johnnyrod
More cameras than shots
I recently bought an Olympus S 1960s 35mm rangefinder, fixed 50mm f1.8 G.Zuiko (7 element) lens, unit focus, selenium meter, Copal shutter going up to 1/500th and aperture up to f/16.
Olympus S Electro Set by John Rodriguez, on Flickr
There were other, later models also called "Electro Set" with some degree of exposure automation, shutter priority I think, this one has a coupled meter but is all manual. I checked it over and put a film in before I realised the lens barrel is a little wobbly, and the meter is more off than on at higher shutter speeds, so I need to check those out, but the first pics are back:
Certo by John Rodriguez, on Flickr
Gate by John Rodriguez, on Flickr
Some pics came out better than others in seemingly equivalent conditions; think that's just the way it goes. One or two, especially with flash, were quite amazingly sharp, though maybe only marginally more so than a Zeiss Tessar.
It's very nice to use, a tabbed focus ring with short travel, good rangefinder contrast, meter visible in the viewfinder. The meter is good enough (when working) though more prone to stray sky light than the Zeiss Contessas I've got. Not too heavy considering the size of the lens. The first picture was taken at the minimum focal range of about 0.85m. I'm hoping the problems are easy enough to fix as I've tangled with a Copal shutter before and it wasn't fun. The self-timer sounds good and everything seems pretty clean internally - the view/rangefinder and outside was quite dirty, and the RF needed adjusting when I first got it.
Not many of these around it would seem, anyone else used one?
Olympus S Electro Set by John Rodriguez, on FlickrThere were other, later models also called "Electro Set" with some degree of exposure automation, shutter priority I think, this one has a coupled meter but is all manual. I checked it over and put a film in before I realised the lens barrel is a little wobbly, and the meter is more off than on at higher shutter speeds, so I need to check those out, but the first pics are back:
Certo by John Rodriguez, on FlickrGate by John Rodriguez, on FlickrSome pics came out better than others in seemingly equivalent conditions; think that's just the way it goes. One or two, especially with flash, were quite amazingly sharp, though maybe only marginally more so than a Zeiss Tessar.
It's very nice to use, a tabbed focus ring with short travel, good rangefinder contrast, meter visible in the viewfinder. The meter is good enough (when working) though more prone to stray sky light than the Zeiss Contessas I've got. Not too heavy considering the size of the lens. The first picture was taken at the minimum focal range of about 0.85m. I'm hoping the problems are easy enough to fix as I've tangled with a Copal shutter before and it wasn't fun. The self-timer sounds good and everything seems pretty clean internally - the view/rangefinder and outside was quite dirty, and the RF needed adjusting when I first got it.
Not many of these around it would seem, anyone else used one?