<music swells> I remember it well.....<music goes down..>
It was May of 1975. I was 22, had just arrived in Germany to teach in the US
Army high school in Nurnberg, (then) West Germany. We took a trip with
another couple down to the Alps, me lugging my heavy Mamiya-Sekor 500DTL
(still proud of it as I had paid for it myself while a poor student..think I
bought it from JC Penney) and the friends had...
<drum roll>
a brand-new Olympus OM-1 <chrome> with 55mm f1.2.
I don't think I've ever been so envious of another's possession in my life.
I''d never seen chrome like that before or since.
I went home, read up on it, studied the competition, and no other came even
close. And like Sam, at 22, I also was very "into owning impressive toys".
But this was different..it felt right, sounded wonderful, struck a personal
cord like no other camera before or since. In late '76 I got the OM-2 in
black. While in Germany (almost 5 years) I added the 24mm f2.0 (later sold
for the f2.8), the 75-150mm zoom, a 35mm, the 50mm f1.4, winders, 310 flash
with mounting bracket et al, varimagnifier (since sold) and assorted cords,
filters, etc. The only item I could never justify was the 35-70 zoom..I think
it was the f4, because it was brand-new and astronomical in price.
I think it was Ray that said "I'm curious to know how and when List members
got into the OM system.
OM has never been the most popular brand, "
Ray, it was indeed the hottest and most popular item at that time, with all
the magazines raging, full cover shots on all the photo mags, even Consumer
Reports naming it the top choice for years. And that's wild as the others all
brought out OM-wannabe's very shortly after '74. But all you had to do was
hold the Olympus and it wiped out the Canon, Nikon, or Minolta entries (which
were the main competitors at that time...I don't mention the Leica because
they, even back then, were mainly for the elitist who had money to
burn...they rated very highly in all the reports with the exception of
price).The others not only looked clunky and bulky, they were hefty and big.
Other than purchasing an Olympus Infinity p&s in '91 (great lens!) my trusty
babies held up well until '97, when, after a trip to a beach when I stupidly
took them down with us to the sand and water, my OM-2 froze.
But then, my finding the group and John H. is another story..
Susan Steele
Amherst, VA USA
Ps I would buy one to "play" with for a hwile, knowing I had plenty of GI's
around to sell it to..I got a Minolta Maxxum for a very short while..talk
about heavy! Then a Fujica AF-7 (a copy of the OM format..almost, but not
quite, as small..used screw-in lenses from my old Mamiya..gave the whole
system to my father). And a Minolta 110 zoom..funny-looking thing that was
flat with a great zoom-hood...as a slide user I fond 100 to be an obnoxious
film format. I also toted many an instant camera..and I really regret that
now..they are all dark now and barely visable.
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