Specifications#
- Brand
- Olympus
- Model
- E-3
- Camera type
- DSLR
- Released
- 2007-01-01
- Lens mount
- Four Thirds
- Sensor size
- 18.0 × 13.5 mm (1.5" sensor)
- Crop factor
- 1.92×
- Resolution
- 10.1 MP (3,648 × 2,736 px)
- Continuous shooting
- 5 fps
- Sensor
- Four Thirds System 18.00 × 13.50 mm Live MOS
- Storage
- CompactFlash(CF) or XD Picture-Card
- Viewfinder
- Optical TTL with pentaprism 100% field of view and ×1.15 magnification
- AF points / area
- 11 biaxial cross auto-focus points, selectable
- Metering
- TTL, evaluative (ESP), center-weighted, spot
- Exposure modes
- Program, shutter-priority, aperture-priority, manual
- Shutter
- 1/8,000 to 60 s computerized focal plane shutter
- Flash
- built-in pop up flash GN=13 at ISO 100, wireless control for up to 3 external flash groups and 4 channels
- Battery
- Olympus BLM-1 1500mAh Lithium-ion battery
- Lens
- Interchangeable (Four Thirds System)
- Drive
- 5.0 frames per second (19 images RAW buffer)
Specifications merged from Wikipedia, Wikidata, Lensfun and openMVG. Spot an error? Tell us.
Sensor size compared#
Focal length equivalents & field of view#
Multiply any focal length by 1.92 to get the full-frame field of view. Angles are for a rectilinear lens focused at infinity.
| Lens on this camera | Full-frame equivalent | Horizontal | Vertical | Diagonal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 mm | 15 mm | 96.7° | 80.3° | 109.2° |
| 10 mm | 19 mm | 84.0° | 68.0° | 96.7° |
| 12 mm | 23 mm | 73.7° | 58.7° | 86.3° |
| 14 mm | 27 mm | 65.5° | 51.5° | 77.6° |
| 16 mm | 31 mm | 58.7° | 45.7° | 70.2° |
| 18 mm | 35 mm | 53.1° | 41.1° | 64.0° |
| 20 mm | 38 mm | 48.5° | 37.3° | 58.7° |
| 24 mm | 46 mm | 41.1° | 31.4° | 50.2° |
| 28 mm | 54 mm | 35.6° | 27.1° | 43.8° |
| 35 mm | 67 mm | 28.8° | 21.8° | 35.6° |
| 40 mm | 77 mm | 25.4° | 19.2° | 31.4° |
| 50 mm | 96 mm | 20.4° | 15.4° | 25.4° |
| 56 mm | 108 mm | 18.3° | 13.7° | 22.7° |
| 70 mm | 135 mm | 14.7° | 11.0° | 18.3° |
| 85 mm | 163 mm | 12.1° | 9.1° | 15.1° |
| 100 mm | 192 mm | 10.3° | 7.7° | 12.8° |
| 135 mm | 260 mm | 7.6° | 5.7° | 9.5° |
| 200 mm | 385 mm | 5.2° | 3.9° | 6.4° |
| 300 mm | 577 mm | 3.4° | 2.6° | 4.3° |
| 400 mm | 769 mm | 2.6° | 1.9° | 3.2° |
| 600 mm | 1154 mm | 1.7° | 1.3° | 2.1° |
Depth of field table#
Total depth of field at each subject distance, using a circle of confusion of 15.6 µm (the 0.030 mm full-frame standard scaled by the crop factor). Detailed tables: 24 mm f/1.8, 24 mm f/2.8, 35 mm f/1.8, 35 mm f/2.8, 50 mm f/1.8, 50 mm f/2.8.
