Olympus E-30

    61
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    Highlights

    • 12 MP Micro Four Thirds CMOS Sensor
    • 100 - 3,200 Native ISO
    • 11 Focus Points
    • Image Stabilization
    • 2.7" 230k dot Fully Articulated Screen
    • Optical (pentaprism) Viewfinder
    • 5.0 fps Continuous Shooting
    • Built-in Flash
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    Disclosure: We earn money from the affiliate links to products associated with content in this article.

    Overview

    Olympus E-30 was announced in 2009 and is a Micro Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm) DSLR camera with 12 Megapixel CMOS sensor. Its native ISO ranges from 100 to 3,200. The camera has a Fully Articulated 2.7" screen with 230k dot resolution and built-in Optical (pentaprism) viewfinder. It has a built-in Sensor Shift in body image stabilization.

    Table of Contents
    1. Overview
    2. Pros and Cons
    3. Screen and Viewfinder
    4. Sensor
    5. Photography Features
    6. Connectivity, Battery and Storage
    7. Other Features
    8. Physical Parameters
    9. For Different Types of Photography
    10. Evaluation
    11. Specifications  

    Here is the Olympus E-xx series lineup, where you can view and compare the main specifications of the cameras within the same series.

    Olympus E-xx series lineup
    Model Date Sensor Native ISO Screen Price
    Image cannot be found Olympus E-30 March
    2009    		 12 MP
    Micro Four Thirds    		 100 - 3,200 Articulated 2.7"
    230k dot

    You can view their side-by-side comparison here: Olympus E-30.

    Pros and Cons

    In this section we present pros and cons of Olympus E-30.

    PROS

    •   Face Detection
    •   Live View Autofocus
    •   Image Stabilization
    •   Fully Articulated Screen
    •   High Max Shutter Speed (Mechanical or 1st Curtain) - 1/8000 sec
    •   Built-in Flash
    •   Orientation Sensor

    CONS

    •   No Video Capture
    •   Small Sensor
    •   Low Resolution Sensor - 12 Megapixel
    •   3,200 Highest Native ISO
    •   Timelapse Recording
    •   11 Focus Points
    •   Low Resolution Screen - 230k dot
    •   Low DxO Overall Score - 55
    •   No HDMI Output
    •   No Built-in Microphone
    •   No Microphone Input
    •   No Headphone Output
    •   No Built-in GPS
    •   No Built-In Wi-Fi
    •   No Built-In Bluetooth
    •   No Environmental Sealing

    And here are some specifications which fall into average criteria and are neither in PROs nor in CONs category:

    AVERAGE

    •   100 Lowest Native ISO
    •   Screen Size - 2.7"
    •   Max Continuous Shooting - 5.0 fps
    •   Max Flash Sync Speed - 1/250 sec
    •   Weight - 695 g (1.53 lb / 24.52 oz)
    •   Battery Life - 750 shots

    Screen and Viewfinder

    Fully Articulated screen

    Olympus E-30 has a 2.7" Fully Articulated screen with 230k dot resolution which is quite low by today's standards. Fully articulated screen makes this camera selfie friendly.

    Image cannot be displayed Image cannot be displayed

    Olympus E-30 with Fully Articulated screen


    Optical (pentaprism) Viewfinder

    Camera has a built-in Optical (pentaprism) viewfinder. It has a 98% coverage and 1.02x (0.51x 35mm equivalent) magnification.

    Sensor

    Olympus E-30 features a 12 megapixel Micro Four Thirds CMOS sensor with dimensions of 17.3 x 13 mm and a total area of 224.9 mm2. Its native ISO range is 100 - 3,200.


