OK, Which one would you buy & why ?

[jim_flinchbaugh]

I have read with great interest all the threads pertaining to the Olympus

E510 & E410. I found this site while doing research on these cameras. I have

been saving my extra money for some time now and am likely within 2 months of

being ready to buy one of these critters. Now, which one should I get? Having

never had a camera with I.S., I can kinda see where it might be nice, but I

havent ever used IS before. Is it worth the extra 125.00 or so, to have it in

the 510 or put my money into more system pieces and stay with the 410? (like a

larger, more hotrod CF card?) I am coming off of a pair of well used Minolta

X700's and have a bag full of older but decent glass, so the 4/3 system is of

major interest. That leads to the next question. The rumor mill has it that the

latest E510 firmware makes the in body IS work without the kit lenses. That

means any lens should be image stabilized right? Would be nice using some of my

older long glass. Can anyone confirm this rumor about the firmware?

 

I guess, the only other question I have is, where I should make the purchase.

I am pretty well fed up with Ebone, especially after their annoucement this

week concerning new fees and feedback rules. Best prices I've come across are

Amazon being the lowest and B&H withing 2o bucks or so. ALso, B&H seems to have

better pricing on the CF cards, At least in the Sandisk extreme IV version.

At present, since the deal at Amazon is thru another vendor, I'll likely go

with B&H unless someone here has a better idea. Am I right in remembering that

B&H is a sponsor here? I'd rather support a sponsor, even if a few bucks more.

 

So, what do you fine folks think about my options? Like I said, a pair of

nice older film cam, and a 1.3mp Olympus P&S (D360L) is my background. I think

I'm in for some fun.

 

TO recap

Is I.S. worth the extra money, where to buy, and is firmware rumor true?

Inquiring minds want to know. :-)

 

Thanks for listening

 

Jim

[jim_flinchbaugh]

Groovy,

Firmware question has been asnwered in another thread by Derek Linney,

IS is usable with legacy glass. Now, is it worth the money? ;-)

 

Jim

[patrick j dempsey]

Jim, be sure to check out the Minolta to 4/3's adapter conversation below. Looks like you will probably be adding another $200-$300 to the cost of the camera for a Minolta adapter and a screen... but since that's cheaper than a 4/3s lens, that sounds reasonable. Also, personally I would buy from B&H, a professional camera retailer, before I would buy from Amazon... a company that until recently, just sold books.

[richsimmons]

Have you held each. The 410 is considerably smaller than the 510. Almost like holding a P&S camera. You still need an adaptor to make the MD lenses work, but have you looked at the Sony line, which took over Konica/Minolta? You still need an adaptor, but they have IS in the body as well.

[jim_flinchbaugh]

Rich & Patrick,

 

I have not held either as the stores here dont carry Oly's.

The size specs put the 410 about the same perimiter diminesions as my X700's. I like the looks of the 510 grip area better. I have trouble with "hanging on to" thing these days. I was thinking the same thing as fars as B&H. AND I have been following the adapter threads as well. I dont even know IF I'll go there or not, but I do have the lenses already so . . .

 

OK simple math time, 510kit w/2 lens, + cf card =$713.00.

 

410 2 lens with same card= $626.00, so thats a difference of 87 bucks for the IS. would you or wouldnt you? I think I might for 2 reasons, larger grip, and the 510 has more battery capacity. This make sense?

 

Thanks for babysitting me while I stumbled thru this :-)

 

Jim

 

PS> I've had good luck with buying from Amazon over the years, but I never had trouble either, so I think this one goes to the reputable camera dealer

[ilkka]

I would choose the 510. Two main reasons. I wanted a small body and the 410 would have been a bit smaller, but I really found it a bit too small and the lack of grip made holding it for me even more difficult. Also, the 510 has much better access to adjust shooting parameters without the need to go into menus. These may not be important factors for you, but something worth thinking and trying before buying.

[randy_rogers1]

I had researched all the available cameras out there before settling on the E-510. There are good and bad points to each and all the current crop will capture stunning photos. The key points that sold me on the Oly are:

 

1. Price. Under $600 for the E510 2 lens kit.

I had to ask myself looking at the price if cameras costing 2x were actually 2x better in any significant criteria. Having seen some comparison 16x20 prints from the competition and now the E510 I am convinced I have made the right decision. Even looking at the recently announced products it would be difficult to find the same capability as the E510 kit for less than $800 - $1000.

 

2. Kit lens quality and coverage tack sharp, light weight covers 28 -300 eq

 

3. Image stabilization in the camera body. I regularly get sharp hand held shots with the 14-42 at 1/8 sec. Using the 40 -150 less often I usually can hand hold to 1/30. The image stabilization works great it makes a significant difference in the usability of this system. I would buy the E510 over the E410 for this reason alone.

 

4. I just liked the look and feel. This turned out to be far more important than I would have suspected. The E410 is lighter and smaller, however this gets in the way of good ergonomics, I didn?t like the small grip and more complex interface to the menus. The E510 also allows adjustment of more parameters than the E410.

 

 

I would recommend going to the store, picking up both and see how each operates. I would hate to not spend a little more money (at most 25% more) and later feel I had to compromise on what I really wanted. Afterall you will be enjoying the camera long after the memory of an extra $100 has faded.

[jim_flinchbaugh]

Randy,

 

WHere did you find the E510 /2-lens kit for around 600?

 

"going to the store" - - - this means a 250 mile one way trip for a hands on, no local's stock them (notice I refuse to call them a camera shop?) Thanks for all the replies, I'm reasonably sure the 510 is the winner.

