OM SYSTEM OLYMPUS Stylus 1 12 MP Digital Camera with 10.7X f2.8 Zoom Lens

This will need to be a multi-part review but I wanted to post my first resolution test results and a few impressions before Christmas buyers ( at least those like me :-). I was delighted that under full daylight conditions the Stylus 1 compared favorably to my full frame Nikon at the extreme zoom range (300mm equiv.). At mid range it was close to my Panasonic GH2 and my Sony RX100 (100mm equiv.) but slightly less. And at wide angle (28mm equiv.) it was slightly better than all but the Nikon. If the subject is strong and the shooting conditions good I doubt any of my friends would notice a difference between any of these cameras.Another favorite use for me is macro photography, orchids to insects. I tested the Nikon Coolpix P7800 and was very disappointed in it's focus speed and it's macro capability. Low light focus was not good but the real disappointment for me was that it only does macro at full wide angle (same for the Sony RX100). And while the Coolpix macro focus kept hunting the Stylus was quick and solid. Macro for the Stylus is a 1" subject fills the frame horizontally. Another important feature for me is good close focusing at modest zooms and here the Stylus was very good (a 1.5" subject filling the frame at a better zoom/working distance). (Many will note that these are advantages of a smaller sensor.)The Stylus feels substantial, not quite as rock solid as the amazing little Sony RX100, but much more solid than the larger super zooms I have used. It has a bit of a retro look and feel that I enjoy, more angular, the viewfinder protruding toward the back. The EVF is wonderful for such a small camera. Focus / shooting speed are very good, outdoor color natural for my few shots so far, lots of control and a wonderful manual focus system (really a treat). My impression to date is that this is by far the best small / belt-case-size camera for my particular needs. The Sony RX has great optics and low light capability but in the rain forest I need the extra zoom range and better macro working distance. The micro four thirds cameras are exciting but not quite equal to my full frame and too big for the belt (with longer lenses). The Stylus 1 is impressive where I need it.Update:Two annoying issues.First, you can access many settings using the touch screen but in some lighting situations the shadow of your hand shuts off the screen (thinking you have your eye up to the viewfinder). The place to change this is located in the Utility menu, OK, but better would be to assign it to a function button (not possible).Second, the camera ships with the 2x digital extender assigned to the fn1 button. That makes it very easy change and then think you just haven't pulled back to wide angle somehow. I assigned this button to force center focus, nice to be able to do this quickly.A shot a sequence of comparison photos to post but it seems Amazon is blocking that again. Jerks. At 40mm (equiv.) and f2.8 or f4.0 the crispness of the Stylus was amazingly close to equaling the Nikon D600 (tripod). It drops off a touch at f5.6 and f8.0 shows some softness. Disabling image stabilization on a tripod seems important.Update2:I should have noted how quickly you can access many settings by simply clicking the center "OK" button and then selecting one of the 22 icons for further adjustment (ISO, IS, ND filter, RAW, vivid,focus, flash, WB, Face, and so on). Fast and efficient but you need to be a little bit quick before the display returns to shooting.Cases: First I tried the Click Elite, too small. Next was the Lowepro Dashpoint 20, still too small. Finally the Lowepro Apex 60, snug fit but a some practice and a little lift on the back lip of the case and in it goes.See posted cushion 5x7 photos cut from 20" x 30" blowups. It took some effort to match the Nikon's color and sharpness and conditions were perfect for the smaller sensor but amazingly hard to tell the final results apart. Indoor oil painting copies for a publication for a small reproduction were acceptable but the larger format and a perfect 50mm f1.4 showed its advantages.Modifying the uploaded Amazon photo captions seems to have deleted them. The two cushion photos are 5x7s cut from the middle of 20x30" prints taken outdoors in perfect lighting. The first one is taken by the Olympus, tripod, IS off, ISO 100, 1/800 @f4.0, auto WB, 9mm (42mm equiv.), quite a bit of photoshop color and sharpness work but great results. The second is labeled "Nikon" and taken by Nikon D600 24-85mm at 40mm, ISO 100, IS off, 1/400 at f8.0 no photoshop required.The third is a nice working distance shot of a pineapple.Indoor trampoline photos taken without flash at ISO 1600 are generally correctly exposed and focused. Noise (shadows)and grain are visible in an 8x10 but acceptable (much like 35mm tri-x film). Of course this is large sensor territory but a modest print of a great subject and not many would care.

