E-1 images/ Paul

[Raist3d]

Hey Paul, I was checking your gallery & E-1 images. I want your honest opinion about this:

Which of the two cameras you would say has more tonal range (less banding, subtle transitions) - the E1 or the e-330. Of whoever wins that, the Canon 5D or the winner of the previous?

Which of the two cameras would you say has more dynamic range (capture shadow, high contrast scenes, less burning, more shadow recovery) - E1 or e-330? Of whoever wins that- Canon 5D or the winner?

I was able to play with an E-1 today and though I thought the e-330 nailed it in dynamic range closer examination revealed that it really seemed to depend on the subject.. and overall the E-1 could have the edge after all. I think you have very good yes and experience with both...

Those "sunglight/morning/foggy/light in the wood" pictures you have, from the E-1, are those in any way post processed? Do you feel the e-330 would have easily captured that for you too?

Thanks!

- Raist

[Paul Shields]

Hmm, difficult to summarize the differences in image quality to be honest. I don't see a huge improvement in the E-330. If there are differences in that area then it's not something that jumps out at me.

All of my images are processed to one degree or another. RAW files always need some adjusting. JPEG images straight from either camera are very rich and usually don't need much tweaking (maybe a little reduction in colour as I find they are a bit too saturated at times, especially in the red channel). I don't use any of the jpeg modes in the E-330 so can't really comment on how good they are. I prefer RAW with both cameras and to process later.

In comparison to the Canon 5D, I'd say that the Olys are closer to the captured colour, but the 5D can extract a lot more detail - this really does jump at you, but we're comparing a 5.5mp or 7.5mp sensor to a 13mp FF sensor. I'm sure if there were a similarly dense sensor in the E1 then I'd be seeing more detail. One area where the 5D trumps is in depth of field. It's pretty much impossible to get that creamy bokeh at similar focal lengths/apertures with the Oly cameras, and it is definitely impossible to be able to shoot at f/1.2 with these cameras at the moment. Faster prime lenses would be a good thing for Olympus I feel.

High ISO noise is obviously a big differentiator between Canon/Olympus. At ISO 100 the E-1 is very clean and detailed - better than the 5D at same ISO in my experience. Strange but true. If they can get the sensor resolution up to 13mp or more and retain (or hopefully improve) ISO then that would be a most excellent thing. At high ISO the 5D is just amazing - still very detailed and allows you to shoot almost in the dark with a fast lens. If you're into natural light/indoor photography it's a real bonus.

So, in summary the 5D would easily win in resolution stakes, and I think the dynamic range is definitely there but I'm no expert on measuring that. The Olys would win in colour straight out of the camera, as well as producing an even exposure across the frame (the 50-200mm vignettes very slightly wide open, but that's about it with the lenses I currently own). The 5D shows this up much more but is usually able to be corrected. My favouite out of the 3 would still be the E-1 just because it handles so much better, is much better built, and just generally oozes confidence when using it. The 5D improves significantly in resolution, but with a few drawbacks around FF (and I'm not even going to mention dust - apart from just then ). The E-330 is more of a specialist camera for me - I don't like its small optical viewfinder (the E-1 is big, bright, 100% and I don't even see the 5D viewfinder as much of an improvement). It is great for macros though and studio/tripod shooting.

Here are some examples of what I see are the distinguishing features of the respective cameras:

I find with the E-1 that the rich colours are not as easy to reproduce with the 5D. Maybe it's down to lenses as much as anything.

E-1 + 50-200mm
http://www.photocamel.com/gallery/di...?album=6&pos=7
http://www.photocamel.com/gallery/di...?album=6&pos=3

E-1 + 50-200m - JPEG straight from camera. Has very warm but attractive skin tones.
http://www.photocamel.com/gallery/di...album=5&pos=15

I normally avoid high ISO on the Olys, but up to 800 is usually OK if the exposure is good. I've done some ISO tests between the E-1 and E-330 [iurl=http://www.photocamel.com/index.php/topic,7217.0.html]here[/iurl].

