The 3-megapixel Olympus C-720 Ultra Zoom digital camera boasts an outstanding 8x optical zoom lens (plus 3.0x digital zoom--equivalent to 40-320mm in 35mm camera) and an ultracompact size (4.2 by 3 by 3 inches). The impressive aspherical glass lens gives you excellent detail and sharp, clear pictures, plus the size of the camera makes it easy to bring along wherever you go.
The C-720 offers rapid-succession firing--just over half a second per shot--and QuickTime movie mode for short video clips. Additional features include multipattern TTL autofocus, built-in flash, diopter adjustment, 1.5-inch color LCD monitor, self-timer with 12-second delay, autoexposure bracketing (three or five images), auto white balance, and special image effects such as sepia mode and black and white.
The C-720 stores images on removable SmartMedia cards. The camera can be operated in several modes: in programmed auto mode the camera does everything for you. In aperture- and shutter-priority modes, you get to set the aperture or priority, and the camera does the rest. In manual mode, you have control over all camera functions, with shutter speeds as long as 16 seconds.
Images can be downloaded to either a Mac or PC via USB storage class connectivity, which means it can be connected to any USB-based Windows Me/2000/XP and Mac OS 8.6 or later computer without installing any software. The C-720 also ships with two CR-3V long-life disposable lithium batteries (four AA batteries can also be used), a 16 MB SmartMedia card, lens cap, strap, retainer cord, USB and A/V cables, and software.
1 A Wonderful Camera (but plan on a learning curve)
We purchased a C-720 in 2003 and are very pleased with it.
With proper training, anyone can take awesome pictures with it. There are several reviews here that criticize the camera's "slow" auto and sports settings. I've taken probably 10,000 pictures with this camera, and almost none of them were taken in either of those modes. I highly recommend using P mode for outdoor pictures, or pictures in good light, and shutter priority (S mode), with shutter speed at about 1/30 or 1/40 of a second, and the exposure compensation on +2.0, for indoor pictures. The results are great.
The good things about this camera include the wonderful 8x zoom (for outdoor pictures, with shutter speeds of 1/250 second and faster, even max zoom shots come out great), the vibrant colors it captures, its wonderful work without a flash (very dramatic pictures), and the nice effect in portrait setting (in which it uses depth of field to have a sharp target and blurred background). The menus aren't that difficult to use. Battery life is great; I typically get 200-300 shots on one set of freshly charged NiMH batteries. My 128 Mb SmartMedia card holds about 200 pictures in the mode I use most often, and they're large enough to print sharply as 4x6 or 5x7, even after I crop a lot out of them.
There are two things I don't like about the camera.
The first is that it has a tendancy to develop "hot" or "stuck" pixels when doing a lot of shooting in low-light situations. Pixel mapping (a built-in pixel repair function) fixes this, but it's still really jarring to see ugly red and green pixels in the viewfinder and LCD and images when this happens.
The second is a quirk with my camera, and, from what I've read, lots of Olympus cameras. The C-720 uses a capacitor to "remember" the date and time, even with no batteries in the camera. There is something wrong with the capacitor in the C-720 I own. The connection to the batteries, even a freshly-charged set, breaks quite often. When that happens, the camera won't turn on until I open the battery compartment and rearrange the batteries, and then half the time, the date/time (nothing else) has been lost and needs to be reset. Because the camera cleverly uses the date to name the image files, this lost date/time is a real headache to deal with.
Because of the battery/capacitor quirk, I'm docking the camera one star. I'd give it five if the date/time didn't reset way too often.
As more and more people buy digital cameras, that are usually higher-end than the film cameras they once had, the learning curve associated with camera like this will decrease. To anyone who finds themselves disappointed with this camera because of blurred pictures, read my advice above and try again. Once you know what you're doing - it won't take long - you will take great pictures with the C-720.
2 Olympus Camedia C-720
I purchased this camera 18 months ago from Best Buy (sorry Amazon, I didn't have my account yet). My first digital camera. With accessories and the price of the camera at the time (they are now selling for half??) we spent $600.00. From the start the camera on Auto and Sport settings produced pictures that were blurry and out of focus about 1/3 of the time. Best Buy and Olympus had me convinced, being new to digital cameras, that I was the problem and that I might have been better served with a more basic camera (really?). The camera has since been back for repair with Best Buy once already under their extra four year warranty (5 week turn around, I plan to use a $100 Kodak digital I carry on my motorcyle in the meantime) and is going to go back again as the problem is now worse. When it comes back the next two times I will take it out of the box, have them take a blurry, out of focus shot of me and hand it right back to them. After the first "repair" Best Buy did not report that anything was found in need of repair only that the camera was recalibrated. I expect that there is nothing to fix as the camera is fundamentally flawed. The shutter speeds at Auto and Sport settings are just too slow. Three "repair" tries with Best Buy and we get our money or credit back. Olympus now tells me, after their warranty has expired, to go to the manual settings and increase the shutter speed and shoot in the manual mode. In other words that their camera shutter speed at Auto and even Sport mode will continue to be slow (and ruin pictures). By this time I had already figured this out despite their condescending advice that I probably should not have such a complicated camera! I have read similar reviews re: this particular camera with these problems at several other consumer sites. Check it out for yourself. Stay away from the Olympus C series. Interesting that they are currently not available from Amazon(things that make you go hmmmm)??!! I am staying away from Olympus all together. Customer service is a run around with a product they are unwilling to recognize as defective. Customers experiencing problems with these cameras (it seems from other reviews that not all are troublesome) should be offered a replacement or a trade toward something that works (maybe something simpler for those of us thought of as digitally challenged). We are extremely disappointed. Wake up Olympus. Time to cut the manure and reach out to make this right with your customers. I would love to retract this review.
