Missing a 35mm. But with prices so low which one?

[waynecrider]

I sold my 8008s and went about a year before I bought another 35mm which wound up being the N80, only cause I had lenses left over, but then the camera is light and the metering is good. If I had to start fresh I'd find any decent late model AF body regardless of brand with incorporated flash and the single best zoom I could afford. The thing I love most about the Nikon is the "D" flash with flash compensation for people pic's, but then there's quite a few others that have the same option. I think for the prices around today, a body with the latest metering options, including top notch TTL flash metering, a better choice for people pics, especially when having available zoom lenses that are better performing then in years previous.

 

[josephaustin]

Save some cash, battery hassles and get just as good a camera as an OM1, buy a Pentax MX. They are cheaper, as nice, and take standered akaline or silver oxide batteries.

I love mine use it and an ME Super all the time. I second the canonet though, love it as well.

K-mount lenses are great, fairly cheap, and go from 17mm- 1000mm. The MX is a Pro camera, offers interchangable focusing screens, motor drive, fully manual operation at all speeds, PC socket, and a hotshoe. You really cant go wrong with this camera, and it is about the same size as the OM-1, esspecially with the 40mm pancake lense.

 

[gnashings]

Ah! Batteries! I recommended the Canon EF, a camera that used the mercury cells.. BUT: it is one of a very few (and the only one I know of for a fact) cameras that have voltage compensating circuitry built in. Its there, I know, I had one, I tested this out myself - 1.3v or 1.5v, it does not care.

 

[Soeren]

I once had an OM1 and an OM2n with 28, 50, 135 and 300mm lenses.
I sold it all and got myself a F90X. I now have that and a FE2.
Although the OM system was good and the cameras small Ill choose a Nikon body today if starting over again. I find the nikon bodies better than Olympus. You get more info in the viewfinder on Nikon and I find them brighter. The F90X has a great viewfinder, much better than the FE2 and its is very good with AI(S) lenses so I'd recommend the F90X.
Regards Søren

 

[Uncle Bill]

Well....If I were on a strict budget, I would look for the Pentax Spotmatic II with the 55/1.8 SMC Takumar lens. The OM-1 is a great choice that I am toying with as well and the Canon Canonet QL17 GIII. I have taken many a cool shot with that little rangefinder.

Bill

 

[Changeling1]

My first SLR was an OM-2. Nice camera, great glass. But.... I later came upon a couple of Minolta SRT-102s which are also fine manual 35mm cameras. Better yet, Rokkor lenses are superb! I've seen good examples of these cameras being sold at rock bottom prices also. With prices as they are for analog photo kit, the challenge is not to buy more equipment than will ever be used!

 

[nsurit]

The Olympus OM system is a good one. The OM 1 and 1n can be converted to take modern batteries or you can use an adapter as others have suggested. Unless you are planning to use flash and want auto mode, the 1n and 2n are not really neccessary. The shoe 4 which is required on these 2 models is neither real easy to find nor inexpensive. Stick with the single digit models. The 3, 3T and 4T can get a little more expensive, particularly the 3T.
The lenses are generally outstanding. Some of the ones which were pricy when originally manufactured, still are. Olympus has a great macro system. As a collector and user of OM gear, ApUGers might want to contact me offlist if the have a burning desire for something OM. Bill Barber