Replacement XA on its way

[TXForester]

Glad you found another.

I have an XA and two XA2s. The second XA2 because I wasn't paying attention while bidding for the XA and bid on the wrong item. 🙂 The XA's meter needle doesn't work, but it still takes good photos. One XA2 is stuck in self-timer mode, but works. They have become the cameras that always go with me. At work, I leave bigger cameras in the truck and slip the XA or XA2 in a pocket of the cruiser vest before going into the woods.

 

[Bingley]

I bought an XA new in the early 1980s from the old 47th Street Photo in NYC. I still have it, and for many years it was my only camera. Feeling the need for a back-up, I bought a second XA from a member here several years ago. Can't remember what I paid for it, but I don't think it was over $60. Both cameras are still working well. I can't imagine being w/out an XA. The image quality may not be quite as good as the Tessar on my Rollei 35, but it's more than good enough, and it's still the most pocketable camera I own.

 

[btgc]

go for it you know your gas will be healed if you buy just one more camera

My GAS yesterday were tested by letting going 4 (four!!!!) original Trips in a row, all for about eur10. What I were thinking?!? That 35RC is enough? Hell, yes! It is enough! I can live without Trip. Can I? Trip should give same feeling of simplicity as XA2 over XA, but in this case I'm ready to limit myself to just one camera. Trips are nice, Trips are classic...but 35RC is already resealed, slightly adjusted and film tested. Actually it takes superb pictures, I'm free. Yes, I'm free to take pictures, yes!

So I have to take out XA2 and 35RC this month instead of buying another camera.

 

[louisb]

The reason why I always prefer (and preferred) the XA over the XA2's and the like was not just the full manual control, e.g. aperture and focus but the cleverness of packing all that into such a tiny form factor with a proper rangefinder.

And the IQ of the optics which are quite superb.

Although I have bought a replacement with the flashgun in truth I have never really used one. I love the size of the XA body as-is. Fits so easily into a pocket.

The whole design and build of the XA makes you wonder how on earth Olympus could afford to do it and make a profit. I guess back in the 70s and 80s volumes were so large it was feasible.

LouisB

 

[kuzano]

The meter needle vs the meter....

The meter needle vs the meter....

Glad you found another.

I have an XA and two XA2s. The second XA2 because I wasn't paying attention while bidding for the XA and bid on the wrong item. 🙂 The XA's meter needle doesn't work, but it still takes good photos. One XA2 is stuck in self-timer mode, but works. They have become the cameras that always go with me. At work, I leave bigger cameras in the truck and slip the XA or XA2 in a pocket of the cruiser vest before going into the woods.

I was always fascinated by how the XA could meter the shutter properly, but the needle not show what shutter speed was used.

Over time, I had two such XA's. I was getting perfectly exposed images, ie. the meter was working, but I had no idea what shutter speed was being used.

(furthermore, i could not figure out how to look at the EXIF information on the film frame to determine shutter speed... imagine that)

And yet, once I proved to prospective buyers that the camera was metering and producing quality images, even when throwing the switch on the 1.5 stop exposure compensation, I got nearly as much for them as if the meter needle worked.

Apparently, there are still those people, who I include myself among, who do not need to clutter their minds with useless information like:

what aperture
what shutter speed
and what ASA/ISO....

As long as the images look good. How free feeling is that?

 

[CliveC]

I was just going to post a topic on this. My XA's needle seems to indicate a shutter speed a lot slower than needed. In bright sunlight at f/2.8, it was indicating only 1/125. I've replaced the battery but it still seems the same.

Is it confirmed that the actual shutter speed is set independently of what is shown in the meter?

 

[btgc]

Is it confirmed that the actual shutter speed is set independently of what is shown in the meter?

Yes, these are independent. Though now quest to determine if meter shows different speed from what shutter will fire at or actually both VW and shutter are affected.

 

[kuzano]

Yes,,, they are independent....

Yes,,, they are independent....

I was just going to post a topic on this. My XA's needle seems to indicate a shutter speed a lot slower than needed. In bright sunlight at f/2.8, it was indicating only 1/125. I've replaced the battery but it still seems the same.

Is it confirmed that the actual shutter speed is set independently of what is shown in the meter?

In both of my cases, one meter NEEDLE was completely inactive, while I could determine that different aperture setting created a change in the shutter speed by sound. In the second case this same tactice determined changes by sound in shutter speed, while the needle did not match up to a shutter speed determined by an accurate hand held meter.

The final test of course is to shoot a test roll, running the camera up through the aperture settings and back down logging the aperture setting of each aperture, and what the handheld meter indicated as shutter speed. If the pics seem to expose properly, then the part of the system that sets the needle on the shutter speed is inaccurate, or inoperative.

In both cases, I proved this out and learned to trust that each camera was choosing an appropriate shutter speed, regardless of the needle indication.

I must add that there was always the fantasy on the partially active needle that it would fix itself, while I gave up on such a fantasy on the one with the inoperative needle and just trusted it to meter according to aperture set and choose the proper shutter speed (unrevealed), and forgot that there was in indicator for shutter speed.

As I said, I could not even find the EXIF information in the film frames shot!:bang:

 

[lxmike]

Glad you found another.

I have an XA and two XA2s. The second XA2 because I wasn't paying attention while bidding for the XA and bid on the wrong item. 🙂 The XA's meter needle doesn't work, but it still takes good photos. One XA2 is stuck in self-timer mode, but works. They have become the cameras that always go with me. At work, I leave bigger cameras in the truck and slip the XA or XA2 in a pocket of the cruiser vest before going into the woods.

I must admit Im hunting out a XA2 as we spea;, as it were

 

[lxmike]

I bought an XA new in the early 1980s from the old 47th Street Photo in NYC. I still have it, and for many years it was my only camera. Feeling the need for a back-up, I bought a second XA from a member here several years ago. Can't remember what I paid for it, but I don't think it was over $60. Both cameras are still working well. I can't imagine being w/out an XA. The image quality may not be quite as good as the Tessar on my Rollei 35, but it's more than good enough, and it's still the most pocketable camera I own.

it was nice to be out with my new XA this afternoon fits nicely in the pocket

 

[Bingley]

it was nice to be out with my new XA this afternoon fits nicely in the pocket

Congrats to you and enjoy the XA!

 

[lxmike]

Congrats to you and enjoy the XA!

I must admit its nice to 'tootle' about with an XA in my pocket, I only wish it had a sutter button lock