Viewing
Here’s another big difference, but this time it’s the Nikon that stands out. The D5000 has a modest, 2.7” diagonal swiveling LCD monitor. It’s smaller than the Canon T1i and Olympus E-P1, but it can be swung around and pivoted. Not only more convenient in some cases, but also handy for shooting overhead, or in cramped spaces where you can’t get far enough behind the display to see.
 

Canon Rebel T1i * 3-Inch * 920,000 pixels * 100% Frame Coverage * 170° Viewing Angle	Nikon D5000 * 2.7-Inch (articulated) * 230,000 pixels * 100% Frame Coverage * 170° Viewing Angle	Olympus E-P1 * 3-Inch * 230,000 pixels * 100% Frame Coverage * 176° Viewing Angle

You’ve got to wonder, if Olympus is asking you to throw your viewfinder away and live the Live View life, why didn’t they give you a swing-out display, too? It was likely to help maintain the camera’s thin frame, but who knows, maybe it’s coming for the 51st year anniversary?

The Olympus gives you some enhanced displays on the LCD including Live Control - a live view along with a view of the camera’s controls, and a preview of actual focus at the shooting aperture (“Live-View Autofocus”), something you’re not going to get through the eyepiece of a DSLR. But these things are not all that uncommon in live-view cameras, including point-and-shoots.

We do have to weigh in on one caution when shooting any camera in live view mode, and in particular any camera that only allows live-view shooting. The shooting position, holding the camera at almost arm’s length, away from the body, does not lend itself to stability.

It’s a lot harder to handhold these cameras at slow shutter speeds than a camera you can shoot held to your eye, with you hand cradling the bottom, and your elbows in to your sides in classic form. This wouldn’t be even something we’d mention except for the low-level light, high ISO performance of the Olympus we discussed earlier. If you often shoot in low light, and try to get away with slow shutter speeds without a tripod, and if that’s a big part of your work, you may want to reconsider the live-view idea.