olympus mju/stylus 300, 400 or 410 ???

[fungi3001]

hi, i posted this in the main photo forum but didn't recieve any response but incase people read it ill try to be breif.

a family friend has offered to lend me his housing for his olympus mju/stylus 400 but doesnt want to lend me the camera.

as far as i know the housings available will fit all three models but has anyone used any of these and can advise abut them. i have found them all within a very narrow price range ( the 410 actually being cheaper than the 400).

what are peoples experineces with these cameras, how user friendly etc.

thanks Guy

 

[justleesa]

Sorry ! I missed that one! But it is basically already answered in the starting with photgraphy thread. but for a quick reviw:

I have a stylus 400. The difference between this one and the 410 is that the 410 can also record audio. I don't know if you really need that. It's up to you.
As for the difference between the 300 and the 400 series is the MP. 3.2 vs. 4. In your shoes I would either the 400 or 410...jut because of the more MP. I find it is easy to use and have taken good pictures with it.
See here: http://www.scubaboard.com/showpost.php?p=595944&postcount=10

 

[fungi3001]

hi, ive found the stylus 410 for about £6 more than i can buy the mju 400. for such a small difference i may as well buy the 410. i also plan on buying a 128mb card. what size do u use and do u think this will be enough, roughly how many good (not necessarily (sp?) top) quality pictures can u take. how about a spare battery? is it necessary?

thansk
guy

 

[justleesa]

hi, ive found the stylus 410 for about £6 more than i can buy the mju 400. for such a small difference i may as well buy the 410. i also plan on buying a 128mb card. what size do u use and do u think this will be enough, roughly how many good (not necessarily (sp?) top) quality pictures can u take. how about a spare battery? is it necessary?

thansk
guy

A second batery is always good Guy! One on the charger -one in the camera. When you get your camera ready for your dive make sure the battery just came off the charger. The first time I took mine in the water the battery had been in the camera for a day or two and I had taken a couple a pictures....needless to say I got 2 pictures on my dive -The Sea Tiger, twilight dive...60+ eels...gees was I upset.

As for media. I think in HQ I can get some 80 pictures on a 128 chip (HQ and SHQ are the same size pictures, just that the HQ pics are, I think the right term is compacted). If you have DL possibility on your trip, 80 pictures on a two tank dive - easily done. I have a 256, 2 -64's, 2-32 (came with 5050's) and a 16MB chip (came with the stylus).
When buying your chip keep in mind that only the olympus chips offer the possibility to take panarama shots (can't remember if it is an option with the stylus or not).
I was at costco...wait, you're in England....can't help you with cheap offers, sorry.

Hope this helps

Lisa

 

[munkispank]

Justleesa.....ohhh- do tell- whats that about Costco- I'm here- I'd like to know....
I have a stylus 400 and love it- great for travelling, light compact- brilliant pictures- couldn;t fault it- and the housing is dead easy top use too.
defnately get a second battery- ther are only small so won;t add weight when you are travelling.

 

[justleesa]

256XD on sale for $85 or something close to that (saw it on Thrusday)

 

[fungi3001]

thanks, thats a great help.

along with the housing i will be lent a 20Gb archos hard drive so i only really need enough memory for a dive, not a whole trip.

the best prices ive found are:
stylus 410 £179 (this is the US version being sold in the uk)
128MB card £25 (not olympus, so no panoramic)
spare battery £13
charger £25
case about £6

this seems like a great deal since the camera alone should be going for about £300.

Guy

 

[OBXDIVEGUY]

I have had a Stylus 400 for a while and love it for the topside shots. I just recently got the housing for it too.

I am as novice as it gets as far as photography goes.The stylus has everything from self-portrait mode to night mode, but no pre-programmed underwater mode for us dummies.

Does anyone have any suggestions or recommendations on the settings? I saw one guy mentioned any Olumpus class. what's that all about?

Thanks a ton!

 

[Charlie99]

The stylus has everything from self-portrait mode to night mode, but no pre-programmed underwater mode for us dummies.

Does anyone have any suggestions or recommendations on the settings?

I'm still a total novice as an underwater photographer, but have done a lot of diving with a Stylus 400 / PT-016 combo since last October. So here's a few random tidbits that might help:

1. Avoid the Night Scene mode like the plague, unless you are using a tripod, and nothing in the scene is moving (not likely underwater).

2. I haven't seen any significant difference between modes like Auto Program and Landscape, so I just leave it on Auto Program.

3. I often go back and forth between Auto Flash, Force Flash, and Flash Off. The RedEye mode and Flash OFF mode symbols look similar underwater, so I quickly learned how to count button pushes from the Auto Flash condition.

4. While the movie mode is low resolution, it's pretty cool for some things, like the time I was repeatedly chasing an octopus around the reef.

5. The flash is weak on land, and once behind the diffuser in the housing, it is really anemic. One must be very closeup for the flash to be useable.

6. I always just leave the "Macro" mode (or whatever the mode that enables close-up autofocus).

7. Develop a feel for doing the halfway depression on the shutter button. That activates the autofocus, and once you get the green "focus locked" LED lit, then the shutter lag is much shorter. If what you want to photograph doesn't have good contrast, point the camera at something that does (or even just something with a visible edge) at the same distance and get focus lock; then go back to the subject and take the photo.

8. I put in a fresh battery, test the housing and seal everything up the night before. Sometimes I've left the camera in the housing for a couple of days before diving. Extended periods of standby like this don't seem to affect battery life.

9. If you are having trouble with getting enough battery life for a series of 2 or 3 dives, then consider turning off the display; turning it on only as you prepare to take a photo.

10. Get close to your subject..... then get closer.

 

[justleesa]

Does anyone have any suggestions or recommendations on the settings? I saw one guy mentioned any Olumpus class. what's that all about?

Thanks a ton!

Hi!
I went to the Olympus class last September and it was pretty interesting. Soon after the class I upgraded from the stylus 400 to the C-5050z.
Here is a link to the Olympus School of Digital Photography. Give them a call and see if they are doing anything in your area.

On a recent dive a woman used the sport setting for moving objects...worked well for her.