Olympus Pen F current value (Nov. 2015)

IloveTLRs · Nov 3, 2015

ciniframe said:
... There seem to be quite a few Pen F bodies offered on EBay from Japan. ...

If it's anything like a few years ago, then they are still cheap over there. I remember a store having around 10 or more F, FT & FV bodies with and without lenses, and none of them sold.
The 38/1.8 lens is a female dog to put together again once taken apart.
I would humbly suggest that one should expect FT bodes to have non-functioning meters. Of all the ones I've handled, only the one I have now has a working meter. They are either inaccurate or dead.
Also beware of frame spacing issues! It is related to a spring(?) inside the take-up spool.

Just my 2 Yen.

Personally I love the whole Pen series. To me they are fantastic little cameras with excellent lenses.

wblynch · Nov 3, 2015

Has anyone used a half-frame camera like the Pen to shoot slides?

It seems like a fun exercise but one would have to plan their shots to make sure adjacent frames present well together.

Lee Rust · Nov 3, 2015

As I understand it, half-frame slide mounts were never widely available and that was one more reason why the format died off in the early '70's. Kodak reportedly didn't like the way half-frame 35 used half as much film as full-frame, so they never got behind it.

Mounting two adjacent frames in one full-frame slide mount would be problematical since there would be no way to determine which frames went together unless you were mounting them yourself. Additionally, as noted above, the frame spacing can vary quite a bit.

wblynch · Nov 3, 2015

No I meant side-by-side in whatever order they come on the roll...

removed account4 · Nov 3, 2015

wblynch said:
Has anyone used a half-frame camera like the Pen to shoot slides?

It seems like a fun exercise but one would have to plan their shots to make sure adjacent frames present well together.

a friend's father traveled throughout europe with a half frame ( shooting chromes ), and loved it

John Koehrer · Nov 3, 2015

I had a Pen F in '66 and shot nothing Kodachrome or Ektachrome. Never had a problem.
I don't remember any problems with exposure but if there were any mistakes they went in the trash.

AgX · Nov 3, 2015

wblynch said:
I meant [two frames within one mount] side-by-side in whatever order they come on the roll...

Interesting idea. You would safe a second projector. But what if camera orientation changed between two exposures? I guess that would be a good cause for the audience to leave...

Sirius Glass · Nov 3, 2015

I have found that the single frame photographs from my Tessina camera when I used Tri-X 400 would become grainy when much enlargement was done. Too bad the Plus-X was discontinued. I will have to use Ilford FP4 when I get around to using up the spooled Tri-X.

Lee Rust · Nov 3, 2015

These days I generally keep Portra 400 in my Pen. Enlargements up to 5x7 look fine to me but I rarely go beyond that anyway, even with larger formats. Up until a few years ago I used Ektachrome for all my 35mm color, but that's long gone now. These days, here in the hometown of Kodak, I only know of one commercial lab, Praus Productions, that still processes E6.

As for mounting adjacent transparency frames in one slide mount, that would work fine except that irregular frame spacing would cause occasional alignment problems.

thuggins · Nov 5, 2015

wblynch said:
Has anyone used a half-frame camera like the Pen to shoot slides?

It seems like a fun exercise but one would have to plan their shots to make sure adjacent frames present well together.

Go to the Half Frame Temple group to see my comments on viewing trannies from Pens. The lenses are razor sharp and transparencies come out beautifully. As for the meter on the FT, both of mine still work flawlessly, so from my experience they are quite reliable. Regarding viewfinder brightness, having compared the F and FT side by side there is not an appreciable difference.

As to the question of "what is it worth?", the real question is whether it is worth that to you.

Trask · Nov 6, 2015

I've already posted to note that I have, and have used, a couple of FTs, plus viewfinder Pens and a couple of European half-frames. The reason I don't use them more, beyond my focusing concerns, is that I always find myself asking why I wouldn't just shoot full-frame 35mm and reap the benefits of a larger negative at relatively little additional weight. If I were to run into a once-in-a-lifetime shot and only had a half-frame with me, I'd probably kick myself. Yes, a 36 exposure roll goes twice as far, but the fall-off in print quality as negative size decreases bothers me. And no, I can't justify by that logic why I occasionally use a Minox...

AgX · Nov 6, 2015

That is a good point. Cameras got smaller, film cheaper.
Who still wants more frame to the buck can double-expose on 24x36. A bit clumsy, but doable.

Sirius Glass · Nov 6, 2015

I have a Tessina which is a single frame [half frame] camera, but I do not use it since I would rather shoot 35mm, 120 or 4"x5".

thuggins · Nov 7, 2015

Trask said:
Yes, a 36 exposure roll goes twice as far, but the fall-off in print quality as negative size decreases bothers me.

Apparently you are not familiar with the strategy that Olympus used to combat the "fall-off in print quality" fiction back in the 1960's. The 4x3 aspect ratio of the half frame is far closer to standard crops (e.g. 8x10) than the 3x2 aspect ratio of a full size 35mm negative. So the enlargement factor and amount of the image lost in the crop is less. Also, the Pen lenses were remarkably sharp. When Olympus showcased the Pens, they would have 16x20 prints from both Pens and professional quality full frame cameras and invite the pros to tell the difference. Invariably, no one could.

Fixcinater · Nov 7, 2015

I brought my FV out this morning and took some frames on Plus-X with the 38/1.8. Looking forward to finishing the roll (eventually...) and see what it looks like. Focuses quite closely, I'm impressed!

Richard S. (rich815) · Nov 7, 2015

thuggins said:
Apparently you are not familiar with the strategy that Olympus used to combat the "fall-off in print quality" fiction back in the 1960's. The 4x3 aspect ratio of the half frame is far closer to standard crops (e.g. 8x10) than the 3x2 aspect ratio of a full size 35mm negative. So the enlargement factor and amount of the image lost in the crop is less. Also, the Pen lenses were remarkably sharp. When Olympus showcased the Pens, they would have 16x20 prints from both Pens and professional quality full frame cameras and invite the pros to tell the difference. Invariably, no one could.

Yup. The ol' Pen F and lenses can hold its own very well against any full frame 35mm camera.

Olympus Pen F current value (Nov. 2015)

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