3 A great camera at a great price, but not for action shots
I own this camera and am very pleased with it. I have some photography experience but this is my first digital camera, so in choosing a camera my goals were to find one that is as close to a traditional 35 mm film camera, but digital. This camera acheives that goal. The main drawback to this camera is that it is difficult to take action photos. I'll get to that, but first a few pros:
- Of course, the powerful optical zoom and optical lens, (combined with digital zoom gives you almost 30x zoom).
- For having an optical lens, this camera is really compact! It is easily held in one hand.
- Full automatic controls of shutter speed and aperture, but also the option of full manual (as well as shutter speed priority or aperture priority) should you want to do something creative. Though it does not have unlimited exposure time; you can't go past about one minute.
And a few cons:
- The necessary accessories will drive the price up. It only comes with a 4 MB memory card, and much more is needed (I recommend at least 64 MB, probably 128 MB). Also, rechargeable batteries are recommended, as well as a carrying case.
- Though it uses double-A's, most rechargeable double-A's don't last long. I often end up buying regular double-A's in the end anyway.
- Like other digital cameras, the camera must be powered up before taking photos but you don't want to leave it on at all times in order to save batteries. However, if you have a sudden photo opportunity it does take a minute for the camera to power up. The camera will go into sleep mode to save batteries and it "wakes up" a little faster, but still somewhat slowly. This is a minor drawback.
- And the biggest drawback, for me, is the difficulty in taking action shots. It is difficult for two reasons:
1) The auto-focus is slow. By the time the camera focuses and shoots, your photo opportunity easily may have passed. It does have manual focus but it is much slower! You have to use the up/down and left/right arrows on the back of the camera to focus. First, this is an inconvenient location especially if you are using the viewfinder instead of the viewscreen. And, the buttons are digitally controlled; each press of the button requires a short processing time. If you think you can manually focus on the fly with this camera while shooting sports photography, forget it! So, unless you are in a situation where you can focus manually once and take all of your photos at that focal length, you will have to rely on the moderately slow auto-focus.
2) After each photo, the image freezes to show you the picture you just took. This is a nice feature on most any digital camera nowadays, but since you can't turn it off it can really interfere if you are trying to take several photos back-to-back. The viewscreen does this, but so does the viewfinder, so there is no avoiding it. The only option, if you want to take quick back to back photos, is to turn on the "rapid-shooting" which will take 2 or more photos every time you press the button. Fortunately it's digital so you aren't wasting film!
All of that said, I will mention that I have managed to take some decent sports photographs. The drawbacks are a nuisance but can be worked around in ways like those that I have mentioned.
I recommend this camera to anyone that is looking for a digital camera at a very affordable price that will provide many of the benefits of a traditional 35 mm film-based camera. It is good for beginners as well as amateur photographers, but if you're planning to do action photography I recommend sticking to the 35 mm, or finding a different (though surely more expensive) digital camera.
Bottom line: it is hard, if not impossible, to beat this camera for this price.
4 I noticed someone reviewed it as not for beginners.....
And they are SO Right, it has so many whistles and horns, I cant figure out how to use it. The instruction book is as long as a novel. I have never used a digital camera, so I can guarantee that this one is HARD to understand.
Once you figure out the important needs of the camera, the one part that is easy is getting the pictures on the computer. That is camera/computer friendly, and easy to understand.
I noticed that all pictures have red eyes, and what I don't like the most, is I love taking pictures spontaneously, you can not take moving pictures at all, and that is a big downfall when you have kids and cats or dogs. Anything moving comes out blurry every-time. It is not the camera for those that like to be on the go, or like to take pictures as they happen. Its more for the mountain and tree type families, that take pictures of still objects.
5 This is not a camera for beginners
This is my first digital camera and I did a lot of research before buying it. I bought it mainly for the 8x optical zoom and because of a retailer who recommended Olympus' lenses. The flaws of this camera were said by other reviewers - things like slow focus and blurry pictures. You CAN take good pictures with this camera, but it just takes a LONG time to learn for beginners (and after a lot of mistakes). And if you need somebody else to take pictures for you, it will be plenty of headaches. The paper manual that comes with the camera is the most user-UNfriendly manual I've ever seen - it assumes the user knows a lot about cameras. In conclusion, this camera is NOT for anyone who wants ease of use.
