Black OM-1 about to go stateside.

Keith

Keith

The best camera is one that still works!
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It says a lot about how much I think of this rather well used black OM-1 and my Oly gear in general ... I packed the camera very carefully and tomorrow will send it to Camtech Photo Services (zuiko.com) in the US for a CLA and a couple of other little problems. The advance mechanism requires two movements to re-cock the shutter occasionally and the meter went a bit strange a while ago and started reading three stops out!

I'm really in no financial position to be spending money on photographic gear at the moment with part time work providing my only income but I supect on the 'bang for buck' scale, getting this camera back in a few weeks working one hundred percent as it should will rate very highly for moi.

Did I mention I love my OM gear? :p

As a matter of interest when I finally got a decent meter recently (Sekonic L308s) I checked the meters on my two working OMs ... a very original silver OM-1 and my well used OM-2N ... neither of which appear to have been apart in recent times and both from eBay at around $50.00 each. The two cameras matched the Sekonic to within a third of a stop ... pretty impressive IMO!

Oh ... and I really do love my OM gear! :D
 
Keith, do you happen to like your OM gear ? I get the impression you do :D




Nice one, it should be like having a new camera. I bet you can't wait for that silky-smooth advance.
 
Peter_Jones said:
Keith, do you happen to like your OM gear ? I get the impression you do :D




Nice one, it should be like having a new camera. I bet you can't wait for that silky-smooth advance.
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I think your avatar says it all Peter! :D

It's by far the most praised and cherished camera brand aside from 'The L Word' on this forum IMO ... and I'm not about to change those stats. :eek:
 
Yes Keith they are excellent cameras, but before you send any more overseas did you know that the repair people for the old Olympus importers {Levinson / Elmay} can still be found in Sydney. All superb techs.
 
It's hard to send anything away, but I'm sure they will come back better than new. I'd be hard pressed to think of replacing any OM kit with anything but another one these days.

B2 (;->
 
I am also rediscovering my liking for the OM gear. I recently bought an OM1 w/ 50/1.4 and 35/2.8 kit for $150 AUD. Very cheap by L standards, but the results are very satisfying.
 
Keith,
I know the feeling. Every time I try to narrow my equipment down to just the rangefinder stuff, I can never seem to be able to give up my well-brassed black Nikon FE. I got it for $27 about a year ago; treated it to a CLA and a new lens. I just feels so 'right' when I take it out for a walk. Light weight, nice viewfinder, AE, and for me, seems very intuitive to operate. Its the kind of camera I started out with in 1965... the OM-1. :)
 
My only wish/improvement for the OM system is that the designers had the aperature and focusing rings run the same way (big to small, close to fare) and the lenses mounted all in the same direction as a Leica M.

B2 (;->
 
Great Keith - I've sent my OM1n to Camtech last year and was very happy with the results. The 'estimated time to repair' dates on the zuiko.com website were accurate to the day.

Now with John as a regular contributor to this forum, I think they should consider renaming this to the Olympus forum cause RF's are so last millennium. :BigGrin:
 
This thread reminds me that I still have an OM-4T whose shutter is stuck... maybe it's time to send it to the good zuiko doctor.
 
Phew ... thank goodness I got my black & brass OM-2 to John before your OM-1, Keith. I don't wanna wait any longer than necessary! :D
 
Some people do opt to simply buy another used body instead of getting a known entity fixed. When you do that, you often end up with another 25-30 year old unit, with it's own set of problems. John
 
Jamie Pillers said:
Keith,
I know the feeling. Every time I try to narrow my equipment down to just the rangefinder stuff, I can never seem to be able to give up my well-brassed black Nikon FE. I got it for $27 about a year ago; treated it to a CLA and a new lens. I just feels so 'right' when I take it out for a walk. Light weight, nice viewfinder, AE, and for me, seems very intuitive to operate. Its the kind of camera I started out with in 1965... the OM-1. :)
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I felt differently a year or so ago but I hadn't really explored the potential or rewards of the OM system. I'd been using my OM-2 intermittantly as a break from the rangefinder thing then started using the OM-1 more regularly and soon realised it was probably one of the finest cameras, bar none, I have ever used. I think I can now honestly say that if there was a major cull of my gear due to space or financial restrictions the OM's and Zuikos would be staying and anything else could go ... that includes my M2 and M3! :eek: (can't believe I said that ... how times change)

My one minor quibble with the OM's was the camera's diminutive dimensions ... I could never quite seem to get comfortable grip wise and it always felt a little precarious. One day I dropped the OM-1 into a Luigi grip case made for a Leica M and the missing piece of the puzzle was there ... it felt perfect, fitted absolutely like a glove and the Luigi leather hasn't been on a Leica since.

For actually taking photos day in day out ... it's become my first choice.

I might add that it's great to have an Olympus guru like John here on the forum and present in this thread. I hope my OM-1 is kind to you when you're working on it mate! :)
 
Hmmm... I begin to understand what you're talking about. A couple of weeks ago I got an OM-2n for free and I've started to fall in love with a naked body. I'm still waiting on the first lens to arrive (50 1.8) and just yesterday I bought my second lens, a 100 2.8. I had expected the 50 to arrive today, but it hasn't :(. That means another weekend of cultivating my patience..
 
HuubL said:
Hmmm... I begin to understand what you're talking about. A couple of weeks ago I got an OM-2n for free and I've started to fall in love with a naked body. I'm still waiting on the first lens to arrive (50 1.8) and just yesterday I bought my second lens, a 100 2.8. I had expected the 50 to arrive today, but it hasn't :(. That means another weekend of cultivating my patience..
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My standout and most used lenses are the 35mm f2, the 85mm f2 and the quirky but excellent 50mm f1.2

If you're after a faster and better 50 at some stage for not too much money the 50mm 1.4 is very good ... I picked one up from eBay a while ago for around seventy dollars. It's a lot smaller than the rather porky 1.2 ... and a lot cheaper!
 
Thanks for the suggestions Keith. I'll test the cheapo's first; I understand they're unbeatable value for money glass. Still hunting for a nice 24 or 28 2.8.
BTW, I thought you had given up on the M8, but seeing your signature i guess you still still value it...?
 
HuubL said:
Thanks for the suggestions Keith. I'll test the cheapo's first; I understand they're unbeatable value for money glass. Still hunting for a nice 24 or 28 2.8.
BTW, I thought you had given up on the M8, but seeing your signature i guess you still still value it...?
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Occasionally ... just occasionally ... it earns me a little money with the gallery opening shoots I do for a local arts college. If it wasn't for this it probably would have been sold a while ago!

In a perfect world I would have a Luigi grip case for every camera I own! :p
 
HuubL said:
Hmmm... I begin to understand what you're talking about. A couple of weeks ago I got an OM-2n for free and I've started to fall in love with a naked body. I'm still waiting on the first lens to arrive (50 1.8) and just yesterday I bought my second lens, a 100 2.8. I had expected the 50 to arrive today, but it hasn't :(. That means another weekend of cultivating my patience..
Click to expand...

i loved both the 100 and the oly 85, great lenses and small too.
 
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