olympus om-1 street + mirror lock up

[px09]

Hello

i'm thinking to buy a olympus om-1 but i've a question about the mechanism of mirror lock up.
the shutter fires instantly or it has to wait some milliseconds even if the mirror is locked up?

Thanks

 

[Shutterspark]

There's no perceivable delay, but you might have trouble with the slightly fiddly MLU switch if you're planning on doing this at speed. You still have to follow up by pressing the shutter release button.

 

[px09]

i'm planning to use large dof (24-28mm and from f11 to f22) so i can easly stay prefocused.
I've already tryed this method with my dslr and the pics are reasonably in focus and sharp, obviously i've still to train a lot.
if the mirror is locked up to reduce the dealy the shutter will be quieter?
there are some issues that i've to consider in attaching an external viewfinder in the shoe?

thanks

 

[jesse1dog]

Buy an OM-1. It wont cost all that much and then test it out yourself. I certainly wouldn't bother with an external viewfinder when the body is SLR in the first place. But it's always 'horses for courses' as the expression goes.

jesse

 

[Keith]

You might want to look through the OM-1 finder first. Also locking the mirror up doesn't make a huge difference to the sound in my experience and a lot of the shutter's energy is devoted to the aperture stop down mechanism ... more than flipping the mirror IMO.

 

[Johnmcd]

The OM also has a relatively quiet shutter in comparison to many other SLR's and there is a lot of built in dampening. Sounds very 'muffled' rather than a sharp 'clack'.

 

[Trius]

I've done this with a 21 and finder in the shoe. Worked well.

 

[px09]

thank you for your answers, i think i'll buy one om-1 and i'll give it a try

 

[Dwig]

...
the shutter fires instantly or it has to wait some milliseconds even if the mirror is locked up?

Thanks

Even with the mirror locked up there will be more delay than with a RF. Locking the mirror on the OM, and most SLRs, doesn't also operate the iris closedown mechanism. When you trip the shutter the iris must be closed first which takes time, about the same amount of time as when the mirror is operating. Only then does the actual shutter fire.

Cameras with a pre-release instead of a lock, like the Nikon F, avoid the delay as the whole mirror lift mechinism and the auto-diaphram mechinism are triggered in advance. The may be some other cameras that stop the lens down when lifting the mirror but I can't think of one.

 

[wblynch]

Any delay from pressing the shutter button is imperceptible to humans.

There is a slight noise from closing the aperture. You can observe that with the mirror locked up and shooting with the lens wide open and then closed down.

The noise is very low. You can use a leather half case and reduce the noise even further.

 

[px09]

Thanks Dwig for your explanation, seems the nikon f with pre release system isn't easy to find and for sure it will be expensive than a om-1.
Last question, do you think attaching a 28mm viewfinder (voigtlander or ricoh) the framing will be almost precise? (in the om-1)

thanks

 

[wblynch]

The OM-1 has a screw mount flash shoe. It is probably not perfectly aligned. Plus most are cracked. They don't have to be that well aligned for a flash. Take your chances with a shoe mounted viewfinder.

If you have time to bring the camera to your eye and frame a picture a tiny bit of noise ain't gonna matter. Plus you can't hear that mirror or aperture lever from more than 6 inches away.


Why mess around? If you want a rangefinder, get one.

 

[cjbecker]

I have always tried to work a camera like you are talking. I have done it with a 500cm and a sportsfinder. Never ended up using it that much like that though. It's fun though. I was looking to do the exact same thing with a nikon f2.