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Re: [OM] Apologies to the Group

Subject: Re: [OM] Apologies to the Group
From: "John Austin" <johnaustin@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Mon, 16 Feb 1998 16:53:27 -0800
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Gary Schloss <schloss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>

[snip]
>up, I am not yet convinced that the "silent majority" of the OLY
>list has spoken.


Hi Gary,

As part of the silent majority, your post has given me the courage to
respond. I'm a newcomer to the list as well as a newcomer ( I should say
returnee) to Olympus photography. PvT's messages can be annoying at times,
but I for one also appreciate knowing where to find Olympus gear. Lest you
think I live out in the middle of nowhere, I live in a major metropolitan
area, the bay area of California (San Francisco suburb for those who are not
familiar with California geography). I point this out because even in the
"big city", Olympus gear is rare and hard to find at anything approaching
decent prices. Sure, Olympus dealers are happy to order new Oly items at
full list price, but this is a bit out of my budget. Not to mention that
many Olympus items are discontinued. At this time I search out good used
gear at decent prices and this is not easy. Most of my recent purchases have
come from the Internet. So far I've been lucky, but I'm sure that sooner or
later I'll get burned.

I mentioned earlier that I'm a returnee to Olympus photography. From the mid
70's till 1985 I was an avid user and collector of Oly gear. For reasons I
won't go into here, I got completely out of photography and sold (actually
gave away. If you've ever been forced to sell things in a hurry you know
what I mean.) all my Olympus equipment. I had most of the important stuff,
OM-4, MD-2, ten prime Zuiko lenses, the full Oly flash system, filters, ext.
tubes, etc., etc. Most of this purchased new or used in mint condition. At
that time Oly dealers were more than willing to deal, discounts were common,
and used gear was to be had at great prices. The big thing I've noticed this
time around is that the dealers act like they're doing you a favor in
ordering Olympus products. Used Oly gear is priced more like collectable
Leica equipment than user photo products. Sometimes it seems like Leica
stuff would be easier and cheaper to come by.

I guess if I had not gotten out of the photo game in 85, I would probably
have continued to collect Oly gear and I would now own two of every item. In
that case I might also be a bit perturbed to hear about items for sale since
I would not be in the market. But being a newcomer (returnee), I do need
equipment. PvT and dealers like him have a place. I, for one, was thrilled
to find out there was a dealer that specialized in Olympus equipment. From
my searches both locally and on the Internet, dealers carrying a good
selection of used Olympus gear at even close to reasonable prices are not
that easy to come by (If you think PvT is high, try checking out the likes
of KEH and any of a dozen others I could name). One of the users made the
statement that the list was dying slowly. It will die if new Oly users
aren't pulled into the fold, and Olympus will certainly have no incentive to
create new products at reasonable prices without a user base.

You might ask why I've chosen to go with Oly instead of Nikon or Cannon,
especially considering I have no huge investment in Olympus gear at this
time to lock me in. I've chosen to use Oly gear because I believe it's a
superior product. I can truthfully say this because I have lots of
experience with Olympus gear. I've noticed many posts to potential Oly
newcomers on rec.photo.equipment.35mm to the effect that they should pursue
other brands if they are not already locked into Olympus because of a huge
investment in equipment. And these posts are coming from present Oly users,
not the competition. Considering the uphill battle that we as Olympus users
face, perhaps we should ALL pull together for the good of the Olympus
marquee and the products we love to use. This includes not only users but
also those dealers who are willing to talk about that $3.00 battery cover
and don't feel they're doing us a big favor by even bothering to carry
Olympus. The alternative will be no new 35mm gear from Olympus and the used
gear out there assuming cult status (can you say Leica) with the attendant
outrageous prices.

Regards,
John Austin






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