OM, I've become a Zuikoholic!

[maitani]

one of the few combos which get you close to rangefinder size territory, an OM with the 40..

[Trius]

Aaarrrgh....

[Ken Ford]

I always used to lust for an OM-3. Now I am again.

[xayraa33]

The OM 3 and the Zuiko 40 mm lens were always rare-ish top shelf stuff for OM lovers.

[paulfish4570]

aieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

[Ken Ford]

Originally Posted by paulfish4570

aieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Cinco de Mayo celebration?

[Keith]

Damn ... I can almost touch it!

Sorry about all this Earl.

[Ade-oh]

I've said this before but... I'm a confirmed OM fanatic and I really didn't get on with the OM3. Firstly, it shares the battery drain problem with the older OM4; in my OM3, the batteries were pretty much used up if I left it unused for two weeks. Secondly, whilst it also shares the excellent multi-spot metering system with the OM4, it obviously doesn't do the OM4's clever trick of averaging out the multi-spot readings automatically which, in practice, makes it slow and clunky to use. I had mine for around two years before selling it, but it never became a 'go to' camera for me, unlike my OM1s and OM4tis.

[paulfish4570]

i was mostly aieeeeeeeeeeeeee-ing the 40 ...

[shadowfox]

Originally Posted by Ade-oh

I've said this before but... I'm a confirmed OM fanatic and I really didn't get on with the OM3. Firstly, it shares the battery drain problem with the older OM4; in my OM3, the batteries were pretty much used up if I left it unused for two weeks. Secondly, whilst it also shares the excellent multi-spot metering system with the OM4, it obviously doesn't do the OM4's clever trick of averaging out the multi-spot readings automatically which, in practice, makes it slow and clunky to use. I had mine for around two years before selling it, but it never became a 'go to' camera for me, unlike my OM1s and OM4tis.

I'm sorry, but I disagree on both accounts.

I took the batteries out once I'm done using the OM-3. Problem solved.
Even a scatterbrain like me can do that without a problem.

And the multi-spot metering works perfectly for me. The camera tells me what it thinks is the best settings. I decide if I want to expose more or less than that (and the shutter speed ring around the lens mount works so well for this). To me it's natural and not clunky at all.

[Jockos]

I really shouldn't ask, but how much better is the 21/2 up close compared to the 21/3.5 in your opinion? Does anyone have/had both, willing to comment? I'm thinking of maybe selling a kidney and upgrading to the f2 version

[AFenvy]

I don't know about the OM-3, but on an OM-4 you can turn the shutter ring to the mech. 1/60 or B and it disables the electronics, so you don't need to physically take out the batteries when you store it. I do this every time I put away my OM-4Ti, even though it doesn't have battery drain problems, just to be safe. I have had the camera for a few years now, batteries are still good.

As much as I love my mechanical cameras, electronic ones are excellent as well. I really appreciate the auto exposure modes on my electronic cameras, they are mostly infallible and let me concentrate on the shot instead of turning a shutterspeed dial.

And my contribution:

Olympus OM-4Ti, Zuiko 50mm f1.4, Kodak 400TX

[Trius]

Keith, I may withdraw my offer of buying you beers when you visit.

[Keith]

Originally Posted by Trius

Keith, I may withdraw my offer of buying you beers when you visit.

But I'll bring my OM-3 and let you fondle it while we imbibe! Apart from which you are partly responsible for my bourgening OM habit you do realise Earl!

Actually I'm more than happy to get this OM-3 for the $470.00 shipped and paypal'd ... I almost considered paying this much for one I spotted a few months ago and was a definite user!

Nothing will knock my OM-1 off it's perch as my favourite OM though!

[Trius]

OK, OK. You got me ... I was your original pusher! I'll even bring in some really good stuff.

[Keith]

As an aside I noticed in another thread that Roger has come up with a clever new name for the SLR forum!

We've had 'Evil' and currently are the 'Un RF' which I quite like actually!

"huge heavy tub of SLR lard"

No doubt about it ... the man's a genius!

