Timpe Jim wrote:
Not truly/completely from me. I donated a 50/1.2 to the cause in order
> to make the deal happen. It was the other Jim from down around Astoria
> Oregon that really provided the 4T. I still have my whole herd (not
> sure really why).
>
Indeed, that is most definitely the case. Both Jims were extremely generous
in their gift to me. I am most thankful and appreciative. The camera has
been performing flawlessly and on my next trip into the North American
Outback, it will serve duty as THE PRIMARY camera. In fact, any time I've
gone out this year for the specific purposes of photographing what I want to
photograph, it is the OM-4T being grabbed first. My one regret is that I
didn't use it for photographing my niece at the NCAA finals. The E-1 worked
great, but the lighting conditions were such and with the legacy lenses, I
was struggling to get my exposures correct. There are some things I know I
can totally trust--and the OM's OTF metering and flash control is one.
(provided that you know what fools it)
In the current version of Luminous-Landscape, there is an essay on camera
collecting with a twist. First of all, I find it ironic that people are
collectors of things which I have been using in front-line action! Remember
the days when on this list the attitude of "he who has the most OMs wins"?
It was fun, and really not too expensive. You could build up a mammoth
collection of gear for the price of just the E-3 with 12-60 zoom lens!!!
Digital has changed people's interests as well as the collecting. Other than
Bill Barber (NSURIT), there isn't much OM Kit Expansion going on anywhere.
Especially since Tom Scales got caught. :) My kit is very lean compared
to, well, compared to almost anybody. I can't think of anything I own that
hasn't been used at least once in the past two months--and I have a few
wierd items.
I've been doing a lot of soul-searching lately and I know that there is a
mega-mega-pixel ubercam in my future, but I've come to the conclusion that
"life is too short" to keep buying "The New Shiny" and finding compromise on
top of compromise. Meanwhile, for far less money, I can continue to enhance
my old OM kit and get results "The New Shiny" isn't capable of getting.
It's not that I'm against modern stuff, it's just that I see where the old
stuff is still viable. There is a pure joy to using the OM system. It is a
system that just feels right. If you have any doubts, just take a gander
through that IMAX sized viewfinder. The message "welcome home" enters my
head. The gift of that OM-4T makes that message all the more clearer. It
isn't going anywhere--it has found a permanent home top and center in my
camera bag. To put it into perspective, the OM-4T completely and totally
ended my desire for the E-1 replacement. As my wife attested, I haven't been
this excited about any piece of camera equipment since she's known me. No,
seven months later and the newness hasn't worn off--ask me again in a couple
of years. :) In case you are wondering, the OM-2S is seeing action too.
The T45 is intruiging to me for several reasons. The combination of winder
and masher is designed to work together ergonomically. I am REALLY
suffering problems with my wrists and hands with the E-1, grip, lens,
stroboframe and Vivitar 285HV combination. That setup is HEAVY!!! And as
slick as I've got the setup, it still isn't quite right. It's a hodgepodge
of different equipment which hasn't been designed as a unified, coherent
unit. The output power of the T45 is also quite important. I shoot an
annual shindig for the regional gathering of our church. The place is huge
and I'm now up to shooting it with two studio strobes and two Vivitar 285HVs
and I'm still suffering. Today's lenses just ain't bright enough and unlike
film, you really don't have the flash/ambient flexibility that you have with
film--and mixed lighting with digital really sucks. (so far over
seventy-five images from the last event have already been published). I did
experiment with somebody's E-3, FL50R, 12-60mm setup. Unfortunately, as
nice as the kit is (and it is very very nice), It just wasn't clicking with
me. I felt that I was always behind the eight-ball with it. It would
successfully expose the shots, but how it would do it scared me too much.
Modern metering systems have artificial intelligence attempting to guess
what the scene is--usually it succeeds, sometimes it doesn't. There is no
assurance that it nailed it so you always have to chimp the shots. Olympus
really nailed flash exposure with two different systems: The OM's OTF flash
control, and the distance-set flash exposure of the IS-3. All of these
"modern" preflash systems just plain suck. I don't know how to put it any
clearer. If they truely worked well, then why is it that nearly everybody
using them professionally either defeats the auto-exposure or has dialed in
gobs of exposure compensation?
I like my Vivitar 285HVs, but they have serious issues too. For example,
you have to be really careful about light-modifiers, since they will totally
screw-up the auto-sensor. They creak, groan and in all honesty, aren't
nearly as powerful as the specifications say they are. Horribly noisy
flashes too. A full-dump goes "POW". I know there is some serious current
in play, but I can hear one fire from 100 feet away in a crowded room.
Changing orientation or zoom of the flash head is also a noisy affair.
Plastic on plastic doesn't sound very high-end. But you gotta appreciate
their yeoman's work. They've been around so long that the designers lived
on Gondwana. But what a supurb design it is.
Like I said, I USE my equipment. Nothing is a closet-queen--especially now
that my daughters are taking a serious interest in photography. It isn't
used in the day-in, day-out level of a full-time pro, but itis leaned on
pretty heavily in spurts.
==============================================
List usage info: http://www.zuikoholic.com
List nannies: olympusadmin@xxxxxxxxxx
==============================================
|