Compared to...

Studio scene comparison (vs. Olympus EVOLT E-300)

This is our standard studio scene comparison shot taken from exactly the same tripod position within minutes of each other. Lighting: daylight simulation, >98% CRI. Crops are 100%. Ambient temperature was approximately 22°C (~72°F).

Aspect ratio advantage, aperture

The E-300's aspect ratio difference (4:3 vs. the film normal 3:2) it gets an added vertical resolution advantage over other cameras. As with all of our comparisons the scene is framed vertically. Note that we selected F6.3 on the Olympus as we have found this to be the optimum aperture for lens sharpness.

Camera settings:

• Canon EOS 350D (Digital Rebel XT): Canon EF 50 mm F1.4, Aperture Priority (F9),
  ISO 100, JPEG Large/Fine, Manual WB, Default Parameters (Parameter 1), Self-Timer
   
• Olympus EVOLT E-300: Olympus ED 50 mm F2.0 Macro, Aperture Priority (F6.3),
  ISO 100, JPEG SHQ, Manual WB, Default Parameters, Self-Timer

Canon EOS 350D	Olympus E-300
ISO 100, 1/40 sec, F9	ISO 100, 1/60 sec, F6.3
2,882 KB JPEG (3456 x 2304)	5,421 KB JPEG (3264 x 2448)

The tonal and color response between the EOS 350D and E-300 is similar except for the Canon's paler blues and the E-300's slightly orange reds. Resolution wise it's a dead heat, however the EOS 350D's image has a more crisp appearance, with better per-pixel sharpness. This despite the E-300's vertical 144 pixel count advantage.

(Footnote: We could have framed the scene horizontally which would have handed the EOS 350D a 7% horizontal resolution advantage, however in all our scene comparisons where there is a mismatch of aspect ratio are framed vertically).