Yes... I am a Flasher!

Yes, it is true and I will be the first to admit it....  I am a flasher!  I have been flashing for a while now and this little gadget is making it easier to do so in so many more places!

What?

What?  You didn't think that I... Oh my, perhaps I phrased my opening statement incorrectly!! 

Olympus FE-230

I am far from an expert in photography, although I do declare myself fairly adept at taking a photo or two, however, cameras are not something I know a lot about, so this will not be a review filled with technical jargon and greek mythology!

I purchased this camera a couple of years ago at K-Mart as I thought, at the time, the price tag of $129.99 was fairly average for the 7.1 megapixels this Olympus model offered.  I realize that now, 7.1mp's is far from the desired pixelage (is that a word?  Well, it is now) but to be honest, I find that it provides a crisp and clear image with a printed reproduction that really doesn't need to be any better!

It's small, lightweight design makes it the perfect fit for slipping in your purse or pocket - no not for stealing it!!! - After you buy it, you can take it everywhere in either of those places - my goodness, what are you thinking today?

The Features

It doesn't have a tremendous amount of bells and whistles, although enough to keep amateur paparrazzi - or flashers - happy.  It offers several setting options such as:  photographing through glass, document shots, candlelight, firework, sport and portrait settings to name a few.  A timer allows you to set the camera and frantically run into position before it automatically takes the photo - now you can even flash alone!!!

It has a decent LCD frame of 2.5" although, as with all digital diplay screens, should you not be staring directly in front of the screen, you won't be able to anything but black, shiny shadows!

The 3x optical zoom is nice and keeps the shot crisp even at the largest zoom - I guess this is good if you don't want your subject to know you are photographing them - but isn't that illegal?  I love this when taking pictures of the firepit in full flame - no, that's not odd - hey you were the one who thought I was a flasher!

I would enjoy the video feature if I were able to film longer footage, but with only 2 minutes of capture time per clip, your subject needs to be on their toes!  It does produce nice images and crystal clear audio which is a plus and the built in anti shake feature is great if you tend tio enjoy filming after a couple of stiff ones :-)

Pros

* Price

* Size and weight

* Image Quality

* Ease of Use

* Date and time stamp that can be formatted to either side of the "pond"

* Nice software included for uploading and editing on  your computer

* Li-Ion Rechargeable Battery, Case, Cables and Charger included

Cons

* Video drains the battery within 2 clips

* Allows only 2 minutes at a time of filming capability

* Pre-set image size is huge for uploading, so I strongly reccommend using the included software to resize the images to a much smaller size for printing and sharing online.

* You have to be aware that each setting alters the image size so with some settings your memory may hold over 220 pics, whereas with others, you may only be able to hold 30 pictures!

Overall

I am very pleased with this little camera and have taken some great shots with it - especially during lightning storms - NOT that I suggest running into a storm brandishing a shiny metal object, THAT would not be safe nor wise! - I do so because I am a storm junkie and regard it as a photo op!

It seems to be well constructed although I have yet to drop it on a hard surface (I actually did this with a co-workers camera with dire results!) and I feel quite secure in handling it.  It is easy to use and the battery recharges without issue.

A great buy if you would like to be a flasher too!!

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Sorry for my failure in providing a picture of this, but I spent hours trying to figure out how to take a photo of the camera I use to take photos!