Just Got an Olympus SP-570UZ Camera

I've been looking for a super-zoom type of camera to supplement
the Olympus C5050 that I got years back. I've tried out a bunch
of different cameras for about 3 years, but never was able to
find the right one.

I wanted a camera that took standard AA batteries, had a Hot Shoe
for external flash, and had at least a 10x zoom with Image
Stabilization.

I also wanted at least 8 megapixels if I could, but I learned
that even though some cameras claim 8 or 10 megapixels, the
resulting image may not actually look any better than the 5
megapixels on my C5050. One of those was the Canon PowerShot
A640. It only had a 4x zoom, but had 10 megapixels. But not
only did it have a weak flash that left Red-Eye all over the
place, but the 10 mp images really did not look very good. So, I
just kept looking.


I did NOT want to go DSLR - I'm just not ready for that level of
investment and potential complexity. Some pretty good models
were out there, but always seemed to be missing something.

Some had proprietary LI-ION batteries, some lacked the hot shoe,
and many had really bad view finders.

I wanted an optical view finder, but I guess these long range
cameras just don't have that feature available. I think all of
them ended up having EVF units. So, I had to accept that I would
have to get an EVF.

Well, in recent times, the Canon S5 came pretty close in most
areas, but had one of the most horrible EVF units that I've ever
seen. It was very blocky and blurry, making it very difficult to
use it when trying to focus, for example. It was just pretty
awful.

Well, I'd heard about the Olympus 560 UZ but no Hot Shoe.

Then I heard about the 570. Saw a review on Steve's Digicams,
one of my longtime fave sites, and decided that I was gonna head
over to a local store and check it out.

It looks good. It feels good to grip. It has a hot shoe and a
nice pop-up flash. Excellent 2.7" LCD - way better than I
expected. Diopter adjustment - nice. I looked for the T&W
control up top like it is on the C5050 and most cameras. It's
not there. Huh?

They use this really cool DSLR-like feature - lens ring to
control zoom. Nice.

I take a peek into the EVF and was pretty surprised. It seems to
have a higher resolution and clarity than I have seen before in
EVF's. I can actually use that EVF to focus accurately. I
mean - hey - stuff looked pretty clear. That's a novel concept.
I had not seen an EVF that good before - at least not that I
could remember.

I got to take test shots with their display model, and I could
use the EVF exclusively if I wanted - all the pics I took looked
just fine. So if I'm in a situation with hardcore glare and the
external LCD is just too hard to use to focus, the EVF can handle
the job.

Long story short - I was impressed. Best camera I have tried
since the original C5050. Shots were crisp, clear and looked
great on that LCD, red-eye was almost completely non-existent in
auto mode. I had to try really hard to even get one shot to show
ANY red-eye at all. It has a nice AF assistant lamp too, by the
way.

So, bought me a brand-spankin' new SP-570UZ and a 2 gig XD card
and a spiffy little camera bag and walked out happy. Messed with
the thing a ton at home, all sorts of lighting conditions, etc.
and so far, so good. Connects to the PC via USB no sweat. You
don't have to even turn it on or turn the dial to a special mode
and take the lens cap off to be sure it doesn't extend when you
turn the power on. Uses some wacky non-standard USB cable port,
at least it seems to be, but I guess I can survive that.

XD cards are not that fast, but it has 45meg of local memory
which works well for buffering the multi-shot modes. So far so
good.

I think I found myself a keeper. After years of looking, this
new 570 drops out of the sky and just so happens to be the same
brand as my revered C5050. Must be some good Camera Karma going
on there. I do wish it would take another type of media though.
My C5050 did Smart Media / XD and also Compact Flash. I'd have
liked to see an XD/SD setup perhaps. Still, it's something I
think I can live with.

I'll maybe post a follow-up after some shots have been taken on
my next vacation, but just around the house, outside, etc. I
can't seem to find anything to really complain about.

The 570UZ may be worth a look if you are not ready to make the
leap to DSLR. I have had a very positive first impression, and
perhaps you will too.

Enjoy