that you can get with the E-P1 is one of those strange beasts that must be extended even for wide angle use--the camera fusses at you about lens status unless you extend it immediately on power-up. In some ways this is less convenient than the similar Four Thirds zoom that came with my older Olympus E-420...I can't just whip out the E-P1, flick the power button, and start shooting. Instead I have to turn on the power and then extend the the lens over an inch to its wide angle setting...it's a slightly longer process, which must be reversed (power off, then contract lens) before I return the camera to my bag.
Can I have your 420? :)
There's so much about the E-P1 that screams "camera of my dreams." Gadget lust? You betcha. And then the deal breaker: a not-all-that-accurate optical viewfinder costs an extra $100, on top of the E-P1's already high price.
I took pictures at an outdoor event in bright sunlight yesterday. My camera's LCD was completely useless. Fortunately, it has a very small but better-than-nothing optical viewfinder — a key reason I bought it and not a competing camera.
The original scale-focusing Olympus Pen half-frame camera of 1959, with shutter speeds from something like 1/10th second to 1/200th, sharp, well-corrected f/3.5 lens and surprisingly rugged mechanism, was an economical wonder. I seem to recall a $39.95 price tag.
Obviously, the Pen concept has been kicked way upstairs. But when adding all that high-tech wizardry and panache, Olympus blew it. The original sported a simple but adequate viewfinder. On an $800 camera, Olympus should be able to throw one in, or on, for free. At the very least, the add-on viewfinder should cost no more than $39.95.
What a disappointment.
Well, I've been using this camera for the past week. Some of the comments are correct when they say this is a point and shoot. It IS a point and shoot, but one with dSLR image quality and just as much control/configurations. Autofocus is fast and accurate, even in dark rooms or outside at night. In fact, I was shooting with my 1 year old dSLR (mid range model) and an f/2.8 lens last night, and I was having trouble with the camera locking focus. Pulled out my Pen with the zoom (not even the faster pancake lens) and it snapped right into focus. Also, I've used the Pen several times outside in the Texas sun (it gets a little bright here) and had no problems composing with the LCD. The camera is small and light enough that it's very easy to compose using the LCD and avoid camera shake. Of course, the built-in stabilization helps too. It's also very easy to compose at awkward angles, much easier than craning your neck around using the OVF of your dSLR (you surely wouldn't stoop to using the live view on your dSLR, would you?).
All in all, this is a very useful camera that makes photography fun, and allows you to take very nice photos in a wide variety of situations (much wider than any other P&S out there).