Olympus 35 ECR experience

R

Rich Silfver

Guest
(Wish there was an Olympus forum here, but in lack of that 'Other' will have to do).

Took my Olympus 35 ECR out this past weekend.
It was fun using a completely automatic 'point-and-shoot' camera - with a rangefinder - and I doubt it will be the last time I use it.
The meter performed really well and the lens seems sharp and constrasty.

I wrote up some ramblings about the camera - and some more photo samples - here: LINK

Photo Samples (using a roll of XP2 Super):

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Not too bad for a $15 camera.
 
We have one of those cameras, it belonged to my girlfriends mother. I put batteries in it and then did not attempt to use it for about a year. I forgot all about the camera sitting in the closet. I took it out one day and thought I would try it out. The shutter seemed to work once in a while. I am wondering if the batteries are weak. Perhaps there is a drain on them even when the camera is just sitting.

Tom
 
Nice work Rich! It's fun to shoot when all you have to worry about is focus and composition. I'll have to dust off my Konica C35 and take it for a walk this weekend. Might have to look for an ECR as well...
 
The C35 is a very fun little camera, and the lens is quite amazing for a cheapie camera. (Note to GeneW... pull out the C35!!!)
 
I love the ec2 and ecr, what did you guys do for batteries?
I shoot slides in my ec2 and the damn thing always impresses me with it's exposure being so right. That lens is great, and the program of the shutter/diaphram is spot on too.. My wife thinks I'm crazy, but i gather every ecr, ec2 etc... I see.. I can't help myself, for five to twenty dollars, I gotta have 'em..
Yes, we need an olympus forum.. or at least consolidate things to a 'fixed lens' forum.. i guess then the other is ok after all..
 
#FT2_8*fffg. said:
How does this camera compare in size to the Rollei 35? It does have a rangefinder? How about parralax lines?
Click to expand...

Yes, the ECR has a rangefinder. It does not have parallax compensation.
The Rollei 35 is ofcourse a completely different camera than the ECR in so many ways (scale focusing vs rangefinder, manual exposure setting vs auto-exposure, etc) but size-wise they are fairly comparable:

Weight:
Rollei 35S: 14 oz
Oly ECR: 14 3/5 oz

Size:
Rollei 35S: 4 1/16 x 2 9/16 x 1 19/32
Oly ECR: 4 3/8 x 2 5/8 x 2 1/16

For a manual for the ECR camera, go here: http://www.butkus.org/chinon/olympus/olympus_35ecr/olympus_35ecr.htm
 
I'm thinking about the Olympus ECR as a ps camera which I can carry everywhere.
What do you think?
My yashica electros are too heavy for a daily use, only my zorki 1 is enough small but it is heavy and not easy top load (I like to load it but it takes time...)
it looks like a very good quality camera...
 
I take my ec2 on every vacation. I've grown to like it more than the ecr, when loaded with 400 speed film, since zone focus is fine for that with the 2.8 wide lens.
The ecr has a rangefinder, so you can be more sure that you are in focus, if you have time for that sort of thing. The EC/EC2 has a brighter finder, since it's got no beam splitter, but no rangefinder- however the finder does have a little needle in it to point at one of four focus icons as you turn the lens to focus, a good reminder. The EC/2 does have the advantage over the ECR in the placement of it's film speed adjuster. When compensating for backlight or what have you, the ec2 adjuster is on top turned by one's right thumb, while the ECR asa selector is on the front of the lens, and is a bit stiff sometimes, easy to forget if moved.
Both are great little cameras, once you solve the battery problem.
My latest greatest mod for that is to convert the camera for SR44 cells, like most everything else uses.
To do that, remove the bottom and battery bucket, install a silicone diode in series with the existing circuit, to provide the voltage drop for the silver cells, vs the mercury cells. A silicone works here because the two cells need twice the drop that a single cell camera would, like for example a canonet, which needs a schottkey diode instead.
The bases of the buckets are too far from the terminals for the cells to reach, so the space is made up with some craft foam. 3mm? also the diameter of the buckets is too large so it is lined with 1mm foam. To make the terminals I used small tin plated steel rivets with the pin knocked out. The wires pass through the holes left in the plastic buckets when the original corroded terminal buttons are pressed out. Holes stabbed in the 3mm foam hold the rivets well. I soldered short lengths of wire to the rivets (small brass grommets would do, the male part) then passed the wire through the foam and out the terminal hole of each tub.
Dang I thought i took pictures of the last time I did this..
 
