In summary
A new flagship DSLR with upgraded resolution and image processing plus a larger, higher-resolution monitor.When Olympus unveiled its E-5 DSLR shortly before Photokina in mid-September 2010 it was seen as an affirmation of the company’s commitment to the Four Thirds System format. Despite a gap of three years between E-series models, the E-5 has the same rugged body as the E-3 and many similar (or identical) features. Overall, it can be seen as a relatively modest upgrade.
Full review
When Olympus unveiled its E-5 DSLR shortly before Photokina in mid-September 2010 it was seen as an affirmation of the company’s commitment to the Four Thirds System format. Despite a gap of three years between E-series models, the E-5 has the same rugged body as the E-3 and many similar (or identical) features. Overall, it can be seen as a relatively modest upgrade.
Like its predecessor, the E-5 is designed for professional and advanced photo enthusiasts and priced accordingly. It’s also compatible with the same range of accessories as its predecessor. However, the new model raises sensor resolution from 10.1 megapixels to 12.3 megapixels and sports a new TruPic V+ image processor that extends the sensitivity from ISO 3200 to ISO 6400. Both upgrades could tempt current E-3 owners to invest, where existing cameras have had plenty of usage.
Another reason to upgrade could be the new monitor with a 3-inch diagonal (2.5-inch on the E-3), the resolution of which has been raised to 920,000 dots, compared with 230,000 dots on the E-3. Finally, SDHC/SDXC memory cards have replaced the slower xD Picture cards, although the CF slot is retained.
The Zuiko Digital 12-60mm f/2.8-4 lens supplied with the camera for our review was a good match for the camera body, being on the large side and also splashproof. We reviewed this lens in December 2007.
Build and Ergonomics
Thanks to its durable magnesium-alloy chassis and dust/splash-proof construction, like its predecessor, the new E-5 is large and heavy for its imager format. Weighing 800 grams without battery, memory card or lens, it is only marginally lighter than its main competitors, the Canon EOS 7D (860 grams) and Nikon D300s (938 grams), which is at odds with expectations for the smaller sensor format.
From the front, the E-5’s body is almost identical to its predecessor, the E-3. (Source: Olympus.)
Nevertheless, the E-5 is well-designed and fits comfortably into an average-sized hand. It has a definite quality feel and the finish of both body and lens can’t be faulted.
Physically little has changed since the E-3. The front panel is unchanged, with a sizeable and relatively deep hand grip that has a gently-textured rubber-clad surface, which is secure and comfortable to hold.
The top panel retains the same control layout as the E-3. (Source: Olympus.)
The top panel is also the same as the E-3’s, with a large data LED surrounded by buttons for controlling white balance, exposure compensation and ISO. These can be used in conjunction with this screen or the ‘Super Control Panel’ display on the main LCD monitor. The combined viewfinder/flash housing separates these buttons from a further set of three buttons, each of which controls at least two functions.
In front of this trio is a mechanical release for popping up the flash. Directly behind it is the Flash button, which lets users set the flash mode by turning the rear control dial or the output intensity with the front dial. Next comes the Mode button, which sets shooting modes via the rear dial and drive modes via the front dial.
The AF button behind it sets the focus mode via the rear dial and metering pattern via the front dial. It also doubles as a Copy button for copying images between the CF and SD cards. Pressing the Mode and AF buttons together lets you set the bracketing options, which include AE, WB, Flash and ISO bracketing.
The rear panel showing the articulating monitor and revised control layout. (Source: Olympus.)
Fitting the larger monitor to the rear panel has required some buttons to be repositioned. The Menu, Info and Live View buttons have moved from below the monitor to above it, while the Delete button sits below the arrow pad, directly under the Play button.
The IS button controlling the image stabiliser is gone, as is the card cover release lock. Stabiliser adjustments are now located on page 2 of the shooting menu, while the card cover slides forward, as in most DSLRs.
The monitor on the E-5 has the same articulated structure as its predecessor, swinging out through 180 degrees to sit in line with the rear panel and rotating through 270 degrees. You can view it from many different angles and reverse it onto the rear panel when it’s not in use.
