Olympus Superzoom 110 – Deceptively Capable
Robust Functionality
The Olympus Superzoom 110, also known as the Infinity Zoom 3000 or OZ Zoom 110, is a standout 90’s point-and-shoot camera that offers impressive user control and versatility.
The camera’s weatherproof design ensures reliability in rainy conditions, and while the controls have minor ergonomic quirks, they don’t detract from the camera’s performance.
Overall, the Superzoom 110 combines ease of use with robust functionality, making it a compelling choice.
Olympus Superzoom 110 Tech Specs:
Lens: 38 -110mm f/3.8-8.1 10 elements, 8 groups
Film speed settings: 100-3200 ISO, DX coded
Film Format: 35mm
Shutter: 2 to 1/500 sec
Aperture: f/3.8 – f/26
Focusing: Active Autofocus, min 0.6m
Light Meter: Automatic 3 zone light metering
Battery: 2 x CR123A
Flash: Built-in
Year: 1990’s
Country: Japan
Control.
I’ve never got on overly well with point and shoot cameras. That ease of use is generally coupled with lack of control over the final image, and that is not my style of photography. This is the first point and shoot whose limitations felt unrestrictive.
Capable.
The Olympus Superzoom 110, or Infinity Zoom 3000 / OZ Zoom 110 in the American and Japanese markets, is 90’s point and shoot camera from Japan.
My previous experiences with point and shoots have generally been with cameras from the 80’s, which are generally lacking any substantial ability to dictate how the camera focuses, aside form where you point it. The few 90’s models I’ve spent time using have had more features, but they are clunky to use, and generally uninviting.
The Superzoom however, is a different story.
Modes.
If you want to dive further into the modes, hold down the menu button, and scroll you can flick through the following:
• Spot – essentially a focus and exposure lock mode. Centre the viewfinder point on your subject, half press, and your exposure and focus is locked. Great for playing with depth of field without needing your subject to be in the centre of the frame.
• Auto-zoom – Auto zooms to create a head and shoulder portrait. I’m not sure why you wouldn’t simply use the manual zoom buttons, but it’s there if you want to use it.
• Night scene – This allows the shutter speed to slow down to as much as a 2-second-long exposure. If you combine it with either no flash, or a fill flash, you can get surprisingly well exposed night shots.
• AF-P – A somewhat limited predictive auto focus mode, keep the focus point on an approaching subject, and the camera will attempt to predict the movement.
• Infinity – locks the focus to infinity, useful for landscape photography. I didn’t find that the auto focus got confused with landscapes, but it’s nice to be certain you are focusing at infinity.
Reliable focus finding at close range.
Shutter speeds as low as 2 seconds are available. That does of course require a tripod to maintain a sharp image, unlike my attempt above.
Infinity mode is available, but not often needed.
Controls.
The power switch is a rather unusual over the flash lever. It’s large, and a little ungainly, but the odds of getting accidental exposures are slim to none.
The menu select wheel falls under the thumb nicely, although might be suited to slightly smaller hands than mine. The shutter release has a very positive two stage break, and the menu and flash buttons are obvious, if a little awkward to push.
There is a diopter on the viewfinder, which is a welcome sight to those of us with need for vision correction, and two LED’s displaying when the camera is focused and ready to shoot.
The controls for extending and retracting the lens are my biggest gripe with this camera. You are greeted by two rather mushy buttons on the front of the camera. They tend to fall under your left index finger, but they are anything but pleasant to use.
Get Close.
The viewfinder features two LEDs, an orange and a green one. The orange light is related to the flash, and the green is the focus. If they light on a shutter half push, then the camera is ready to go, if they flash, there is an issue. This is especially useful when you are at the shorter end of the cameras focusing range. Thanks to the minimum focus range of 60cm, I didn’t often have to back off of my chosen subject.
Balanced.
Every camera has its trade-offs. Price versus quality, usability versus capability. The Superzoom is no exception, but it does do a good job of staying on the right side of that line. The controls aren’t a pleasure to use, but they don’t hold you back. The internal mechanisms are quiet and produce good results, and the feature set allows for a surprising amount of user input.
If you’d like to own this particular camera, head on over to the camera store.
