Image Quality

All of the sample images in this review were taken using the 16 megapixel Fine JPEG setting, which gives an average image size of around 7Mb.

A camera with a tiny, pixel-packed sensor and a huge zoom ratio will always be a set of compromises and the Olympus SP-100EE is no exception. Viewed at 1:1 magnification, the images look a little over-processed with smeared details – a tell-tale sign of over-zealous noise reduction. That being said, the SP-100EE turns out more natural-looking photos than some other Olympus compacts (such as the Olympus SH-1). As far as the other aspects of image quality are concerned, the colours are vibrant without being garish, the dynamic range is pretty decent for a 1/2.3” sensor (and there's an HDR mode to fall back on when shooting in really contrasty light), chromatic aberrations seldom raise their ugly head, red-eye issues are essentially non-existent, and the camera is capable of producing some truly impressive close-up shots. Video quality is remarkably high when shooting in 1080/60p mode, and the various high-speed options add a good deal of versatility to the Olympus SP-100EE as a movie making tool.

Noise

The Olympus SP-100EE has 7 sensitivity settings ranging from ISO 125/22° to ISO 6400/39°. Noise reduction is quite aggressive even at base ISO, and gets stronger as you move up the sensitivity ladder, which takes its toll on fine detail. Having said that, ISO 1600 is still good enough for on-screen viewing and small prints.

ISO 125 (100% Crop)	ISO 200 (100% Crop)
ISO 400 (100% Crop)	ISO 800 (100% Crop)
ISO 1600 (100% Crop)	ISO 3200 (100% Crop)
ISO 3200 (100% Crop)

Focal Range

The Olympus SP-100EE's 50x zoom lens has an extremely versatile focal range, as demonstrated by the examples below.

24mm	1200mm

Sharpening

To counteract the effects of over-aggressive noise reduction, the Olympus SP-100EE applies a pretty high dose of sharpening to its images. That being said, applying some extra sharpening in post does seem to bring out a little more detail, as you can see in these 100% crops.

Original (100% Crop)	Sharpened (100% Crop)

File Quality

The Olympus SP-100EE does not shoot raw. The available JPEG settings are Fine and Normal.

14M Fine (5.48Mb) (100% Crop)	14M Normal (2.64Mb) (100% Crop)

Chromatic Aberrations

For an ultra-zoom camera, the Olympus SP-100EE produces remarkably little purple fringing – but you can spot some chromatic aberrations in certain extreme situations, as shown in the crops below.

Chromatic Aberrations 1 (100% Crop)	Chromatic Aberrations 2 (100% Crop)

Macro

The Olympus SP-100EE has a Super Macro mode, which enables it to focus as close as 1cm. The example below shows how close you can get to the subject; in this case, a Secure Digital memory card.

Macro	Macro (100% Crop)

Flash

The Olympus SP-100EE has no hot-shoe but there is a pop-up flash that can be raised with the help of a dedicated switch on the side of the viewfinder housing. The available settings are auto, fill in, redeye-reduction and off. These shots of a white ceiling were taken at a subject distance of 1.5m.

Flash Off - Wide Angle (24mm)	Flash On - Wide Angle (24mm)
Flash Off - Telephoto (1200mm)	Flash On - Telephoto (1200mm)

And here are some flash portraits. As you can see the flash did not produce a noticeable red-eye effect.

Flash On	Flash On (100% Crop)
Red Eye Reduction	Red Eye Reduction (100% Crop)

Night

The Olympus SP-100EE has a minimum shutter speed of 30 seconds in Manual exposure mode, which is fairly good news for those seriously interested in night photography. The photo below was taken at a shutter speed of 4 second, aperture of f/3.8 at ISO 125. We've included a 100% crop to show you what the quality is like.

Night	Night (100% Crop)

Image Stabilisation

The Olympus SP-100EE has an image stabilisation system, which enables hand-held shooting at shutter speeds that would otherwise be too slow for the focal length used. These 100% crops are from two photos taken at a 35mm equivalent focal length of 169mm, shutter speed of 1/13s, with and without IS.

Shutter Speed / Focal Length	Image Stabilisation On (100% Crop)	Image Stabilisation Off (100% Crop)
1/13th / 169mm

HDR

The Olympus SP-100EE has an HDR exposure blending mode, which takes advantage of its fast sequential shooting capability to capture two exposures in rapid succession. These are then blended into a single image with improved highlight and shadow detail. Although Olympus calls it a 'Backlight HDR' mode, it can be applied to shooting any high-contrast scene, as the examples below demonstrate.