The memory card compartment is located in the right side of the camera (from the back) and has a slide-forward cover that is hinged and opens wide making it easy to insert the cards. Inside are slots for CompactFlash and SD/SDHC/SDXC cards. The Super Control Panel allows you select which card to use but, unfortunately, you can’t set the camera to record different file types to each card or record to both cards together.
The rear view of the E-5 body showing the dual card slots and the monitor reversed onto the camera body. (Source: Olympus.)
The side panels on the E-5, showing the interface port cover and dual memory card slots. (Source: Olympus.)
The interface ports are located on the opposite side panel, under a rubber cover that is attached near the base of the camera. Here you’ll find the USB, HDMI and AV Out ports plus a jack for connecting an external microphone. Two tiny holes for the built-in microphone sit above this connector panel.
The base plate is unchanged from the E-3 and carries the battery compartment plus a metal-lined tripod socket that is aligned with the optical axis of the lens. (It also appears to be in line with the imaging plane.) Like the E-3, the E-5 can be fitted with the HLD-4 battery grip, which holds either six AA or two Li-ion batteries.
The E-5 with the HLD-4 battery grip. (Source: Olympus.)
The E-5 has the same image stabilising mechanisms as its predecessor and claims to five stops of exposure advantage with the Zuiko Digital 12-60mm f2.8-4.0 SWD lens at a focal length of 60mm. In practice, we found the stabilisation was closer to four stops but the system has the advantage of working with any lens fitted to the camera.
Despite its size and weight, in your hands, the E-5 is well balanced and comfortable to use. The grip positions your fingers within easy reach of key controls and overall weight is balanced to provide a solid and secure impression. If you’ve used an Olympus DSLR before, you’ll feel at home with the new camera.
What’s New?
In addition to the larger, higher-resolution monitor, the most interesting new additions are the TruPic V+ processor and Full-Time Live View system that supports 720p HD video at 30 frames/second. Ten in-camera Art Filters have been included in the new camera, all of which are usable in the P/A/S/M shooting modes and for shooting movies.
New introductions to the Art Filters palette are the self-explanatory Gentle Sepia and Dramatic Tone modes, examples of which are provided below. The remaining Art Filters (Pop Art, Soft Focus, Pale & Colour, Light Tone, Grainy Film, Pin Hole, Diorama and Cross Process) carry over from previous Olympus cameras.
The new Gentle Sepia Art Filter.
The Dramatic Tone Art Filter.
The original scene with no special effects applied.
Art Filter effects are only applied to JPEG files so if you’ve set the camera for RAW+JPEG capture you’re free to experiment with them, knowing there’s an unprocessed raw file available if you don’t like the results you’ve produced. Unfortunately, unlike the recently-announced PEN E-PL2, the E-5 doesn’t allow you to apply multiple effects to a single JPEG image.
Whereas the E-3 was strictly a 4:3 aspect ratio camera, the E-5 joins a growing band of cameras that provide multiple choices. Nine aspect ratio settings are available: 4:3, 16:9, 3:2, 6:6, 5:4, 7:6, 6:5, 7:5, 3:4. The primary 4:3 aspect ratio is cropped to produce the remaining options.
In practice, we found shooting with any aspect ratio other than 4:3 problematic with the review camera because the trimming lines weren’t shown in the viewfinder, even though we’d set the camera to apply aspect shooting in ALL modes (i.e. viewfinder and Live View). This makes framing pictures very difficult, if not impossible, although it was possible to check that aspect ratio trimming on the camera’s monitor. In playback mode, the trimming lines were superimposed on the picture.
However, upon uploading these images to a computer, it was clear all shots taken with different aspect settings when the viewfinder was used to frame them, were recorded in 4:3 format. No trimming was carried out on the images themselves.
Interestingly, the monitor was cropped to match the aspect setting both prior to shooting and in playback mode with Live View and shots were captured with the necessary cropping. We’re left wondering whether this is a specific fault in the review camera or a deliberate intention. If the latter, we can’t think why Olympus adopted this strategy on a camera that clearly performs and handles better when the viewfinder is used than in Live View mode.
