Olympus SP-550 UZ

Opinion: This camera is mixed bag. I needed smaller camera than my DSLR gear, but with full manual control, decent image quality and versatile lens. On paper this camera is ideal, but owner must put all his knowledge to achieve perfect result. This is not camera for beginners and shooting in auto or P mode.
Images right out of camera looks little soft, and PP sharpening is "must do". Considering DSLR images needs PP, this was something I used to and it wasn't problem for me.
IS is not so much effective. One, sometimes two stops. It looks like CCD shift system is inferior to optic IS system.
Camera is loaded with lots of options including RAW and pixel mapping. Battery life is excellent.

Opinion: Bought this sometime last year. Compared to other super zoom that I have used, the Olympus is light, very well constructed and versatile.

Pros: long 18x zoom, smooth zoom action, fully featured, light and easy to carry around, low light performance is acceptable, 28mm wide angle is useful, good LCD screen.

Areas that could be better: start-up time is a little slow, had difficultly in focusing in low light at long end of the zoom, manual focusing not easy, no filter thread.

Opinion: I bought this camera to replace a 4.1 mp C-750.

I needed something relatively inexpensive to take on a trip to Europe, and I wanted it to use standard AA batteries. I did not want to take my DSLR, so this was the best option for me.

This camera takes great photos in normal to average settings. I am also surprised at how well it performed at high ISO levels. I used it to take photos of a High School Chorus performing in several Abbeys and Cathedrals around Europe. In many cases I had to use ISO 800 and 1600. ( flash photography was not allowed) The camera also has an Auto High ISO Setting so you don't have to leave the camera set at 800 or 1600, it will use the appropriate setting .

The pictures, though a little noisy, came out much better than I expected.

The photos, especially daylight outdoors, were on par with photos from my Nikon D-200, in some cases better.

The battery life is excellent. Uses 4 AA batteries and I got over 600 shots on one set.

I almost wish I had purchased the SP -570 UZ, but I wanted a camera that I could afford to loose or have damaged and not get too upset. The price was right on this one. However, after using this camera, I am really getting attached to this camera.

It is a great all purpose camera for an experienced user. I would not recommend it for a beginner. It was great for wide angle group shots, and long range shots of Cathedral Ceilings and building features. I took several outdoor shots at the 17X -18X range and they came out just fine most of the time. In lower light, the auto focus does hunt, as reported by other posters, so you have to allow time for the focus to lock in. I probably shoud have switched to manual focus.

Image Stabilation is easy to activate on this camera. There is a dedicated button near the control dial that activates that function without having to search through the menu.

This camera also has a great color viewfinder with focus control, and a very high resolution LCD screen to review your photos.

If you are looking for a great all around camera, this will serve that purpose well, if you are an experienced user.

If you are beginner, read the manual and experiment with the camera before you need to take critical shots.

It will not fit in most pockets, so this is not a pocket camera, but if you have a Photo Vest, or coat with large pockets, it will fit.

Also keep in mind, it is not a DSLR and your results will not equal that of a good DSLR, but sometimes they will be close. For the size,weight and cost of this camera, performance is very good.

Opinion: UPGRADED FROM C 770 UZ TO SP 550 UZ. TONNES OF FEATURE WHEN COMPARED. ALWAYS USED TO SHOOT WITH FINE ZOOM ON. CRYSTAL CLEAR DETAILS. RECOMMENED TO MANY.THINKING ABOUT THE ANNOUNCED SP 570 UZ

Opinion: This is my first P&S digital and I can't find any fault with it! Of course, I used the AUTO setting exclusively in the beginning but I get my best pictures in the P mode.

Opinion: More Bang for a Buck For what i use it for (day to day use) small light.

Opinion: I bought this camera for my wife, I own a couple of DSLR's and she just isn't comfortable with them. My wife loves the zoom and took great pictures of Ichiro Suzuki batting at Safeco Field all the way from behind right field at the Hit it Here Cafe. Of course our pictures were taken in daylight on a typical overcast day here in Seattle so the lighting contributed to the good pictures. My wife next took this fine little camera to So. Carolina to take pictures of new grandbabies. When my wife got home we downloaded the pictures and were very disapointed, they were taken in low light and she didn't use the proper settings, live and learn. I have since done a little coaching and her pictures have much improved. Bottom line good camera but not a point and shoot you will have to take the time to practice with the settings and all is well.

Opinion: First, let me explain that I have been an amateur photographer for the past 40 years. I have used a lot of different cameras and this is my 3rd digital. I also want to note that I bought this camera at Sam’s club about 1 month after it first release and have now, 6 months later, shot more than 2K photos with it.

I like the camera very much. It has performed flawlessly. The software that came w/ the camera works fine. It’s durable and feels solid in my hand. I used/played with all of the camera features, and like all new cameras I have used, it takes time to learn how to use this camera. I now mostly shoot in “my-mode” which enables me to compensate for the image softness that has been widely reported about this camera. I do this by adjust/increasing the sharpness/contrast/RGB in the +3 to +5 range. I am still playing w/ this approach and much has been written about these adjustments at this site. Under the right conditions, such as sporting events, the results are as good as any I have seen taken w/ high end digital SLR’s!

I recommend this camera to anyone who likes to take the long shot without the weight and expense of digital SLR and long lens that come w/ them. I would also recommend the cable release w/ the long cords that can be found on e-bay and I wish the camera had shoe for an external flash.

Opinion: Overall, I like this camera!

This is my 9th digital camera and 5th different manufacturer, including 3 Canon DSLR cameras.

As expected from a camera in this class, noise is high and shooting speed is slow. Small sensor camera's have noise, they all do. Processing will never match a DSLR for a P&S camera, I realize that.

I found a significant image quality issue with my SP-550. When I shoot RAW, I can get outstanding detail from the Olympus Master 2 software but not any other software I tried in conversion.

What you have to do is select the RAW conversion button, the Basic 2 tab, and change the NR drop down box to "off". This option doesn't apply to Lightroom or CS3 however. This is not to be confused with the in-camera noise reduction setting.

The image is now true RAW, apparently no in-camera processing. With it, comes the noise, even at ISO 50, although it's not very much and will never be seen in print.

That said, the detail that is missing in JPG shots and RAW with NR set to the default "on" is superb! With some post-editing, your ISO 50 shots will be near DSLR-like.

Once above ISO 50, all bets are off for the above statement. ISO 100 can still produce fine prints while ISO 200 can produce decent 4X6 prints.