Great build and feel.
Excellent IQ
Articulated screen very useful for studio work
Good and accurate autofocus

Old tech
Write speed very slow

Another awesome antique from Ebay. This one came with 2 auxiliary lenses, one wide, one tele and the almost unused Olympus FL-40 flash outfit. An early version of photoshop was also included. This camera really rocks with stellar image quality, tack-sharp lenses and accurate autofocus. Built like a tank and about as heavy this beast gives the impression of a professional workhorse that was built to an exacting
professional standard. Makes a Nikon or canon entry level DSLR look very flimsy indeed. The downside of course lies in the fact that this old girl is now more than 7 years old and suffers from the 2002 perils of slow write speed and power hungry electronics. But it can still do almost any job admirably and produces brilliant
pictures.

Customer Service

Not Used

Similar Products Used:

Olympus E-10, Olympus C2500-L

Superior optics, extremely well designed ergonomically, overall robust construction, easy of use and versatility, quality engineering throughout

slow write to the card

This was my second digital camera, the first being an entry-level zoom model. I was attracted first by the form, it being very much like my Olympus IS-3 DLX. It's akin to the shape of the then current video cameras. It is a heavy unit, even more so than the IS-3, but the shape and overall ergonomics make it very easy to handle and contribute to it's stability and general comfort in your hands.

Then lens is phenomenal opening up to F2.0-2.4 depending upon the zoom. It features a permanently mounted 35-140 (film equivalent) lens. Fantastic optics and clarity. There is a teleconverter for both a longer and a wider zoom. I have the wide angle adaptor which gives the camera an effective 28mm bottom end. I can't get to excited about it as it is very large and tends to curve the image at the sides.

Other than that, the basic zoom lens is nearly flawless in its performance. I do believe that Olympus has made some of the very best lenses for the money. The controls are more or less intuitive, though one must refer to the manual on occasion.

Yes, it's only a 5MB camera, but I simply have not found a picture than I could not blow up to most any reasonable size. The pixels in this camera are 5MB worth of quality.

The one downside that you'll read about elsewhere is that it does take a while to write the image to the card(s). By the way, it uses both CF and SM cards. There is a slot for one of each.

Lens & image quality (35-140mm is very usable and 5mp is more than sufficient to 8x10)

Slow write/flush times

Exceptionable build quality with image quality to match. It's been superceded by the new E1 and the newer 8mp prosumers out-spec it. Nevetherless, it's still an exceptional camera as long as you can live with its weaknesses and are willing to learn how to exploit its strengths. Biggest disappointment is the slow write/flush times. If you're photography requires fast sequence shooting like action or sports, look elsewhere. Biggest plus is the lens/image quality. Lens is bright (f/2.0-2.4) and its zoom range covers a very usable 35mm-140mm (great for portraits/lanscape). Having graduated from a Fuji S602 with motorized zoom, the mechanical zoom on the E-20 is a revelation. Images are very neutral in color and contrast, lending themselves well to post processing. Camera feels great in-hand and virtually all controls are easily accessible through on-camera buttons. The only exception being the histogram display function, which is accessed through the PC-data connection menu (?). Favorite shortcut is the custom white balance button located on the grip just next to the lens. Pressing it fires the shutter, with flash if selected, to capture a custom white balance without having to dig through any menus/settings. Lack of interchangeable lenses hasn't been a problem. I have the TCON 14B, WCON 08B and MCON 35 to extend zoom range to 200mm, widen it to 28mm, and tighten macro distance to less than 4inches, respectively. Those lenses would have cost significantly more on a DSLR (but that D-70 sure looks tempting). If you're contemplating an E-xx, I highly recommend reading the discussions theads about it on the Olympus SLR forum on > as well as the comprehensive reviews on >, > and >. That way you'll get a balance of owner feedback and professional opinions. In terms of finding one, Olympus runs its own company store on EBay. New and refurbished E20s show up about once a week and include their warranty,

Customer Service

n/a

Similar Products Used:

Other digicam is a Fuji S602 (now backup)

Good handling Optical viewfinder no dust problem on ccd

slow alot of noise in highr iso modes not very sharp

I'm using the e20 now for about 6 month and I'm not very happy. The noise level is very high if you shoot in anything else than the 80 asa mode.Also , the sharpens is not too good. I had a Fuji S1 before with oiginal Nikon lenses. I have to agree that dust on the sensor s a big problem. Also , the S1 wasn't very sharp easer. Another minus pnt is the writing time, it's really too slow.

Similar Products Used:

Fuji S1, Nikon D100, Nikon 5700

Quick aim and shoot. Multiple power and storage options. The lens is a fantastic all around choice.

When using the optional Olympus WCON-08B Wide Extension Lens I stongly suggest bracketing especially when you first start using this wide angle, as you will over expose if you fail to stop down.

Outstanding piece of equipment. I find it difficult to take a bad photo. I particularly like the battery pack and ability to use both Smart Media and Compact Flash cards. Most of the time I keep one of each in the camera. It''s great to have the potential of taking 150 pictures without downloading or changing batteries. When it comes to wedding or event photography this is a great advantage. Images are crisp and even with extreme zooms on final images there is next to no pixelation. Very happy with the purchase.

5 megapixels Good lens

Awful write times - a big problem Poor battery choices Awful autofocus Slow and cumbersome

A camera that is caught between 2 needs and therefore falls between the cracks and excels at little. It tries to be pro but the speed is slow both in terms of write times and autofocus It tries to be a consumer machine but costs too much

Customer Service

Not needed

Similar Products Used:

Canon G2 Canon EOS1d

ease of use.

Wow. best camera ever owned.