Olympus CAMEDIA C-2500L

Have had the C2500L for almost a year now. Bought it as an upgrade from the D500L (see separate review)

Great camera and now the price is coming down with the newer models coming out. This camera takes incredible pictures. One drawback is that you have to have a great photo printer to be able to get the real benefit out of it. Photos taken with this camera not just digital images they are real photos.

Reasons for buying this camera over other cheaper models (D500L for instance): Better flash capabilities, tons of creative options for taking pics in all types of different situations, manual options for almost all areas of use (aperture, f-stop, flash sync, zoom etc)

Takes awesome Macro photos. Takes optional removable lenses (wide angle, zoom, macro) Olympus is definitely the leader in digital photography. They leave Kodak, Sony, Nikon etc in the dust with this one.

The camera comes with the normal assortment of features one would expect from a high end camera. the 5% spot metering mode is particularly useful when trying to achieve good exposures in difficult lighting situations. one nice, though odd, feature of the camera is that it accepts both compactflash and smartmedia cards. the camera comes equipped with a CF+ type I slot, so it cannot take ibm microdrives. A remote control is included to operate the camera from afar. this remote control comes in handy when taking pictures with long exposure times, so you won't shake the camera and get blurry images.

Price is a bit high (but coming down), but you can't come close to this camera's capabilities for anything close to its price.

Few drawbacks: There will always be a new camera coming out with newer features (more pixels, higher zoom) didn't come with big enough media card. (although some sites are bundling the camera with lenses and bigger media cards now) Batteries drain fast. Need to buy two sets of rechargables NiMH and a charger.

Who should buy: anyone who wants to take great pictures. Need to know some photography basics though. you can get it from

http://www.smilephotovideo.com/details.c​fm?store=&category=&itemno=OLC2500RB

for just $399.95 which is very cheap