A few more bucks to save and its party time for me. :-)

Jim

[dennis_gardner]

Hi Jim,

 

Tough choice. IMO, the only differences are, for the 510, bigger, heavier body with grip, bigger battery, IS. Some would feel the bigger body as an advantage, others not. Advantage for the 410 - able to go underwater (of course you have to buy the case).

 

It appears your budget is a big consideration but I feel IS/hand grip/bigger battery are worth the extra dollars.

 

Dennis

[glenbarrington]

I've not upgraded from my E500 yet as I am pretty happy with the output so far. I may go with the E3 if I DO upgrade to a different body.

 

But I don't think you'll be disappointed with the E510. The results I've seen are pretty impressive even with the kit lenses.

 

One thing I did though, was buy the 14 - 54 mm lens. The kit 14-45 is pretty good for a kit lens, and the 40-150 kit is very good IMO. But I use the mid range focal lengths the most and the 14-54 is faster, a bit sharper wide open, and focuses faster. Basically it made my E500 handle a whole lot better in low light. For a guy like me, it was a good first additional lens purchase and not very expensive (< $400 USD)

[randy_rogers1]

I found the E510 at Fry's locally just before Christmas on sale for under 600, I forget the exact price but I did pay the sales tax in addition which is almost another $50 for no added value. I suspect you could shop on-line or watch for sales and find a reasonable deal.

I have since bought a bag, extra battery, magnifying eyecup, and a polarizing filter.. sad to say find myself "needing" all that stuff.. next I am going to get a decent flash.. so it goes.

[dennis_gardner]

Hi Randy,

 

You got a really good deal on your kit. The lowest I've seen them was $650 USD w/free shipping so that's about what you paid all toll.

 

Had to chuckle at your post because I've literally doubled the cost of my 2 lens kit with the extras I've added - and that doesn't include any lenses!

 

The biggest addition was an Oly flash. I got an Oly because the flash and camera "talk" to one another in the same language.

 

Photography can be an expensive hobby!

 

Dennis

[jim_flinchbaugh]

FWIW,

 

The best prices I've found on the E510 with 2 lens kit.

 

1. Amazon at 636.88

 

2. B&H at 657.95

 

Since the amazon price is from another vender, being re-sold thru their site, I'll spend the extra 11 bucks and buy from B&H. Both of these are lower then the average price on ebone. (by around 100 bucks)

B&H also seems to have the best deal on CF cards.

 

Now one more quick question about the flash since someone brought it up.What makes the Oly flashes worth so much money? Must be the 49 dollar printer and the 50 dollar cartridge theroy huh?

 

Again, thanks for the advice folks, I think I'm set on the 510, just need to save up a few more bucks. Got one small engine job to finish and I'll be about 100 bucks away, YIPPIE :-)

 

 

Jim

[gaijin]

I was looking at the same choice and went with the E410 and one lens kit for $499 (a local buy). I wanted small, and the 410 meets that need. I shoot mostly wide angle so have no real interest in the longer 40-150 lens. IS isn't that important to me because I wanted small (I have other IS enabled cameras if I really need that feature. I also have a Leica M6 with 35mm f/1.2 lens. If I am seriously interested in shooting low light I haven't found a digital sensor to match what I can do with the Leica M6 and film in truly low light).

 

But what I have found with my choice is that the 14-42 kit lens isn't as great as I have read it is. In fact I am disappointed and regard it as just another cheap/get you going kit lens to be replaced. Most likely I'll be looking at spending more for the Oly 11-22 lens. Had I known that I would have saved myself $100 (bought the body only) and put the $100 towards a better lens (yes, I like the camera that much).

 

I have Pentax istDS and Canon 10D cameras and various lenses and am seriously considering giving those up (selling what I have closing out my investment in those systems) and concentrating on the Oly 4/3 system. I think the system shows a lot of promise and is very well thought out, not to mention that participants like Leica and Olympus bring a lot to the table in terms of lens design experience. That goes against my initial reasoning when I first read about the 4/3 system. The 2x crop factor was to me a total turn off, but then I started doing some research into the engineering decisions behind the 4/3 system and came to realize they make a lot of sense... duh! But in the long run I think the 4/3 system will end up costing me more for for similar equipment but I will get better image quality.

 

My bottom line thoughts? The 4/3 system might very well surpass the APS-C sized systems in image quality. If you look at the list of 4/3 participants, well it is rather impressive. That's a lot of big dollar technology rich corporate muscle investing in the 4/3 system!

 

Don

[charles_reid]

Jim i shoot with an e500 now. I bought it not long ago and i'm upgrading to a 510 tomorrow. The major differences are IS, Live view, and better high iso.. which in a way is the equivalent to having extra IS. Im paying 500 for a new body and will sell my 500 for $250 if im lucky. In other words im paying $250 to upgrade my camera to IS. YES its worth it. Unless you shoot from a tripod 24/7 you're going to miss a lot of photos without IS. Even on a tripod with a long lens sometimes you need IS. I have a bunch of photos of wild turkeys shot with IS from a monopod indoors braced against the glass with a 250mm lens and 2x converter. 1000mm film slr equivalent. They're useless to me. For a "dad shot this pic with his instamatic" theyd be ok but they arent sharp because of tiny vibrations. Ive also shot the moon with the same setup on a tripod. Longer eposures with the mirror locked up. The wind caused enough vibration that they arent anywhere near as sharp as id want.

 

Spend the money. Trust me you're eventually going to consider both the body one of the lesser expenses and that you'd have found Crack a cheaper hobby

[Tom Wiggins Photography]

I started with a C4040z in 2001, purchased the e-300 in 2005 and my

e-510 in August 2007. The IS feature is great and is the reason I purchased that model over the e-410. The new lighter weigh of both cameras over prior models makes them great for travel. You can wear the camera around your neck all day with little neck fatigue.