I don't care what anyone says....,

FrankS said:
How about: OM is like a road racing bicycle, while Nikon is like a mountain bike? The Nikons/Nikkormats seem more robust, the OM's more refined. IMO
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Having been an OM user for a while now it's been interesting using my FM3A and comparing the two. The Nikon definitely feels more robust and capable to me ... but it lacks the tactile intuative feel of an OM.

Every now and then I take my M2 or M3 from the cupboard, shoot a roll and think ... "yeah so what!" ... then put it back in the cupboard and get the OM-1 out again!
 
Another analogy: OM 1,2,3,4 is like a figure skater, Nikon (F, F2, F3, F4) like a hockey player.

I picked up my M2 yesterday after a few weeks with using OM's and Nikons, but I did not put it back, I selected it for an afternoon of photography. There is still a special feeling from a Leica M for me.
 
After reading what an OM-1 does for Keith i might just have to get one ... my camera technician has a few for sale, pretty black ones too. I hear the OM-1n is the best but they are all worth owning.
Do we need a Zuikoholichs Anonymous Forum?

Pleased to hear you all love your Leicas ...
 
Keith said:
Having been an OM user for a while now it's been interesting using my FM3A and comparing the two. The Nikon definitely feels more robust and capable to me ... but it lacks the tactile intuative feel of an OM.
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On the OM: Lens Release and DOF preview. Too much alike, and not in good places. Shutter-speed ring, too close to them. ASA dial is too big on top deck for the function, should have put it around the rewind knob. Viewfinder is nice and bright, hard to see with glasses. Film advance is good, like a Nikon F3, a bit uneven through the cycle. The older Nikon's are smoother film advance as in same feel throughout the wind-cycle. Olympus lenses are well-made, nice glass, held off on multi-coated optics longer than any other major SLR manufacturer.

It's kind of like a '66 Mustang with a 2-barrel 289 compared with a '57 T-Bird with a Supercharged 312. Do not put a Motor Drive on an Olympus and it will not blow the shutter straps. The Leica M3- a Jaguar. too many adjustments to keep perfectly tuned, but worth the effort.
 
FrankS said:
Live long and prosper!

So Brian, do you also get the feeling that the OM feels more surgical, while the Nikons feel more like a blunt instrument?
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M Leicas do feel just right to me. The OMs are proportioned after the Leica M, which to me made them instantly likeable, as everything was where I expected it to be. The only exception is the lens barrel, which is fatter. I always felt holding my OM-2 that I was trying to rid of my right middle and ring finger somewhere. The Nikons I have used did seem like blunt instruments (or perhaps a better use for them). I never saw the appeal.
 
I too agree that as cameras go a Leica M body has a certain feel to it other cameras do not. I too agree that a M2/3 have a better feel than the M6 it used to own and M4-2 I currently own, but they all are great. I will pick up a M3 again sometime, but due to finances currently I am sticking with my current setup. Better than sex, hmmm; I think that is a bit of overkill 🙂
 
Brian Sweeney said:
It should not be confused with a statement that a Senior Camera Salesman told me in 1977 that "A Leica is better than Sex". I agree with the OP, but disagree with the statement made by the salesman. Others seem to share his opinion.
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Thanks, Brian, for keepin' it real here. 😉

FrankS said:
Another analogy: OM 1,2,3,4 is like a figure skater, Nikon (F, F2, F3, F4) like a hockey player.
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On another website, on the subject of fountain pens (yeah, you know...), I made the analogy of a speed skater versus a figure skater when comparing, oh, hell, my newly-acquired Pilot Custom 74 and Custom 823; the former emphasizes smoothness and speed über alles, while the latter emphasizes precision and tactile sensitivity. One isn't instantly "superior" to the other; it's a matter of priorities on the part of the owner/user.


- Barrett
 
I actually like the handling of the sp more than MP. The finder is superb and ingenious. I can see myself using either one for the rest of my life. It's a hard choice so I am not going to choose..
 
Yes the SP is definitely the more attractive camera. =)
But alas it is the Glass that really matters at the end of the day. Not to say that the two Nikon Rf revision lenses are to shy away from. I actually prefer them too over... well, all leica's glass really.
 
If you want a solid feel to a SLR then try a Praktica MTL3 or, better still, one of the bayonet ones with the diagonal split screen. And they were all hand made in Germany with few parts bought in...

Trouble is I like all my cameras and, like my friends etc, they were all chosen for different reasons and are all liked for different reasons.

Regards, David
 
For a thread that's supposedly about how good holding and using a Leica is, there sure are a lot of comments about the Nikon SP 😀
 
I use an M3, M2, IIIF, IIIa, III, Nikon SP, S3, S2, Canon P, Canon 7, Canon IIf, Nikon F, Nikon F2, Nikon F3HP, Nikon FE2, Canon F1, Canon EF, Retina Reflex-S, Retina IIIS, Fujica ST-801, and a lot of other film cameras, fixed-lens cameras not listed here.

I have finally come into an Olympus OM camera that works. The other two died before the first roll of film. This one looks like a winner.

And I like the M8.
 
Keith said:
Yes ... but then again I get that slight tingling of the gonads when I hold my black OM-1.

Horses for courses I guess! 😀
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I get a slight tingling of the gonads when I hold them, perhaps I need to release my warm grasp and pick up my Leica ( or indeed OM ) and get a photographic tingle again!!
 
jonmanjiro said:
For a thread that's supposedly about how good holding and using a Leica is, there sure are a lot of comments about the Nikon SP 😀
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You should know by now that it doesn't matter what the thread starts with - people just like to take another opportunity to brag about everything else in their closet! - hence the ever-present lists, that come with the post! 🙄
 
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