Olympus E300 and E500 - What’s Different? What’s the Same?

The Olympus E300 was released back in 2004. At the time, it cost around $1,000. Nowadays you can find it used for about $70. The Olympus E500 was released a year later in 2005. At the time, it cost around $700. Nowadays you can find it used for also around $70. So which one of these classic CCD sensor cameras is right for you?
This video is filmed with:
Olympus E-M1 Mark II
amzn.to/3u94HeR
Canon M50
amzn.to/3iz9EZn
Canon M6
amzn.to/3fPcdVe
Canon 22mm f2.0
amzn.to/3fSBOg1
Sigma 16mm f1.4
amzn.to/3uFpTrq
Canon 70d
amzn.to/3c4cyCm
Canon 17-55mm f2.8
amzn.to/3p6Emvk
microphones:
Rode Video Micro
amzn.to/3i3Mif6
Rode Wireless Go
amzn.to/2TkdT1i
Relacart MiPassport Wireless Mic
amzn.to/34BVyPz
#videos

[@hiroakitakagi7724]

Side way swing mirror of Olympus E-300 is the homage to the original historic Olympus Pen F.

[@LesHalles]

There are two very good lenses for the system: the Zuiko 25mm f/2.8 Pancake and the Zuiko 50mm f/2.0 Macro. I have the first one it is super light and very sharp. I am looking for the 50mm, which they say is the best of the entire system. There is another camera with the famous Kodak sensor, Olympus E-400, smaller and with a 10 mpx sensor instead of 8 mpx. Great video!

[@lachsimzwaifel]

The E-400 has a different Sensor. E-300 and E-500 are full frame CCDs and the one in the E-400 is an Interlaced one. Quite a different implementation. Many say that that makes the difference. Furthermore there are a ton of excellent lenses. Not only primes. The E-System has very nice wide angle lenses in the upper semi pro level. The 14-54 is a very good allrounder, and Olympus, as you already mentioned, had some pretty neat Macros (don't sleep on the 35mm Macro).

[@dedclownsRfunny]

Try the 12-60 2.8 👌👌

[@terryallen9546]

I'm surprised at how nice the standard 35mm is on my 300. I do street interviews/head shots. If it was the only camera and lens I had, I could still hold down a job.

[@TheMikeharris7]

@@lachsimzwaifel not full frame but actually four thirds sensors which are smaller. I think literally half the size of a full frame sensor.

[@lachsimzwaifel]

Hey, The term full frame is not used exclusively for the sensor size. In this case i was referring to Kodaks full frame (transfer) technology they put in some 4/3 DSLRs (like my E-500) and some Kodak DSLRs (in contast to interlaced CCDs for instance). Cameras using this full frame (transfer) CCD gained attention in the past years because of their special color appeal. But i get that it's confusing. I should have written "full frame transfer" to avoid confusion. The term full frame CCD is technically correct tho since it covers a wider range of cameras using it.@@TheMikeharris7

[@sulaimanahmed013]

On point as always. Loved the whole video.

[@photobyTaps]

Great video! My first serious digital camera pairing was the Olympus Camera E10 and E100rs. Fabulous images

[@davewilkins9981]

Thanks for the videos on the E300 ! I have just bought one and was searching for some info . I have subscribed to the channel . Cheers !

[@GarrettLucasWV]

Great video! I just ordered one for my collection of Olympus SLRs and lenses and it's supposed to be here Monday or Tuesday. I've never tried one of these and I'm looking forward to trying it out.

[@benbrown561]

The E-300 with the 12-60 lens has long been a fun setup here.

[@cernach13]

Great video. As for the memory card, I use a 32GB compact flash card and it works fine with my E-500. Just wanted to put that out there for those having trouble finding compact flash cards lower than 32GB.

[@Bigfarmer8]

To me the big advantage of the E-300 (apart from the wonderful files it creates) is that is has the best of two world. Rangefinder style layout so you can see along the camera and yet a see through the lens image. Perfect!

[@eek0212]

Great comparison of forgotton classic cameras :) Currently i own both and what i feel, in image quality or character both are just identical. real differences came from weight and finder size (ill exclude any technical stuffs cause you cover it up pretty extensively). if you prefer lightweight go with E500, if you prefer more build quality and much bigger finder go with E300.

[@flowermaze___]

Amazing work, thanks for this! Do you think the viewfinder / screen and general use of the e300 is okay compared to the e500?