Another expanded feature is exposure bracketing, which now extends across up to seven frames. However, exposure compensation remains at +/- 5EV in 1/3, 1/2 or 1EV steps. The E-5 adds a new multi-exposure mode that can combine up to four shots into a single image and works with both JPEG and ORF.RAW files. Image overlay is also available in playback mode, again with JPEG and ORF.RAW files.
A new internal Digital Level Sensor can detect the camera’s pitch and roll and display indicators in the viewfinder and on the control panel during Live View operation. The new camera also provides more options for customisation of button controls.
The menu system hasn’t changed much but the each of the 10 pages in the Custom sub-menu is colour-coded to make it easier to locate functions you wish to change. The Live View display has also been tweaked to put the adjustment icons along the edges of the screen instead of covering the preview image.
A couple of popular features have been co-opted from Olympus’s consumer digicams, among them the Face Detection autofocusing system and in-camera editing of JPEG images. The iEnhance setting, which matches image processing to the detected scene, is now added to the Picture Mode options. You can also tweak contrast, sharpness, saturation, gradation and the extent to which an effect is applied in the Picture Mode sub-menu.
Sensor and Image Processing
Although in megapixel terms, the resolution of the E-5’s sensor is modest, it is appropriate for the Four Thirds System sensor size and results in a pixel pitch of approximately 4.46 microns. This makes the individual photosites slightly larger than those in the higher-resolution sensors in Canon’s 18-megapixel EOS 7D but smaller than those in Nikon’s 12.3-megapixel D300s, the E-5’s main competitors.
The 17.3 x 13.0mm High Speed Live MOS sensor is marginally smaller than the Four Thirds System standard of 18 x 13.5 mm but its aspect ratio remains at 4:3 and it has a total photosite count of 13.1 million, with 12.3 megapixels of effective image resolution. As in the E-3, the chip is mounted in the same assembly unit as the SSWF dust removal system and image stabiliser system and the same drive motor is used to move both.
Coupled to the sensor is the latest TruPic V+ image processor, which features a new Fine-Detail Processing technology. We’re not sure what this is (and Olympus isn’t saying) but it could be an improved demosaicing algorithm.
Like the E-3, the E-5 supports lossless RAW data compression, which reduces the size of the raw files by 65%. Image files can be saved in either ORF.RAW or JPEG format or both simultaneously (on the same memory card). Seven file sizes are provided for JPEG images, along with four compression levels.
You can combine a raw file with any of the JPEG size and quality settings. Typical file sizes and compression ratios are provided in the table below.
|
Image size |
Image quality |
Compression |
Approx. File size |
|
4032 x 3024 |
ORF.RAW, 12-bit |
lossless |
14.0MB |
|
JPEG Super Fine |
1:2.7 |
8.4MB |
|
|
JPEG Fine |
1:4 |
5.9MB |
|
|
JPEG Normal |
1:8 |
2.2MB |
|
|
JPEG Basic |
1:12 |
1.8MB |
|
|
3200 x 2400 |
JPEG Super Fine |
1:2.7 |
5.6MB |
|
JPEG Fine |
1:4 |
3.4MB |
|
|
JPEG Normal |
1:8 |
1.7MB |
|
|
JPEG Basic |
1:12 |
1.2MB |
|
|
2560 x 1920 |
JPEG Super Fine |
1:2.7 |
3.2MB |
|
JPEG Fine |
1:4 |
2.2MB |
|
|
JPEG Normal |
1:8 |
1.1MB |
|
|
JPEG Basic |
1:12 |
0.8MB |
|
|
1600 x 1200 |
JPEG Super Fine |
1:2.7 |
1.3MB |
|
JPEG Fine |
1:4 |
0.9MB |
|
|
JPEG Normal |
1:8 |
0.5MB |
|
|
JPEG Basic |
1:12 |
0.4MB |
|
|
1280 x 960 |
JPEG Super Fine |
1:2.7 |
0.9MB |
|
JPEG Fine |
1:4 |
0.6MB |
|
|
JPEG Normal |
1:8 |
0.3MB |
|
|
JPEG Basic |
1:12 |
0.3MB |
|
|
1024 x 768 |
JPEG Super Fine |
1:2.7 |
0.6MB |
|
JPEG Fine |
1:4 |
0.4MB |
|
|
JPEG Normal |
1:8 |
0.3MB |
|
|
JPEG Basic |
1:12 |
0.2MB |
|
|
640 x 480 |
JPEG Super Fine |
1:2.7 |
0.3MB |
|
JPEG Fine |
1:4 |
0.2MB |
|
|
JPEG Normal |
1:8 |
0.2MB |
|
|
JPEG Basic |
1:12 |
0.1MB |
Despite its higher resolution, the E-5 offers the same five frames/second continuous shooting speed. This is slower than the eight frames/second rate of the Canon EOS 7D or the seven frames/second frame rate of Nikon’s D300s and the minimum required for serious sports photography.