6 Olympus Camedia C-720 digital camera W/ 8X optical Zoom
The camera is really nice and works well but, will not work great in low light,unless you use the flash and are pretty close to your subject matter but not too close, other than that the zoom is really nice it really brings things in close and with the 8X Zoom the 3 megapixel is nice,I have taken some great photos in full light and in medium light making sure that the camera was held still. The software will let you do a lot just using the auto enhance option.
On the down side it is just a bit too big to put in a shirt pocket so I had to get a bag for it or put it in a jacket pocket in cooler weather.
7 Grrreat Camera!
This camera is great! The best thing about it is the lens-you can take photos of far away objects easily. The 8x optical zoom is wonderful and the digital 3x is surprisingly clear. I especially enjoyed all the options. There is a movie mode and many exposure commands. The LCD screen on the back is bright and clear. You may take timed exposures and macro shots. There are screws on the lens to add filters and other lenses (check out Ebay: "720 Olympus filters"). Also, there camera comes with a wide array of items. It comes with lens cap, straps, cables and manuals. The software included is very good and becomes outstanding with the upgrade-check out free stitch. The memory goes up to 128meg and is easy to purchase at Amazon-lookup "128meg smartmedia". The included (stereo port) TV cable enables viewing shots on the TV-and even slideshows from the camera (12' Sterio cord extension from Radio Shack helps). Overall, it's a great camera with lots of good-great for family or pro. I highly recommend it.
8 Grrreat Camera!
This camera is so cool. It is lightweight and just so great. It has a wonderful optical lens that gets far away objects in fine focus. It's digital zoom comes out surprisingly crystal clear. Plus, the multi adjustable exposure is a pleasure to use. You can set the camera to take manual shutter speed or manual exposure or both. You can set the overall lighting for the scene from dark to light. You can also take movies for 16 seconds! You can take self photos-timed, snaps shot on its own. There are several sizes of photos you can take. There are screw threads on the lens so you can also purchase a separate adapter and use filters such as polarization and UV or wide angle lenses (check out Ebay and search "Olympus 720 filter"). You can take time exposures for blurred water flowing or car lights streaming past. You can check out the back of the camera on the sharp active matrix LCD screen and look at the photo you just took and delete ones you don't like. You can watch the movies on the LCD screen. You can use smartmedia cards (check out "Viking" at Amazon) to save photos/movies ...for the maximum size 128 meg card which saves about 50 photos at the largest size or about 650 at 640x480. I think the greatest thing about this camera is the lens. You can zoom in to objects that are VERY far away and have them in sharp focus. I took photos of deer recently this way. It's simple to download the photos with the USB cable. The software that comes with the camera is really cool. You can upgrade ... by purchasing a number online that links right from the software that comes with the camera. The upgrade software is absolutely outstanding. The free stitch mode in the upgrade software is especially cool since it really does an outstanding job of stitching photos-this upgrade software is NOT A BURN..-it's really worth it-compare to other software like this online. Plus, the camera comes with a 16meg card to save photos right away. It comes with a CD of the software. It comes with a lens cap and strap to connect to the lens cap and another strap to connect to the camera. It comes with lithium duracell batteries. It comes with a USB connector cord. It comes with a cord to connect to your TV (stereo cable port) to watch your photos on your TV! You can even set the camera to do a slide show of your photos on the TV. You can watch the movies from your camera on the TV. May I recommend purchasing a 12' extension stereo cord for the TV cable from Radio Shack so you can sit at the sofa and watch your piks on the TV. I really, can honestly say.. that this is an outstanding product. I read the whole manual and tried all the different examples to get all out of this camera possible. It's really fun! Give it a try-you can't go wrong. It's a wonderful family camera or even great for a profesional. It's a blast-I love that I got it.
9 Absolutely Love This Camera
I received this camera for Christmas and absolutely love it. It has a strange feeling focus, but once I got used to it-- absolutely wonderful!
I've taken pictures that a professional photographer friend of mine has complimented.
The clarity, ease of use, and 8x optical zoom make this my favorite Christmas present in a long, long time.
10 A Great Family Camera
I've tried several digital cameras over the last 2 years searching for the elusive combination of speed, image quality, and lens. While the C-720 isn't the best in any one category, it is a great package for families and trips. The autofocus is quick and the lens is outstanding - long enough without being so long as to cause excessive shake. You have to work with this camera - set the shutter speed high and you can zoom all the way out without a problem, perfect for parades, and other family outings. No digital camera is perfect, at least not in this price range, for some things nothing beats a large film image - but for 90% of what we take photos of, this camera, and its siblings (730/740/750) are perfect for what they do,
11 Slow focus, motion blur, yellow photos
Very disappointed in this camera. Fine for still and outdoor photos, but between the slow focus and the motion blur, most pictures of our kids are a blur. We've missed many great shots. The lighting in the photos also comes out odd....often looks yellowish and the flash often makes this even worse. Most of the time, its hard to even tell the difference between a flash photo and one without flash. Forget this camera if you want to avoid frustration! And shame on Olympus for charging an extra $20 bucks to get a fully functional photo software program.....after spending [a lot] on the camera...of course, you don't know this when you buy the camera!
