Olympus E-500

Introduction to the Four Thirds system

If you just want to see some photographs, skip straight to the results section.

The great majority of the DSLRs from the big names in photography (Nikon, Canon, etc) were very clearly based on their preceding 35mm autofocus SLR architectures. This made a lot of sense as it enabled the legions of owners of said 35mm autofocus SLRs to use their existing lenses and accessories with their new (and very expensive!) digital wonders. But Olympus took a very different route…

Of course Olympus didn't have a lot of choice but to take this route, because alone among the photographic big-boys they simply didn't have a successful 35mm autofocus SLR system to base a DSLR on. Olympus only ever launched one fully-integrated 35mm autofocus SLR, the OM707. This camera was an unmitigated distaster for Olympus that saw them withdraw very nearly entirely from the enthusiast and professional 35mm photography market. In fact I suspect that Olympus only barely survived the OM707 debacle at all.

But let's be glad they did! Because their lack a fully fledged 35mm autofocus SLR system to base a DSLR on lead them to do something unique in the photography world: they created a completely new SLR system developed from scratch around the needs of digital photography: the Four Thirds system. But note that I didn't call it the Olympus Four Thirds system, because this system was jointly developed by Olympus, Panasonic and Kodak (and, to a lesser extent, Fujifilm, Leica, Sanyo and Sigma) and was intended to be a sort of open standard that any company could sign up to and produce cameras, lenses or accessories for, rather than a proprietary system that one company was in control of.

The ideal of an open system with multiple companies producing cameras and lenses was only partially successfully, and it seems only Olympus was fully committed. Olympus produced a total of 15 cameras, while Panasonic produced 2 and Leica just 1. The Four Thirds system was in production between 2003 and 2013, but it was already in a state of terminal decline when Olympus and Panasonic launched the Mirco Four Thirds system in 2009. But in that time Olympus introduced a number of new technologies, including the first interchangeable lens camera with a dust reduction system, and the first interchangeable lens camera with a live view system.

Introduction to the Olympus E-500

Specification summary
Launch date	September 2005
Camera type	Digital SLR
Camera size	479 grams 130 x 95 x 66 mm (inc. battery)
Sensor type	CCD (Kodak Full Frame Transfer)
Sensor size	Four thirds (17.3 x 13.0 mm)
Resolution	3264 x 2448 (8 megapixels)
Lens	Interchangeable - Four Thirds mount

The Olympus E-500 was introduced in September 2005 as the third Four Thirds system camera. The first was the high-end, 5 megapixel, E-1, launched in June 2003, and the second was the consumer 8 megapixel E-300, launched in September 2004. The E-300 had a curious "porroprism" SLR viewfinder (similar to the Olympus Pen F series in the 1960s) which gave it an unusual flat top design. But the E-300's porroprism viewfinder was met with some resistence in the market place and so exactly 1 year later the E-500 was launched with a very similar specification (including the same Kodak CCD 8 megapixel sensor) except the porroprism viewfinder was replaced with a much more conventional "penta-mirror" viewfinder as was common on most low-end DSLRs.

The E-500 met with a much better responce from both camera reviewers and the market place. It's a fairly typical low-to-middle-end DSLR from the early-to-mid 2000s and was competitive, for the most part, with similar cameras from Canon and Nikon. One area in which it was perhaps a little behind the competition was the auto-focus system with a mere 3 focus points (most competitors had 5-7 focus points). One of the features that allowed the E-500 to really differentiate itself from the competition was what Olympus called the "Supersonic Wave Filter" (usually referred to as SSWF) which essentially shook dust of the sensor which then stuck to a membrane located just below it. It operates every time you switch the camera off or on.

The user interface of the E-500 is pretty typical of similar consumer level DSLRs from its competitors, so there is no status LCD on the top plate (with settings being shown on the LCD monito on the back of the camera), just one command dial and a selection of buttons for pretty much everything you need for day-to-day photography that you press and set with the command dial. The E-500 has a fairly substantial grip and a built-in flash hidden in the penta-mirror hump on top of the camera.

