PHOTO QUALITY. This 16-megapixel mirrorless camera captured images with very good quality. Pictures were very sharp, which means you can see even tiny details and very subtle patterns in the image. In low-light situations without a flash, pictures were not quite as sharp as most models. We judged this model very good for outdoor performance, such as shooting landscapes in the daytime; very good for indoor performance, such as photographing a well-lit basketball game in a gym. And fair for low-light performance without a flash, such as capturing a birthday party. Photos taken in our low-light performance tests displayed little image noise; subjects retained most of their correct detail and color.
FLASH. The Pen System E-PL8 w/ 14-42mm 1:3.5-5.6 EZ with the 14-42mm kit lens captured flash shots that were very good. In our distance test, we found the camera's flash could illuminate subjects very well, both near and far. The flash also has very good, even coverage.
LENS. This camera has a standard 3x optical zoom lens. The lens also has wide-angle (28mm) capability that's useful for landscapes and group portraits, although you may notice a bit of distortion when you're shooting faces up close, for instance.
IMAGE STABILIZATION. This is an important feature; taking hand-held shots at the telephoto end of the zoom range can generally blur or soften images due to the slight movement of your hands. Shooting telephoto in well-lit scenes, this model did an excellent job of minimizing the effects of camera shake. In low-light settings, it performed excellently and almost never produced blurry photos. Overall, the shake reduction results from our tests were excellent.
SPEED. In terms of performance, the Olympus Pen System E-PL8 w/ 14-42mm 1:3.5-5.6 EZ powers up in a moderate amount of time.
VIDEO. The Olympus Pen System E-PL8 w/ 14-42mm 1:3.5-5.6 EZ takes good video. It captures full HD video at 1920 x 1080 30p. As for sound, it captures very good audio in stereo.
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS. Unlike most mirrorless models, this camera does not include a viewfinder, which means you'll need to rely on the LCD to compose your photo or video. This mirrorless is thinner than most in its class.