12 Olympus C-720 Ultra-Zoom digital camera
This camera has a great 8X lens, which attracted me. The 8X lens makes it possible to take clear photos of distant objects. The camera does not take good photos at night, as the lights all show up as large spots. And, the electronic viewfinder is difficult to use in other than optimal conditions. The LCD screen is too small for an otherwise competent camera. The photo processing computer program provided by Olympus is difficult to use, and would be much improved if it had right-click commands. The camera can use 4 AA batteries. Battery life with AA alkaline batteries is adequate, and they are much cheaper and more convenient to replace when traveling than $pecial camera batteries often required by other models. All in all, the 8X lens is what the Camedia has going for it.
13 Digital camera for photo buffs
This camera, Olympus C-720 is for people who love photography and are familiar with cameras. It takes beautiful pictures. If you want a point and shoot camera this is not for you, try the Olympus D-550. If you use a 35mm camera and want to go digital this is the camera. The pictures jump off the screen at you. They print beautifully as well. I brought some of my shots to my locat photo shop just to see what they would look like on paper. I was impressed!
14 My favorite digital camera so far
This is my third digital camera. Previous to this camera I had a Nikon Coolpix 885, which I quickly learned to despise because I never knew if (or when) it had taken a picture. I sold it on eBay and bought this camera.
Oddly, the first Olympus 720 I got was defective and would eat a set of batteries in 15 minutes. I exchanged the camera for a new one which is quite fine in this regard. The batteries last quite a long time and the camera is good at conserving power.
What I like about the Olympus 720:
First, the video viewfinder is actually through-the-lens like a proper SLR. This is great. I can see when the camera is in focus and when it is not. This also helps in an unexpected way: Because you see it out of focus, you will focus the camera. Thus when you want to take a photo, the camera is already focused and there is very little lag before the image is captured. With rangefinder digital cameras, you don't see it out of focus and therefore you may not squeeze on the release until the moment you want to capture. Of course then it has to do its focusing thing and sometime later actually take the picture.
The settings can be viewed through the eyepiece in addition to the monitor. This helps me as I am now getting far sighted, and with the Nikon I had to put on reading glasses to view the settings on the monitor. Not so with the Olympus 720.
I can see when the camera takes a picture. Like SLRs whose mirror swings up when the shutter is released, the Olympus momentarily blacks out the viewfinder when the image is recorded. You absolutely know that a photo was taken just then. You don't have to listen for a beep (Nikon 885 doesn't even do this), or wonder if the flash you saw was your camera or someone else's. Many times with my old Kodak 280 I'd get a blurry photo because I had already begun to put the camera down when it actually took the photo.
8 to 1 optical zoom. Not stinkin' digital zoom... optical zoom. Wow. Most digital cameras are 3 to 1. This is a real help. Scanning some of the other reviews here I can only assume that the people complaining about motion blur are simply inexperienced photographers that don't know that longer focal lengths require additional stability or shorter shutter times.
AA batteries. I much prefer the flexibility you get using standard size AA batteries instead of some oddball or photo only battery. I got nice NiMH recharables. Works great. In a pinch you could use plain-Jane AA batteries but of course they'd get eaten up quickly.
In general, the camera has lots of features as you'd expect. I use the PASM mode. In that mode it displays the f-stop and shutter speed through the viewfinder. Good stuff.
What I don't like:
Well, the image quality is not quite as good as I'd like. I'm going to experiment with the auto ASA to see if manually setting it to 200 or 100 makes for a better picture. Don't ask me why, but my ancient Kodak DC 280 takes the nicest looking photos of any digital camera I have seen. I wish the Olympus' sharpness and tones were as nice.
The manual: There's a quick start guide, a paper manual, and a PDF manual. The paper manual while thick, is not complete. Print out the PDF manual.
The quick start and paper manual neglect to mention that when you connect the camera to your computer via USB that you need to set the camera's mode to Image Review. Only the PDF manual reveals this vital fact.
Body color: Now I'm getting picky. I would much prefer a nice black over the silver color.
15 Motion blur is horrible
I was [convinced] by the marketing of the zooming features of this camera. The motion blur on this camera is terrible. If you want to zoom in on something, get out the tripod cause even just a little motion will get you wierd shadows, bluring, and an interesting double vision appearance. Watch for this camera on ebay, cause that's where I'm putting it.
