Any experience with the Olympus AF1 / Infinity?

[Jeremy Z]

http://camera-wiki.org/wiki/Olympus_AF-1

I have a bid on one on ebay right now, as I'm on the hunt for a quality point & shoot camera with a quality prime lens for < $100.

I see now that it doesn't have a flash override, which is a bummer. No museums or fill flash for this guy.

I should have researched it more before bidding, but I got excited when I saw the 35/2.8 Zuiko lens. :bang: Ah well, I'll give it to my daughter as her first film camera if it doesn't pan out.

Is it the same lens from the XA? That's a good lens, but had some vignetting. Hopefully that's due to the XA being so small and won't be a problem on this one.

 

[dourbalistar]

No experience with the AF1, but are you specifically looking for a quality P&S <$100 with AF?

If the AF1 doesn't pan out, check out the Canon Sure Shot WP-1 (or Sure Shot A-1 depending on your market). It's a goofy looking waterproof P&S, but with a surprisingly good AF 32mm f/3.5 prime lens. There's a flash over-ride setting, but other than that it's mostly automatic.

https://vintagecameralab.com/canon-sure-shot-wp-1/
https://filmadvance.com/2012/04/favourite-cameras-favourite-cameras-canon-sure-shot-a1/
http://www.brokencamera.club/blog/2017/1/25/canon-wp-1
https://www.photothinking.com/2018-04-06-canon-sure-shot-a1-summer-love/
https://www.35mmc.com/18/08/2015/canon-sureshot-a1/

 

[Spavinaw]

I have the Infinity version of this camera. Haven't used it in years. It has a rubber seal around the back door and is "splash proof". You can safely use it in the rain but not underwater. I think the appeal of this camera is it does everything for you. As you said, it decides whether or not to flash and everything else. Focus lock and self timer are about it. Not sure if lens is same as XA. It uses a 223A battery which is not too common. Probably want to order it to get the best price.

 

[vagab0nd]

I had an Infinity Jr, which I believe has the same lens. I thought the XA 35/2.8 lens was considerably better. It's not a bad lens, but there are plenty of other compacts I'd rather have at that price point largely due to the lack of flash override.

The Sure Shot WP-1 that dourbalistar mentioned above has a better lens than the Infinity.


Do you have a preferred focal length, size, or feature set? If so, members here will be able to provide you with specific suggestions.

 

[dourbalistar]

As for the camera the OP asked about, it has an odd focus lock implementation. Seems clunky compared to the more conventional half-press of the shutter:
https://www.lomography.com/magazine/328039-lomopedia-olympus-af-1
https://theshuttergoesclick.blogspot.com/2010/09/olympus-infinity.html
https://cameragocamera.com/2018/11/25/olympus-af-1-infinity/

 

[Jeremy Z]

I had an Infinity Jr, which I believe has the same lens.

No, it has a different lens. It was the 35/3.5 "Olympus Lens" instead of a 35/2.8 Zuiko.

I thought the XA 35/2.8 lens was considerably better. It's not a bad lens, but there are plenty of other compacts I'd rather have at that price point largely due to the lack of flash override.

Yeah, me too. I sure do like their clamshell design better than the shutters that cover the lenses of the others. Well, my bid is something like $21, so we'll see what happens. I can't think of any other camera on ebay for that kind of dough.

Do you have a preferred focal length, size, or feature set? If so, members here will be able to provide you with specific suggestions.

I would like a 35/2.8. I may just go with the Nikon L35AF3. It's not quite as good a lens as athe L35AF, (4 element instead of 5) but the -3 is the one my grandpa had, so it would also have sentimental value. It seems these are hard to find without a busted battery door or missing flash diffuser. If Stylus Epic (mju 2) were not so expensive, I might just get one of those. (they're fetching $250+ on ebay)

 

[David Hughes]

Have you thought about the Olympus Trip-35? There's a lot about at decent prices and there are people who specialise in them and sell them with a guarantee. The lens is very good by any standard.


Regards, David

 

[Jeremy Z]

Have you thought about the Olympus Trip-35? There's a lot about at decent prices and there are people who specialise in them and sell them with a guarantee. The lens is very good by any standard.


Regards, David

I have heard of them, but wrote them off as being a bit too simplistic. It seems they're aperture priority or program, and scale focus by icon. I guess that is adequate because they were very popular.

In the end though, I'll pass on that one, as I already have a 40 mm lens in my Rollei 35's and aperture priority in my Yashicas.

I have 45 mm in my Yashica GS, 40 in the Rolleis and 35 in my inbound Yashica CC. I think it'll be quite enough to keep these three guys running.

 

[olifaunt]

I have an Infinity Jr. It does have a flash override (there is a switch under the lens you can use to turn it on/auto/off). I still use it. The pictures are great. What are the prices nowadays? (I bought mine new for about $20 back in the day).

 

[skucera]

My mom's best friend had one of these Olympus Infinity cameras back in the day. My mom had a Pentax ME Super with a collection of primes. They both took their cameras on a trip to New England to visit places where their ancestors lived. (Both were genealogists.) When they got back my mom was disappointed to see that most of her friend's pictures were better focused and better exposed than her own pictures taken with her SLR. Only a year or two later she got a point-and-shoot camera too, and put the ME Super away for decades. She gave it to me last fall when she was downsizing to move into an old folks home, along with all the other cameras she had collected over the years.


Scott

 

[Jeremy Z]

I have an Infinity Jr. It does have a flash override (there is a switch under the lens you can use to turn it on/auto/off). I still use it. The pictures are great. What are the prices nowadays? (I bought mine new for about $20 back in the day).

I'm talking about the original Infinity, which has the f/2.8 Zuiko lens, rather than the Jr., which has an f/3.5 Olympus lens. I think the Jrs. can still be found for around $40 on ebay. Same for the original Infinity / AF1.

 

[Jeremy Z]

My mom's best friend had one of these Olympus Infinity cameras back in the day. My mom had a Pentax ME Super with a collection of primes. They both took their cameras on a trip to New England to visit places where their ancestors lived. (Both were genealogists.) When they got back my mom was disappointed to see that most of her friend's pictures were better focused and better exposed than her own pictures taken with her SLR.

Only a year or two later she got a point-and-shoot camera too, and put the ME Super away for decades.

She gave it to me last fall when she was downsizing to move into an old folks home, along with all the other cameras she had collected over the years.
Scott

Thanks for the anecdote. Good for you I guess, but it's bittersweet. I have my grandpa's cameras. One one hand, I like to have them, but on the other hand, whenever I use them, I miss him like crazy. The memories come flooding back.