JPEGs can be recorded to the capacity of the available memory with fast memory cards. In ORF.RAW mode, the buffer can hold 16 12-bit RAW frames before the camera pauses for data processing. When the Low speed setting is used, photographers can select from four frame rates covering one, two, three or four frames/second.
As with the E-3, in-camera raw file development is provided – but it produces JPEGs with similar characteristics to those provided by shooting in JPEG format. TIFF capture is not provided so if you want 16-bit TIFF files, you must process the ORF.RAW files on your PC.
Live View and Video
Live View is similar to the E-3 and accessed by pressing the display button. As in the E-3, you can preview the exposure, depth of field and white balance on the monitor screen and see how the final shot will appear. You can also check the effect of exposure compensation or white balance on a split screen showing four alternatives or enlarge a section of the screen by five, seven or 10 times.
Focusing takes place when you press the AEL/AFL button or as the shutter is pressed. The latter captures the picture. However, as with all live viewing systems a noticeable capture lag occurs. If Face Detection is switched on, human faces will be outlined by a box.
Video movies can only be recorded in Live View mode and the E-5 is the first E-series model to support HD video recording with the widescreen 16:9 (1280 x 720, 30 fps) aspect ratio. It also provides the standard VGA at 30 fps. The recording format is both cases is AVI using Motion JPEG encoding. Clips are limited to 2GB, which provides roughly seven minutes of HD recording or up to 14 minutes in SD (VGA) mode.
Class 6 or higher SD cards are recommended for shooting movies. The camera body is equipped with a monaural microphone but has a stereo jack that allows external stereo microphones to be used.
In movie mode, switching image stabilisation on causes the frame to be cropped slightly to allow for digital stabilisation. Face detection isn’t supported in movie mode. Most of the Art Filters can be applied to movies as you record them, although some, such as the Diorama (Art 7) filter, will slow the frame rate.
Playback and Software
Playback options are similar to the E-3 with the addition of HDMI output to HD TV sets. However, neither wireless file transfer nor GPS data tagging appears to be supported.
The software disk has been updated and now contains Olympus Viewer 2 for Windows and Mac and the ‘ib’ software, which is Windows. We covered this software in detail in our review of the PEN E-PL1 in March, 2010.
Performance
Despite its relatively modest resolution, the review camera turned in some impressive-looking pictures. And the increased resolution on the monitor screen provided a viewing platform to match them.
Shooting in Live View mode had its plusses and minuses. On the plus side, shooting movies was as easy as pressing the Movie button. On the minus side, a fair amount of adjustment was required to make the screen usable in bright sunlight and re-adjustment was necessary whenever you shifted your shooting position.
However, the adjustable monitor is great for over-the-head and on-the-floor shots and it’s securely anchored to the camera body and easy to position. Live View is also slow to use because the camera has to flip the mirror down for focusing then up to take the shot.
When the viewfinder was used to frame shots, autofocusing was very fast and accurate in bright conditions, thanks to the efficient TTL phase-contrast detection system. It was perceptibly slower in Live View mode when the AF system swapped to contrast detection, although relatively quick for this type of system.
