Hi,
Alright, here's my two minutes of fame, I had already written down part of
this on my photo gallery page, so I'll just use that as a starting point and
add to it:
I'm currently 12 days short of becoming 27, and my Olympus story is as
follows:
In the mid 70's we lived one year in El Cerrito (Bay Area), and my father,
being the wise man he is, bought an OM-1MD after the proper amount of
investigation as to the best buy for a new camera. Along with it, he bought
the following Zuiks: 28mm F3.5, 50mm F1.8, and the 135mm F2.8.
In the early eighties during holidays I had my first go at making some pics
with dad's great camera. He then explained me how to take pictures and how
the light metering etc. on the OM-1 worked.
Then in 1986 I was an avid bird watcher and wanted to have a camera of my
own, with the desire to be able to photograph some of them birdies. So,
again after some careful research done by my father (and me, this time), I
obtained a brand new Olympus OM-40 camera, along with a 50mm F1.8 lens, for
my birthday.
Unfortunately, around that time I had not done any investigation yet as to
the needed equipment for actually taking bird pictures, so the shock was
great when I heard the prices of 300mm, 400mm and 600mm lenses. Fortunately
though, birds weren't the only objects I wanted to frame, so I just quickly
forgot about the supertelephotos and just used the 50mm, at times
complemented by one of my father's lenses.
During the first years I had the camera, I had not really gotten into
photography yet and consequently I did not take that many pictures (buying
film and having it processed is not all that cheap if you're on a really
tight budget).
This was not really to change until 1996, when I went to Madrid for a 7
month internship. Of course the camera came along, and it was then that I
really discovered the fun of photography. Ever since, my knowledge about
taking pictures, choosing the right lens for the right occasion,
anticipating light, and controlling things like proper depth-of-field usage,
have rapidly increased.
After completing my study in February 1998, I went on a holiday to Venezuela
and Japan. In Japan I noticed that there were many Zuiko lenses for sale
(especially in Shinjuke (Tokyo), of course ;) ), but I did not really know
how much each lens should cost on the 2nd handed market. Also, as I just
finished my study, I did not have a great deal of money to spend on
photographic gear. This is the reason why you will find that most pictures
on my photo gallery page (http://members.xoom.com/olaf_greve/) have been
taken with either the 28mm F3.5 or the 50mm F1.8 lenses.
Transitioning from being a student to becoming an employee, finally gave me
enough means to expand my equipment somewhat. Therefore after exploring the
2nd handed market for a decent while, as of October 1998 I bought some "new"
(i.e. 2nd handed) lenses. I prefer to solely use Zuiko lenses, so all the
ones I bought are original Zuikos.
The lenses I currently use are:
-Zuiko 24mm F2.8: An excellent wide angle with an
attractive F2.8 vs. the F3.5 of the 28mm lens.
-Zuiko 28mm F3.5: My father's trusty 28mm lens, I have
taken many pictures with this one.
-Zuiko 35mm F2.8 Shift: The latest addition to the
family (thanks to Yomoto). Buildings are pretty much
my favourite subjects, so there is no need to
describe the motivation for buying a shift lens.
-Zuiko 50mm F1.8: I only use this one when the
available light is a problem.
-Zuiko 35-70mm F4: A very nice and versatile lens. It
is sharp, and it covers the most often used range.
-Zuiko 65-200mm F4: Another excellent zoomlens. It is
razor sharp, and along with the 35-70 it is one of my
favourite lenses.
-Zuiko 135mm F2.8: My father's 135mm. I hardly ever
use it because of the 65-200 zoomlens, however, it is
lighter and has a bigger aperture than the zoom.
-Zuiko 300mm F4.5: A magnificent super telephoto lens.
So I finally got one after all (thanks to Brian
Huber), so be prepared to see some wildlife pictures
taken with this lens soon.
Only some two weeks ago a dream came true when I finally acquired an OM-4Ti
(along with a databack 4 + F280 + TTL auto cord) from Carsten. It feels like
betrayal towards my trusty OM-40, but the 4Ti is just what I needed. Already
now (i.e. after "only" having shot some 8 rolls of 36 exposures film with
the 4Ti) I miss a spot meter on the OM-40.
Last weekend I was in Paris and I used a nice combination though, I had the
4Ti armed with the 35-70/4 zoom, and the OM-40 with the 65-200/4 zoom, this
proved to be most convenient in those situations where there just wasn't any
time to change lenses. So the OM-40 won't be left on the shelves to gather
dust, but rather will be a companion for trips like these.
Well, of course there is always more to be desired. I would love to get some
more super telephoto lenses, like the 500mm F8 catadioptrical lens.
Furthermore, the field of macro photography sounds appealing. We will see
what will happen, if I can get a good deal on the above mentioned items I
might just be tempted enough to buy them. Until then, I will happily use the
gear I currently use...
Cheers and happy shooting!
Olaf
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