Hi Josh,
I've just been catching up on my reading and have been following this thread
with much interest. I spent a couple of years working in the bush in
Northern Ontario back in the '80s. I'd say that 750km north of Toronto puts
you in the Timmins, Kirkland Lake, Iroquois Falls area or thereabouts.
Definitely a beautiful part of the country. You should be able to put your
OM-1 to good work.
Now, as for your questions about lenses, if I were you I'd stay away from a
zoom lens. While they are certainly handy in the sense that they give you a
lot of control over composition, I think that prime, fixed focal length
lenses are the best bet for anyone who is learning photography. Why? Because
they make you slow down and think more about the photographic process and
you will learn more about the characteristics and tendencies of each focal
length.
Although you may get the impression that a lot of people downplay the
standard 50mm lens, it is a very useful focal length and you would be well
served to really explore its capabilities. I recommend that you accept one
of the offers that some list members have most generously offered. To round
out your kit, I'd recommend lenses in the 28mm and 135mm focal lengths. The
28mm will give you a bit more angle of view than the 35mm, but without the
distortion that can easily crop up with lenses of 24mm or wider. The 135mm
is a very handy focal length for portraits, and combined with an inexpensive
2x teleconverter you would have something that would be useful for nature
shots. When looking for a converter, try to find a decent 7 element version
instead of some of the really cheap ones that usually wind up on ebay.
Regarding both the 28mm and 135mm lenses, you have the option of the slower
and less expensive f3.5 versions or the faster f2.8 versions. Either should
meet your needs, and you shouldn't have too much of a problem finding them
within your budget if you exercise some patience. Nice examples come up for
auction all the time. All in all, an OM-1 with 28mm, 50mm, 135mm, and a 2x
converter would give you a nice carry anywhere kit that would cover just
about any photo opportunity. Don't forget about green and red filters for
your B&W film.
Considering that you are also lucky enough to be learning about and using a
darkroom as well, if I were to suggest the next addition to your kit it
would be an inexpensive handheld spot meter. Learn to use it, and learn
about the "zone system" and learn about translating that to the darkroom.
Oh, and one more thing....don't forget to share your results with the rest
of us in Olaf's TOPE events.
Best of luck,
Bruce
Bruce Hamm
Ottawa, Canada
bhamm@xxxxxxxx
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