[@achaycock]

In good light, yes it is for the viewfinder. I even use m42 lenses on mine and manual focus. In low light conditions it is much harder to use. However, the rangefinder type placement on the e-300 makes it a firm favourite to me. The screen is OK, but only to navigate menus and get a rough idea of image quality. Colours are off and it is pretty small. Both e-300 and e-500 lack live view.

[@marcdenhoed5461]

Great video Steven. Thank you. What is your opinion on the viewfinders? Somehow I can't make the e300 viewfinder work for me. It's blurry around the edges. Do you recognise this?

[@steve_heise]

I see that too. I thought it was because I wear glasses. Very interesting.

[@TheMikeharris7]

I just popped a 32 GB Sandisk CF card in my E500 and it recognized it. Haven't shot with it yet though. I also have a Nikon F to Four Thirds adapter coming which will open up a LOT of options with lenses albeit they'll be all manual.

[@Riccardo_Mori]

Steven! Just the kind of video I would have requested, given that I own an E-300 and was considering whether to get an E-500 as well. Thank you for clarifying a few trivia I wasn't sure of. I surely love my E-300, but I really wish it had a bigger screen. Checking focus/sharpness is rather pointless on that small 1.8" screen. Other things I wanted to add from experience that may be useful to other people: - CF card: I'm using a regular 16GB SanDisk in my E-300 and I haven't had any issues. - Ergonomics: one accessory that's really great for the E-300 is the Olympus HLD-3 Vertical Grip/Battery Holder. Yes, it adds bulk, but it's not terribly heavy. It feels really great and makes the camera even more comfortable to shoot with. It houses two BLM-1 batteries (it will work with just one, of course), and when you put two batteries there, the already long battery life of this camera becomes STUPIDLY long. Even when the camera shows the 'Low battery' red icon, you can continue shooting for a long time before the batteries are completely drained. I once shot photos for an entire weekend and I had to charge the batteries the following Monday. - Lenses: Good primes are the Olympus 25mm ƒ2.8, the 35mm ƒ3.5 macro and (even better) the 50mm ƒ2 macro, which is another lens that still commands a rather premium price. Also: despite the relatively short life of the 4/3 mount, there's a good selection of lens adapters if one wants to use manual focus vintage lenses. They're not easy to focus through the small viewfinders of these cameras, but the adapters come cheap and you can adapt several other mounts. I have adapters for Nikon F, M42, Minolta MD, Pentax K mounts, and on eBay I've also seen an adapter for the Olympus OM mount. All these are quite short, so they don't add bulk when you mount other vintage lenses. Sorry for the verbosity. I hope this helps! Great video as always. Cheers! //Rick

[@Bigfarmer8]

Hi Riccardo, what type of SanDisk are you using and where did you buy it?I have a 1GB card which works fine but is kind of limiting when I am out a day for shooting.

[@Riccardo_Mori]

@@Bigfarmer8 On the card is written: SanDisk Ultra - 50 MB/s - 16GB. Its label is mostly silver with the typical SanDisk red band at the bottom. I purchased it at a local electronic shop back when they still sold CF cards of this size. Now the minimum size I can find is 64GB, which is rather useless with older cameras like these… Cheers, //Rick

[@Bigfarmer8]

@@Riccardo_Mori Thanks! Maybe I will be able to find one used. 👍

[@achaycock]

That's interesting, I have the 25mm f2.8 and 35mm macro, but not the 50mm. I have a large selection of Pentax lenses so would like to find the adaptor for that. Currently use m42 a lot. That battery grip is really hard to find, a great accessory I am sure, but I have never seen one in the wild.

[@lim9571]

I had the same dilemma a few months ago and ended up with a variation. An E1 and E330. The E330 takes the Porro-mirror concept to an extreme with 2 sensors and live view. The E1 makes you feel like a pro… I worry about the longevity of the low end Evolt cameras as they have catches which hold the card door shut and eventually break making the E1 the better CCD choice in the long term even though it is more expensive. I fear the same will happen with my E330 so I use it sparingly.

[@steve_heise]

So true - on the E300 the card door is under your right hand when your holding the camera. Mine comes open every time I take my hand off of the camera.