| Focal | Aperture | 50.0 cm | 1.00 m | 2.00 m | 3.00 m | 5.00 m | 10.0 m | Hyperfocal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 mm | f/1.8 | 11.5 cm | 48.5 cm | 2.35 m | 8.02 m | ∞ | ∞ | 4.32 m |
| 11 mm | f/2.8 | 18.2 cm | 81.8 cm | 5.93 m | ∞ | ∞ | ∞ | 2.78 m |
| 11 mm | f/4 | 26.9 cm | 1.38 m | ∞ | ∞ | ∞ | ∞ | 1.95 m |
| 11 mm | f/8 | 67.6 cm | ∞ | ∞ | ∞ | ∞ | ∞ | 98.0 cm |
| 22 mm | f/1.8 | 2.8 cm | 11.4 cm | 46.5 cm | 1.07 m | 3.15 m | 17.4 m | 17.3 m |
| 22 mm | f/2.8 | 4.3 cm | 17.8 cm | 73.8 cm | 1.74 m | 5.63 m | 95.3 m | 11.1 m |
| 22 mm | f/4 | 6.2 cm | 25.6 cm | 1.09 m | 2.70 m | 10.9 m | ∞ | 7.78 m |
| 22 mm | f/8 | 12.5 cm | 53.9 cm | 2.76 m | 11.2 m | ∞ | ∞ | 3.90 m |
| 37 mm | f/1.8 | 0.9 cm | 4.0 cm | 16.1 cm | 36.6 cm | 1.03 m | 4.27 m | 48.8 m |
| 37 mm | f/2.8 | 1.5 cm | 6.2 cm | 25.2 cm | 57.2 cm | 1.62 m | 7.07 m | 31.4 m |
| 37 mm | f/4 | 2.1 cm | 8.8 cm | 36.1 cm | 82.5 cm | 2.38 m | 11.4 m | 22.0 m |
| 37 mm | f/8 | 4.2 cm | 17.7 cm | 74.0 cm | 1.75 m | 5.69 m | 104 m | 11.0 m |
| 62 mm | f/1.8 | 0.3 cm | 1.4 cm | 5.7 cm | 12.9 cm | 36.1 cm | 1.46 m | 137 m |
| 62 mm | f/2.8 | 0.5 cm | 2.1 cm | 8.8 cm | 20.1 cm | 56.3 cm | 2.29 m | 88.1 m |
| 62 mm | f/4 | 0.7 cm | 3.0 cm | 12.6 cm | 28.7 cm | 80.7 cm | 3.31 m | 61.7 m |
| 62 mm | f/8 | 1.4 cm | 6.1 cm | 25.3 cm | 57.8 cm | 1.65 m | 7.20 m | 30.9 m |
Equivalent aperture#
Exposure is identical at the same f-number on any format; equivalence only describes depth of field and total light.
Diffraction & pixel pitch#
With 4.93 µm pixels, diffraction starts to soften pixel-level detail around f/7.4. For maximum sharpness keep landscapes between f/4.0 and f/7; stopping down further trades detail for depth of field.
| Aperture | Airy disk diameter | Spread over | At 100% view |
|---|---|---|---|
| f/2.8 | 3.8 µm | 0.8 px | sharp |
| f/4 | 5.4 µm | 1.1 px | sharp |
| f/5.6 | 7.5 µm | 1.5 px | sharp |
| f/8 | 10.7 µm | 2.2 px | slight softening |
| f/11 | 14.8 µm | 3.0 px | slight softening |
| f/16 | 21.5 µm | 4.4 px | visibly soft |
| f/22 | 29.5 µm | 6.0 px | visibly soft |
Maximum print sizes#
At 10.1 MP the Olympus E-3 produces 3,648 × 2,736 pixel images. See the 10 megapixel guide or the print size calculator.
| Resolution | Typical use | Inches | Centimetres |
|---|---|---|---|
| 300 DPI | Photo-lab quality | 12.2 × 9.1 in | 31 × 23 cm |
| 240 DPI | Fine-art inkjet | 15.2 × 11.4 in | 39 × 29 cm |
| 200 DPI | Wall print | 18.2 × 13.7 in | 46 × 35 cm |
| 150 DPI | Poster, viewed from 1 m+ | 24.3 × 18.2 in | 62 × 46 cm |
Night-sky exposure limits#
Longest exposure before stars trail. The NPF rule accounts for pixel pitch and is stricter than the classic 500 rule — use it for pin-sharp stars on high-resolution sensors.
| Focal length | 500 rule | NPF f/1.8 | NPF f/2.8 | NPF f/4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 mm (13 mm eq.) | 37.1 s | 30.1 s | 35.1 s | 41.1 s |
| 10 mm (19 mm eq.) | 26.0 s | 21.1 s | 24.6 s | 28.8 s |
| 12 mm (23 mm eq.) | 21.7 s | 17.6 s | 20.5 s | 24.0 s |
| 18 mm (35 mm eq.) | 14.4 s | 11.7 s | 13.7 s | 16.0 s |
| 26 mm (50 mm eq.) | 10.0 s | 8.1 s | 9.5 s | 11.1 s |
Handheld shutter speed guide#
The reciprocal rule uses the equivalent focal length. High-resolution sensors may need one stop faster than this for pixel-sharp results.
