OM-1 a la carte......

janrzm

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Well, you know the story. You find the camera you want on ebay and make a bid, then something better appears and you bid on that too because you just can't help yourself.......

Before you know it you have two virtually identical OM-1's. If your anything like me then you can't sell a camera to save your life....so what do you do, well you pimp one up!!!

Here is my altered OM-1, now lovingly referred to as the OM-1 a la carte......


AFTER....... by J Howe, on Flickr
 

E. von Hoegh

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TheFlyingCamera said:
Gator hide would look pretty cool - although I suspect you'd need something like an RB67 or a Speed Graphic to really pull it off. A 35mm camera just doesn't have the square inches to properly take advantage of the texture.
Click to expand...

Use baby gators for small cameras.
 

BradleyK

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Nice work. A real eye-catcher there. Hmmm....maybe I should customize one of my F2s with say...coral snake skin...or western diamondback...or maybe...baby alligator (if I did the MD2/MB1 I should have enough surface area to pull it off...)
 

wblynch

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Nice treatment.

I have 6 OM-1s and had the thought of using different leathers for 3 or 4 of them. It would make it easy to identify which one uses what film.

Plus I think it's a cool fashion statement. A Creamy Yellow or Orange would be great. I don't see those colors at Camera Leather or Aki-Asahi though.

I have a couple of OM10's I could do up also.
 
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janrzm

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Now I feel better about having two....you should definitely do them!!!
 

E. von Hoegh

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Do one up in plaid.

If you have any saltwater fisherman acquaintances, maybe you can get some real sharkskin to cover one with. It's very non-slippery.
 

Newt_on_Swings

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Even better get ray skin, or shagreen. It's a safely caught animal that is usually by catch and is not over fished. Samurai used the material of sword handles for grip aswell.
 

Diapositivo

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I think you'll soon discover why leatherette is typically black.
It's the same rule as for motorcycle jackets*

Fabrizio

* In the shop they have different colours, on the road they all have the same colour.
 
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janrzm

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Diapositivo said:
I think you'll soon discover why leatherette is typically black.
It's the same rule as for motorcycle jackets*

Fabrizio

* In the shop they have different colours, on the road they all have the same colour.
Click to expand...

Ha, you so right....I've said exactly that on my Facebook page about this camera, still it looks great and for $19.00 I'll change it when its dirty....

Full story here if anyone is interested - http://aperturepriority.co.nz/2012/06/05/olympus-om-1-a-la-carte/
 

Chris Nielsen

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Three questions: 1) is that an Aki-Asahi cover there? 2) would you be gutted if I chose the same colour? 3) Do you know if the OM4 is the same?
 
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janrzm

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TheFlyingCamera

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Well, after looking into gator hide prices, I know why nobody does it - it would cost you almost as much as the purchase price of a Speed Graphic just to get the gator hide! But it would look extremely cool to have a Speed Graphic covered with the back scales of a gator... talk about steampunk aesthetic!
 

Newt_on_Swings

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You could get embossed regular cow hide or sheep skin for less. I went in search for exotic materials too. I think I can do a om4t champagne in blue stingray for about ~$35 since I have a dremel and pilobond already.
 

darinwc

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Wow the white really looks sharp! I never would have thought it would look that good.

I dont like the snakeskin+gold. Too gaudy in my opinion.
 

Newt_on_Swings

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Haha well together one on a shoulder one on the neck the silver/gold combo would look awesome. Well that's how I pictured it in my head with those contrasting colors and textures.
 

thuggins

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I got a bright red lizard skin from Camera Leather for my OM-4T and it looks very sharp against the black. Your choice of the white cover with the chrome turned out very nice. I've got a couple OM-1's in both chrome and black, and you've inspired me to peruse CL's selection again.
 

Newt_on_Swings

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I did a few mock ups of various shades and color combos for my om4t in champagne with photoshop and I've decided on a deep navy blue stingray skin cover which has a bit of pebbly luster. Its in the mail, hopefully I can work the hide to fit and it's not too thick.
 
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