Olympus Reviews

We registered for this camera on our bridal registry and we actually received two cameras at my bridal shower. However, after spending over an hour trying to load the film, I gave up and went to Target to get help. The electronics clerk also could not get the film loaded for the longest time and finally he did something (he doesn't know what) and it loaded. We followed the directions over and over again but the film was so tricky to load that it isn't worth the hassle! We even opened up the other camera I had received in case the first one was defective, and that one would also not load the film. I still don't know how to do it and we returned both cameras and chose a different one. We were taking this camera on our honeymoon and we didn't want to risk getting stuck on the cruise with a camera that would only load film at random. For a brand new item, this was not high quality. Shop carefully!

This camera has sharp pictures, ease of use, and a good zoom. However, it suffers from a design flaw. To turn the camera on or off, you must slide the lens cover to one side. This design is fragile and thus vulnerable to breaking. We have fixed it once within the first year of use. Recently, it broke again. Fixing it again is more than it is worth, especially given that such a repair would only be temporary. Instead, we are looking for a new camera--one with a traditional (and sturdier) on/off switch.

I'm an experienced hobby photographer who's spent many years helping people select the best camera for their needs.
This is an unusually good one for most people's needs.
The difference between a great camera and merely a very good one is versatility -
and versatility is achieved by striking a good balance between capability (features), ease of use (automation) and choice
(manual overrides for when the automation makes a bad decision, which they all do from time to time).
This model strikes a very good balance, and offers an unusually good lens - key to great picture quality - in this price class .

Pro's - 1) Unusually high quality lens, both in terms of construction (aspheric lens elements) and materials (ED glass),
makes for very high quality pictures across the entire zoom range. 2) Stepless zoom - most cameras in this class "step",
that is, they restrict you to a handfull of pre-determined points in the zoom range. So instead of, say, a "38-120" lens

as advertised, you actually have a "38, 50, 70, 90, 120" on these other cameras (Canon, Minolta, and many others).
The Stylus lets you zoom to any point in its range, which makes it easier to frame your picture accurately. 3) Multi-zone
metering detects and automatically corrects for backlight (putting the sun in the picture won't ruin your shot). 4) Spot
metering option let's you tell the camera that you want to concentrate on a small area (your friend's face) under difficult

lighting conditions. 5) Focus lock let's you focus on your subject and then reframe (your friend's face again, next to the
small tree in the foreground - you want your friend in focus, not the tree). 6) Flash modes for just about every conceivable
need in a point and shoot camera. 7) Relatively high shutter speeds for a lens-shutter camera (1/630 second vs 1/400 or so on
some other makes) 8) Advanced flash control adds the right amount of flash when needed, not too much, not too little
9) Small, lightweight, reasonably rugged, weather-resistant, clearly laid out controls, clamshell design protects lens when
closed.

Cons - 1) Zoom range doesn't go truly wide - you won't get a large group in without backing up. This is common to almost all
point and shoot cameras - most people will buy a longer lens rather than a wider one, thinking that "bigger is better". For
people who would rather get the group shot, or that shoot indoors a lot, try the Stylus 100 Wide, which has a true wide
angle lens in it (28-100mm instead of 38-120mm). 2) Clamshell design can develop problems with the electrical contacts (but
other designs can develop problems with their lens covers, so
you're trading one for another here, in my experience). 3) Red-eye reduction is oversold - they all have it, but it's more
annoying than effective. To avoid red-eye, have your subject look just to the side, not right at the camera.

In short, as a "second" camera for the enthusiast, or a "main" camera for the mainstream user, this one's hard to beat.
For the record, I have no relationship with any company or person in the industry.

I own a Nikon N6006 SLR and set out to buy a point-and-shoot for convenience. I bought both a Minox CD 140 and an Olympus Stylus Zoom 140 QD. I shot a roll of film with all three at once, then blinded sorted the the match sets of three pictures of each image based on which were best. My findings:

1. The Nikon SLR was not consistently the best. In fact, the difference between the pictures from the SLR and the two point and shoots was remarkably smaller than I expected.

