Olympus created the E-100 RS for people who need to capture action. With the ability to shoot at 15 frames per second, this camera will leave only you to blame if you miss your shot. It offers a wide range of features and excellent image quality, but with a price tag of more than AU$2,500 it's not the camera for everyone.
Be it a close call at a NASCAR race or just the call of the wild, the new Olympus E-100 RS (rapid shot) captures up to 15 images per second at a resolution of 1.5 megapixels and reaches way out to do it with a 38mm to 380mm (35mm equivalent) optical zoom. Combined with an electronic lens stabilization (ELS) feature to compensate for shaky hands when shooting at slow shutter speeds or when zoomed way in, the E-100 RS provides the assurance that you will capture even the most elusive action shots.
This all-black beauty is able to capture as many as five photos before the shutter release is even fully depressed, so you won't miss the beginning of the action. And whether you're shooting at 3, 5, 7-1/2, or 15 frames per second (fps), you can freeze each picture at up to 1/10,000 of a second--though, at that speed, you'd need the light of a supernova to get a properly exposed image. Despite its knack for speed, we found that both the indoor and daylight outdoor shots taken with the E-100 RS suffered from a bit of visual noise, but overall they showed a lot of detail.
With its f-2.8 maximum aperture (its minimum is f-11), the ISO settings of up to 400, and the long shutter speeds of up to 16 seconds, the E-100 RS is also a natural for low-light photography. With the camera held steady on a tripod, we took some moonlit shots that revealed excellent detail in areas that, to the naked eye, appeared pitch black when we took the photo.
Unfortunately, the same thrill wasn't there when eyeballing images through the electronic viewfinder. This is a miniature version of the LCD monitor but provides a view that's much grainier and not nearly as sharp. But this isn't a huge deficit, since you can switch back and forth between the two. The E-100 RS also has an integrated flash, but you'll still need to wait until the flash recycles before you start firing off more shots. Olympus's FL-40 external flash offers faster performance than that, but the camera lacks a hot-shoe, so you'll need to buy the optional bracket and cable for the external flash. The E-100 RS comes with a set of rechargeable nickel-metal-hydride batteries, but unfortunately only an 8MB memory card is included--hardly adequate, considering this camera's capabilities.
Speaking of memory, you'll find two memory card slots here, one of which accommodates SmartMedia and the other Type I or Type II CompactFlash cards. A 340MB IBM Microdrive worked fine, though Olympus is cautious about endorsing it because IBM reports a rather high failure rate for the Microdrive.
The E-100 RS excels at action shots, but it's also great for shooting group portraits and squirmy kids. Considering the vast number of shots you can fire off in just a few seconds, odds are that you'll always capture at least one picture where everyone's smiling and has their eyes wide open. No more begging for "Just one more!" with this digicam, you'll have 15 shots in the bag before your subjects can get away.
The E-100 RS is purpose-built for people who must have a camera that can shoot 15fps, and it performs admirably at that task. With a list price of AU$2,893, though, this is certainly not the camera for everyone. But if you shoot sports, nature, or event photography, you might find the E-100 RS an ideal photographic tool.
--by Arthur H. Bleich
Olympus Camedia E-100 RS
Company:Olympus
Ph: 1800 802 665
Price: AU$2,893
