scottgee1
RF renegade
A lot of people contributed to the original thread named in the subject line. I appreciate your input and want to follow-up.
As mentioned, I did indeed go to a local camera fair yesterday. It was a 'Photorama' show in Southfield, Michigan near Detroit. I've attended these shows for decades now (yikes!) and watched them grow to a pre-digital peak of ~100 dealers in a hall to the now 20 or so jammed into a hotel meeting room.
I was able to handle and compare a number of the models suggested in the original thread. Of course everything that follows is from my point of view and therefore reflects my opinion and biases. YMMV -
Executive summary:
For sheer portability, nothing can really replace a 35mm RF kit. The M39 form factor combined with RF results in a much smaller kit than 50mm plus lens mounts and pentaprisms. Most of you probably already knew that; I apparently have to touch the stove to find out it's hot.
I was disappointed in almost all of the viewfinders. Most were dull and difficult to focus and/or offered a relatively small image. My recently sold Canon F1N probably spoiled me. Of course it was a tank with a superb screen and real glass pentaprism. And the R2 finder remains a delight.
Some exceptions surprised me. I was able to do side-by-side comparisons of an OM-G and an OM-2n. I was amazed at how much brighter and easy to focus the 'G' was. 50/1.8 lens on each, BTW. When I got home, I did some research and found out the 'G' has Lumi Micron (so-called '2' series) screen. Too bad those screens are so tough to get and pricey. What's weird is that I could buy the whole 'G' camera with that screen built in for about the price of the screen alone!
A couple Ricoh K-mounts offered a smaller viewing area than the Olympus models but were perhaps even easier to focus and brighter than the OM-G!
Also very nice was a Contax Aria, but I prefer manual advance to keep weight and noise down and allow me to advance film when I prefer. Sadly, that rules out all the Contax bodies. That and I remain concerned about future serviceability, legal requirements aside.
I couldn't find a single M42 that I liked. Most were of the 'heavier is better' school and the VFs were quite dark.
True to its design concept, the OM-2n had the quietest shutter and minimal vibration.
Honu-Hugger, I saw only one Alpa and it was a collector's model. An '11A' which the seller says was built for the postal service in Britain.
BTW, dealer Bill Moritz has a lot of Leica M and LTM gear. Unfortunately, he remains a bit of a low tech kind of guy and his Web site is only marginally helpful:
http://photomall1.com
but he's a nice guy. If you contact him tell him I already sent the Elan IIe manual to his customer.
So, will I add a small 35mm SLR kit to my cabinet anyway? Perhaps, but I'll definitely do more hands on research first. In the meantime, I'll concentrate on improving my RF skills and enjoying the kit I have.
Thanks again for all the helpful input and suggestions. And sorry it didn't amount to more GAS. Well, I'm sorry but my bank account isn't.
Cheers!/ScottGee1
As mentioned, I did indeed go to a local camera fair yesterday. It was a 'Photorama' show in Southfield, Michigan near Detroit. I've attended these shows for decades now (yikes!) and watched them grow to a pre-digital peak of ~100 dealers in a hall to the now 20 or so jammed into a hotel meeting room.
I was able to handle and compare a number of the models suggested in the original thread. Of course everything that follows is from my point of view and therefore reflects my opinion and biases. YMMV -
Executive summary:
For sheer portability, nothing can really replace a 35mm RF kit. The M39 form factor combined with RF results in a much smaller kit than 50mm plus lens mounts and pentaprisms. Most of you probably already knew that; I apparently have to touch the stove to find out it's hot.
I was disappointed in almost all of the viewfinders. Most were dull and difficult to focus and/or offered a relatively small image. My recently sold Canon F1N probably spoiled me. Of course it was a tank with a superb screen and real glass pentaprism. And the R2 finder remains a delight.
Some exceptions surprised me. I was able to do side-by-side comparisons of an OM-G and an OM-2n. I was amazed at how much brighter and easy to focus the 'G' was. 50/1.8 lens on each, BTW. When I got home, I did some research and found out the 'G' has Lumi Micron (so-called '2' series) screen. Too bad those screens are so tough to get and pricey. What's weird is that I could buy the whole 'G' camera with that screen built in for about the price of the screen alone!
A couple Ricoh K-mounts offered a smaller viewing area than the Olympus models but were perhaps even easier to focus and brighter than the OM-G!
Also very nice was a Contax Aria, but I prefer manual advance to keep weight and noise down and allow me to advance film when I prefer. Sadly, that rules out all the Contax bodies. That and I remain concerned about future serviceability, legal requirements aside.
