C-5050 Questions

[Prop Joe]

Couple of questions...
1. How do I get my 5050 to focus on something like this???:

We went back for three days and I got the same results. The camera hunts and wanders looking to focus.

2. Is there some way to trick the camera into getting shots off quicker (less shutter lag)?

The 2.8 lens is great with this camera but the shutter lag is horrendous.
Still waiting for Ikelite to make a housing for EPL-1...

 

[oly5050user]

Couple of questions...
1. How do I get my 5050 to focus on something like this???:

We went back for three days and I got the same results. The camera hunts and wanders looking to focus.

2. Is there some way to trick the camera into getting shots off quicker (less shutter lag)?

The 2.8 lens is great with this camera but the shutter lag is horrendous.
Still waiting for Ikelite to make a housing for EPL-1...

1. can try to manual focus, but honestly in your images you are way too far away fom anything to bother taking a image of .try to get as close as you can , like 3' to get acceptable image.something like eagle rays try to get as close as you can and be happy if you can get within 10 ' of them for an image.
2.trick camera to reduce shutter lag...pre focus by holding shutter button down 1/2 way on something that is at the same distance of your sbject,depress fully when composed to what you desire..or use manual focus.

 

[grandizer52]

have to agree, for a better shot get closer..but don't chase your subject

 

[jlyle]

If Olympus would put a new brain in the 5050 with faster AF, I would sell my dslr in a New York second.

 

[slowhands]

If Olympus would put a new brain in the 5050 with faster AF, I would sell my dslr in a New York second.

Yes, the C5050 is/was a great camera in many ways. It's not going to be redesigned by Olympus if their current product line is any guide. The sad reality for us is that there is truly not much product volume in the underwater camera business compared to ordinary land shooting. They are concentrating on the M4/3 family for higher performance, Ultrazooms for travel, and some sport cameras with waterproofing to limited depths which just don't cut it for serious use.

But just in case anyone at Olympus might care, here are some things we want in a compact Point and Shoot for underwater use, many of which were in the C5050:

Manual exposure control
Manual focus
FAST Wide lens (limited zoom OK)
Hotshoe (hey, I prefer it)
Ability to shoot RAW format

The vendors seem to want to combine these specs in a high end "Leica-like" such as the Canon G12 or Nikon P7000. That's OK, but the SP350 had all these specs in a fairly inexpensive package. It does not have to be a Leica like.

 

[slowhands]

Couple of questions...
1. How do I get my 5050 to focus on something like this???: ...

We went back for three days and I got the same results. The camera hunts and wanders looking to focus.

2. Is there some way to trick the camera into getting shots off quicker (less shutter lag)?

The 2.8 lens is great with this camera but the shutter lag is horrendous.
Still waiting for Ikelite to make a housing for EPL-1...

The answer to both is use manual focus at infinity. This subject is really too far away for a good picture in water of that clarity anyway, but using MF at infintiy will be focused, and the shutter lag will be gone. By the way, the lens is f1.8, not F2.8. It's incredible, too bad they don't have a modern version of this camera.

 

[jlyle]

Use manual focus and hyperfocal lengths. The hyperfocal length is the distance that everything from half the focal length to infinity will be infocus. For example, with your 5050, at f/5.6 and wide (35mmequiv), the hyperfocal length is 1.4 meters (about 4.5 feet). With those settings, everything from 0.7 m (~2.5 feet) to infinity will be in focus. No AF, no shutter lag - perfect for large animals on the fly.

Please note that hyperfocal lengths increase with larger apertures (eg HFL at f/2.0 = 4 meters) and with longer focal lengths.

Here's a link: Depth of field tables for the Olympus C-5050/4040/3040Z

 

[Allison Finch]

I LOVED my 5060. It taught me so much. When it was time to upgrade, I sadly passed it on to teach another.

That said, the above posters are right. Taking such a picture is not something to aspire to, IMHO. Try to spend your efforts on getting quality photos. Closer, closer and closer.