This camera garnished wonderful reviews yet seems to be flying below the radar. It has been a joy to use, and to learn how to use better. The zoom would be better if it were of a higher magnification. 10.7 really is OK but not great. However, the constant f2.8 aperture means it takes great photos in relatively low light in full zoom mode. Also, the thing weighs less than a pound. Absolutely love that automatic lens cover when the cameras is off. Not quite pocket-sized, but smaller/lighter than any other zoom I've seen. One quibble that cost it a star: the wifi transfer to cell phones is balky and awkward. We stopped trying to use this feature as it worked very unevenly and took too much time and effort to engage and transfer. Other than that, go for it.Update - 9/2015So we've had this camera for more than a year and I just updated this review, keeping the four star rating. Yes, we love it now more than we did a year earlier. The reason is, we took this puppy on a trip to Africa and coupled it with the lens extender, which nearly doubled the telephoto ability. For sure, other members of our group had superior cameras with longer lenses. One guy rented a 400mm lens to go with his upscale Canon, and he indeed captured some amazing images. It looked like an RPG launcher, and weighed nearly as much.That's not the point. Of course there are better cameras, better lenses (and better photographers) out there. It's just that this camera, at this price with its feature set, is hard to be beat. The images are gorgeous. Low light shooting is a joy. We even figured out how to work the wifi more reliably -- the Olympus instructions are virtually non-existent. By itself you can zoom to 300mm with a constant 2.8 aperture. Make shooting in low light amazing. But it only weighs 14+ ounces. By the end of a day, my fellow travelers with nearly bent over from the weight of their gorgeous nikons and canons with their long (heavy) lenses. The only camera that appears to be really competitive, according to specs, will be the new Panasonic Lumix -- longer lens, constant 2.8 aperture. It will weigh considerably more...or about the weight the Olympus had when we attached the lens extender.A word about that extender. It works well, but there are considerations. First, it screws in on very fine threads of the camera body. That is, you remove the automatic lens cover (which we love), and gently, carefully screw in the tube adapter first (I'll explain this further below) and then the lens extender into the metal tube. The tube is necessary because when you zoom in, the existing camera lens extends toward the add-on doubler. In fact, if you zoom back, you risk of getting a "barrel" effect on your image. The practical effects of these limitations are (1) you cannot quickly switch from the existing lens, if you need to shoot relatively closely or macro, and the lens doubler. You have to be very careful and gentle while screwing the lens extender parts together or risk damaging the threads. (2) You cannot pull back to be closer -- this is meant to really double (or nearly double) magnification. It works, but it's not as flexible as switching dedicated lenses via the traditional bayonet mount.Still, we are very happy with the flexibility and images this camera produces and will be comparing it to other mega zoom hobbyist cameras.Second update...9/1/2016There is one persistent issue -- camera noise when shooting video that can be bothersome. As noted earlier, attaching the magnifier lens is tricky (as others have noted) because the screw-on threads are very fine and fitting it all together requires some care and patience. Other superzoom cameras have since been introduced, including another olympus with a 2.8 lens throughout the zoom, and is relatively lightweight. So maybe today, this camera would be less desirable than it was when I purchased it. So it goes...

Honestly, I am a bit surprised by the very positive reviews. I am a long time Olympus fan and own multiple of their cameras. I just received the Stylus 1 today and maybe will change my mind; however, so far I am disappointed by the noise even at low ISO settings, the low dynamic range at ISO 400 and above, as well as the chromatic aberration problems. The colours using the automatic white balance are also suboptimal (at least indoors). I agree that many features of this camera are fantastic, but I may actually send it back due to the image quality. I also tried the settings with less noise reduction (or noise reduction turned off completely). The plastic slider that fixes the battery compartment looks very cheap and is difficult to lock. To end this review on a positive note, the AF is very fast and reliable. Anyway, I hope this is useful for those of you considering to buy the Stylus 1. Again, a very solid camera with a good lens but the image quality lacks.

I bought this camera just under three years ago. It worked fine. I used the camera over two years on 6 vacations. On my last trip I noticed the focus was not working properly when taking a photo up close. I sent the camera back to Olympus for repair, knowing it was out of warranty. I was quoted a price for repair and then I was told the repair parts are no longer available and the camera was are discontinued. I said the camera was only three years old. Since the camera was only three years old they offered me a trade in for a similar model with a refurbished lens. This will be my first and last Olympus camera.