MELVILLE,
N.Y., Aug. 25 -- Olympus America Inc. today introduced the fastest digital
camera on the market, the Camedia E-100 RS (Rapid Shot). A full-featured
10X optical zoom/2.7X digital zoom filmless digital camera, the Camedia
ES-100 RS provides user-selectable shooting speeds of 15 fps, 7.5 fps,
5 fps, and 3 fps; Electronic Viewfinder SLR design; a 1.5 megapixel
CCD (1368 x 1024); a file size of up to 4.01 MB; and a unique dual slot
design for both SmartMedia and CompactFlash Type I and Type II cards.
Targeted at the professional photojournalist and serious amateurs alike,
the Camedia E-100 RS offers a host of advanced features and capabilities.
Standard USB port connectivity permits the camera to mount Windows and
Macintosh PCs like an external hard drive. Multiple file compression
formats give users finer control of image quality and storage capacities.
A full complement of automatic and manual exposure controls deliver
the power to capture sharp images in any shooting situation.
The E-100 RS offers QuickTime movie and sound capture capabilities in
full VGA mode (640 x 480) at up to 30 fps, allowing photographers to
capture still images at speeds and quality equivalent to motion picture
frames. Short movies may be posted on the Internet, viewed through the
camera's LCD or on a video monitor. External microphones are not necessary
as sound is recorded directly from the built-in microphone.
The Camedia E-100 RS starts taking pictures before the shutter is completely
depressed. This Pre-Capture mode saves up to five images by storing
light registered in the CCD sensor and moving it to the RAM buffer until
the user instructs the Camedia E-100 RS to erase or save the images.
Its ability to allow users to review images on the LCD screen before
saving and printing eliminates the costs associated with unwanted pictures,
darkroom and developing time.
"Olympus has created an innovative and inspired approach to digital
photography. We look at digital photography as a new genre of photography,
and not as a replacement to film photography," stated John Knaur,
Digital Product Manager for Olympus' Consumer Products Group. "Digital
technology delivers speed, and lets us bring products to market that
give our customers the flexibility to capture images in completely new
ways; to do things photographers could never do with traditional film
cameras."
Whether the subject is a bird in flight, a golfer's swing, a track and
field event or NASCAR racing, the Camedia E-100 RS, with its maximum
15 frames per second shooting speed, gives photographers a greater probability
of catching a precise moment as it happens.
"It's the perfect camera for any high-speed application in which
the photographer needs to shoot multiple shots very quickly, and select
the best frame for use," said Knaur.
The need for speed is often accompanied by the need for a long lens
and wide range zoom capabilities-traditional shortcomings of other digital
camera offerings. The Camedia E-100 RS solves these problems with its
10X optical zoom lens, delivering the equivalent of a 35mm - 380mm lens
at 35mm.
Built-in optical image stabilization technology allows for hand-held
use at the slowest shutter speeds while still delivering the sharpest
images possible. A 2.7X digital telephoto lens extends the camera's
range out to 1,088mm, enabling photographers to capture intricate details
from great distances.
Other feature highlights of the Camedia E-100 RS include:
-- A high-speed image processor/ASIC which processes images at a speed
of 28MHz.
-- Electronic Viewfinder (EVF) SLR design allows professional photographers
to see 100% of the image and all the information in the viewfinder.
-- 10X all-glass aspherical zoom lens with image stabilization captures
crisp images from 6.4- 70mm (35-380mm equivalent in 35mm film photography).
-- At f2.8 -3.5, the lens is fast and bright with 1/3 step aperture
control to f11 throughout the zoom range to maximize camera control
and eliminate the need for additional heavy lenses.
-- S-Program for Landscape, Portrait, Sports, and Night Scene modes;
Program Automatic, Aperture Priority; Shutter Priority and full manual
controls.
-- In Playback mode, new scene rotation controls allow for the display
of vertical photographs on a horizontal screen without rotating the
camera or video monitor.
-- Color and black-and-white image capture modes.
-- The new iESP multi-pattern full-automatic TTL White Balance system
allows 4 preset manual selections, Auto Bracketing in 1, 2 or 3 step
white balance increments, and One Touch full manual white balance. The
iESP TTL or Spot autofocus with the built-in focusing illuminator works
from the macro to infinity ranges, even in low-light conditions.
The Camedia E-100 RS includes an 8 MB Olympus brand panorama SmartMedia
card, 4 NiMH batteries and charger, lens cap, strap, USB cable for Windows
and Power Macintosh PCs, NTSC audio/video connection cable for TV or
VCR, Olympus Camedia Master 2.5 Utility Software for downloading images
from the camera, Adobe Photoshop 5.0 LE image manipulation and creation
software, Altamira Genuine Fractals 2.0 software, instruction manual
and QuickStart Guide.
The Camedia E-100 RS will be available October, 2000 with an expected
street price of $1499.00. All software supports Windows 98, Windows
2000 Pro and Power Macintosh computer systems. Storage Class USB connectivity
is only available with Windows 2000 Pro and MacOS 8.6 and higher. The
driver is available for Windows 98 v2.
For more information, visit the Olympus E-100 RS Web page at: http://www.e-100rs.olympus.com
Olympus America distributes a wide range of products for consumer, scientific,
health care, commercial and industrial markets. These include film and
filmless cameras, Microcassette and digital voice recorders, binoculars,
personal photo printers, medical and industrial endoscopes, biological
and metallurgical microscopes and measuring instruments, clinical analyzers,
and other high technology products. Olympus America is responsible for
sales in Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America.
