The World Class Olympus C5050Z !

Author's Rating:

Pros: Superb image quality, bevy of features,ability to use multiple card formats

Cons: Product instruction manual almost insulting for a camera of this quality.

The Bottom Line: 
Coupled with high quality image editing and printing I feel it has completely closed the gap between film and digital.

Author's Review
I’ve come to enjoy photography as a relaxing and enjoyable hobby that takes me far away from the stresses of work. I’m also a person who demands quality and value for the hard earned money I’ve been blessed to spend. I’m also not a real technical guy, so I’ll leave the technical stuff to others who are better suited here at Epinions. But let me give you my “ top line “ assessment of the C5050Z. First, however, a little background.

When it comes to cameras Olympus has been my choice hands down. From my first Olympus SLR to the C3000Z ,C4040Z, and now the C5050Z, quality, price, and value have always been met.

I first became interested in the C5050 after my best friend returned from a fraternity reunion with photos that were absolutely stunning. I inquired as to what camera was used for these shots and lo and behold it was the C5050. I had been doing some casual reading on the camera and thinking about upgrading. What I saw made me more serious. Like many of you, I did tons of research on the C5050 and read more than my share of reviews. The more I read ,the more I was impressed. It became increasingly clear that it was time to upgrade to a five megapixel camera. But which one, the C5050 or the C50 ? I researched so much that I think I began to suffer from the proverbial “ paralysis of analysis,” and decided to contact someone with the expertise to give me solid advice. That someone was Howard Creech, one of the premier reviewers here on Epinions. To make a long story short, Mr. Creech’s assessment was that the C5050 was a “ much more capable camera than the C50.” Howard’s advice was what pushed me to purchase. Here are my findings :

Quality of Construction

1. A professional camera look and feel in your
hands. Nothing cheesy about this bad boy.
2. The magnesium body is solid, and Olympus, to their
credit and ingenuity, has basically used the same body
mold as seen in both the C3000 and 4000 series. A nice
way to keep production costs down with a winning body
style.
3. The C5050 is NOT a “ shirt pocket “ camera ! So if
small is your preference, look at the C50 or a
competitive unit.
4. Control buttons well placed on the camera, easy access
with controls that are easy to learn & quickly utilize.

The C5050 Learning Curve

For a digicam novice, learning to use this unit might be a little tedious. However, previous experience with the C3000 and the C4040 was a great “ training ground “ for me along with thorough reviews of the camera via Steve’s Digicams. Upon receipt of the camera I was ready to “ rock and roll “ in a matter of moments. If you are new to the C5050 or to digital cameras in general, I’d advise you to take the time to learn the system, experiment, and learn from the mistakes. It’s time well invested, because once you’ve got the system down, the fun really begins ! The manual provided provides basic information ( it’s almost an insult ) so consult the enclosed CD, experiment, learn, and then experiment some more. You’ll be surprised at what you’ll learn and what you’ll be able to accomplish with his camera in a short period of time by giving it the due diligence it richly deserves.

Image Quality

1.In a word, OUTSTANDING ! Vivid color reproduction and
clarity. It’s definitely what you want from a five
megapixel camera. I took a shot of a multi-colored
blanket mi wife had hanging outside to dry. I used
Program Mode in sunny conditions and the print just
absolutely knocked me out of my seat. The gold, red,
green, and black colors seemed to want to “ jump “ out of
the print and no over saturation or bleeding were seen.
The clarity was such that you can see the threading of
the material. Other test shots, of vegetation,
buildings, autos, etc., produced the same results,
outstanding color reproduction and clarity. I also took
pictures at a school graduation ceremony, and the output
was so good that some of the parents asked and paid for
copies….now it doesn’t get better than that !

Image Editing

2. A great camera like the C5050 DESERVES a good photo
printer. I prefer Epson and own an 825 and a 1280. You
may have a different preference, but Epson has always
given me what I needed, excellent reproductions at
affordable prices, sizing options, and value.
3. I’d also invest in a good photo imaging program such
Photoshop Elements or one of the others available,
depending upon your resources. The provided Camedia
software….well…..it’s software….lol,lol.

Camera Features

As some have insinuated, this camera is almost “ over featured.” There are a variety of shooting modes :

1. Program Mode – Let’s the camera do all the work, just
point and shoot
2. Aperture Mode - You control the aperture settings
3. Shutter Mode - You control the shutter speeds
4. Manual Mode – You control the aperture and shutter speed
settings
5. Movie Mode w/sound & add sound to your snapshots as
well !
6. Auto Landscape & Auto Landscape w/portrait
7. Sports Scene Mode & Night Scene Mode
8. Portrait Mode
9. My Mode – Where you can save your favorite settings !
10.There is also a 2:1 mode where you can have two photos
intertwined into one shot.
11.Multiple white balance options & record modes
12.You can change the flash intensity, contrast, and
sharpness with the touch of a button or two.
13.Batteries : Olympus provides a charger & 4 rechargeable
batteries. The camera will also use alkalines and the
CRV3 lithiums.
14.The viewfinder will rotate to 90 degrees...how many
cameras have that feature ?

Card Options

1.Now here is where Olympus has hit a “ grand slam “ in my
opinion.
2.Unlike previous C series models which have only used
Smartmedia cards, the C5050 has two internal slots for
four different formats: Smartmedia, xD cards ( Olympus
provides a 32MB xD ard with the camera ), CompactFlash
Type I/II, and the IBM Microdrive. You can have, for
example, a xD card in one slot and a CompactFlash card in
the other at the same time. Changing formats is as easy
a touching a button, and keep shooting. Five gold stars
to the engineer who designed this !

Recommendations

1. As others have stated, purchase extra batteries.
2. Invest in a high MB xD Card, CompactFlash, or Smartmedia
card. Buy as many megabytes as you can afford.
3. Invest in the CLA-1 lens adaptor & step up ring and
purchase a circular polarizing filter. The effects of
the polarizing filter you’ll have to see for yourself
AND you now have the option to add additional filters to
the camera that will take your photographic experience
to an entirely new level.

How does one sum up this wonderful camera ? I guess the best way is by saying this camera has achieved 2003 World Class Status in digital imaging by PC World. That’s pretty high praise considering the competition offered by Canon, Nikon, and other manufacturers of fine digital cameras. Here are a few quick comments from PC World:

1. Top-drawer image quality
2. Better-than-average battery life
3. Plenty of high-end features
4. An easy-to-use interface make Olympus's C-5050 Zoom a
digital camera that's ready for serious shooters.
5. The $799, 5-megapixel C-5050 earned some of the best
image-quality scores we've seen on our tests,
particularly for outdoor photos.
6. And it lets you take plenty of them--its batteries lasted
for over 370 shots.

So ladies and gentlemen, you can’t go wrong with the C5050. The $ 799.00 price quoted above is MSRP. Shop around, you can get it for much cheaper. Go to your favorite camera shop, hold the C5050. Play with it if you will, have a few test shots taken and printed out for you. Once you do, you’ll see why this camera earns all of it’s rave reviews. I'm more than glad I made the purchase...you will be too !@

P.S. – Howard Creech….You are the man & Thanks Again !