Olympus XA for my Birthday!

camera.bear

camera.bear

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Hey Everyone,

It has been a tough year and I decided to finally treat myself. I just got myself an Olympus XA for my birthday. 😀

I live in sunny Phoenix and shoot mostly outside. What film do you all recomend for use in the XA? Are there any pitfalls that I should look out for or tips and tricks for using this camera? Thanks in advance.

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Happy birthday!

I use mine with Fujichrome Provia most of the time - but I am sure the XA will deliver great results with almost any film!

Pitfalls? Well, if you want to use autoflash, you have to use either 100 or 400 film and f4

Use silver oxide batteries as recommended in the instructions, not alkaline, to get correct exposure

Enjoy! It is a great little camera!
 
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The XA is probably my most treasured camera I own. The fact that I can have a camera in my pocket at all times, and be able to control it easily makes it an invaluable tool for what I love doing best. Recording the world around me.

In terms of tips - you can sort of control your shutter speed by playing with the iso lever. so if you feel the exposure it's offering isn't your cup of tea than you have a bit of room to play with.

As for my XA I almost only put 400 speed film through it because my job takes me into some places that aren't as bright and I want to be able to shoot still.

http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=olympus xa&w=8119366@N03 - the tagged shots on my flickr for XA.
 
Cool beans, Wayne!

You'll love Arizona landscape pics from this XA, with it's lovely built-in vignetting effect 😉

Film-wise, anything is good, my favorite is Kodak Gold 200 or HD 200 if you can still get those. Kodachrome is good also.

I am more curious on the film on the box... 1000 ASA, eh?
 
In addition to K64, which is brilliant in the XA (shoot now or forever hold your peace ... try ASA 80), for the bright Arizona sun I would give PanF+ and TMX a try for b&w, and some ISO 100 for colour. I agree with Ektar, even though I haven't shot it yet myself.

If you can get ahold of any Agfa C41 (even outdated as long as you know for sure it is recent and was stored properly,) I'd use that in ISO 100 or 200. The XA does well with that pallette, but then most cameras do. 😀
 
I currently live in Florida which usually is very sunny, like Phoenix, and I've found that ISO 400 is a little high for my taste while using my XA. You constantly have to set the F stops very high, i.e., F22, and sometimes that isn't high enough. While I do use 400 film occsionally, like when I'm in Russia, 90% of the time I load it up with 200, which does just fine even in low light conditions. Best thing is to try both speeds and see what you think.
 
Job 1: Replace those foam seals immediately. Hopefully, it was done by the previous owner.

The meter needle on my camera is sluggish, although the camera seems to set the correct exposure.

It's a nice little camera, and I think that you'll have a lot of fun with it.

Once again, it showcases Olympus' daring spirit and willingness to go its own way.
 
Shoot Kodachrome for as long as you can get it. You'll never regret it.
 
Trius said:
Yes, BW400CN is good, just make sure to rate it at 250 or 320 for most shots.
Click to expand...

Listen to Earl and Bill.

I forgot about the BW400CN. That film kicks butt on the XA, the long tonal scale can really showcase that incredible XA lens.

Also it's equivalent, the XP200 Super if you can find some. Same rating as above, around 250ASA.

When you scan these, get rid of the color cast, punch the contrast up a bit, and prepare to be amazed.
 
Whatever you decide, ignore that VR 1000 sticker.

And try FP4 Plus, if you can get it and get it D&P'd, it's one it was designed for.

Regards, David

PS My Rule of Thumb is 100 for summer, 400 for winter and 200 for in between.
 
Thank you Everyone,

I have been looking forward to trying an XA for awhile and from my initial impressions, I think that I will really enjoy shooting this one.

And the winner is.......Ektar 100, for now. I really wany try and get some Kodachrome 64 and shoot it while I can.

@ZeissFan....Thanks for the heads up on the seals, but these look ok for now.

@Harlee, Trius, Darkhorse....you're right, 400 speed films are definitly too fast to use here in Phoenix in the summer. It's not quite as bad in the winter.

@shadowfox....from Kodak's website and other sources "KODACOLOR VR 100 Film was introduced, utilizing a new T-GRAIN Emulsion Technology, which represented a major break-through in silver-halide emulsions. " KODACOLOR VR films were later renamed KODACOLOR GOLD i.e, your favorite film.

@BillBillingham2, Trius....I shot some BW400CN in my L35AF back in the middle of March and it came out nicely. I think I will shoot it at 400 again as I have enough light alreay.

@Everyone....Thanks for the tips and great advise. Now I am off to start snapping some pics. 😀
 
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