The Olympus E-P2 is equipped with the same six Art Filters of the E-P1 along with two new ones, Diorama and Cross Process. Art Filters apply digital special effects to images, and while you can achieve the same results in software afterwards, the opportunity to do it in-camera is obviously more convenient. The E-P2 was replaced in Olympus' PEN line by the Olympus PEN E-P3 which was announced in June 2011. You'll also want to play with the new Art Filters Cross Process and Diorama if buying this camera, the latter for us producing the most striking results with a little experimentation. Generally the digital effects that worked the best were pop art, pinhole, diorama and grainy film; the others we rarely used. languages / 27 European languages (e.g. English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Czech, Dutch, Danish, Polish) The E-P1 managed to fit most of the company's excellent E-620 DSLR into a comparatively small, beautifully styled metal case in a way that appealed to far beyond the camera-geek demographic. It was not without its problems, however - the main one being its autofocus system that was rather sluggish when compared to Panasonic's G-series. Also its control system, inherited wholesale from the E-System Four Thirds DSLRs, didn't always perfectly translate to the way its buttons are laid out (The newer, simpler E-PL1 and firmware updated Panasonics make this more apparent than it was at the time of review).

I bought my first Olympus DSLR in 2008, the E510. I chose this camera specifically with infrared photography in mind because it featured the innovative live view function and came with excellent kit lenses with no “hot spots”. I have always been fascinated by the otherworldliness and mysterious qualities of infrared images, in particular in the work of Simon Marsden.One area where the E-P2 is deficient is that there are no Custom setting modes – no way to memorize combinations of settings for frequently encountered situations. This, combined with the confusing menu layout means that it can take a while to set the camera up for changing shooting situations, even when one has become reasonably familiar with the camera’s controls. Good exposure and white balance on this interior hand-held panning shot, but the overall quality of E-PL2 video fails to match the high standard of its stills. Like the original E-P1, the E-P2 is a little larger in the flesh than it looks in the photos. It’s certainly compact compared to a DSLR, but measuring 121x70x35mm for the body alone (without any lens mounted) and weighing 385g with battery and card, it’s definitely on the chunky side of the compact market. To be fair though, Panasonic’s Lumix GF1 is virtually the same size at 119x71x36mm, albeit a bit lighter at 341g including battery. Remember the E-P2 has built-in stabilisation though whereas the Panasonic relies on stabilised lenses to counteract wobbles. There is no lens shade provided with this lens, and with the front element always exposed I would suggest a UV filter for protection. As for stray light protection, you’re on your own.

I actually really like it that way, because it’s more rugged and not in the way in normal operation. Behind a door on the right side of the E-P2 you’ll find what appear to be the same combined USB / TV output and mini HDMI port as the E-P1, but like many newer cameras the HDMI port has been upgraded here to support Consumer Electronics Control, or CEC for short. CEC allows the E-P2 to be controlled over HDMI by a compatible TV set, so you could use the TV’s remote to browse images and start slideshows. I liked the E-P2, notwithstanding some of my complaints. It’s an enjoyable photographic tool. Between it and the GF1, if it comes down to a choice between them, it’s a tough one, with neither camera offering a clear edge over the other. It will eventually come down to issues of flash, EVF quality, stabilization, and ease of use, all of which will vary from one person’s needs to another. Unlike the Panasonic Lumix GF2 and the Sony NEX-3/5, the Olympus E-PL2 has a physical mode dial. Its eight positions select the four PASM exposure modes in addition to iAuto, ART, SCN and movie. The knurled thumb wheel on the right side of the body, on the other hand, is far too easy to turn accidentally. It would have been much better (though a bit more costly) to make it a push-in-and-turn design. The now ubiquitous circular thumb wheel is a bit too small, and many times the difference between wanting to spin it with ones thumb, or press it inwards to select a setting such as ISO or AF modes, is made by accident. It’s hopeless with gloves on.

There are 7 ISO settings available on the Olympus E-P2. Here are some 100% crops which show the noise levels for each ISO setting, with JPEG on the left and the RAW equivalent on the right:

The Olympus E-P2 lets you dial in shutter speeds of up to 60 seconds and has a Bulb mode as well for exposure times as long as 30 minutes, which is very good news if you are seriously interested in night photography. The shot below was taken using a shutter speed of 1/6th seconds at ISO 1600. We've included a 100% crop to show what the quality is like.Dimensions without protrusions are given as exactly the same as the E-P1, and the weight too is identical at a body-only 335g. Handling wise it still resembles a foreshortened Olympus E-Series DSLR with esoteric yet fun features such as the Art Filter in-camera digital effects, and less esoteric but very useful in-body sensor shift image stabilisation. Unlike the latest raft of point and shoots though, there's not been a resolution hike to 14 megapixels. At its heart beats the same 13.1 megapixel Live Mos sensor (12.3 MP effective) found in its sibling last year. EVFs are not yet as good as the better SLR viewfinders, but quite honestly, when compared to the small and dim DSLR viewfinders found on many of the lower-end cameras today, the one on the E-P2 has a lot to recommend it. field of view, exposure adjustment preview, white balance adjustment preview, gradation setting preview (SAT), face detection preview, Perfect Shot Preview, gridline displayable, 7x/10x magnification possible, MF/S-AF, AF frame display, AF point display, Shooting information, Histogram