We noticed slight hesitation when shooting with the viewfinder in low light levels and a perceptible slowing after dark with low-contrast subjects. But, all-told, autofocusing speeds can be considered above average.
Exposure metering was consistently accurate in all metering modes, even the exotic modes like spot metering with highlight or shadow control. In each case, exposure was biased accordingly, leading to slight over-exposure with the former and under-exposure with the latter.
Test shots covered a wider than average dynamic range and the TruPic V+ processor handled it well and managed to keep noise acceptable low through most of the camera’s sensitivity range. Noise was obvious in long exposures at ISO 6400, where contrast and colour reproduction were also compromised. However, these problems were barely visible in flash shots at ISO 6400.
Imatest showed resolution to be close to expectations for JPEG files straight out of the camera. Raw file resolution was well above expectations. Resolution declined only slightly as sensitivity was increased and our Imatest assessments showed it to be acceptably high at ISO 6400. The graph below shows the results of our tests.
With both file types, differences between centre and edge resolution suggest some edge softening, confirming our previous findings for the 12-60mm lens. The graph below, based on JPEGs straight from the camera, shows the results of our Imatest tests.
Lateral chromatic aberration was consistently negligible and flare was well controlled. Even though the review lens was provided without its lens hood there were few situations in which flare was problematic with backlit subjects.
Flash performance was generally good and exposures were evenly balanced through most of the review camera’s ISO range. However, shots taken at ISO 100 with the 60mm focal length were very slightly under-exposed, while shots taken at ISO 6400 were noticeably over-exposed.
Most colours were accurately recorded – and our Imatest colour error graphs were very similar to the graphs we obtained when testing the E-3. We observed a slight improvement in overall colour accuracy, which our test shots confirmed as very good.
However, the review camera tended to emphasise orange-red hues in JPEG test shots taken with the iEnhance setting and blues were also a little forceful. Both trends were reflected in our Imatest colour error graphs. Nonetheless, skin tones were handled well with the same setting, appearing with a natural accuracy and pleasing smoothness at low-to-medium ISO settings.
Auto white balance performance was similar to the E-3’s; the review camera failed to counteract the warm bias of incandescent lighting but came close to natural colour rendition with fluorescent lighting. The respective pre-sets over-corrected slightly. In each case, it was possible to achieve neutral colour rendition with the manual white balance control and the white balance adjustments provided.
We conducted our timing tests with a 16GB Verbatim Class 6 SDHC memory card. The review camera powered-up almost instantaneously in both normal and Live View modes. We measured an average shot-to-shot time of 0.75 seconds when shooting with the viewfinder, which extended to an average of 2.1 seconds between shots with Live View.
AF lag was less than 0.1 seconds and no delay was measured when shots were pro-focused. It took approximately 1.8 seconds to process each Large/Super Fine JPEG file, 2.8 seconds for each ORF.RAW file and 3.9 seconds for each RAW+JPEG pair.
In the high-speed continuous shooting mode the review camera recorded 10 Large/Super Fine JPEGs in 1.8 seconds, confirming the specified burst rate of five frames/second. It took 9.1 seconds to process this burst.
Swapping to ORF.RAW capture, the camera recorded nine frames in 1.6 seconds before pausing briefly. This burst was processed in 15.4 seconds. With RAW+JPEG selected, the review camera recorded eight frames in 1.3 seconds before pausing. It took 23.4 seconds to process this burst.
Conclusion
The market position of the E-5 puts it squarely into the serious enthusiast/pro-sumer category, making it unlikely this camera would be a first choice of a newcomer to DSLR photography. However, it will have some real appeal to owners of Olympus mid-level DSLRs who are looking to upgrade because it offers visibly superior performance.
The best features of the E-5 are:
1. Its rugged construction.
2. Its superior resolution and dynamic range.
3. Its fast and accurate autofocusing and metering.
4. The ease of swapping between shooting stills and recording movies in Live View mode.
5. The wide range of adjustments available for serious photographers.
6. The support for fast, high-capacity CF and SD cards.
7. Effective image stabilisation with all lenses.
We have some reservations about the following aspects of the camera:
1. Its price tag, which is high for the sensor size and camera specifications.
2. Operational anomalies, such as the problems we had with multi-aspect shooting when using the viewfinder.
3. Poor performance at high ISO settings for long exposures, despite dark-frame subtraction noise reduction.
4. movie recording limitations with respect to resolution and maximum recording times.