[maitani]

Originally Posted by Jockos

I really shouldn't ask, but how much better is the 21/2 up close compared to the 21/3.5 in your opinion? Does anyone have/had both, willing to comment? I'm thinking of maybe selling a kidney and upgrading to the f2 version

start thinking about that kidney... had both, kept the f2, it's stellar and worth the money imo, i sometimes miss the supercompactness of the 3.5 (although at F3.5 i feel both were equal..), but overall the f2 is much more versatile, it gets 2 stops more light, one of the few lenses i own which is truly sharp from wideopen, so f2 is more than just an emergency setting, also the f2 version gives you great flexibiliy should you want to adapt it to nex, canon FF or whaterver suitable digital platform. for the size though the 3.5 version is unbeatable.

[philosomatographer]

Originally Posted by Keith

Nothing will knock my OM-1 off it's perch as my favourite OM though!

Ha! That's what I thought, until I started using my OM-3Ti. I don't touch my OM-1 anymore, it looks pretty in the display case...

[philosomatographer]

With Adox CHS Art 25 film and the Zuiko Macro lenses, I am producing images that are the equals of my medium- and large-format imagery in every respect (I mean this very literally, I shoot a lot of larger-format film).

Rays and Stamens

(Zuiko 135mm Macro @ f/4.5, Adox CHS Art 25 developed in D-76 1+1, OM-4Ti)

Blobules

(Zuiko 50mm @ f/1.2, very strong crop, Adox CHS Art 25, OM-4Ti)

The second image (above), of course, isn't anywhere near the quality of the first, but it is a very strong (about 15% of frame area) crop of a hand-held, close-focused image with a lens not optimised for this sort of thing. The 50/1.2 does present delicious character with this peerless film, here are another two "snapshots":

[Keith]

Those images have tones to die for ... I used some Adox CHS 100 art a while ago and loved it. Those are superb ... I may have to get some more!

I think the OM-1 will always be my sentimental favourite though not necesssarily my most used OM. It's the M3 of the Oly world ... pure, simple and beautifully made IMO. I think an OM-4 looks and feels very busy by comparison.

Thanks for posting those images by the way.

[Ade-oh]

Originally Posted by shadowfox

I'm sorry, but I disagree on both accounts...

Well, each to his own but I think I would find it a bit of a pain remembering to take the batteries out of camera every time I put it away, and I find I get exposures which are just as accurate using my hand-held lightmeter with my OM-1 and no batteries.

I've owned all the single-digit OMs (except the OM-3ti) at one time or another and the two types I hang onto are the OM-1 and the OM-4ti. The battery problems of the OM-4 and OM-3 are a pain in the a*** and the OM-2, whilst great, doesn't give me as many options as the OM-4ti.

[maitani]

Originally Posted by philosomatographer

Ha! That's what I thought, until I started using my OM-3Ti. I don't touch my OM-1 anymore, it looks pretty in the display case...

agree on this, my OM-3, (and the ti is the definite version of it) has made all other OM's basically obsolete, the OM-1 is still sleek and nice looking though and it's definitely a classic, but the OM-3 is the perfect synthesis of OM-1 reliability and OM-4 sophistication, also both of my OM-3 never had battery drain issues, I'm down to one now, so keith can double check this.

this weekend I've used my silver OM-2 which is permanently attached to the winder, it's my beater of beater cams. still going strong, love it, still works after all those years including the meter. those OM's just rock

[shadowfox]

Originally Posted by Keith

Actually I'm more than happy to get this OM-3 for the $470.00 shipped and paypal'd ... I almost considered paying this much for one I spotted a few months ago and was a definite user!

That's a decent price for an OM-3 in a good condition.

It's... uh, far from what I paid for mine

[Jockos]

Originally Posted by maitani

start thinking about that kidney... had both, kept the f2, it's stellar and worth the money imo, i sometimes miss the supercompactness of the 3.5 (although at F3.5 i feel both were equal..), but overall the f2 is much more versatile, it gets 2 stops more light, one of the few lenses i own which is truly sharp from wideopen, so f2 is more than just an emergency setting, also the f2 version gives you great flexibiliy should you want to adapt it to nex, canon FF or whaterver suitable digital platform. for the size though the 3.5 version is unbeatable.

Gosh.. I sure hope they allow for body parts in the classifieds..

[robbeiflex]

I'm half way through a test roll on the OM2n I received yesterday in the mail. Three words: Great little camera! Fingers are crossed that the test goes well because I really like it from the size, build and ergonomic points of view.

Cheers,
Rob