16 Beginner Photographer very pleased
This is the second digital camera I have purchased, and I have to say that I am very pleased. I have had no problems so far with the camera, other than the fact that I tried to use it without actually reading the manual first. I do wish that the focus was faster, I have missed several shots because of that, but I'm still very happy with my purchase. My last digital was also an Olympus, and at this time, there is no other point and shoot camera that I would own. I liked it so well that I bought my Mom one for her birthday, and she bought my sister one for Christmas!
17 Good photos, features; Bad focus, Redeye
I really enjoy this camera. For still shots, it is INCREDIBLE! However, the focus is incredibly slow and tacky for such an expensive camera. Oh. Redeye is another major problem with this camera. Almost every picture I take of a person has red eye.
Oympus needs to work the kinks out, but I would buy this camera again.
18 Versitile, but still needs some tweeking
The Camedia is a great camera for anyone who takes photography somewhat seriously. The multi settings are great, from an automatic ANYONE can use, to the manual settings that will satisfy the amateur photographer. I wish they had put in a ring for manual focusing, as is now, the manual delays picture taking by anywhere from 1-2 seconds, on top of the already 1 second delay. For the price range, however, the camedia is the best you will get. If you would prefer higher MP the camedia 4mp with only 3x zoom is practicaly identical. I had a tough time deciding. The 3mp is good enough resolution for photo quality print outs at slightly less than a full sheet of paper. Compression rates are excellent, 7 pictures on the 16 megabyte card at SHQ, but only 1 at tiff (although the results are incredible). Also, the side output units rock. It even comes with a video out cord to hook up to a VCR.
Conclusion- fun easy to use camera with many possibilities
19 A camera with many flaws!
I got this camera as a gift, and let me tell you I was excited when I got it, who would not be Olympus makes great products, right? But all I ever had with this Camera is problems! First of all it is not compatible with Windows 95 or Windows 98, to upload your pictures, you have to use a wire that came with the camera to connect to your computer, hoping that the "removable drive" appears in Windows explorer, if not keep trying to get it to work, it took me several trys just to get my pictures on my 2 year old Windows 98 computer.
Second the biggest disappointment was that every picture I took has a pentagon or octagon shape towards the top of every picture I took, I called Olympus to find out what that is, and of coarse I got no where with them! So now I have a brand new digital Camera that works awful, does not work on my computer well, and damages every picture I ever took.
Finally the LCD screen is way to small, as compared to previous Olympus Digital Camera Models. I would pass on this one.
20 Not for moving objects!!!
My husband purchased this camera for me for Christmas. I'm sure it has some excellent features, but I can't get past the slow auto focus. I mainly used it for taking pictures of my 2 year-old twins and I've missed some really cute shots because of the slow focus. EXTREMELY FRUSTRATING!!! I will be returning this camera tomorrow.
21 Poor Focusing
I have a three year old Olympus Camedia C-2020 Z, with 2.1 MP and a 3x optical zoom. It is a fantastic camera!!
Hoping to get the same quality, but with a better zoom, I purchased a C-720. In fact, I went through two, because the quality of the zoom on the first one was so bad that the retailer thought that maybe it was broken. The retailer did tell me that they had heard of focusing problems with this camera. If the subject you are zooming in on is stationary (like a house), you can get a good picture. But if it is moving at all (like a person), the auto focus zoom struggles terribly to get a clear shot. I could not get one in- focus shot of my son ballroom dancing, even with a tripod, and trying the 'sports' action setting.
While in zoom, the camera sometimes cannot handle certain light angles and takes a very dark picture. The viewfinder also looks like you are looking through a screen, and the media card is hard to remove. Neither of these were issues with my C-2020.
Bottom line, I returned the camera and will wait until Olympus puts out a decent quality product again.
22 Nothing but Problems
I did extensive research before purchasing this camera and ultimately chose it because of the zoom. It took awhile to adjust to using a digital camera, but once I did, I was enjoying it. Suddenly, about a month after purchasing the camera, all of the images (through the viewfinder, on the display screen and the words of the menu options) became reversed as if through a mirror. I spent hours on the phone with Olympus customer service and no tech could figure out how to remedy the problem. I ultimately had to send the camera to Olympus for repair, where it has been for 4 weeks. They say a part has to be ordered. I think this is outrageous for new camera and if I had it to do again, would not have purchased the C-720.
23 Thorough interface and power for each user group
I own the 2MP version of this camera and the user interface is at once both simple and powerful (there are aperture priority and shutter priority as well as full manual menus as well as lanscape, portrait and action full auto settings).
The important thing about this series of cameras is the optical zoom (note: this is NOT DIGITAL ZOOM - digital zoom simply pixelizes and eliminates original information). The more optical zoom you have the better for your composition. My earlier version of this camera has 10X optical zoom and I use it ALL THE TIME. It was the difference between capturing my son's first time on stage at his Christmas play and just having crowd shots!
Don't get another camera. This (and anothr Olympus at 10X) are the digital cameras to have under $[money].
