This is a first impressions review of the Pentax Optio W30.

We purchased this camera specifically for Trash the Dress sessions, where water is more than a probability. It will also most likely become our carry around camera, because of it's durability and quality.

Specs:
Resolution: 7.1 MP
Optical Zoom: 4x
ISO: 64, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200
Modes: Auto, Program, various scenes (No Manual, Tv, or Av mode)
Focusing: Auto, Infinity, Macro, or Manual
Digital Filters: B&W, various color filters, soft filter, bloat, red eye removal


Initial Impression:
The build quality of this little camera is really impressive. It has no protruding parts (the lens is all internal) and has a very solid feel. The lcd is very scratch resistant, and the controls are easy, but do take a bit of getting used to when coming from a SLR.

There is no viewfinder, just a large screen on the back. The response time is good though, so it's not as much of a limitation as you might expect. Shutter lag is minimal once the camera is focused. Sometimes in low light it takes a little to focus, but not unacceptable.

Noise:
This camera has a huge range of ISO, and allows images in extremely lowlight. The biggest concern with a sensor of this size (small P&S) is the noise. Surprisingly, noise isn't extremely bad until you're at ISO1600 and higher. Of course, the best images will be at the lower ISOs, but you still can get acceptable images when needed.

Photo Modes
While the camera doesn't allow direct adjustment of the shutter speed or aperture, there are plenty of modes to choose from. Last night we tried quite a few.

Fireworks - Keeps the ISO low (64), the focus at infinity, aperture at f3.3, 4 second shutter speed. This resulted in overexposed areas with multiple bursts.


I switched to "P" mode and adjusted to ISO 64, which resulted in a much faster shutter speed (1/4 second). This allowed me to focus in on specific bursts, and not get the overexposure.


These images are SOOC, with just square cropping and resizing for the web.

Self portrait mode worked well, and the "Soft Flash" function helped reduce the flash output to avoid blown out areas. Red Eye is an issue, since the flash is so close to the lens, but it is to be expected on a small camera. More about this later.


Red Eye Removal
This is a neat little feature that helps take care of a common problem with small cameras such as this. It doesn't work for all images, (it searches for the eyes, and can't always find them) but when it works, it's great.



I'm still working on the features, and I have noticed some fingerprints on the back, but it's not really a big deal (just wash it in the sink!). Overall, this seems to be a great camera for the price (<$250 at B&H) and the fact that it can shoot stills AND VIDEO at up to 10 feet below water just rocks.

Shan