[@andrewspence6929]

great vedeo, i bought an olympus om manuel lens adapter for mine you can also get one for pentaz k mount lenses too

[@ditto1958]

When I pick up my E-500 it looks and feels modern and is very similar to my much newer Nikon D3500. The E-300 looks old and clunky. Tiny lcd screen. But it’s a heavy, well-built body. I stopped using the E-300 when I got my E-500, but I always thought I could get better results with the E-300. I don’t know why.

[@bigrobotnewstoday1436]

You should do a VS video with Olympus CCD VS CMOS jpegs out of the camera.

[@user-mp9xy4wm4g]

Отличный обзор сравнение 📷s с одинаковыми матрицами. Спасибо Вам за информацию и личное мнение! Я имею коллекцию разных фотокамер и Olympus E300 & E330 & E400 это больше удовольствие прикоснуться к истории и качеству исполнения Девайсов... Have you a nice day

[@LetsMakeGhosts]

How would you match the photos from the E500 yo the E300? E300 does not have vivid or natural. I was wondering is vivid on the E500 the same as rhe out of the box colors from the E300. Thanks.

[@cerbay1974]

Thanks for another great video. I have a question for both E300 and E500. Auto ISO!!. I can't use auto-iso for both cameras even though I set it for that function. Again for both cameras, both cameras select the base iso (iso 100) even it was set for auto-iso! Has anyone come across such a problem?

[@StephenStrangways]

It's one of the quirks of early Olympus Four Thirds cameras - auto ISO will always stay at base ISO unless you are using the built-in or a dedicated flash, at which point it will raise the ISO.

[@photomovies]

@@StephenStrangways Thank you for sharing ! I had the same problem last week , so I just set it at ISO 400.

[@iannickCZ]

Maybe good to mention E-500 supports also XD card format.

[@luzr6613]

Bought my E300 new in 2006. The cover over the USB broke last month. I'm bitterly disappointed... thought Olympus was a quality brand. Have always used it with the battery grip - very comfortable and the additional shutter release for portrait orientation. I still think it's cool. Anyone want to sell me an E1?

[@amermeleitor]

The lenses can be adapted to M4/3 and the adapter is dirt cheap

[@sergeyperlov1893]

I have Olympus E500 & Olympus E5

[@user-nh6dm1tp5m]

❤

[@salvadorvelasquez1755]

e-400 though

[@QuicknStraight]

Better to go with an old Sony CCD body and use all the great old Minolta glass... That's what I'm doing these dats.

[@realamericannegro977]

Whats a good old sony ccs body? I have two minolta af maxxum lenses I need to get full access to

[@QuicknStraight]

@@realamericannegro977 Can't go wrong with any of the Sony 10MP CCD sensor bodies.

[@eingilddeclaro6171]

Not a single sample shot??

[@steve_heise]

All the sample photos are in the previous reviews. We had another hurricane this week so I only had one day without rain where I could film.

[@ArminHirmer]

nice, sure I will go with the 300. 500 looks boring :)

[@szymonh.4133]

In my opinion, the best camera is the e-400. It has a 10 megapixel Kodak sensor. It's as small and compact as today's mirrorless cameras. My camera cost $50 I found it in perfect condition at a garage sale.

[@Riccardo_Mori]

Agreed. And you were quite lucky. The E-400 is surprisingly hard to find online in decent condition AND at a good price. The few I've seen pop up on eBay lately came with an unreasonable price tag attached. Cheers!

[@lachsimzwaifel]

I already wrote it above, but the E-400 does not have that mighty full frame 4/3 CCD. It has an interlaced version of the Kodak sensor. Might put some people off because they don't get the "real deal" with the E-400. In reality, we wouldn't see much difference in the image tho i guess.

[@Riccardo_Mori]

@@lachsimzwaifel Interesting. I didn't know that. I simply assumed they used the same sensor in the E-300 / E-500 or an updated variant. Thanks for chiming in.

[@Koji-888]

Are the processors the same.? I know the sensors are the same. Processors have everything to do with the color science. They must be similar. 💁🏻‍♀️💕

[@policeluber6720]

Not one photo LMAO

[@steve_heise]

I already did full reviews of both cameras. Those videos have all the sample photos. This is just explaining what the differences between the two are. Plus, this was filmed the week of a hurricane. That was the only day it didn’t rain and the only day we had electricity.

[@AriusNowak]

As for me, the E300 gives more sharp images than E500. Ive 2 of them and its same in both falls. In turn, it is better not to trust the auto WB option. In case of bad weather it is better to set 6000K. Colors comes out then more intense, not blue like. X.