    Here is a sensor size comparison chart where you can see how Olympus E-30's Micro Four Thirds sensor compares with other types of sensors:

    Sensor size chart
    Sensor Dimensions Area Aspect Ratio Crop Factor
    Image cannot be displayedMedium Format44 x 33 mm1452 mm24:30.79x
    Image cannot be displayedFull Frame36 x 24 mm864 mm23:21x
    Image cannot be displayedAPS-H27 x 18 mm486 mm23:21.3x
    Image cannot be displayedAPS-C23.6 x 15.6 mm368.2 mm23:21.5x
    Image cannot be displayedAPS-C (Canon)22.3 x 14.9 mm332.3 mm23:21.6x
    Image cannot be displayedMicro Four Thirds17.3 x 13 mm224.9 mm24:32x
    Image cannot be displayed1-inch13.2 x 8.8 mm116.2 mm23:22.7x
    Image cannot be displayed1/1.7-inch7.44 x 5.58 mm41.5 mm24:34.7x
    Image cannot be displayed1/2.3-inch6.17 x 4.55 mm28.1 mm24:35.6x

    Photography Features

    Camera is equipped with TruePic III+ processor and can take pictures up to 4032 x 3024 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolutions like 3200 x 2400, 1600 x 1200, 1280 x 960, 1024 x 768, 640 x 480 with 1:1, 5:4, 4:3, 3:2, 16:9 aspect ratios.


    Lens Mount

    Olympus E-30 has Four Thirds lens mount. Due to Micro Four Thirds sensor its crop factor (also called lens multiplier) is 2x. This means that a 35mm equivalent focal length of the mounted lens will be equal to its actual focal length times 2.


    In-Body Image Stabilization

    The camera has a built-in Sensor Shift in-body image stabilization (IBIS). This means that you are still getting vibration reduction when camera is paired with non-image stabilizied lenses. It also works with lenses with optical image stabilization and in combination can achieve even better compensation.

    Check out the cameras which are frequently compared to Olympus E-30.

    Olympus E-500
    Image cannot be found

    Micro Four Thirds

    8 MP

    Olympus E-620
    Image cannot be found

    Micro Four Thirds

    12.3 MP

    Olympus E-420
    Image cannot be found

    Micro Four Thirds

    10.0 MP

    Olympus E-330
    Image cannot be found

    Micro Four Thirds

    7.94 MP

    Olympus E-300
    Image cannot be found

    Micro Four Thirds

    8 MP

    Olympus E-1
    Image cannot be found

    Micro Four Thirds

    5 MP

    Olympus E-450
    Image cannot be found

    Micro Four Thirds

    10.0 MP

    Olympus E-5
    Image cannot be found

    Micro Four Thirds

    12.3 MP

    Olympus E-400
    Image cannot be found

    Micro Four Thirds

    10.0 MP

    Sigma SD15
    Image cannot be found

    APS-C

    5 MP

    Leica TL2
    Image cannot be found

    APS-C

    24.6 MP

    Panasonic L1
    Image cannot be found

    Micro Four Thirds

    7 MP

    Connectivity, Battery and Storage

    USB Input

    Olympus E-30 has a USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) input for data transfer.


    Battery

    Olympus E-30 comes with BLM-1 battery pack with battery life of 750 shots.


    External Storage Slots

    The camera has a single Compact Flash (Type I/II), xD Picture Card card slot.

    Other Features

    Shutter

    Olympus E-30's shutter speed can go up to 1/8000 sec. Camera can shoot continuously up to 5.0 fps.


    Flash

    Olympus E-30 has a built-in flash with maximum range of 13.00 m and also accepts external flash which can be connected via Hot Shoe or PC Terminal. The fastest flash synchronization speed is 1/250 sec.

    Physical Parameters

    Olympus E-30 has dimensions of 142 x 108 x 75 mm (5.59 x 4.25 x 2.95"). It weighs 695 g (1.53 lb / 24.52 oz) which is neither heavy nor lightweight.

    142 mm (5.59")

    108 mm (4.25")

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    108 mm (4.25")

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    75 mm (2.95")

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    Olympus E-30 dimensions

    Olympus E-30 for Different Types of Photography

    We give scores to the camera for different type of photography based on its features and specifications. Let us see how Olympus E-30 is suitable for six different types of photography.


    Landscape Photography

    AVERAGE
    64

    Olympus E-30 gets a score of 64 and is AVERAGE choice for Landscape photography.

    •   Small Sensor
    •   Low Resolution Screen - 230k dot
    •   No Built-in GPS
    •   No Environmental Sealing

    Sports Photography

    GOOD
    70

    Olympus E-30 gets a score of 70 and is GOOD choice for Sports photography.

