Olympus D-460 Zoom

When using the Macro or Digital Zoom functions the color LCD is automatically turned on to insure proper framing of your subject. The D-460 Zoom's panorama assist mode uses these guidelines on the LCD to help you properly overlap your sequential images for the best possible finished panorama shot. (Only when using Olympus brand cards). Animated series of all Record mode menus and options: Exposure Compensation (+/-): Adjust the EV from -2 to +2 EV in 1/2-step increments. Metering: Digital ESP (matrix) or Spot. Quality: SQ (Standard Quality), SQ High, HQ (High Quality), SHQ (Super High Quality or SHQ TIFF (uncompressed). White Balance: Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Incandescent or Fluorescent. ISO: Auto, 125, 250 or 500. Drive: Sequence or Single mode. Function: Panorama mode (only if using Olympus brand SmartMedia) Sharpness: Normal or Soft File Number: Auto or Name Reset. Beep Sound: Beep on or off. Reset: Reset all settings to default values. Typical Play mode screen showing the battery condition, image quality, time, date and the current picture number. As with most digicams the D-460 has a thumbnail preview mode to let you quickly search through your stored images. You can select 4, 9 or 16 thumbnails per page. To check your image in the field on the 1.8" monitor there is a handy zoom feature that is activated by the telephoto zoom switch. You can magnify the image 1.5x, 2.0x, 2.5x or 3.0x. You can then move around the magnified segments using the 4-way jog switch. The brightness of the LCD display can be set to allow it to be seen clearly in all but the brightest outdoor sunlight conditions. Steve's Conclusion Olympus continues to refine the "classic" D-400 series cameras and the D-460 Zoom carries on the tradition in excellent fashion. It may only be 1.3 megapixels of resolution but the pictures are always sharp, well-focused and the colors are right on the mark. This is point-n-shoot perfected! The camera fits the hand properly, the controls are easy to get to and as minimal as possible. The menu system is easy to navigate and understand without spending a whole lot of time with the manual. The zoom mechanism is a little noisier than I like but it is smooth and positive. Autofocus is quick and accurate under most ordinary shooting conditions short of darkness but there are the "quick focus" presets of 8ft and infinity to fall back on if needed. The average shot to shot time in single drive mode is about 5-6 seconds for the SHQ 1280 x 960 JPEG images. If you want the ultimate in image quality there is the uncompressed TIFF mode but be prepared to wait a good 30-40 seconds between shots. If you need to capture a sequence of images in rapid succession there is the continuous drive mode. The image size is dropped down to 640 x 480 SQ quality but you can capture up to ten shots at 2fps. I'm still not crazy about SmartMedia cards because of their capacity limitations but the D-460's high-quality JPG images are about 400KB or less so you can put a bunch of them on a 32MB size card. Battery life is excellent especially if you don't use the color LCD a lot. I'd say you could easily shoot all day and then some on just one set of fully charged NiMH batteries. The D-460 easily fits in your pocket and I have always liked the sliding lens barrier instead of a lens cap that gets lost. All of the Olympus D-400 series cameras closely resemble their film counterparts in both look and feel so it makes for an easy transition to the world of digital. This is a great camera for the beginner or experienced digicam user and will deliver excellent pictures time and time again.

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