Coming back to film with Oly OM-1n, some specific questions?

Canuck Bob · Feb 8, 2011

I am returning to film and active photography after a long hiatus. A clean OM-1n body is in my near future. I am so tired of the lousy viewfinders and washed out screens of digital cameras. Viewfinder performance is my highest priority and building a kit for capturing candid available light film photos is the goal. My subject matter will be my family and capturing the life of the Alberta oilpatch as a field salesman. Probably lots of handheld shots. Please advise below?

Faster wide angle lens for family shots and action shots of workers at wellheads?
50mm prime, 1.2, 1.4, or 1.8 and why?
Best viewfinder for sharp bright focus, this is key?
A small length telephoto or maybe a zoom

Please note, have Oly E-410 for DSLR work, portraits, snapshots, indoor flash, p&s style picture shooting.

Carl V · Feb 8, 2011

For starters, the Olympus OM-1n is an excellent mechanical body which I'm sure you'll enjoy using. Both the OM-1n and OM-2n have nice bright viewfinders and as for the Olympus Zuiko lenses, well I have to say you won't go wrong with any of them really as far as quality is concerned.

For family shots, you may want to look at a 28mm or 35mm wide-angle. This will probably cover most situations, although I'm not familiar with your line of work so you may require something a little wider perhaps. With the 50mm, the 1.8 version is the easiest to come by and the cheapest, but if you're into low-light hand-held photography, then I'd consider the faster versions. Personally, I'd favour the 1.4 but that's just my own opinion. All three versions you mention are of exceptional quality.

Just as an added note, the 35mm, 28mm and 24mm wide-angles were available with an f/2.8 or f/2 maximum aperture. The faster versions will probably be harder to come by but for available light photography, they would be ideal for you.

As for a short telephoto, a 100mm would be ideal for portraits but for long distance photography you'd want something a little longer, say 200mm or more. The 135mm lenses were popular in their day, and although there are zoom lenses which will cover this range, I personally have always preferred fixed focal length lenses.

Rick A · Feb 8, 2011

You may also want to look into an OM-3t. Its fully mechanical, manual only, just like the OM-1, but with the best light metering system you will find anywhere. It has spot or averaging metering, with hilight or shadow biasing at the touch of a button. It accepts all the same accessories as the OM-1,and like the 1, if the batteries die you keep shooting, as they only operate the meter. For lenses, the 50/1.4, 100/2.8, and 100-200 zoom, plus a 28 or 35mm W/A will work. The 100 is great for portraits as is a 135(which can be had cheap). I prefer to carry all Zuiko glass and leave the aftermarket stuff alone. The price of lenses is low enough to afford OEM stuff.

Canuck Bob · Feb 8, 2011

Thanks guys,
The OM-3Ti is on a wish list or perhaps a dream list. I plan to start humble and wait until I'm sure the activity will blossom back into a fun hobby. The OM system really works for me for future growth.

The OM-3Ti is very expensive and the OM-4Ti might be my second choice due to its affordability. I've started researching the battery life issue.

Mark Fisher · Feb 8, 2011

Om1 is all you'll ever need. I've used one since 1978 and just sold an OM4T because I preferred the simplicity of the OM1......anyway..... I'd suggest getting it overhauled when you get it to get rid of the prism foam and convert it to a more modern battery (OM2 already has a more modern battery). For the 50, I'd go with either the 1.8 (sharpest, cheapest, smallest) or the f1.4 (sharp, fastest, still small). Both are great lenses. Indoors and closer, get a 35 or 28mm. Either the f2 or 2.8 depending on your budget. I concur with the suggestion of the 100mm f2.8...nice, small, sharp.

M.A.Longmore · Feb 8, 2011

.
Welcome Home, Bob !

martinf · Feb 8, 2011

If you are into hacking, you can get a brighter viewfinder in the single digit OM cameras. Olympus produced the extra bright 2-4 and 2-13 viewfinders. They are rarer than hens teeth. However if you buy a dead OM30 or OM40, they contain the equivalent of the 2-13 viewfinder. You have to file down the various tabs so that it fits (the viewfinders are plastic, so it's pretty easy). However with an OM1n or 2n, the use of these finders affects the metering. As already mentioned, OM1n used a mercury battery which is no longer available, you would have to look into that anyway. A dead OM30 or OM40 is cheaper than a 2-13 screen.

I seem to be pretty lucky with battery life on my OM2s(p) and the view finder hack produced about about an extra stop of light.

As to lenses, I agree with the recomendations of 24/2.8 50/1.4 or 50/1.8 100/2.8 135/2.8 or 135/3.5.

I avoided the zooms as I heard 70s zooms are not that great, and you are pretty much limited to F4 or slower.

Rick A · Feb 8, 2011

I have an OM-4 that needs serviced, its been sitting on a shelf for several years. I see no reason to get it up and running, I prefer the simplicity of my OM-1. Of course, I would love an OM-3ti for the meter and mechanical shutter.

Jeff Kubach · Feb 8, 2011

You might look up a 100 macro.

Jeff

RH Designs · Feb 8, 2011

There's no battery issue with the OM-4T/Ti. it was some examples of the plain OM-4 that had the problem. Mine is one that doesn't! My OM-2SP eats them though ...

Canuck Bob · Feb 8, 2011

The truth is I miss my old Spotmatic F's simplicity and great photo's. I remember the first time I finally could meter without stopping down, it was a revolution. I drooled over an OM-1 back then but it cost too much. For the forseeable future I'll stick with the 1n and build up a little system around the OM-1n.