    •   3,200 Highest Native ISO
    •   11 Focus Points
    •   Face Detection
    •   Image Stabilization
    •   Low Resolution Screen - 230k dot
    •   Max Continuous Shooting - 5.0 fps
    •   Battery Life - 750 shots
    •   Orientation Sensor

    Wildlife Photography

    AVERAGE
    63

    Olympus E-30 gets a score of 63 and is AVERAGE choice for Wildlife photography.

    •   3,200 Highest Native ISO
    •   11 Focus Points
    •   Image Stabilization
    •   Low Resolution Screen - 230k dot
    •   Max Continuous Shooting - 5.0 fps
    •   No Environmental Sealing
    •   Battery Life - 750 shots
    •   Orientation Sensor

    Portrait Photography

    GOOD
    81

    Olympus E-30 gets a score of 81 and is GOOD choice for Portrait photography.

    •   Small Sensor
    •   11 Focus Points
    •   Face Detection
    •   Image Stabilization
    •   Screen Size - 2.7"
    •   Low Resolution Screen - 230k dot
    •   Max Flash Sync Speed - 1/250 sec
    •   Orientation Sensor

    Street Photography

    GOOD
    82

    Olympus E-30 gets a score of 82 and is GOOD choice for Street photography.

    •   Small Sensor
    •   11 Focus Points
    •   Image Stabilization
    •   Fully Articulated Screen
    •   Low Resolution Screen - 230k dot
    •   No Built-in GPS
    •   No Environmental Sealing
    •   Weight - 695 g (1.53 lb / 24.52 oz)

    Travel Photography

    GOOD
    80

    Olympus E-30 gets a score of 80 and is GOOD choice for Travel photography.

    •   Image Stabilization
    •   Fully Articulated Screen
    •   Low Resolution Screen - 230k dot
    •   No Built-in GPS
    •   No Environmental Sealing
    •   Weight - 695 g (1.53 lb / 24.52 oz)
    •   Battery Life - 750 shots

    Olympus E-30 Evaluation

    We evaluate Olympus E-30 and give score of 61 out of 100. We also give separate scores for 7 different categories according to the available features and specifications some of which are listed below. These evaluations are relative and may change each time a new camera is added to the database.


    OVERALL
    61

    Sensor

    AVERAGE
    65

    We give Olympus E-30 a score of 65 for Sensor parameters.

    •   Small Sensor
    •   Low Resolution Sensor - 12 Megapixel
    •   100 Lowest Native ISO
    •   3,200 Highest Native ISO
    •   Low DxO Overall Score - 55

    Photo

    GOOD
    75

    We give Olympus E-30 a score of 75 for Photo parameters.

    •   Timelapse Recording
    •   Image Stabilization
    •   High Max Shutter Speed (Mechanical or 1st Curtain) - 1/8000 sec
    •   Max Continuous Shooting - 5.0 fps
    •   Max Flash Sync Speed - 1/250 sec

    Video

    BAD
    0

    We give Olympus E-30 a score of 0 for Video parameters.

    •   Image Stabilization

    Focusing

    GOOD
    81

    We give Olympus E-30 a score of 81 for Focusing parameters.

    •   11 Focus Points
    •   Face Detection
    •   Live View Autofocus

    Screen and Viewfinder

    GOOD
    80

    We give Olympus E-30 a score of 80 for Screen and Viewfinder parameters.

    •   Fully Articulated Screen
    •   Screen Size - 2.7"
    •   Low Resolution Screen - 230k dot

    Connectivity

    POOR
    40

    We give Olympus E-30 a score of 40 for Connectivity parameters.

    •   No HDMI Output
    •   No Built-in Microphone
    •   No Microphone Input
    •   No Headphone Output
    •   No Built-in GPS
    •   No Built-In Wi-Fi
    •   No Built-In Bluetooth

    Battery, Storage and Physical

    POOR
    43

    We give Olympus E-30 a score of 43 for Battery, Storage and Physical parameters.

    •   No Environmental Sealing
    •   Weight - 695 g (1.53 lb / 24.52 oz)
    •   Battery Life - 750 shots


    For a full specification list please go to the specifications page:

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