This may interest others on the list; I've just sent it to Lee Hawkins for
the OM FAQ.
Michael A. Covington / AI Center / The University of Georgia
http://www.ai.uga.edu/~mc http://www.mindspring.com/~covington <><
>
>Q. Which OM viewfinders are easy to see with glasses on? That is, which OM
>cameras have relatively long eye relief (high eyepoint)?
>
>A. None of them is comparable to the Nikon F3HP. Michael Covington, a
>lifelong eyeglass wearer, finds the OM-1 just adequate for use with glasses
>and the low-end OM's (OM-10, OM-F, etc.) more than adequate. The eye
relief
>of the OM-2, OM-3, and OM-4 is not so generous because Olympus added
>displays outside the picture area, requiring you to keep your eye closer to
>the camera in order to see it. In the OM-4T, and perhaps others, it is
easy
>for an eyeglass wearer to be totally unaware of the LCD display, which is
>not visible at all when looking straight at the picture area.
>
>
>Q. How can I increase the eye relief (eyepoint) of the OM-3 and OM-4 so I
>can more easily see the display with my glasses on?
>
>A. There are three approaches:
>
>(1) If your eyeglass prescription is fairly weak and you don't have
>astigmatism, consider using the camera with your glasses off, adjusting the
>diopter adjustment so you can see the viewfinder image clearly.
>
>(2) With your glasses on, turn the diopter adjustment as far
>*counterclockwise* as you can while maintaining a sharp image. This will
>give you the maximum eye relief.
>
>(3) If you *really* want an improvement, do the following. This will not
>make the OM-4T into a Nikon F3HP, but it will at least put it into the same
>class as the Minolta SRT series or Nikon F3 non HP; you will be able to see
>*almost* the whole picture area and display with glasses on.
>
>(a) Get an eyeglass maker to make you a plano-concave lens, flat on one
>side, power -2.0D, plastic, rectangular, 11.5 x 17 mm. (Mine cost about
>$20. Anti-reflection-coated lenses are available at higher cost.)
>
>(b) Using sandpaper, round the corners of the plastic lens and reduce its
>size slightly so it will press-fit into the OM-4T eyepiece frame. Round
one
>of the corners more than necessary so you will have room to pry the lens
out
>if you need to do so in the future.
>
>(c) Clean the lens and press it into the eyepiece frame. (Do not use the
>Olympus diopter lens holder; the whole point is that you must add this lens
>without taking up any further space.) *CAUTION*: The glass window at the
>back of the eyepiece frame is very easily broken; don't push the lens in so
>far that it touches it.
>
>(d) Turn the diopter adjustment all the way counterclockwise and leave it
>there.
>
>The result: A significant increase in eye relief; a slight decrease in
>viewfinder magnification (but it's still much greater than the Nikon F3HP);
>and you can no longer use the diopter adjustment (the image is fixed at -1
>D, same as the OM-1).
>
>My wife and I found this a very worthwhile improvement to our OM-4T. It's
>completely reversible and non-destructive. Personally, I would like to see
>Olympus modify the OM-4T slightly to increase its eye relief and thereby
>compete more effectively with Nikon's high-eyepoint finders.
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