24 Awesome camera.
I got this camera for Christmas just a few days ago. This is my first digital camera, and I'll tell straight out that it is excellent. The first picture I took (An ornament on my tree) came out perfect, literally. I showed a few of my relatives, who were all incredibly impressed, and rightly so - the picture is beautiful.
I've heard a few people complain about problems with the screen, but I really haven't had any. It looks fine to me, and makes no difference whether it's in light or dark. I actually really like it.
The picture software isn't slow on my computer, which is two years old. I'll say that it isn't the easiest to load, but it really isn't a hassle.
And finally, picture qualities. They're really sharp and beautiful. Focusing is easy, and for me, it hasn't been as long as some people have said.
Highly reccomended, especially for a first time user like myself.
25 No optical viewfinder
Upgraded from a D-460 3x zoom for the 8x zoom. So far I don't care for the digital view finder. Red eye flash doesn't work in full auto mode; haven't reached the learning curve yet (100 shots) of focusing at maximum zoom. Photo quality, when focus is achieved is execellent, colors are true to life. Recommend? Maybe yes, maybe no; the jury is still out.
26 Take the time to learn
This is a good camera, but if you really want to get the most out of it, take the time to learn how to use its features. Once you do, you'll get great pictures.
The zoom is the selling point, and one should keep that in mind if they plan on buying this cameria. The zoom will allow you to capture items other off the shelf cameras won't. Take advantage of this feature!
27 Zoom, greatest advantage but Olympus is unpredictable...
When pictures turn out good, they turn out really good (great, excellent, so much better than with other digital cameras) with vivid colors and great sharpness. However, in low light conditions they don't turn out that good.
I bought this camera only for it's great optical zoom which is the greatest advantage of this camera so you can compose what you really want. 8x optical is more than twice as much as what most digital cameras offer and I don't know how those other cameras sell with such a useless zoom (3x optical is nothing!) 3x optical is just ridiculous when 8x is already available.
The autofocus is sometimes very disappointing. It might let you down when you need it the most. For example, African Safari, great opportunities missed because the autofocus just took too long or just didn't focus at all! Very frustrating. Like if you went to Africa every day!
I had the c700 model before this one and I'm not sure if selling it to my brother was a nice thing to do with a brother. Had the same problems. Big surprise when I found that the C-720 doesn't have sound capability in the video mode. C700 had. Why would Olympus come up with a newer model with more resolution but decrease the zoom to 8x and take out the sound capability? Go figure!! Bottom line: if you don't care about having sound on your video clips, don't care missing some once in a lifetime photo opportunities because the autozoom didn't work, then go for it! But, if you don't mind spending [a more money], maybe the c730 will not have all the flaws of it's predecessors. However, that's what I thought when I upgraded from the c700 to the c720 so we are back to the beginning and Olympus is unpredictable. Lets be positive and think that maybe they get it right this time.
28 slow focus, blurry images
I bought this camera for it's optical 8x telephoto capabiltities.
This camera looks good, feels good, and has all the features to be a great camera.
I was very disappointed to find that the it takes a long time for the autofocus to work, and the pictures come out slightly out of focus and grainy.
I have complained to Olympus and I'm awaiting their response.
I took the camera out of auto mode, and set the lens speed up to a 1,000th of a second. The images improved, but are still short of what I expected. This is not what I expected from a good camera maker like Olympus.
29 Extremely pleased with this camera!
****
The best selling points of this camera (for me):
- it works on AA batteries, and if needed, you can buy them in any country. (Buy rechargeables!)
- it has an awesome zoom (when coupled with the digital zoom)
- the pictures are beautiful, and can blow up to 8x10 on high resolution
- even when you shoot the shot at a high resolution, you can change it later to a lower res if you want to. But be careful, you can go down, but not back up!
- it has a panorama function that works pretty good, and it includes stitching the pictures together
- it fits on a tripod
- it is quite practical in size
- it is very affordable for what you get and the quality of output.
- you can view your pictures immediately on a television with the video cable
- you can view the image on the TV while you are shooting the picture (works great for family portraits so you can see the shot before it is taken and fix things that don't quite look right)
- I like the rapid fire shooting it has
The things I can live with but wish were better:
- it takes any smart media card, but the panorama function only works if you buy the Olympus smart media card
- If you plan on using it for extended periods, you really need to buy rechargeables
- the digital zoom is not very clear when viewing the image UNTIL you actually take the shot. And you really need a steady hand. But the shot comes out perfect. The thumbnails look blurry, though the picture really isn't.
- The pics take a long time to load onto your computer if you try to load them through your camera. I bought the DAZZLE ZIO! SMART MEDIA READER and it downloads the images boom-boom-boom-boom...instantly! Excellent feature, but sold separately.
- Doesn't come with a carrying case (good carrying cases are expensive - also sold separately)
- it only comes with a 16mb smart media card, YOU NEED MORE! (cha-ching)...for a 128mb, which by the way is about all you need for a week vacation. Takes 167 pics at high resolution.
