Kia Ora Michael!!
I don't think there are many Kiwis on the list. When I was there for 6 mo.
in 1996 at Auckland U., internet access was hard to find. I even had to
pretend I was a graduate student just to get email access, but that was
almost five years ago.
You asked:
"What is the current pro lens line like, and how astronomical are the
prices?"
Check out www.bhphoto.com for current prices and availability of lenses and
such. Also check out www.zuiko.com. John H., a list member, has a lot of
the same items and some that B&H doesn't carry. Although he may have to
order it, where as B&H can tell you if it is in stock right then.
You also asked:
"Is this list a good place to discuss the current professional use of
Olympus equipment?"
This comes up from time to time, and, with few exceptions, most of us are
serious amateurs (no offense if others prefer another, more accurate
description) and don't fall within the traditional measure of professional
(50 0ncome derived from photo work, I think....even this has been debated :)
That said, there are quite a few people who know personally or know of pros
who still use OM professionally. The list of pros is pretty small and CITES
definitely applies :) I'm sure others will comment in more detail on this
matter.
Also, you asked:
"IRT the above lens, and the rest of the great lens line, the primary
question is: have they been reformulated/redesigned in the 27 years
since I bought mine?"
Again, not my department, but I would say yes for sure. At 27 years old, I
imagine all your lenses are X.Zuiko and likely single coated. Several lenses
have definitely been reformulated and Gary R. has a lot of knowledge in this
department as well as some others. If you are interested and checking for SC
vs. MC, there was a survey some time ago where a bunch of people sent in the
SN and coating status. Here are the results:
http://brashear.phys.appstate.edu/lhawkins/photo/mc-sc.survey
If you are new to the list and looking for OM stuff on the web, you will be
surprised at the wealth of info out there...most of it created by list
members. A good place to start is the Webring. From there, you can link to
the sites and then look for links on those sites. Doing that will get you to
just about anything Oly OM (and others) on the web. Here is the Webring addy:
http://nav.webring.yahoo.com/hub?ring=olympusom
Also, I can take no credit for any of the resources on the web or even
arriving at my knowledge (albeit limited) independently. All of it comes
from the list and the hard work of others who have taken the time to answer
questions and create websites.
HTH,
--p.j.
...wishing for an L&P and Ponsonby Pie for old times sake :)
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