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Olympus C-700 Ultra Zoom Olympus packs a 10x zoom lens into an amazingly small body, for an amazingly low price. Select a topic Reference: Datasheet C-700 Ultra Zoom Sample Images --------------------------------- 1. Intro and Highlights 2. Executive Overview 3. Design 4. Viewfinder 5. Optics 6. Exposure & Flash 7. Shutter Lag & Cycle Time Tests 8. Operation & User Interface 9. Camera Modes & Menus 10. Image Storage & Interface 11. Video, Power, Software 12. Test Results & Conclusion --------------------------------- Print-Friendly Review Version Additional Resources and Other Links Reader Comments on C-700 Ultra Zoom Review --------------------------------- Digital Camera Comparometer (TM) --------------------------------- <-- Digital Cameras (Home) <-- Digital Camera Reviews Index <<Design :(Previous) | (Next): Optics>> Page 4:Viewfinder Review First Posted: 5/31/2001

Viewfinder
The C-700 offers both a color LCD monitor and an electronic optical viewfinder (EVF) for composing images. The EVF is actually a tiny version of the LCD monitor, complete with settings menus and information readouts. In Record mode, the viewfinder is active at all times, even when the larger LCD monitor is enabled. The viewfinder is designed with a fairly high eyepoint, so you can see the complete view at a good distance from the eyepiece. On the right side of the viewfinder is a diopter adjustment dial, which adjusts focus of the viewfinder image.

The 1.5-inch, TFT color LCD monitor and 0.55-inch EVF feature approximately 114,000-pixel resolution. Pressing the Monitor button turns the LCD monitor on or off, but does not control the information display. The level of information displayed is changed through the settings menu (Mode menu, Setup sub-menu, Info option). If the camera is left inactive for more than 30 seconds, both monitors automatically shut off. (The "Sleep" time is also adjustable through the same Setup sub-menu, under the Sleep option. Choices are 30 seconds or 1, 3, 5, or 10 minutes.) When using the optical viewfinder to compose images, the LCD monitor automatically turns on when the Menu button is pressed, and shuts itself off when you've finished making adjustments. This is very helpful for navigating through the menu system, as looking through the tiny eyepiece can be very tedious.

The information display on both viewfinders reports the shutter speed and aperture settings (in the Program, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, and Manual exposure modes), as well as the exposure compensation setting, flash mode, exposure mode, number of available images, and the file quality setting in all exposure modes. An autofocus bracket in the center of the frame indicates the autofocus and autoexposure area. The continuous information display can be expanded through the Setup menu to show more detailed information such as Auto or Manual Focus, Drive, Metering, Macro, White Balance, ISO, and Exposure Lock, depending on which options are available in the current shooting mode. (This information is also displayed briefly at startup and during adjustments, when the expanded Info option is off.)

In Playback mode, the Monitor button switches between the EVF and LCD monitor displays, enabling only one at a time. The Info function briefly reports the image size, capture date and time, and the Record sequence number on the LCD screen as you scroll to each new image. You can expand that information to include the Quality setting, Resolution, F/stop, Shutter Speed, Exposure Compensation, White Balance, ISO, Date and Time, and File Number through the Info option of the Playback menu. The Index Display mode -- activated with the wide-angle side of the Zoom lever -- can be set to 4, 9, or 16 thumbnail images through the Playback Setup menu (Index submenu), and a Playback Zoom feature enlarges the captured image as much as 3x. Once an image is enlarged, you can use the arrow keys to scroll around within the image to check details.