I'm looking into a MC 50mm 1.4 to start. If I find a good clean 1.2 first I'll buy it. A 28mm 2.8 will work for my WA as I'm a standard prime shooter usually. The dual purpose 100mm range Macro is a real dandy idea. There is no zoom or long telephoto in my future.

Another quick question regarding a CLA. Would you trust a local shop to CLA a working camera or would you bite the bullet and send it to Camtech for an overhaul. I've never done a CLA so not sure how involved they are. Is a CLA the same as Camtech's basic overhaul? The camera comes with the little step down adaptor for the battery and I want to make sure the prism is safe and clean. The proper in camera battery upgrade does make sense, nothing to lose and common batteries.

BetterSense · Feb 8, 2011

Personally, I wouldn't use anything but Camtech if I had a choice.

mgb74 · Feb 8, 2011

Personally, I've not found the speed of a 1.4 lens to be that much of an advantage over a 1.8. The reduced DoF could be useful though. A macro would certainly be useful. And a tripod if you can bring it along.

darinwc · Feb 8, 2011

martinf said:
However if you buy a dead OM30 or OM40, they contain the equivalent of the 2-13 viewfinder.

have you done this yourself?
I have puchased a few OMPC's just for this purpose and the screen was no brighter than a 1 series screen. -Also, you dont have to file down the screen because the screen from an OM40 doesn not have a tab.

wiltw · Feb 8, 2011

The OM-1 and OM-2 have higher viewfinder magnification than the OM-3 and OM-4 which had to pack in more information displays, so the focusing area had to be reduced in magnification to accomodate the status displays in the newer models.

darinwc · Feb 8, 2011

Regarding other questions:

A CLA from Camtech is worth every penny. Buy the standard lenses and save your dough for the CLA.
Small cameras like the Olympus cram alot into a tiny package.. it makes it very hard to work on yourself.

The top end Olympus lenses get very expensive.. so be aware.

martinf · Feb 8, 2011

darinwc said:
have you done this yourself?
I have puchased a few OMPC's just for this purpose and the screen was no brighter than a 1 series screen. -Also, you dont have to file down the screen because the screen from an OM40 doesn not have a tab.

Yes, I used an OM30 and that definately had a tab I had to file down. Maybe it was wishful thinking, but it definately looked brighter. I will have to think of a way of testing it now........

MattKing · Feb 8, 2011

The most important thing, Bob, is to make sure you buy the camera from a reputable source .

Canuck Bob · Feb 8, 2011

MattKing said:
The most important thing, Bob, is to make sure you buy the camera from a reputable source .

Thanks Matt! I hope the electronic transfer worked quickly. You folks can guess were I got the camera!

Now that I know the camera had a CLA in 2003 I can shoot away.

Found some lenses to view. Want to stay with the MC's so the learning curve continues. It turns out I can buy camera kits and get another body cheaper than buying lenses alone. Anyone point me at a site that helps with identifying the different lense grades?

I must admit that the 50mm 1.8 continues to get great reviews here and on the net and is dirt cheap and readily available.

John Hermanson · Feb 9, 2011

OM-30 (aka OM-F) has completely different screen with weird tabs on it. OM-G (20) and OM-PC (40) are said to be brighter than series 1 screens, but are still not as bright as 2-4 or 2-13. Beattie Intenscreens are also available for OM. Bright screens cause 2/3rds of a stop underexposure in the OM-1/1N. My overhaul is the same as a CLA. John

wblynch · Feb 9, 2011

As an OM1 user since 1975 I agree with all the comments above.

I do think that the 35/2.8 might be a good lens for your people pictures. I've always had the 28/2.8 and lately the 24/2.8 which are both great lenses but can distort people pictures if you're not careful.

My favorite Zuiko is still the 50/1.4. I have an early 'silver-nose' edition that has a pleasing glow and wonderful bokeh. The 1.8's are more contrasty and handle flair better but I prefer 1.4 look.

Anyway, good luck with Olympus. They are great little cameras.

And I also recommend John Hermanson at Camtech for any OM repairs.

Canuck Bob · Feb 9, 2011

John Hermanson said:
OM-30 (aka OM-F) has completely different screen with weird tabs on it. OM-G (20) and OM-PC (40) are said to be brighter than series 1 screens, but are still not as bright as 2-4 or 2-13. Beattie Intenscreens are also available for OM. Bright screens cause 2/3rds of a stop underexposure in the OM-1/1N. My overhaul is the same as a CLA. John

Thank you John. Please excuse my ignorance regarding the inner workings of a camera. Can the meter be recalibrated to match the brighter screens?

Is there a way without disassembly to check for the prism foam?

Mark Fisher · Feb 9, 2011

To add to my previous comment.....one really nice thing about the OM system is size. It is possible to assemble a complete 3 lens system and they all have 49mm filters (including the 50mm f1.4). If you decide on getting the 50mm 1.2, get a 50mm f1.8 also. They are dirt cheap, one of the best optically and tiny.

mopar_guy · Feb 9, 2011

Another lens that has not been mentioned yet is the 55mm f1.2 G. Zuiko. Single coated and uses 55mm filters, but it is a great low light alternative.

Some other points to ponder regarding Zuiko wide angle lenses: The faster lens for a given focal length has built-in floating elements design to correct the lens at closer focusing distances and the slower lens does not. For example, the 24mm f2.0 Zuiko has floating elements and the 24mm f2.8 does not.

whlogan · Feb 9, 2011

Welcome home! Get the 50 1.2 and the 100 2.8 and which ever 35 or 28 suits you. all others are gloss. Enjoy!
Logan

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