Hi Christos,
Welcome to the list.
Leonard Cohen is not my cuppa tea, so I'll try for an on-topic reply. :)
If you're on a tight budget, and your fun is in taking pictures and handling
camera's (opposed to buying and selling gear) I'd say make sure you have one
good
body and start investing your spare cash in glass. Additional lenses give
you more
possibilities in the creative process than additional bodies.
In the last year my bodycount (pun intended) has gone up from 2 to about
a dozen.
Practicaly, I'm allways using one of two originals.
Talking glass. If you are still contemplating your wishlist and want to know
my two
cents worth: the lens that give me most fun is the 85/2, the 100/2.8 would
be a
great alternative. My wide angle favourite is harder to choose: either
35 ('though
more a standard lens than a wa) or a REAL wideangle: 24 or 21.
Now about that OM-4. It could be just that the focusing screen is really
messed up,
that's easy to fix. It could be that the diopter adjustment is set to an
extreme setting,
that's even easier to fix! Or it could be that there indeed is something
really
disgusting inside the fiewfinder or even in the pentaprism. That's nasty!
I've been tinkering with OM's for a while now, and it turns out that a LOT
of the
problems only surface after use or during a repair. If you're not a pro
repairsman
(and I know I am not) the chances to success are often slimmer than you
envisage.
Sure, if you get it for free, or can trade it against a stuck-shutter OM10,
anytime!
Otherwise, be carefull out there, especially if you're on a tight budget.
So go out there, burn some film and enjoy!
Cheers,
Bart
On 4/11/06, Christos Stavrou <christos.stavrou@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
> A big hello to everyone in this community!
>
> I've been following this list for some time and recently decided to join
> the
> email-list as well... it's a great thing what you've got in here...
>
> As concerns me, it all just started last Autumn (until then I was an
> unsuspected Eos user with a decent Canon eos zoom).
> But somehow, partly because I was looking for something else (or.. more?),
> and partly because I was simply looking for a good prize for a raffle of a
> student photo-society which I run, I bought two manual focus cameras from
> the net (yes, from that place).
>
> So here I was.. playing around with a Pentax ME-super and an Olympus OM-20
> (both with a 50mm prime lens). I started testing the first and announced
> the
> second as the prize... I already was positevely shoked with the quality
> and
> character of the produced photos when developed the first film...
> Nevertheless, it was when I had my first experience with the Olympus, (I
> still remember that night), that something clicked forever!... The
> creative
> process in its full, ecstatic power..
>
> How much I first enjoyed her beautiful looks and special touch in my
> hands... (oh-la-la a la Freud or a la Woody Allen's terms :-) And more:
> the
> way it could involve me totally (from the visualisation of the picture to
> thinking the details of exposure..).. Here it was, the hidden
> appreciation
> of subjectivity and creative individuality I was always dreaming about...
> Finally the end result: I saw the pictures and the fascinating, rather
> coldish, yet real, immediate and still almost painterly (so ambiguous!)
> aesthetics of the Zuiko lens took my mind away...
>
> To keep it short, I soon emailed everyone that the prize has changed and
> it's a.. Pentax (great item nevertheless) and of course I started
> gathering
> info and buying Zuiko lenses and OM-bodies.. hmm.. Actually I have pushed
> my student poverty to its outermost limit... It was love in first sight..
> It's an addiction till the end, I can see now!... It even goes on despite
> occasional setbacks such as that half of my pics turn to be very.. hmm..
> 'eccentric'.. (especially in my first days when even forgetting to focus),
> or an erratically-playing shutter of the OM-20 one day.. or a totally
> moldy
> OM-40 that got next... etc. or finally the quite expensive for my
> standards
> OM-4...
>
> Today I saw another OM-4 in the local shop.. it seemed OK apart a
> blurry/dizzy viewfinder (it appears that something like glue or other
> transparent liquid has been applied inside there)... But you know the
> problem, dont you? My logic says: No! stay away.. You got no money, it's
> not
> even sure it can be fixed or enjoyed... but my mind is still there.. What
> should I do?
>
> I have some more questions to ask, (like: anyone out there with a portrait
> lens for sale?!!).. but I'll leave them for later.. :)
> I hope you enjoyed the story, the drama, the potential 'katharsis' of
> another Olympus fan..
>
> best regards to all
> Christos
>
> [ps: suggested soundtrack: do you know that old Leonard Cohen song: One of
> us cannot be wrong...]
>
> ==============================================
> List usage info: http://www.zuikoholic.com
> List nannies: olympusadmin@xxxxxxxxxx
> ==============================================
>
==============================================
List usage info: http://www.zuikoholic.com
List nannies: olympusadmin@xxxxxxxxxx
==============================================
|