Olympus E-30

	Resolution Summary
• Excellent sharpness and chromatic aberration results • Negligible distortion • Very poor dynamic range when shooting JPEGs. • Extraordinary array of file sizes and aspect ratios • Exceptional image stabilization
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Resolution (13.03)

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Our resolution testing looks at three factors: distortion, chromatic aberration and sharpness, though we only score based on the latter two. This is one of the only areas in our testing where the E-30 excelled, which may be partially due to the fact that we tested using the 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 II lens, which usually sells for around $500, as the E-30 does not have a kit lens.

Distortion
The E-30's lens had absolutely minimal distortion. At 14mm (equivalent to a 28mm in 35mm photography) there was 0.61% barreling, and at 26mm (52mm equivalent) there was 0.44% pincushioning. For sake of comparison, the Nikon D90 had between 2.5% and 3% distortion at every zoom range shooting with an 18mm-62mm lens.

 

	Image Sharpness
	f/2.8			f/6.3			f/22
14mm

At wide-angle you see the most chromatic aberration, which occurs midway between the center of the lens and the edges. Unsurprisingly, the image is sharpest at the very center of the image, though it drops off as you move away from the middle, and climbs again towards the corners.

	Image Sharpness
	f/3			f/8			f/22
26mm

Zooming in to 26mm, the chromatic aberration drops across the board, and the sharpness increases, but maintains a similar pattern of losing sharpness in the area half-way between the center and the edges.

	Image Sharpness
	f/3.5			f/9			f/22
54mm

Finally, at a maximum zoom of 54mm (110mm in 35mm equivalent), the chromatic aberration evens out across the entire lens. The sharpness stays remarkably high at this point, in keeping with the overall excellent resolution provided by the lens.

Resolution is one of the few areas where the E-30 excelled. It handily outperformed the comparison cameras in these tests, giving it one of its few victories in our extensive lab-testing.

Resolution Score Comparison

Picture Quality & Size Options (16.25)

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One of the features Olympus is really pushing on the E-30 is the vast array of image sizes and shapes, as they've adopted a number of aspect ratios beyond their maximum 4:3. The E-30 can additionally be set to 3:2, 16:9, 6:6, 5:4, 7:6, 6:5, 7:5, or 3:4. If you're using Live View, the image on the LCD will be cropped to the appropriate proportion, but not if you use the viewfinder.

 

Image Sizes
Aspect Ratio	Large	Medium	Small
4:3	4032 x 3024	3200 x 2400, 2560 x 1920, or 1600 x 1200	1280 x 960, 1024 x 768, or 640 x 480
3:2	4032 x 2688	2544 x 1696	1296 x 864
16:9	4032 x 2272	2560 x 1440	1280 x 720
6:6	3024 x 3024	1920 x 1920	960 x 960
5:4	3776 x 3024	2400 x 1920	1200 x 960
7:6	3536 x 3024	2240 x 1920	1120 x 960
6:5	3632 x 3024	2304 x 1920	1152 x 960
7:5	4032 x 2880	2576 x 1840	1232 x 880
3:4	2272 x 3024	1440 x 1920	720 x 960

In 4:3 ratio, the E-30 lets you chose which resolutions you want to assign to Medium and Small image sizes, as well as any of four compression levels (superfine, fine, normal and basic). Four combination of image sizes and compression levels can be bookmarked, and then can easily be selected through the quick menu.

Dynamic Range (2.89)

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In dynamic range, once again the E-30 underwhelmed with a very poor result, far below any of the other cameras we tested. Dynamic range is a measure of a camera's ability to record a wide range of darks and lights within a single image. A camera with a wide dynamic range will be able to capture both highlights and shadows without losing either, where one with a poor dynamic range will struggle. We test dynamic range by photographing a Kodak step-chart at various apertures across all ISOs, and we use Imatest to analyze the results by distinguishing the individual steps of grey within the chart.

The E-30 has a dynamic range adjustment setting called Gradation, which can be set to Normal, Auto, High Key or Low Key, but not turned off entirely. After our initial review was published, including data gathered using the Auto setting, we re-tested the camera with the Normal setting, and still found a disappointingly low dynamic range. When comparing Auto and Normal settings, the Normal has a slightly better dynamic range at ISO 400 and below, but slightly worse above that.