+ Specification

Product type
Product type	Single-lens reflex digital camera with interchangeable lens
Lens	Zuiko Digital, Four Thirds System Lens
Lens mount system	Four Thirds mount
Equivalent focal length on a 35 mm film camera	Approx. twice the focal length of the lens
Image pickup element
Product type	4/3 type full frame transfer primary color CCD
Total no. of pixels	Approx. 8,880,000 pixels
No. of effective pixels	Approx. 8,000,000 pixels
Screen size	17.3 mm (H) x 13.0 mm (V) (0.9" x 0.5")
Aspect ratio	1.33 (4:3)
Viewfinder
Product type	Eye-level single-lens reflex viewfinder
Field of view	Approx. 95% (for field of view on recorded images)
Viewfinder magnification	Approx. 0.9x (-1 m-1, 50mm lens, infinity)
Eye point	10 mm (0.8") (-1 m-1)
Diopter adjustment range	-3.0 - +1.0 m -1 m-1
Optical path fraction	Quick return half mirror
Depth of field	Can be checked with the V (one-touch WB) button (when PREVIEW registered)
Focusing screen	Fixed
Eyecup	Interchangeable
Monitor
Product type	Approx. 215,000 pixels
Total no. of pixels	2.5" TFT color LCD (Hyper crystal LCD)
Shutter
Product type Shutter	Computerized focal-plane shutter
Shutter	1/4000 - 60 sec Manual mode: Bulb (Limit: 8 min.)
Auto focus
Product type	TTL phase-contrast detection system
Focusing point	3-point multiple AF (left, center, right)
AF luminance range	EV 0 - EV 19
Selection of focusing point	Auto, Optional
AF illuminator	The built-in flash provides light. (light can also be provided by an external electronic flash.)
Exposure control
Metering system	TTL full-aperture metering system (1) Digital ESP metering (49-segment multi pattern metering) (2) Center weighted average metering (49-segment multi pattern metering) (3) Spot metering (approx. 2% for the viewfinder screen)
Metering range	(1) EV 1 - 20 (Digital ESP metering, Center weighted average metering) (2) EV 3 - 17 (Spot metering) (At normal temperature, 50 mm F2, ISO 100)
Exposure mode ISO sensitivity	(1) AUTO: Full auto (2) P: Program AE(Program shift can be performed) (3) A: Aperture priority AE (4) S: Shutter priority AE (5) M: Manual
ISO sensitivity	100 - 400 (High ISO values (800 - 1600) are available)
Exposure compensation	Exposure can be adjusted in 1/3, 1/2 or 1 EV step within a range of ± 5 EV.
White balance
Product type	CCD
Mode setting	Auto, Preset WB (7 settings), Customized WB, One-touch WB
Recording
Memory	CF card (Compatible with Type I and II) Microdrive (Compatible with FAT 32) xD-Picture Card
Recording system	Digital recording, TIFF (non-compression), JPEG (in accordance with Design rule for Camera File system (DCF)), RAW Data
Applicable standards	Exif 2.2, Digital Print Order Format (DPOF), PRINT Image Matching III, PictBridge
Playback
Playback mode	Single-frame playback, Close-up playback, Index display, Image rotation, Slideshow, Light box display, Calendar display
Information display	Information display, Histogram display
Drive
Drive mode	Single-frame shooting, Sequential shooting, Self-timer, Remote control
Sequential shooting	2.5 frames/sec. (Max. no. of storable sequential pictures: 4 frames in RAW/TIFF)
Self-timer	Operation time: 12 sec., 2 sec.
Optical remote control	Operation time: 2 sec., 0 sec. (instantaneous shooting) (RM-1 Remote Control (optional))
Flash
Synchronization	Synchronized with the camera at 1/180 sec. or less
Flash control mode	TTL-AUTO (TTL pre-flash mode), AUTO, MANUAL
External flash attachment	Hot shoe
External connector
External connector	USB connector/Multi-connector
Power supply
Battery	BLM-1 Li-ion Battery x1/CR123A lithium battery x3 (for use with LBH-1 Lithium Battery Holder)
Dimensions/weight
Dimensions	129.5 mm (W) x 94.5 mm (H) x 66 mm (D) (5.1" x 3.7" x 2.6") (excluding protrusions)
Weight	Approx.435 g (1.0 Ib.) (without battery)
Operating environment
Temperature	0 - 40°C (32°F - 104°F) (operation)/-20 - 60°C (-4°F - 140°F) (storage)
Humidity	30 - 90 % (operation)/10 - 90 % (storage)

Using an Olympus E-500 in 2025

For the most part I found the E-500 a pleasure to use. It's very light-weight and compact (more so than the preceding E-300), yet has a very comfortable grip. But having said that, I found the command dial could sometimes be a little uncomfortable to use: its positioned to be operated by the right thumb, and is a bit of a problem when you want to use it together with a button that is also positioned for the right thumb, especially with your eye to the viewfinder. I found this happened most when trying to set the focus point (even though there are only be 3 of 'em!).

Olympus E-500 viewfinder layout. The layout of viewfinder information is also a little unusual, with all the information presented in a vertical column to the right of the viewfinder. This is really just a matter of re-training the muscle-memory (that always sends my eye to the bottom of the viewfinder for shutter speeds, apertures, etc.) but never-the-lessI found this a bit strange.