- It sometimes takes a long time to focus and I did miss a few action shots because of this, but if you are prepared and pre-focus the camera it works great. You can also use the rapid firing option and just delete the ones you don't want. I did that too and it worked great.
Overall, this (in my opinion) was an excellent choice. I have had the camera for 2 months now and I LOVE IT! It was quite affordable if I were only buying the camera at... but when you add in the rechargeables, the recharger, smart card, carrying case, cleaning rags, media card reader, and tax, you do need to think of it more like an investment than a toy. The final bill came out to... OUCH! Would I do it again? You bet! Considering the stock market, it was the best investment I made all year. Do I regret not getting the 4.0 mp? No way, the zoom is not nearly as good as the 3.1, and when am I really ever going to print out an 11x14 picture (which is the only reason you ever need to go bigger than a 3.1.) besides, my printer isn't even big enough to print it, so I would have to have a shop print it - not realistic. Don't waste better options for more mega pixels, unless you are a professional, you really won't have the need for them.
Hope this helps!
30 Olympus C-720
If you're looking for a great digital camera for a great price, get the Olympus C-720. Like most of you, I'm not a professional photographer, but in the first week I was able to take what I consider to be some very nice shots. After reading the extensive manual, I quickly came to the conclusion that this camera will do a LOT and I'm going to have to experiment with it quite a bit to learn all of its capabilities. The only beef I have is the slow auto-focus only, no manual focus. Though the manual zoom is accurate, it can be a bit slow when you're trying to catch a fast moving object. For example, I was trying to take a shot of my dog as he was running toward me . . .forget it . . .the focus was just too slow. Olympus' suggestion is to "pre-focus" on the subject, then take the shot. Okay, sounds good. But why not include a manual focus? The 8X optical zoom is awesome. Coupled with the 3X digital (to get 24x) it is incredible. As with other high-zoom cameras, use a tri-pod for high zoom shots or a VERY steady hand. The 8X optical zoom is so good, I rarely use the digital zoom at all. Though this camera has a smaller rear viewing monitor than most cameras in its class, it hasn't bothered me at all. I can still review photos with ease and it saves on battery life. The quality of the photos is remarkable. My wife and I have taken quite a few "jaw-droppers" in just the first few weeks of owning the camera. It's nice not being saddled with film processing costs and delays. You can review the shots right on camera and delete what you don't want. Consequently, we've taken more pictures with this camera in a few short weeks than with all the other cameras we've owned, combined! So far, the battery life is amazing as well. Around 400 shots! IMHO, it blows the 2MP cameras away. Get a 128MB card and you'll have a hard time filling it up in one day.
31 Best Value for the Price
If you're looking for a camera that will give you 3 megapixel resolution and can zoom 8X, then this is the one for you. The price is incredible, when you consider how it compares feature by feature to the competition. I love this camera, and use it for landscape photos that will be blown up to 11 x 14"... the clarity is first rate. The camera isn't perfect, but in comparison to the others in its class (megapixel and zoom) it's tops...
32 Good zoom, but poor low-light capabilities & slow autofocus
I bought this camera, then returned it... The 8x zoom is great, and it seemed like a great value -- but the electronic viewfinder is very poor, especially in low-light conditions, and the autofocus is too slow. I'm now trying the Fuji FinePix S602...
33 Could be a good camera but....
but the performance is below par. Firstly, this camera has many great features (manual control of apeture, shutter speed, exposure compensation, flash brightness, and much more). It's fairly simple to learn how to manually change these features to fit the situation you're photographing. The camera design and on screen menus are user friendly, and the camera has a very solid feel to it (probably can take abuse well).
Unfortunately, over the 3 days and 200 pictures that I had this camera, I don't think I had a single picture that I was impressed with. Most all of them were fuzzy, some of them blurry, or the white balance was incorrect, some of the pictures even had noise in them...and I tried almost every type of lighting condition possible, with tweaking every feature the camera had every time. I believe the problem lies with the autofocus. It's slow, irritably slow...and this camera has trouble focusing on many types of objects (dark, shiny, brightly lit). Should I have to use the auto focus lock every time? I don't think so. In auto mode, I get the same result in picture quality, even though the camera is supposed to set everything on its own. Also in auto mode, the flash is way to bright (thermo-nuclear bright), but can be toned down in manual mode. Finally, the LCD view-finder is noticeably laggy, or jumpy...which would be a problem when trying to snap a fast moving object, where you would have to snap the picture slightly before it was in the center of the view-finder to compensate.
Now I've read great user reviews about this camera (which is why I bought it in the first place), but I honestly can't say anything near what anybody else has said. Traded in for a Fuji Finepix 3800 (close equivalent) and have had no problems so far at all (look for review soon). Well hope this helps anyone considering this camera!
