First, welcome to the list. You will quickly discover, once you own an OM,
that there is nothing like it. Soon you will be like the rest of us and
accumulate multiple bodies and lenses and finally see the light and sell all
other camera systems so that you can buy more OM equipment.
OK, maybe not.
Your desire for the 21/2 is an excellent one. They are simply wonderful
lenses. The truth, though, is that all the Zuikos are excellent. You just
happened to pick a particularly nice one. Then you'll need a 90/2 macro, a
50/1.2, a 16/3.5, a 180/2, a 350/2.8, a 35-80/2.8 - well, you get the idea.
The 21/2 is one of my most used lenses, although the 21/3.5 gets a lot of
use when I want a smaller and lighter kit. You really should check out the
fabulous eSIF site at:
http://www.taiga.ca/~esif/om-sif.htm
It will become your bible.
According to Skip Williams' Ebay history, (http://www.skipwilliams.com) the
ebay average for the 21/2 is $570. That's over 7 sales in a couple years, so
they are not particularly easy to find. In comparison, there were 30 21/3.5s
in the same time period and 254 50/1.8s. Shoot, there were 11 400/6.3s.
You can also look at reputable online used stores, at higher prices. Two
good choices are http://www.keh.com and http://www.bhphoto.com To a
slightly lesser extent, http://www.adorama.com Unfortunately, none of them
have a 21/2 right now.
As for a body, you have a lot of choices, as mentioned by several people.
For me, I would narrow down my first body choice to either an OM-2(n) or an
OM-4T. In reality, any of the OM-2, OM-2n, OM-2S, OM-4 or OM-4T bodies
would be an excellent choice, but the 2n and 4T would be my first choice.
In a nutshell, the big difference is that the OM-4T supports multispot
metering. It is also still sold new, where the OM-2n hasn't been sold for 15
or 20 years. Still a heck of a camera. I own both (along with an OM-1,
OM2S, OM-4, OM-G, OM-10, OM-F and OM-PC, ok all but the OM-3(Ti)) and still
would go with one of these two are my 'first'.
As for body pricing, an OM-2 or OM-2 can be found in the $120 - 180 range,
with patience and depending on condition and color. The OM-4T can be found
in the $400-600 range, again depending on condition and color. Black bodies
go for more.
Another approach for finding equipment is to just ask here. Many of us sell
or trade equipment, so you can sometimes find the right thing that way.
Good luck!
Tom Scales
> On Wed, Oct 17, 2001 at 03:27:21PM -0700, Shel Belinkoff wrote:
> > Which body might be advisable? I don't need lots of bells and
> > whistles, in fact, the fewer the better. The Pentax LX has been my
> > SLR of choice for many years, and that's about as feature-laden a
> > machine as I'd want. I'd like something similar that offers both
> > manual and electronic shutter activation, possibly interchangeable
> > focusing screens, OTF metering, and most important, a durable and
> > long-lasting body.
>
> I can't speak to the 21/2 (my 21 is a 3.5), but you're looking for any of
> the OM-2/2n/2Sp/4/4Ti. They all offer off-the-film metering in auto mode,
> manual and auto exposure metering, interchangeable focusing screens, and
> solid, rugged dependability. I've got a couple of -2s, a -2n, and a -4;
the
> -4 offers multispot metering (up to 8 measurements), accepts the 2-series
> focusing screens without modification (brighter image in the viewfinder),
> 1/2000 second top shutter speed, and some other features that may or may
not
> interest you. The -2/2n are simpler, and have been around for a while. The
> -4T/Ti are the same camera, and offer titanium top and bottom covers and
the
> ability to sync with the Olympus F280 flash at all shutter speeds, as well
> as the rest of the features of the -4. I don't know much about the -2SP.
>
> The OM-3/3Ti don't offer OTF metering except for flash, and are mechanical
> cameras without autoexposure capability, so they may not fit your needs.
> They do offer the rest of the OM-4 feature set, though.
>
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