2. The Minox had somewhat better color, focusing, and contrast than did the Olympus. The difference, however, was slight.

3. The Olmpus was better designed than the Minox. The Olympus fit better in the hand, the clamshell cover gave more protection, it had a greater zoom range, the viewfinder was slightly larger and set back from the camera body (so your nose doesn't bump the camera as much), and the diopter adjustment was nice. On the plus side for the Minox, the placement of the Minox zoom buttons was more comfortable for me than than the Olympus ones, and the Minox turned on and off markedly faster than the Olympus. Also, the Minox case was more practical.

Both point and shoot cameras would be excellent options. Get the Minox if picture quality is paramount; get the Olympus if you want more features and better comfort in your hands.

The two most important features to me are the quality of the photos a camera takes (with and w/out the zoom), and how quickly the picture is taken when you press the shutter and quick speed between photos. This camera delivers both those features.

I had an Olympus Stylus for years, then a year ago thought I should get a new autofocus camera and read snappy advertising by Nikon about their special glass lens technology for incredibly sharp pictures blah blah blah. I was sold. That camera took terrible fuzzy or grainy photos with the zoom, and not that great without the zoom lens. And the worst part was the wait time between photos with and without the flash. We'd press the shutter also, and there would be a few second delay before the photo was taken. By then all the kids had moved and we had to set everybody up all over again. Do not buy a Nikon lite touch.

I love the Olympus. We've taken it to the ocean and snapped four rolls of film. Every photo was sharp, colorful, and good quality. I cannot tell you how releived we were when we got the photos. Olympus makes a great product at a great price without a lot of pomp and circumstance.

I bought this camera a couple of weeks ago and used it for the first time at Disneyland. I'm thrilled with the results.

Film: I used 800 Dx film (the type I always use)--1 roll of Fuji; 1 roll of Kodak. Both rolls came out great.

About Me: I am an amateur camera user, not a professional. I have always used point-and-shoot type cameras for vacations, special occassions, etc.

Convenience: The camera easily fits inside a fanny pack, along with a small wallet, comb, sunglasses and an extra roll of film. At only 9 oz, it is almost feather-light. The buttons are easy to use; you don't need a pencil or other pointed object to press them.

Lighting Conditions/Features Tested: I tested all of the camera's features (except the timer) in a variety of conditions--through the windows of the Monorail both while stopped and moving, inside rides with the flash off, in bright sun, in the shadows and shade of Tom Sawyer's Island, etc. Splash Mountain proved an excellent place to test the camera's splash resistance.

Photo Quality: Nothing seemed to fool this camera. All of the pictures came out crisp, sharp and clear with exceptional color, at all levels of zoom. People pictures came out unusually well with very true skin color.

Windows: I am particularly pleased with the camera's ability to shoot through windows. It does not have a "landscape" or "infinity" mode, nor does it seem to need one. The camera consistently focused on objects beyond the glass, and pictures came back without glare.

Flash Off Feature: Unlike other cameras that require you to activate the flash off feature each time (each shot) you want to use it, the Olympus Zoom 140 flash-off remains activated until you either switch to another mode or turn the camera off. In places where flash is not permitted, this allows you to take numerous photos without having to press the flash-off button each time.

Viewfinder: Like many point-and-shoot cameras, the viewfinder is slightly above and to the right of the lens. But unlike other cameras I considered, the Olympus viewfinder has guides that help you allow for that...and prevent "chopped off heads" in pictures. The adjustable diopter is also very easy to use. It works beautifully except when the camera is zoomed all the way to 140, at which point it is slightly blurry. (But the pictures still come out great!)

Zoom: The zoom is extremely easy to use and allows you to zoom to any point within the range. There are no preset zoom stops.

Minor Criticism: My only slight criticism of this camera is that the window that displays the number of exposures and the flash mode is not lighted. But that can easily be overcome by carrying a penlight so that you can read the display in dim environments.

Summary: This camera produces excellent pictures, is very easy to use, and is well worth the price. It has definitely exceeded my expectations.