34 Keep your subject still!
This was my first digital camera and I was very encouraged by the positive reviews I had read. My biggest problem with the camera was motion blur. I got blurry motion in auto mode and sports mode from very simple movements (hand or head). I phoned Olympus and they agreed that there is motion blur and attributed it to the line of Ultra zoom cameras. They suggested going to manual mode and increasing the shutter speed. That made the auto point and shoot mode worthless. My wife is not a photographer and would never be able to handle that, especially in the short moments you get to snap a picture. These blurs occurred without any zoom. It was worse with the zoom, optical or digital. It would be great for still subjects and a tripod, but not for a simple picture of my dog. I have since gone to the C-4000 and am very pleased. I took a picture of a moving ceiling fan and it froze the blades perfectly. I have also used the C-3030 in the past and was able to take pictures out of a moving car. Not with the C-720. If you are considering this camera, make sure you try it out for yourself first.
35 People think I am a professional photographer!
I purchased this camera the 1st of September 2002 and I never thought I could take pictures that are so stunning! Others think that I am a professional photographer and have offered to buy my photos! This camera is great for portraits but it truely delivers unbelievable 8x10's of landscapes, animal subjects. The tiniest details of a subject is revealed and with a photo stylus printer you will amaze yourself. When I first printed up a picture of a bald eagle I was floored at the detail of it's feathers, clarity of the iris, and even the water beads on its feathers. Everyone I have showed my photos to have been in awe and have drawn a crowd just to view them. Some of the people I work with want to buy this product just due to the pictures they have seen without seeing the camera!! I can't tell you how very, very pleased I am!!
36 Overall superb value for the money
This is my 2nd digital camera (the first being a Sony Mavica FD-7) and have found this to be great camera for both indoor and outdoor use. Macro shots are fantastic and the 8x zoom is tough to beat on the other end of the scale. It does have issues in low light at maximum telephoto and in those cases a tripod may be required. Overall, I have not experienced too many issues at maximum zoom. Add some decent rechargeable NiMH batteries, a 128MB SmartMedia card (holds about 60 SHQ or 175 HQ photos), and you're set. The camera is light enough to carry all day and small enough to tuck into a bike pack.
37 Wide angle problems??
The specs show that this camera has the 35mm equivilent of 40-320 mm. With only going as low as 40mm, do wide angle shots suffer? Are wide angle adaptors available to screw on?
38 What about filters?
I am interested in purchasing. However does this camera any external type of filters such as a polarizer or UV type filter?
39 Excellent camera... wonderful zoom and great battery life
This is my 4th digital camera and they have certainly improved. I chose the 720 because of it's 8X zoom lens and small size, plus the use of standard sized batteries. I took it on a two week canoe trip in Ontario and it performed great. The photos are crisp and sharp. Even with the maximum zoom, the focus was sharp, although I did use a mono-pod for stability. I was particularly impressed with the battery life. Based on my older cameras, I took 6 sets of batteries for the two week trip.... but I ended up only using two sets: one set of NiMH rechargables and one set of lithium batteries was all it took for two weeks and over 600 photos, including lots of previewing with the LCD display.
I also found the LCD viewfinder more acceptable than I had first expected. It is a bit grainy and takes some getting used to, but it was brighter than most reviews have implied and it was great to be able to see 'exactly' what was going to be in the picture since it is 'through the lens'.
Overall, I am very pleased with the camera. Very impressive.
40 Could the 700 be improved?
In a word, yes. The 700 was my favorite digicam ever, putting most everything else in storage. However, along comes the 720 & adds a 50% better resolution while sacrificing only a small amount of the fine optical zoom (from 10x to 8x) that the 700 is known for. In point of fact, zooming at 10X without a tripod or image stabilization (not present on either the 700 or the 720) is extremely challenging. Anyway, this camera is beautifully made and ergonomically engineered. The aspherical all glass lens system is excellent and the resulting 3 megapixel images are crystal clear at 8" x 10" and quite acceptable at 11" x 14". The zoom of course remains the trump card on the 720, and the smoothness (just the right damping) with which it reaches its 8x limit is awesome. Another nice feature is its ability to take QuickTime movies, which really adds to its versatility. The camera as shipped does benefit from some upgrading, but these things can be added later. I would suggest the first purchase be a much larger memory card than the 16 megs included (I like the 128); if possible, buy Olympus, as these proprietary cards allow for a few more digital formatting tricks than do the others.
41 Easy to use and also a pleasure to own!
I've only had my C-720 for a few days but I did take it to a softball travel tournament this week-end. My daughter plays third and I got some really neat shots from my side of the fence. I also got some nice shots in and around the hotel. It's easy to pick-up and start shooting right away even if you've only used the simplest disposables. I took a picture from the window of our hotel room of a beautiful fountain that was across the street and several hundred feet away. It captured the beauty of this fountain and captured my grand-daughter and daughter standing there too! If you buy it I don't think you'll have any regrets. What more could you ask for it has 8x optical zoom and 3 megapixels. That pretty much covers it. Plus a whole lot more!
