Got an Olympus OM10 out this evening...Wow!

[budfox]

This camera has moved with us from house to house. It's been in the same dusty camera bag for at least 12 years, never seeing the light of day.

Thought I'd take a look this evening whilst waiting for The Gadget Show.

Two things leapt out at me in a 'Oh my God!' kind of way.

Firstly, the lens build quality. It was my wife's camera and she had an Olympus kit 50mm f1.8 Zuiko, plus a Miranda 28mm f2.8 and a Miranda 70-200mm zoom.

These lenses are 25 years old (we still have the receipts, manuals etc...) and the action on them is just staggering. I've not felt a smoother focus ever, and the manual aperture adjustment was just as wonderful. Even the zoom action on the Miranda really really impressed me. Solid metal mounts and a reassuring weight completed the picture. (Pardon the pun)

Secondly, the size of the image through the viewfinder. I've been using digital compacts and DX DSLR's for 10 years, since buying a Fuji MX700 in 1999. Seeing a full frame viewfinder after all that time really shocked me. MASSIVE display, fabulously bright, and totally uncluttered except for the focussing thingy.

The sad thing? Well she never bought Nikon. Had she done so then these lenses would have modern day appeal. I assume they don't fit Olympus DSLR's of they'd sell for more than a fiver on eBay...

 

[Tracer]

They will fit Oly DSLRs with an adapter, but you have to use stop down metering and of course manual focus. I finally switched to digital a few years ago with a D70s but was sad to stop using my OM4 which was and of course still is a fabulous camera. My OH finally moved only last year from an OM2 to an E410, and is still using some of our zuiko lenses on it. However although their modern standard digital zooms feel more plasticy they are amazingly sharp -- still stunning Oly quality optics.

 

[Arkady]

I once used an OM2n (bought because I was tired of lugging the weight of my old F2As around...) and loved the lens quality too - trouble was I kept breaking them and had to go back to Nikon...no complaints about that though...

 

[martinsmith99]

I like the look of Olympus cameras of that era. If I hadn't of bought a Pentax Spotmatic.....who knows

 

[incapete]

I used to love my OM10 and I was similarly surprised at it's solid build quality when I took this shot of it!

 

[Carl V]

They're great cameras, along with the OM-1 and OM-2n. We used to sell loads of OM-10s second-hand when I was in retail in the late 80s, and very rarely ever had problems with them. The Zuiko lenses are superb too. If memory serves me correctly, the only Olympus model that used to develop faults was the OM-2 Spot Program.

 

[Arkady]

I really loved that OM-2 - this was my favourite lens:

G-Zuiko 55mm f/1.2
http://www.mir.SPAM/rb/photography/hardwares/classics/olympusom1n2/shared/zuiko/images/55mmf12OM.jpg

http://www.mir.SPAM/rb/photography/hardwares/classics/olympusom1n2/shared/zuiko/images/50mmf12OMb.JPG

Type: G-Zuiko AUTO-S 55mm f/1.2
Focal length: 55mm
Aperture ratio: 1:1.2
Lens construction: 6 groups, 7 elements
Angle of view: Diagonal: 43°
Distance Scale: (m) 0.45 to infinity (oo)
Focusing: Straight Helicoid
Minimum and Maximum aperture: f/16 ~ f/1.2
Minimum photographic range: 28mm x 16mm
Diaphragm: Automatic
Filter attachment size. 55mm
Length x max. diameter: 47mm x 65mm
Weight: 310g (10.9oz)


Awesome bit of kit...Simpler tools for a simpler time...or so it seems to me now...

 

[Carl V]

Although all Zuiko lenses have a good reputation, I recall hearing that the 21mm ultra-wide was exceptional - can't remember for the life of me whether it was the f/3.5 version or the f/2.

 

[Byker28i]

I sold my Fuji ax-5 and St-1 bodies plus lenses when I went digital. Took me a while to buy the same quality of lenses I had with film

 

[Alan White]

Boy oh boy does this bring back memories.

For many years spent Saturday afternoons looking in Ffordes window at OM cameras with my
dear now departed Dad. (He died in 2006).
Finally got an OM10 of my own in 1982 when I was working Saturdays in Boots photographic department and the manual adaptor and a 100mm lens as well.

What a great camera and system, build quality of all the OM kit was superb and even the cheaper lenses was excellent.

Sitting here with a twinkle or is that a tear in my eye reminiscing.

How many people still use this type of kit and film on here I wonder??

 

[dazzajl]

I really loved that OM-2 - this was my favourite lens:

G-Zuiko 55mm f/1.2


Awesome bit of kit...Simpler tools for a simpler time...or so it seems to me now...

There are days where it's tougher to embrace the march of progress than others.

 

[neil_g]

ive got an OM20 kicking around somewhere.. the lenses are lovely and i have the adaptor to fit them to the 20D i just seem to forget about it.

 

[Carl V]

Boy oh boy does this bring back memories.

Sitting here with a twinkle or is that a tear in my eye reminiscing.

How many people still use this type of kit and film on here I wonder??

I love reminiscing too. I've never owned an Olympus, although I have used OM-1's. My own camera was a Pentax MX which was a mechanical camera just like the OM-1. I bought this back in 1983 as I had a Saturday job whilst I was at college, and I had various lenses with it including Pentax and Vivitar, which I acquired over the following years. I kept these until around 1995 or thereabouts, when I traded them for Nikon gear.

I still have all my Nikon film cameras and manual 'ais' lenses as I love to work with film, although I appreciate that I'm in the minority these days.