Olympus Infinity Stylus Epic

Lot's of people ask me what is a quality camera, reasonably price and easy to use. To that, I say "if you can find it, get the Olympus Infinity Stylus Epic". Check out the Olympus website by clicking here.

It features a 35mm f2.8 lens that's very sharp, auto-focus down to 14 inches, a flash that's good up to 13 feet or so, and several creative modes that's fully automatic. It goes on sale for about $100. That's cheaper than a single lens for a quality Single Lens Reflex (SLR) camera! And, now it sports a quartz date calendar for the same price!

While it doesn't have a fancy zoom like most people would like, it's very small and light and fits in most purses or in a pants pocket. It's ideal for a go-everywhere party picture camera also takes great shots of landscapes. I also use it to record a "people's view" of newsworthy events. And with the combination available lighting plus red-eye reduction flash mode, you get spectacular nighttime shots that combine a flash picture of a person in the foreground with a beautiful nightlight scene in the background.

It uses the common CR123 battery, it's weather resistant, and has a tripod mount on the bottom. It has a multi-sensor autofocus system, and a funky red-eye reduction flash that looks more like a disco strobe light than a flash.

You can learn quite a bit about photography from such a small and simple camera. Then you can upgrade to a single-lens reflex cameras and keep the Stylus Epic as a back-up or convenience camera. I've taken a few photos with it under very demanding conditions that's virtually impossible to distinguish from those taken from an expensive Nikon camera with some of Nikon's finest lenses, yet it was just a matter of pressing a couple of buttons on the Stylus Epic to achieve these same amazing results!

If you still need convincing, take a look at this photo taken during the dress rehearsal for the Miss Universe pageant. The scanned image is a little blurry compared to the print, but it gives you an idea of what this fully automatic camera can do.

Controls

Other than the shutter release and the recessed film rewind button, there are just two buttons on the back:

the exposure mode button on the left and
the timer button on the right.

There are six exposure modes that's activated by pressing the left button:

Automatic exposure with flash (Blank)
Red Eye Reduction flash. (Eye)
No flash. (Flash symbol with a slash through it)
Always flash. (Flash symbol)
Night Scene. (Star and crescent moon)
Night Scene with Red Eye Reduction flash. (Both Night Scene and Red Eye symbols on)

Pressing the right button activates the self-timer/remote control feature. The remote control is an option.

Pressing both buttons together activates the spot mode with a memory feature. When spot mode is activated, you can focus and expose on a subject centered within the cross-hairs in the viewfinder. By pressing lightly on the shutter release and holding down, the camera will memorize the focus and exposure, then allow you to shift the camera, compose your scene, then complete the picture taking by pressing down on the shutter release.

Here's some ways you can use these features to your advantage.

Group Shots

This camera is ideal for taking groups of up to about 10 people. Just set the red-eye reduction mode, frame and shoot! This is a sample taken during a break from the Miss Universe pageant rehearsals.

Notice how powerful the flash was to illuminate people on the stage that are perhaps 18 feet away!

Fill Flash

If you're taking pictures of someone in an area with strong backlighting, or in strong sunlight, you'll want fill-in flash. Press the exposure mode button until you see the flash symbol, then take the picture.

Indoor Photo With TV

If you want to take an indoor photo in a room with a TV set, and you want the results of what's on the TV screen to show (like the sports score at the end of the game or the image and words from a karaoke video), use the Night Scene mode. It'll slow the shutter down, slow enough to capture the TV screen.

Tip on taking Portraits

If you want to take photos of people and you wish to orient the camera vertically, select the red-eye reduction mode. Then, hold the camera vertically for a flash shot. Hold it in your right hand, and point the camera body down, not up. If you point it down, the flash element is on the top above the camera lens, placing the shadow behind your subject and making a more natural photo. If you point it up instead, the flash element is on the bottom and give unnatural dark shadows above your subject's head. This will make your subjects will look like Frankenstein.....

In Closing

Once you've gotten the hang of taking photos with the Olympus Infinity Stylus Epic, you're more than ready to buy your first Single Lens Reflex (SLR) camera.

How good is it? The following people wound up telling me they bought the Olympus Infinity Stylus Epic: Charlotte, Don, Elaine, Gay, Kim, Paul, Tom. No one's complained yet...

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