Review Date: November 15, 2011
Category: Beginner to Serious Amateur
Olympus E-PL3
Photoxels Gold Award – Interchangeable Lens Camera
USER’S EXPERIENCE
Monday, October 31, 2011 – Here’s what I receive in the box:
- Olympus E-PL3 (White)
- No memory card
- Li-ion Battery PS-BLS1 7.2V 1150mAh
- Battery Charger BCS-1 (with power cord)
- Neck Strap
- External Flash
- USB Cable and A/V Cable
- Documentation: Basic Manual
- Software CD: Viewer 2 [Win] [Mac], ib [Win], Instruction Manual
- I also received the M.ZUIKO DIGITAL 14-42mm f3.5-5.6 II R kit lens (filter diameter 37mm)
The Olympus E-PL3 is almost identical in performance and image quality to the top-of-the-line E-P3. The E-PL3 sits between the E-PM1 and E-P3, and is targeted to beginner and serious amateur photographers.
I rather like the clean lines of the E-PL3. Some reviewers have commented on the lack of a handgrip but I don’t miss it since the surface is not particularly slippery, and the fact that it is a camera that you need two hands to hold and operate mean you are at all times securely holding it. When walking with it and holding it in one hand only, I hold it in my left hand, fingers wrapped around the lens, which is the correct way to hold a camera with a zoom lens attached. But I recommend that you do handle it to see if the lack of a handgrip bothers you. The E-PL3 is available in black, silver, red or white.
The best news is that in use, the E-PL3 is a fast and responsive camera with no shutter or AF lag. It’s as fast as you can click the shutter. Plus, it has a tiltable LCD, which adds tremendously to the enjoyment of the camera.
The E-PL3 is not perfect by all means and could do with some improvements. Here are all the “missing” or idiosyncratic stuff all in one place. See if any bothers you, though I believe none of them is a real deal breaker.
The E-PL3 does not have a built-in flash but comes with an external clip-on flash in the box. Unfortunately, the flash does not bounce its light, sorely limiting its usefulness. On the plus side, the flash can act as a wireless trigger to other external flashes.
There is no EVF so if you like one, you’ll need to purchase an external one, such as the excellent VF-2. Unfortunately, you cannot use the EVF and a flash at the same time.
The stereo microphone on the E-PL3 is very sensitive and the good news is that it will clearly record a person talking from a distance when recording a movie. The bad news is that the continuous AF sound is noisy and will get recorded. Olympus recommends using S-AF or M-AF during movie recording.
The Movie Button allows you to immediately record a movie no matter what the Mode Dial is set to. However, to stop recording on my review camera, I find that I have to press the Movie Button twice. When recording a movie, you can interrupt the recording by taking a still picture, and the camera then starts recording again (unfortunately onto another clip). However, there’s an annoying lag from the moment you press the shutter to when the still image is captured. Definitely, not a feature I recommend using on the E-PL3.
Strangely, the camera does not sit flat with the kit lens attached, but leans forward. This means you cannot simply put the camera on a flat surface to stabilize it; you’ll need a tripod.
The LCD is 3.0-in. if you shoot in the 16:9 format. If you shoot in the native 4:3 format, as most of us do, the LCD reverts to being a 2.5-in. one.
Finally, the Menu structure is still quite complex. Olympus has to seriously rework its Menu structure and User Interface. The continued insistence on keeping a strict hierachical structure does nothing to help the user set the most common features quickly with the least amount of frustration. Thankfully, once you set everything up (with the help of the Instruction Manual), you won’t need to access the Menu too often. This is especially true if you set the Live Control or Super Control Panel (SCP). Here’s how to set the SCP: [MENU – Custom Menu – Disp/Remote/PC – Control Settings – P/A/S/M – SCP – ON]. Once you’ve set the SCP on, all you need to do to bring it up is to press the OK button, and you’ll have all the important exposure settings at your fingertips.
Take, for example, setting Custom WB. This can be a frustrating affair unless you delve into the Instruction Manual. I recommend that you set either Live Control or Super Control Panel so that you can “easily” use “One Touch” WB. Olympus succeeds in complicating what should really be an easy setup.
Here’s how to set Custom WB on the E-PL3:
- Press the OK button to bring up the Super Control Panel.
- Navigate to WB, press OK and select one-touch WB1 or one-touch WB2.
- Press the INFO button to activate the measuring process.
- Place a sheet of white paper in front of the lens so that it fills the display.
- Click the shutter and press OK to Yes.
However, there is nothing that is a real deal-breaker and, once you take the time to consult the Instruction Manual and set the E-PL3 to the way you want it to work, you’ll be delighted with both the amount of control it provides as well as the performance and image quality it delivers.
So, here’s what I like about the E-PL3:
- Very good image quality from ISO 200 to ISO 800, even ISO 1600.
- Fast and responsive
- Compact and light compared to a traditional DSLR
- Easy migration from a point-and-shoot digicam
- iAUTO mode that works really well
- Tiltable LCD
- LCD gains up very well in low light
- More customization than you’ll ever need
No review is complete without a couple of improvement suggestions:
- Include a built-in Flash
- Need quiet C-AF during movie recording
- 3.0-in. LCD (in 4:3 format)
- Camera/lens combo should allow camera to sit flat
- Shutter Release button needs longer half-press
- Revamp Menu
- Movie button should require only one press to stop recording
The Olympus E-PL3 is a digital camera for beginners and enthusiasts who want something more compact and lighter than a traditional entry-level DSLR and with DSLR-level image quality and performance. Though beginners will enjoy using it, they would need some time to get used to the Menu and user interface. We are impressed enough by its performance and image quality to highly recommend getting the Olympus E-PL3 over a high-end compact digicam or entry-level DSLR.
Next: Olympus E-PL3 QuickFact Sheet / Buy