I couldn't find a single M42 that I liked. Most were of the 'heavier is better' school and the VFs were quite dark.
True to its design concept, the OM-2n had the quietest shutter and minimal vibration.
Honu-Hugger, I saw only one Alpa and it was a collector's model. An '11A' which the seller says was built for the postal service in Britain.
BTW, dealer Bill Moritz has a lot of Leica M and LTM gear. Unfortunately, he remains a bit of a low tech kind of guy and his Web site is only marginally helpful:
http://photomall1.com
but he's a nice guy. If you contact him tell him I already sent the Elan IIe manual to his customer.
So, will I add a small 35mm SLR kit to my cabinet anyway? Perhaps, but I'll definitely do more hands on research first. In the meantime, I'll concentrate on improving my RF skills and enjoying the kit I have.
Thanks again for all the helpful input and suggestions. And sorry it didn't amount to more GAS. Well, I'm sorry but my bank account isn't.
Cheers!/ScottGee1
GeneW
Veteran
Scott, you're right. There really isn't any comparison between an SLR and a RF. The RF's (at least the ones I've used) are smaller, more compact and at least somewhat quieter.
Interesting that you found the SLR VF's on the dim side. Wait'll you see a DSLR. The VF is miniature and much dimmer than any SLR I've tried. My Canon 300D VF made my ancient Pentax H1a VF seem wonderful.
Mike Johnston has written a couple of very interesting columns about this issue:
http://www.photo.net/mjohnston/column6/index.html
Gene
Interesting that you found the SLR VF's on the dim side. Wait'll you see a DSLR. The VF is miniature and much dimmer than any SLR I've tried. My Canon 300D VF made my ancient Pentax H1a VF seem wonderful.
Mike Johnston has written a couple of very interesting columns about this issue:
http://www.photo.net/mjohnston/column6/index.html
Gene
oftheherd
Veteran
Psssst: Hey Mac, try the Yashica FX3 and the Fujica ST's.
scottgee1
RF renegade
Yeah, I meant to make a comparison with dSLR VFs. Keppler has written at least one column bemoaning the general demise of high quality VFs. Canon 'D' series VFs are pretty sad. The 1D series is only a bit better. I was almost startled when I looked through the Oly VFs; the apparent size is huge compared to what I've been using. Ricohs were impressive too - that company was always underrated IMO.
Thanks!/ScottGee1
Thanks!/ScottGee1
GeneW said:
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scottgee1
RF renegade
I'd like to! Didn't see any yesterday.
oftheherd said:
R
ruben
Guest
Ref Lumi Micron, OMG, OM2, etc.
Yes the OMG comes with that bright screen, yet this camera is extremely noisy, therefore far, very far from a RF. Regardless price and hardness, if you mount an Olympus Lumi Micron screen on an OM1, you will have the closest best combination. The OM1 only was featured with a piston-like device to cushion vibration. Add to this they are old and used and you will be holding a very unusual manual focus SLR.
Cheers
Yes the OMG comes with that bright screen, yet this camera is extremely noisy, therefore far, very far from a RF. Regardless price and hardness, if you mount an Olympus Lumi Micron screen on an OM1, you will have the closest best combination. The OM1 only was featured with a piston-like device to cushion vibration. Add to this they are old and used and you will be holding a very unusual manual focus SLR.
Cheers
scottgee1
RF renegade
Interesting, ruben. I didn't realize the piston dampening system was unique to the OM-1. Thanks for pointing that out!
Cheers!/ScottGee1
Cheers!/ScottGee1
wilt
Well-known
Mirror dampening/pneumatic shock absorbing is used in the OM-2 as well, according to this article.
Further information of the features of OM-1 and OM-2 is found here and here.
Having used an OM-2n for about a year, I like the camera's relatively quiet operation and the viewfinder is quite good. The Zuiko 50/1.8 is quite good - but I wish I could mount my J-8 on the OM-2!
However good the Om-2n is, it is still a compromise camera for me, as I save the money for an M3. (I've been GASsed, of course, but as long as one burns film, I think it is an acceptable state of mind ...).
Further information of the features of OM-1 and OM-2 is found here and here.
Having used an OM-2n for about a year, I like the camera's relatively quiet operation and the viewfinder is quite good. The Zuiko 50/1.8 is quite good - but I wish I could mount my J-8 on the OM-2!
However good the Om-2n is, it is still a compromise camera for me, as I save the money for an M3. (I've been GASsed, of course, but as long as one burns film, I think it is an acceptable state of mind ...).
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scottgee1
RF renegade
Wilt, thanks for the clarification and links. Sure is a lot of Oly info out there!
/ScottGee1
/ScottGee1