HDR Off	HDR On

Aspect Ratios

The sensor of the Olympus SP-100EE has a native aspect ratio of 4:3 but you can also record images in 16:9, 3:2 and square formats. These are all cropped from the full recording area.

4:3	16:9
3:2	1:1

Art Filters

The Olympus SP-100EE offers 7 'art filters': Pop Art, Soft Focus, Pale&Light Color, Dramatic Tone, Grainy Film, Pin Hole and Diorama.

Pop Art	Soft Focus
Pale&Light Color	Dramatic Tone
Grainy Film	Pin Hole
Diorama

Picture Modes

The Olympus SP-100EE has 7 so-called Picture Modes including Vivid, Natural, Muted, Fish Eye, Sparkle, Reflection and Fragmented.

Vivid	Natural
Muted	Fish Eye
Sparkle	Reflection
Fragmented

Sample Images

This is a selection of sample images from the Olympus SP-100EE camera, which were all taken using the 16 megapixel Fine JPEG setting. The thumbnails below link to the full-sized versions, which have not been altered in any way.

Sample Movie & Video

As of February 2025, we are no longer providing full size sample images or videos for download.

Please contact us if you have any feedback on our new policy.

Product Images

Front of the Olympus SP-100EE

Side of the Olympus SP-100EE

Side of the Olympus SP-100EE

Side of the Olympus SP-100EE / Pop-up Flash

Side of the Olympus SP-100EE / Dot Framing Assist

Rear of the Olympus SP-100EE

Rear of the Olympus SP-100EE / Dot Framing Assist

Top of the Olympus SP-100EE

Bottom of the Olympus SP-100EE

Rear of the Olympus SP-100EE / Turned On

Side of the Olympus SP-100EE

Side of the Olympus SP-100EE

Side of the Olympus SP-100EE

Memory Card Slot

Battery Compartment

Conclusion

The Olympus SP-100EE is a very decently built bridge camera with a nicely textured hand-grip and rubberised lens barrel, a well-specified electronic viewfinder and a good range of manual adjustments. Starting up at well under a second and capable of shooting full-resolution stills at up to 7fps (for 6 consecutive shots, or 2.5fps for up to 200 frames), the SP-100EE is a highly responsive camera whose usefulness is further enhanced by the unique Dot-sight Framing Assist tool that really helps with keeping faraway subjects within the image frame. With other ultra-zoom cameras, losing your subject usually entails having to zoom out to find it again, and zoom back in, which can be frustrating and might lead to missing the shot altogether. The Dot-sight Framing Assist feature is an ingenious solution to this problem, and works exceedingly well. Additionally, Olympus SP-100EE has a pretty fast auto focus system with some nifty features such as AF-Lock and a useful and pretty well-implemented focus limiter.

Image quality is something of an Achilles heel for any camera with a small and pixel-packed sensor, and the Olympus SP-100EE is no exception. Viewed at 100% magnification, the images look a little over-processed with smudged details – a tell-tale sign of over-zealous noise reduction. Having said that, the SP-100EE does manage to turn out more natural-looking photos than some other Olympus compacts. The images hold enough detail for small to medium-sized prints and most computer screens, the colours are vibrant without being garish, the dynamic range is pretty decent for a 1/2.3” sensor (and there's an HDR mode to fall back on when shooting in really contrasty light), chromatic aberrations seldom raise their ugly head, red-eye issues are essentially non-existent, and the camera is capable of producing some truly impressive close-up shots. Video quality is remarkably high when shooting in 1080/60p mode, and the various high-speed options add a good deal of versatility to the Olympus SP-100EE as a movie making tool.

Granted, some features are conspicuous by their absence – there is no built-in Wi-Fi (although the camera does support FlashAir and Eye-Fi cards), hot-shoe or GPS, and the camera is not capable of shooting raw. However, for a price of £299/$399, the Olympus SP-100EE still offers a good balance of functionality, responsiveness and versatility; and should definitely be on your radar if you are looking to buy an ultra-zoom camera, particularly if wildlife photography is your main interest.

Ratings (out of 5)
Design	4
Features	4
Ease-of-use	3.5
Image quality	3.5
Value for money	4

Main Rivals

Listed below are some of the rivals of the Olympus SP-100EE.

Review Roundup

Reviews of the Olympus SP-100EE from around the web.

Specifications

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