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Re: [OM] FAQ Additions

Subject: Re: [OM] FAQ Additions
From: "John A. Lind" <jlind@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Fri, 11 Aug 2000 17:36:52 +0000
At 21:13 8/11/00 , Gary Reese wrote:
>
>The "S Zuikos" *are* amateur market zoom lenses (vs. the "Zuikos").
>
>The lack of a special moniker on high performance lenses is perhaps due
>more to marketing folks thinking that the buying public of the 1970s to
>1980s didn't have the degree of knowledge needed to differentiate them.
>If Olympus could have predicted the success that independents had with
>APO, IF, Aspherical, SP, ED, etc., we probably would have seen a
>different situation.
>
>Gary Reese
>Las Vegas, NV

An additional note on what Gary has said.  Yes the "S Zuiko" designation
was for the lower price point lenses.  This should not be confused with the
marking found on some primes, "Auto-S" which means it is auto stop-down in
a standard focal length.  The wides are marked "Auto-W" and the telephotos
"Auto-T."  In addition, the "S Zuiko" zooms such as the 75-150mm f/4 may
not have been a high performance lens, but it was still a decent one, and I
want to emphasize performance versus build or materials.  Having owned one
of the "S Zuiko" lenses, I found no difference between its build and
materials, and the high performance lenses.  Construction materials and
quality control was essentially the same.

IMO the difference was in optical formulation with simpler elements/groups
for a slower lens that were easier to make and assemble.  The "lower price
point" lenses, zoom and prime, had the same type metal barrel, aperture
ring, focus ring and internal mechanicals as the high peformance ones.

-- John

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