Special Features of Digital SLR Cameras

Why are so many special features of digital SLR cameras popping up these days?

It's all a matter of competition.

Early on in the digital SLR game, Canon and Nikon established themselves as the dominant players.

While the other companies were duking it out in the lucrative compact camera market, Canon and Nikon were cranking out one SLR after another.

In order to catch up and differentiate themsleves from these market leaders, other camera companies have developed a slew of "extras" that are now included on many different cameras.

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Extra Features: an Introduction

Currently there are four common features that can extend the functionality of your digital SLR camera:

Dust Control
Built-in Image Stabilization
Live View LCD
Enhanced Dynamic Range

Dust control digital SLR cameras have special sensors that prevent dust from attaching to the camera's sensor which is important because dust on your sensor shows up as black smudges in all your photos.

Cameras with built-in image stabilization are great at preventing image blur due to camera shake (which you'll run into quite often if you enjoy taking photos in dim light without flash).

The live view LCD technology lets you preview the image you are about to take on the camera's LCD screen. Even though this feature is common on compact digital cameras, it's not included on every digital SLR.

Finally, cameras with enhanced dynamic range are better at capturing high-contrast scenes without losing detail in either the shadows or the highlights.

Olympus, the Innovator

When it comes to special features on digital SLR cameras, Olympus has been the front-runner in terms of new development.

Olympus seems well aware that they have to compete with companies with a lot of brand recognition like Canon and Nikon, and have innovated many of the features that I have listed above.

For example:

The Olympus E-300 was the first digital SLR camera with dust control
The Olympus E-330 was the first digital SLR camera with a live view LCD screen

Konica Minolta (now replaced by Sony) is credited with the development of the built-in anti-shake system and it took awhile for other camera companies to adopt its use.

Olympus was able to claim another first with the release of the E-510 which includes built in image stabilization: the first here is that it was the only camera (at the time of release) to include a TRIO of special features (dust control, built-in stabilization and a live view LCD).

If you'd like to learn more about the cameras offered by this innovative company, just follow the link for more information about all the current Olympus digital SLR cameras.

Cameras With Special Features

Have a special feature that you find especially appealing, but aren't sure which cameras include it?

The following pages list all of the cameras that include a specific feature. Today, virtually all new digital SLR cameras include some form of dust control (it's THAT useful) but many still don't have built-in image stabilization or live view LCDs, so it's important to find out if a camera that you like includes them.