Another review about the Olympus OM-1: one of the most influential cameras of our time!
This is a single lens reflex camera that came out in the 70’s. it was hip then, almost 40 years later it still proves to be a great one. A lot of concert photography back then were taken using this, you got Pink Floyd Gigs to Bob Marley’s. Turns out a lot photos i liked through out the ages were taken from this camera. The OM-1 is for someone who loves analogue and wants to learn photography, because its fully manual and it can basically cover any type of photography. Portraits to landscape, Macro to Astrophotography. You can really appreciate the detail and the depth in the photos that come out from this camera; You get total control of the outcome.
Zuiko len’s are my personal favourite for portraits and pictures with great depth of field.by experimenting you can get amazing results with fantastic bokeh. Im still experimenting with this lens and im getting crazy results.
I use the 50mm ƒ1.8. But im desperately looking for the ƒ1.4 for a good price.
It also has vivitar lens made for it. i have the 70-150mm. Photos from it makes the photos a tad more sharper than from the zuiko. I personally like the soft feeling that zuiko len’s has to the background behind the subject.
The OM’s body is small and compact for an slr. The body is real tough and it feels somewhat heavy on your hands. but lighter than the canon a-1. Unlike most slr’s the om series might be a bit different but adaptable in no time. Like the shutter speed control isnt on top of the camera but waay back on the lens mount! and the aperture is at the tip of the lens ( on zuiko lens)
Its also got an inbuilt light meter that tells you the correct exposure even though you have to ignore it in cases of backlighting etc.
From my experience this camera wont let you down, get a used one from ebay while they’re still easy to find. You can expect to find one for not more than $200. I got mine for $125 with 2 lenses You may need to change the light seals but this shouldnt cost you over $10 if you can do it yourself.
I’m still getting used to MF, shutter speed adjustments and all manual exposure control, but hey its my first slr.
12 comments
lyan
#6 looks amazing. my uncle gave me an om-10 with the 50mm f1.4, it truly is an awesome lens.
breakphreak
hey there :) yep, I have one like this as well - probably it's the right time to review it. by the way, had you found how to make a double exposure there?
tveden
Nice shots
carolannc
jibbins
Pretty nifty shots. once I get the funds I wanna get a fully manual slr so this little guy may be a candidate :)
stouf
Great job with the depth of field ! @breakphreak: I guess like with any camera: press the rewind button, and crank while holding the rewinding wheel...
feel-together
amaan
Thanks all for your comment and ratings. I had no clue this was up till now.
mygabriela
filby
I was given my mothers OM1 from back in the day last Christmas, too good.
ojjvz
Awesome shots. I love my OM-10 with 28mm 2,0. Those zuiko lenses are amazing! and the way they focus (with those half circles) is genious.
krisht