Dynamic Range (Gradation Normal)

 

Dynamic Range (Gradation Auto)

At the highest ISO settings, the dynamic range results are very small; the extremely high noise levels in the test images severely limits the dynamic range the camera can accurately capture. However, the procedure used is our standard testing procedure, and scored under the same system as every other camera we test. The bottom line is that the E-30 had much less dynamic range at these levels than all of the other cameras we have tested in our new rubric. Switching the Gradation to Normal widens the range somewhat, but not by a huge amount.

Even at ISO 100, the E-30 only managed a dynamic range of 4.49 stops in our test; significantly less than other cameras. If you shoot on RAW this increases to 6.72, a resounding endorsement for shooting uncompressed if ever there was one. It's difficult to say why the difference between RAW and JPEG is so high; it may be due to some sort of built in noise reduction that the user cannot control, or even some issue with the JPEG compression. At ISO 3200, our results show a range of less than a single stop, though this is result is not directly accurate, as likely due Imatest's trouble differentiating different gray steps due to the high amounts of noise.

Dynamic Range Comparison (ISO 200)

When compared to other cameras at ISO 200 (the lowest ISO found across all the comparison cameras), you get a feel for just how poorly the E-30 does when trying to capture the gamut of light levels. It's less than half that of the much less expensive Canon XS, to say nothing of the Nikon D90.

Dynamic Range Score Comparison

Yet again, the small sensor haunts the Olympus E-30. Its dynamic range was exceedingly poor, dropping below a single stop at ISO 3200. This be due in to the extreme levels of noise, which cause difficulty when trying to ascertain dynamic range, as steps can easily be obscured.

 This section of the review was updated with revised results and scores on 31st March 2009

Image Stabilization (11.79)

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The Olympus E-30 uses sensor-shift image stabilization technology to compensate for shaking hands. We test this by shaking the camera at high and low frequency, both in horizontal and vertical directions, using a precisely controlled laboratory mechansim. Lo and behold, the Olympus performed remarkably well. This may be one of the few benefits of having a small sensor, in that the camera can adjust it much faster to compensate for motion. For more details on how this test is run, see our How We Test article.

 

Olympus E-30 Image Stabilization: Low Shake
Horizontal: Sharpness Vs Shutter Speed Horizontal: Sharpness improvement with IS on	Vertical: Sharpness Vs Shutter Speed Vertical: Sharpness improvement with IS on

The first of our tests simulates the amount of shaking that you might find when holding the camera in two hands, so there's only a moderate amount of wobble. You can see that the camera is more effective horizontally across the slightly longer exposure as opposed to vertically, which is good, as horizontal shake is more prevalent when holding a camera. With both directions, the sharpness levels off around 1/60 and 1/30 of a second, a standard exposure level for indoor shooting. If you have the image stabilization on at this point, you get a sharpness approximately equivalent of a 1/200 exposure without image stabilization, a dramatic improvement.

Olympus E-30 Image Stabilization: High Shake
Horizontal	Vertical

 

With faster shaking, about the same as you would encounter when using the relatively hefty SLR one-handed, the improvement was even more noticeable, both horizontally and vertically.

What it boils down to is that the image stabilization on the E-30 is extremely effective. Regardless of the conditions you're shooting in, or your exposure time, if you're not using a tripod you will want to turn this feature on. Even at 1/500 of a second, where you usually won't see any blurring, there's still a noticeable improvement.

If you only want the camera to stabilize in one direction, for panning either left/right or up/down, you can set the image stabilization to level two or three. The former will only stabilize vertical shake, which makes it good for following objects moving parallel to the ground, and the latter only stabilizes horizontally, for targets rapidly ascending or descending.

If you are using Live View, holding down the IS button on the camera's back will engage the stabilization motor so you can see a preview of how it will effect your image without actually needing to take the photograph. However, this also creates a slightly unnerving noise.

Where camera manufacturers Olympus, Sony and Pentax differ from Canon and Nikon, is that they offer their image stabilization in the body of the camera rather than the lens. This means that all lenses retain the benefits of shake reduction, and their prices can be kept lower. The Olympus mount system is known for being able to take other lenses with a simple adapter, so the E-30 lets you manually set the focal length of a non-Four Thirds lens, and the image stabilization will still work.

Below are stills from some of our test photos taken with the Olympus E-30, showing an average image from the horizontal test. The target is a slanted line.

 

	Image Stabilization Comparison Table
	Low Shake  IS Off	Low Shake IS On	High Shake IS Off	High Shake IS On
1/500
1/250
1/125
1/60
1/30
1/15
1/8

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