5. The 5 fps maximum continuous shooting speed is the bare minimum needed for serious sports photography and slower than the E-5’s main competitors provide.
Buy this camera if:
– You do a lot of outdoor photography and want a solid, weatherproof body to go with an existing collection of Zuiko Digital lenses.
– You want plenty of pre- and post-capture, in-camera image adjustments.
– You’re happy to shoot and process raw files when maximum resolution is required.
– You’d appreciate the Live View shooting capabilities and 720p HD video capabilities.
– You require superior high-ISO performance.
Don’t buy this camera if:
– You want to record Full HD video clips.
– You require fast autofocusing and focus tracking in Live View mode.
– You need an extended ISO range. (The E-5 tops out at ISO 6400.)
IMATEST GRAPHS
JPEG image files straight from the camera
Raw image files converted into 16-bit TIFF format with Adobe Camera Raw.
SAMPLE IMAGES
Auto white balance with incandescent lighting.
Auto white balance with fluorescent lighting.
60-second exposure at ISO 100; f/4, 25mm focal length.
20-second exposure at ISO 400; f/4, 25mm focal length.
10-second exposure at ISO 1600; f/5.6, 25mm focal length.
10-second exposure at ISO 6400; f/13, 25mm focal length.
Flash exposure at ISO 100; 1/125 second at f/4; 60mm focal length.
Flash exposure at ISO 400; 1/125 second at f/4; 60mm focal length.
Flash exposure at ISO 1600; 1/125 second at f/4; 60mm focal length.
Flash exposure at ISO 6400; 1/125 second at f/4; 60mm focal length.
Taken with the Picture Mode on Portrait; 60mm focal length, ISO 1600, 1/15 second at f/4.5.
Close-up with the Picture Mode on iEnhance; 60mm focal length, ISO 100, 1/640 second at f/4.
Slightly emphatic orange hues in JPEGs with iEnhance; 60mm focal length, ISO 100, 1/160 second at f/8.
Slightly over-saturated blues in JPEGs with iEnhance; 60mm focal length, ISO 100, 1/10 second at f/16.
Strong contre-jour lighting; 16mm focal length, ISO 100, 1/400 second at f/11.
60mm focal length, ISO 100, 1/160 second at f/11.
50mm focal length, ISO 100, 1/30 second at f/16.
43mm focal length, ISO 100, 1/200 second at f/11.
60mm focal length, ISO 100, 1/320 second at f/6.3.
16mm focal length, ISO 100, 1/6 second at f/16.
42mm focal length, ISO 200, 1/15 second at f/16.
52mm focal length, ISO 100, 1/20 second at f/11.
Still frame from HD video clip taken with the Picture Mode on Standard;
Still frame from HD video clip taken with the Cross Processing Art Filter.
Still frame from VGA video clip takenwith the Picture Mode on iEnhance.
Specifications
Image sensor: 17.3 x 13.0 mm High speed Live MOS Sensor with 13.1 million photosites (12.3 megapixels effective)
A/D processing: 12-bit
Lens mount: Four Thirds System
Focal length crop factor: 2x
Image formats: Stills – ORF.RAW (12-bit lossless compression), JPEG (Exif 2.21), Fine & Standard compression; Movies – AVI Motion JPEG
Image Sizes: Stills – 4032 x 3024, 2560 x 1920, 1024 x 768, 640 x 480; Movies: 1280 x 720, 640 x 480 @ 30 fps
Image Stabilisation: Imager-shift system
Dust removal: SSWF system
Shutter speed range: 60 to 1/8000 second plus Bulb (up to 30 min.)
