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Re: [OM] Oly body + teleconverter questions

Subject: Re: [OM] Oly body + teleconverter questions
From: Joel Wilcox <jowilcox@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Sun, 07 Nov 1999 08:26:50 -0600
At 10:52 AM 11/6/1999 PST, you wrote:
>   I have had an OM2000 for a little over a year now and am ready for 
>another Oly body.  Have been thinking getting about an OM-2n or an OM-PC 
>from KEH.  I would be glad to hear from you about the pros/cons of these two 
>bodies.

Both nice cameras. I have tried to buy two OMPC's from KEH in the last year
and both had problems, so make sure you check it out carefully if you buy.
Fortunately their return policy is excellent.

  I was considering the OM-2s, but it seems like it won't let you use 
>center-weighted metering in manual mode (is that true?).

Right. You go to manual mode and the metering is spot only. Switch to auto
for center weighted.  What's the problem?  Take your center-weighted
reading in auto, match the shutter speed to the display and switch to
manual.  Just to shoot more intelligently, compare your manual spot reading
of various points in the field of view to your auto reading.  This is a
great camera.

  Another factor is 
>that the OM-PC seems to  be pretty hard to come by these days.  How does one 
>ensure that a 15-year-old camera will keep going another 15? 

Faith.  Same thing you use to ensure that you yourself will keep going
another 15. ;-)  I always factor in the cost of an overhaul as part of the
on-going upkeep of a camera, in which case the OM-2S may be the better way
to go. There are some cameras for instance that John Hermanson of Camtech
has said he won't work on anymore, and the OMPC might be one of those.

>My second question is about teleconverters- how much do they affect picture 
>quality, and typically how many f-stops does one lose?

Lose two stops. 

 The Oly 2X-A doesn't 
>appear to be recommended for use with zooms.

The Oly 2X is OK if you have the lenses it goes with.  If you have zooms,
why do you need a 2X?  <g>

  Does Vivitar make good 
>teleconverters (specifically, is the Vivitar 2X with Macrofocusing any 
>good)?

It's pretty sharp but has poor contrast.  OK in a pinch.  I've used one
with the 300/f4.5 (!).  I would consider the results acceptable under some
circumstances.  You can stick a fast 50mm lens on it and have a fairly fast
macro-focusing lens combo.  However, the results are not comparable to a
true macro lens.  IMO you'd be better off with extension tubes for "cheap"
macro work.

Joel Wilcox
Iowa City, Iowa USA

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