The E-500 uses compact flash memory cards which, while no-longer seen on current cameras, are still plentiful and cheap. I tried my E-500 with 1mb, 2mb and 4mb cards and they all worked flawlessly.

Although Four Thirds lenses are not particularly small or light-weight compared to modern mirrorless lenses, they're still compact compared to most contemporary DSLR lenses. Never having owned a Four Thirds camera before, I didn't have any suitable lenses in my gear cupboard, so I bought the pleasent and compact (but entirely forgettable!) 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 "kit" zoom (which weighs in at 190 grams), and a rather more interesting 50mm f/2 macro lens (which weighs in at 300 grams). The kit zoom is perhaps the more useful general purpose lens, but when I was looking though my test photographs for inclusion in this article I was a bit surprised to find I had use the 50mm macro far more than the 14-42mm zoom. But both lenses suit the E-500 admirably.

So all-round I found the E-500 a very pleasent camera to use with only occasional problems trying to operate the focus point selection button and the command dial at the same time with my thumb spoiling the handling.

Buying an Olympus E-500 in 2025

So here we come to one of the downsides to buying and using a Four Thirds camera in 2025: the cost. Compared to many vintage DSLRs competing for your retro-tech dollar, all Four Thirds cameras tend to be expensive, and the more exotic examples especially so. I think this is due in part to the fact that as the Four Thirds system was only around the 10 years or so it already has an air exclusivity and rarity. Strangely enough one of the Four Thirds cameras that seems to caught the attention of TikTokkers and YouTubers is the relatively low-end and prosaic E-300. Maybe that porroprism viewfinder makes it look just, well, strange, which peaks the interest of retro-tech fans. But I'm sure that Kodak Full Frame Transfer CCD sensor play its part too.

Amongst retro-digital camera lovers there is an ever-growing subset how will eulogise endless about CCD sensors, and amongst that CCD loving subset there is smaller, but an even more passionate, subset of Kodak CCD sensors. And you know what, within that subset, there are those that think the Kodak Full Frame Transfer sensor is the real ultimate "film-like" sensor.

Even though the E-300 was a fairly low-to-mid-range camera when it was launched, you often see it selling for upwards of £100, even though similar cameras from other manufacturers will sell for half that. And that is in addition to fact that Four thirds lenses also often sell for top-dollar! But the E-500 seems to (so far at least) have escaped the attention of the slavering masses. I paid £45 for my E-500 in fine condition from a reputable retailer with a 5 year guarantee (CeX in case you're wondering). From the same retailer, E-300s in similar condition will set you back £80+! Remember that the only real difference between the two cameras is the slightly inferior viewfinder on the E-500.

So if you want to test out a Kodak FFT CCD sensor camera yourself without breaking the back forget the E-300 and go for the E-500. I completed my Four Thirds outfit with a Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 for £32 and a Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 50mm f/2.0 Macro for £110, all from the same retailer.

Oh and one final thing, the SSWF dust reduction system really does work! One thing I've found from using 4 different vintage DSLRs over the last few weeks is that no matter how nice the condition of the camera is when it arrives, the sensor will always be in desparate need of a good clean… except the E-500! It was clean as a whistle. Well done Olympus!

Olympus E-500 results

I tend to find descriptions of any digital camera from the mid 2000s as "film-like" to be, if I'm going to be frank, pretty silly. Look back at contemporary reviews of camera from this era and you'll never see them described in such terms (in fact, if anything, you're more like to see this term being used about cameras with CMOS sensors!). Using the E-500 hasn't changed my mind about this, but you know what? I might recoil in horror at the modern use of the term "film-like" to describe these cameras, I do think they produce results that are genuinely different from modern digital cameras, and that difference is definitely worth celebrating and exploring.

To what extent that difference is really about the specifics of the sensor technology, or whether its really about the different approaches the various manufacturers have to colour science is very difficult to pin down, but I have to admit, when I saw the results from the E-500 I really did love them more than any other vintage DSLR I have tried so far.

When it comes to the lenses I bought to go with my E-500, I found the 14-42mm kit lens to be pleasent but forgettable! (The two images below from that lens are only here because I thought I should include at least a couple!) But I found the 50mm f/2.0 Macro to be very addictive. I found myself using it far more than I have ever used any other 100mm equivalent lens! It really does deserve it's reputation as one of the most desirable lenses in the Four thirds systems.

But at the end of the day I'll leave it to you to decide! (As usual the colour images below have been lightly edited to taste using Adobe Lightroom Classic. The b&w images were process using Silver Efex Pro 2.0.)