E-1 + 50-200mm ISO 400
http://www.photocamel.com/gallery/di...?album=6&pos=5


The E-330 has a similar tonality to the E-1, despite a completely different sensor technology. I suspect the in-camera processing is tweaked to produce as close as possible the 'Olympus colours' we know and love. At a pinch, the E-330 may be slightly more towards the blue end of the spectrum, but that's not such a bad thing:

E-330 + 50mm + EX-25 (E-330 Live View mode 'B' is excellent for macro)
http://www.photocamel.com/gallery/di...?album=2&pos=9
[iurl]http://www.photocamel.com/index.php/topic,8149.0.html[/iurl]
[iurl]http://www.photocamel.com/index.php/topic,6764.msg50839.html#msg50839[/iurl]
[iurl]http://www.photocamel.com/index.php/topic,6990.0.html[/iurl]

E-330 + 7-14mm
http://www.photocamel.com/gallery/di...?album=4&pos=8
http://www.photocamel.com/gallery/di...?album=4&pos=7



The 5D does not produce anything near the same skin tones as the Olys, which was quite a surprise at first. I've since got adjusted to them (and now tend to find Oly to be a little *too* colourful sometimes).

5D + Tamron f/2.5 macro (old manual focus model). ISO 400
http://www.photocamel.com/gallery/di...?album=5&pos=9
http://www.photocamel.com/gallery/di...album=5&pos=11
http://www.photocamel.com/gallery/di...album=5&pos=13

The most remarkable quality of the 5D is when used with fast lenses wide open. It can capture things that are pretty much impossible to do with the E-1/E-330, and you don't need to worry too much about ISO settings up to 1600.

5D + 85 f/1.2
http://www.photocamel.com/gallery/di...album=5&pos=12
http://www.photocamel.com/gallery/di...?album=5&pos=8

5D + 135 f/2.0
http://www.photocamel.com/gallery/di...album=2&pos=10

Hope that's helped you a little - or at least made you so confused that your head's now spinning .

[Raist3d]

Hey Paul thanks for the images.

I guess my dynamic range question can be summed up to this: which camera you find more details from shadows or highlights from raw when you do your post work- the e-330 or the E-1? In other words: which one seems to keep more richness of the photo, more information and gives you more latitude to crank that exposure up or down.

- Raist

[Paul Shields]

Originally Posted by Raist3d

I guess my dynamic range question can be summed up to this: which camera you find more details from shadows or highlights from raw when you do your post work- the e-330 or the E-1? In other words: which one seems to keep more richness of the photo, more information and gives you more latitude to crank that exposure up or down.

The E-1. Maybe a better question though is which camera gets the most accurate exposure (thus requiring less recovery). Answer - the E-1 .

[Raist3d]

Originally Posted by Paul

The E-1. Maybe a better question though is which camera gets the most accurate exposure (thus requiring less recovery). Answer - the E-1 .

Thanks much sir!

- Raist

[Paul Shields]

No problem. Just make sure that you're comfortable with whatever you choose. In the end the decision has to lie with yourself .

[Raist3d]

Originally Posted by Paul

No problem. Just make sure that you're comfortable with whatever you choose. In the end the decision has to lie with yourself .

*Nod*

Paul, one more question- do you happen to have the high-drain optional E-1 battery/battery grip? I think it's the SHDL-2. Supposedly this speeds up auto focus speeds? (I guess it makes the lens go a tad faster by providing more power). Any experience with this by any chance?

- Raist

[Paul Shields]

I've not used the SHLD2 grip, though I hear lots of great news about it. Some of the killer E-1 deals include this and apparently it's one of the better made grips out there. I prefer a spare battery in my pocket if needed, as the E-1 is fairly weighty as it is and in combo with the grip + a big lens would not suit me, but for those who need it then it seems to be a steal right now.