Exposure Compensation: +/- 5EV in 1/3, 1/2 or 1EV steps
Exposure bracketing: 2, 3, 5 or 7 frames in 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, 1EV steps selectable
Self-timer: 2 or 12 seconds delay
Focus system: TTL phase-difference detection (Contrast detection system in Live View)
Focus modes: Single AF (S-AF) / Continuous AF (C-AF) / Manual Focus (MF)
Exposure metering: TTL open-aperture metering system with Digital ESP (49-points multi pattern metering), Centre weighted average and Spot metering (approx. 2% for the viewfinder screen. Highlight / shadow bases are available)
Shooting modes: P: Program AE (Program shift available), A: Aperture priority AE, S: Shutter priority AE and M: Manual
Picture Style/Control settings: i-Enhance, Vivid, Natural, Portrait, Muted, Monotone, Custom (default setting: Natural), Pop Art, Soft Focus, Pale & Colour, Light Tone, Grainy Film, Pin Hole, Diorama, Gentle Sepia, Cross Process, Dramatic Tone; In custom mode, basic 5 modes and adjustment is available.
Colour space options: sRGB, Adobe RGB
ISO range: Auto (ISO 200-6400), Manual ISO 100-6400 in 1/3 or 1 EV steps
White balance: Hybrid detection system with High speed Live MOS sensor and dedicated external sensor; Auto plus 7 settings (3000K – 7500K); manual measurement
Flash: Retractable flash; GN 13 (ISO 100/metres); TTL Auto and manual control; wireless flash support
Flash modes: Auto, Red-eye reduction, Red-eye reduction slow sync., Slow sync at 1st curtain, Slow sync at 2nd curtain, Fill-in, Manual (1/4, 1/16, 1/64), Off
Flash exposure adjustment: +/- 3EV in 1/3, 1/2 or 1EV steps plus bracketing of 3 frames
Sequence shooting: Max. 5 frames/second; up to 16 Raw, ‘unlimited’ JPEG
Storage Media: Dual-Slot, CompactFlash Type I (UDMA supported), SD Memory Card (SDHC/SDXC compatible)
Viewfinder: Eye-level pentaprism with 100% FOV coverage, approx. 1.15x magnification, 20mm eye point, dioptre adjustment of -3.0 to +1 dpt, interchangeable focusing screens (at service centre)
LCD monitor: 3-inch HyperCrystal LCD (transmissive TFT colour LCD) with approx. 920,000 dots, 100% FOV coverage and 15 levels of brightness adjustment
Live View displays: Exposure adjustment pre-view, White balance adjustment pre-view, Gradation auto pre-view, Face detection pre-view, Perfect shot pre-view, Grid line displayable, 5x/7x/10x/14x magnification possible, MF/S-AF, AF frame display, AF point display, Shooting information, Histogram, IS activating mode
Video Capture: Yes; 1280 x 720, 640 x 480 @ 30 fps
Data LCD: Yes
Playback functions: Information Display (Histogram – independent luminance / RGB available, Highlight / Shadow point warning, AF frame, Shooting information), Index Display (4/9/25/100 frames, Calendar), Magnify (2-14x); Movie (w/sound, FF, REW, Pause), Slideshow (Still, Movie, Still+Movie, Slide show with BGM, BGM+Sound, Sound); Image editing: Shadow adjustment, Red-eye fix, Trimming, Monotone, Sepia, Saturation (colour depth), Resize (producing another file), Aspect Change, e-Portrait; merge function (2-4 images); Raw development (to JPEG)
Interface terminals: USB 2.0 High Speed, HDMI(HD/Mono or Stereo Sound), A/V out (Audio: Mono, Video: NTSC/PAL selectable); DC-in (AC-1 compatible)
Power supply: BLM-5 Li-ion battery; CIPA rated for approx. 870 shots/charge with optical viewfinder
Dimensions (wxhxd): 142.5 x 116.5 x 74.5 mm (body only)
Weight: 800 grams (body only)
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Rating
RRP: $2,199 (body only)
Rating (out of 10):
- Build: 9.0
- Ease of use: 8.0
- Autofocusing: 9.0
- Photo quality – JPEG: 8.5
- Photo quality – NEF.RAW: 9.0
- Video quality: 8.5
- OVERALL: 8.5
