I got both my bodies back from John H. this week. One is a OM-2 MD
and the other is a OM-2S. Both needed batteries so I dug around in
the camera bag and came up with a set of 357's and a set of 357A's (I
bought them by mistake). I well know that some OM cameras simply
won't work properly with anything but the 357 but my OM-2S works (at
least fires) with almost anything I put into it. As long as the
camera fired properly I figured I could get away with 'wrong'
batteries for a while.
I checked the metering on both cameras by putting the same 50mm lens
on both bodies and metering the same blank wall. I got 2/3 to 1 stop
difference between the 2 bodies. I wasn't too happy about this and
thought bad thoughts about John H. (sorry John!), figuring that I
would need to send the camera back for re-calibration. THEN I
remembered that I had 2 different types of batteries in the cameras.
I picked up a batch of 357's the next day. Now the 2 bodies are
within 1/3 of a stop or less. I checked the 2 357A's and found that,
for some reason, the voltage was different between the 2 cells - 1.
498V vs. 1.518V. For what it's worth, a new 357 measures 1.619V.
The difference (6 - 7 percent) makes a noticeable difference in the
meter calibration.
Moral: Use the right batteries - the 357.
I found it interesting that the 357A is a alkaline battery. I saw
357A and assumed it was the same as a 357. The package was marked
357A while the battery itself is marked as a LR44.
For those in North America, the home repair store chain Home Depot
stocks the 357 for $1.38 ea. This is much cheaper than Radio Shack,
who had the LR44 marked as the 357A.
I guess I've learned my lesson on what battery to use. Do what John
tells us to do and use the 357! Now I need to get out and put some
film through the cameras.
Tom
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