| Focal length | No stabilisation (1/equiv. focal) | With 3-stop IS | With 5-stop IBIS |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 mm | 1/25 s | 0.3 s | 1.3 s |
| 26 mm | 1/50 s | 1/6 s | 0.6 s |
| 52 mm | 1/100 s | 1/13 s | 0.3 s |
| 104 mm | 1/200 s | 1/25 s | 1/6 s |
Lenses for the Olympus E-3#
Native Four Thirds lenses in our database (33 total). Also adaptable: T-mount (T2), M39 / LTM (Leica thread), M42 screw mount, Deckel (DKL).
- Samyang 8mm f/3.5 Fish-Eye CS 8 mm
- Samyang 14mm f/2.8 AE ED AS IF UMC 14 mm
- Samyang 85mm f/1.4 IF UMC Aspherical 85 mm
- Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 7-14mm f/4.0 7–14 mm
- Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 9-18mm f/4.0-5.6 9–18 mm
- Sigma 10-20mm f/4-5.6 EX DC 10–20 mm
- Olympus Zuiko Digital 11-22mm f/2.8-3.5 11–22 mm
- Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 12-60mm f/2.8-4.0 SWD 12–60 mm
- Olympus Zuiko Digital 14-45mm f/3.5-5.6 14–45 mm
- Olympus Zuiko Digital 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 14–54 mm
- Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 14-35mm F2.0 SWD 14–35 mm
- Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 14–42 mm
- Panasonic Leica D Vario-Elmar 14-150mm f/3.5-5.6 Asph. OIS 14–150 mm
- Sigma 18-125mm f/3.5-5.6 DC 18–125 mm
- Sigma 18-50mm f/3.5-5.6 DC 18–50 mm
- Olympus Zuiko Digital 25mm f/2.8 25 mm
- Tokina RMC Tokina 28mm f/2.8 28 mm
- Sigma 30mm f/1.4 EX DC HSM 30 mm
- Olympus Zuiko Digital 35mm f/3.5 Macro 35 mm
- Olympus Zuiko Digital Pro ED 35-100mm F2.0 35–100 mm
- Olympus Zuiko Digital 40-150mm f/3.5-4.5 40–150 mm
- Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 40-150mm f/4.0-5.6 40–150 mm
- Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 50-200mm f/2.8-3.5 50–200 mm
- Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 50-200mm f/2.8-3.5 SWD 50–200 mm
- Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 50mm f/2.0 Macro 50 mm
- Sigma 50-500mm f/4-6.3 EX DG HSM 50–500 mm
- Sigma 50mm f/1.4 EX DG HSM 50 mm
- Sigma 55-200mm f/4-5.6 DC 55–200 mm
- Olympus Zuiko Digital 70-300mm F4.0-5.6 70–300 mm
- Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro HSM II 70–200 mm
- Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 EX DG OS HSM 70–200 mm
- Tokina TELE-AUTO 135mm f/2.8 135 mm
- Sigma 150mm f/2.8 EX DG APO HSM Macro 150 mm
Similar cameras#
Other 1.5" cameras from around the same time.
Frequently asked questions#
What is the crop factor of the Olympus E-3?
The Olympus E-3 has a crop factor of 1.92× relative to 35 mm full frame (diagonal 22.5 mm vs 43.3 mm).
What size is the Olympus E-3 sensor?
18.0 × 13.5 mm (1.5"), an area of 243 mm² — 28% of full frame.
Is the Olympus E-3 full frame?
No — its sensor is 1.5", which is 3.6× smaller in area than full frame.
How many megapixels does the Olympus E-3 have?
10.1 megapixels (3,648 × 2,736 pixels), enough for a 12 × 9 inch print at 300 DPI.
What lens mount does the Olympus E-3 use?
The Olympus E-3 uses the Four Thirds (flange distance 38.67 mm).
How long can I expose the night sky with the Olympus E-3?
With a 10 mm lens (19 mm equivalent) the 500 rule gives 26 s and the stricter NPF rule at f/2.8 gives 25 s.
Sources & licences#
- Wikipedia: Olympus E-3 — CC BY-SA 4.0
- Wikidata Q1193074 — CC0
- Lensfun camera database — CC BY-SA 3.0
- openMVG sensor width database — MPL-2.0
Last updated October 03, 2026 · How we calculate · Sources