I did most of my shooting in Aperture Priority (Av) center-weighted metering rather than Program or one of the specialty modes.  That’s not because of any particular dissatisfaction with the Program mode, which indeed performed quite well the times that I used it, but because with Aperture Priority center-weighting I knew exactly what I was getting if if I adjusted the exposure.  Many shots called for some kind of adjustment due to bright or dark background, bright or dark subject, bright or dark foreground, etc. Since wildlife don’t stand still to wait for you, you have to work pretty fast.  I had only about 5 seconds to get pictures of the Malachite Kingfisher on this page, before he flew away.  

Using center-weighted metering, I know that if I had a dark object (like a buffalo) filling the center of the frame, I should underexpose by 0.7 stops by adjusting the exposure compensation (which essentially adjusts the shutter speed in this case). If I had a neutral subject but brightly lit grass in the foreground or background, I would overexpose by 0.7 stops.  In program mode, I’m not sure what would happen or how the camera would assess the exposure: maybe it would realize that the dark object amidst the bright grass is my subject and would already adjust the exposure appropriately...or maybe it wouldn’t.

The Evolt 410 and Evolt 510 have only one control dial.  In Av, turning the dial adjusts the aperture; turning the dial while holding down the +/- button with one finger adjusts the shutter speed, starting from the value selected by the camera. This method worked better than I expected, and I rarely missed a shot in spite of sometimes having to remove my finger from the shutter release in order to push the +/- button. Still, I would prefer having two dials.

I mostly used autofocus, but did switch to manual for some shots where the lens was “hunting” for focus, usually because of foreground grasses or a very small, moving subject. I experimented with several settings for switching between autofocus and manual focus (such as setting the 510’s custom function button) but never found one that I liked.   

On the plus side, Olympus makes it easy to access the most frequently-changed settings. It is very easy and quick to adjust the metering mode and AF on/off...but still, not quite easy and quick enough.  

Overall I was satisfied but not thrilled with the 410 and 510 controls. 

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