Superbus, listen to Clint, he surgically revived my dead ECR.

The ECR is like a more robust XA, and the EC2 is a more robust XA2.

Clint, what you say about the wide-angle lens makes sense, that's why I find the ECR's viewfinder rather hard to use.
 
Thank you for your advices. The local camera store selling a battery which is good for the yashica electro 35. Is this oly needs the same type of battery?
I think they just made from two different batteries a third one or something like that. So I don't think the battery is a huge problem for me but i hope that these kind of batteries can do well for long time.
It is important for me to be a rangefinder and to be a pocket camera maybe the xa series are better for me but the oly seems to me more serious (it's not better but looks like...)
 
I used two LR44's and stuffed aluminum foil in to make up the difference and made a simple pair of tubes out of some scrap cardboard to keep the batteries from shifting around. I realize the exposure would then be off - but I can't seem to tell the difference. The EC is an excellent camera, and the lens is the same as the Olympus 35 RC. It is much better than the XA2, which I'm sorry to admit, but it's true. The EC is a lovely camera. So is the ECR, but like Shadowfox, I prefer the bright open viewfinder of the EC and EC2.

One thing to remember - the EC, EC2 and ECR are all fully automatic. No battery, no worky. No meter, no worky. So not that great if the batteries fail or if the electronics are zapped. Just FYI.
 
I agree the dropping diode may be overkill-
the ec2 has just an opening for the meter cell, so the effects of it's weighting or lack of it probably swamp whatever difference between battery voltages are having on the exposure.
My battery conversion job only really makes sense if the battery terminals are corroded off and the thing needs to be operated on anyway..

Another forgotten oly to seek is the 35ED. It is similar to the ECR in that it has a rangefinder, but has a lever for advance instead of a wheel, has a plastic battery door and one less element in the lens. May not be selling it so well I guess, I really don't know if the lens is better or worse than the awesome five element one in the ec etc... Probably the only potential advantage to the ED is that it's newer, so may be in better shape or something.
 
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bmattock said:
I used two LR44's and stuffed aluminum foil in to make up the difference and made a simple pair of tubes out of some scrap cardboard to keep the batteries from shifting around. I realize the exposure would then be off - but I can't seem to tell the difference. The EC is an excellent camera, and the lens is the same as the Olympus 35 RC. It is much better than the XA2, which I'm sorry to admit, but it's true. The EC is a lovely camera. So is the ECR, but like Shadowfox, I prefer the bright open viewfinder of the EC and EC2.

One thing to remember - the EC, EC2 and ECR are all fully automatic. No battery, no worky. No meter, no worky. So not that great if the batteries fail or if the electronics are zapped. Just FYI.
Click to expand...
Bill, you won't believe this. Out of desperation, I followed your post long time ago about this battery rig using aluminum foil and that's what's powering my EC now ... if Clint is my ECR hero, you're my EC hero :D
 
When I tried the ecr viewfinder just realised that it's nost as bright as my russian zorkis. But as a yashica electro user I can live with it :) in case the optical quality is perfect. I need to make a decision: ecr or rc? Here and now i have these options (the rc is cheaper but the ecr is in mint condition so I don't know...)
 
ECR in mint condition is rarer than RC. Plus, it frees you from having to manually select anything (the RC is shutter-priority, yes?) and focus on composition and ... er, the focus. Plus it's possible to jam an ECR in a jeans/cargo-pants pocket, yes, I tried it, not as comfortable as the XA though :)

These are pluses considering what you say the camera is for: a daily take-and-go shooter. Your mileage *will* vary.
 
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