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[OM] Re: What if

Subject: [OM] Re: What if
From: Winsor Crosby <wincros@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2006 18:45:32 -0700
Not very excited here. Do you think it would be available for less  
than $2000?

You left out the very expensive scanner with its attendant high  
powered computer to handle huge files and/or darkroom. The renewable  
sensor technology has to be replaced every 36 shots for $20.00 to  
cover the investment and processing cost. Terrible grain(noise) two  
or three steps above base ISO. Odd color balance that results in  
compromises between color rendition and grain. Inability to set the  
ISO without rewinding the "sensor", keeping track of the frame  
number, reloading the camera for a few shots inside with even more  
odd color rendition and lots of high ISO noise(grain).  Repeat again  
when you get outside. Throw away a costly frame or two in the  
process. The need for immediate images resulting in the throwing away  
of the remaining exposures. Skipping alternative shots because of the  
cost or budgeting your supply carefully. Getting used to missing fast  
shots again. Figuring out how to tame the aperture actuation  shake.  
Going back to not being able to easily do fill light because sync is  
at 1/60 sec. Then there is the yearning for that old fashioned  
digital resolution, well if you had more than a 5MP camera.  :-)

The niceness of the OM was in its time, but Olympus decided not to  
invest and improve it, for decades, but to coast on its features and  
raise the price. On the other hand a similar smallish camera, the  
Nikon FM, continued to be developed and was not dropped until this  
year. The FM3a was a thoroughly modern manual/aperture priority  
camera with a knock out bright finder, had a 1/250 second flash sync,  
had a flash fill button on the camera that would reduce the flash  
output by 1 stop, operated with a dead battery at all speeds and you  
could even slap an autofocus lens on it and use it manually. Did not  
use OM lenses, but the ones they had were not bad.

Perspective also includes tossing the rose colored glasses facing  
toward the past.


Winsor
Long Beach, CA
USA


On Sep 27, 2006, at 5:16 PM, AG Schnozz wrote:

> What if Olympus were to introduce a camera at Photokina that:
>
> 1. Took the legacy Zuiko lenses with full-aperture control,
> 2. Was full-frame,
> 3. Came in full-manual as well as various levels of auto,
> 4. Was smaller then the current E-bodies,
> 5. Was compatible with most of the legacy OM accessories,
> 6. Utilized the latest single-use sensor technology from Fuji
> and Kodak.
>
> Just how excited would we be?
>
> Now, go and pick up one of your OMs and pretend for a week that
> you just bought it brand new.  Look how revolutionary and
> advanced it is, run rolls of film through it with the
> expectation that it will improve your photographic life.
> Recognize how cutting edge the user-interface is and
> un-monolithic the body feels.  Notice too, how small the lenses
> are. Wow!  Look ma, no distortion!  What's that I see?  Bokeh.
> Hmmm.  What is this?  An aperture ring?  A shutter-speed ring?
> Even the ISO setting is constantly visible! Where are all the
> buttons?  Multi-spot?  The user-interface seems so...RETRO! Oh,
> but in such a good way.  Did I mention the focus screen--IT'S
> HUGE!!!  (that should get the spam filters choking)
>
> And it's field-upgradeable by the user with the latest sensor
> technology.
>
> Perspective, folks, perspective.
>
> AG
>
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