The OM-10 and its higher numbered siblings are
Olympus's lower end line of cameras, not as ruggedly
built, nor do they incorporate the features included
in the single digit line of cameras. You seem somewhat
new to photography (am I right?) so you might want to
avoid an OM-1 or 3 right now. Look for an OM-2 series
or 4 series camera. These two cameras have everything
one could need for manual photography, they are full
auto shutter priority so all you have to do is focus
and set the apeture and yet still have full manual if
you want to get adventurous. The 1 and 3 series are
fully mechanical which means you have to set shutter
speed, focus, and apeture yourself, however these
cameras work without batteries which makes them
invaluable in cold weather where batteries go kaput.
Olympus designed there single digit cameras to all
work in a 'system' of fully interchangeable parts,
pretty much anything you could put on one OM body will
also work on another OM body. This means that if you
get a lens, a winder, a flash, and even a focusing
screen and 2 OM bodies you can take all of these parts
and place them on another different digit OM and still
have full operation of these parts with very few
exceptions.
The OM-10 line is a bit different in that some things
will not work on them or will not work fully featured.
All OM system lenses will work on all OM bodies
regardless, but some winders won't fit and I don't
think the flashes work on auto either. They work, but
only in manual, which means that one has to calculate
the distance and stuff which is a real hassle.
If you are looking for a beginning OM system I would
recommend an OM-2, 2n, or 2s, a 50mm f1.8 lens, a 28mm
2.8 lens and a 70-150mm f4 zoom from Olympus or a
70-210 Vivitar Series 1 or other quality 3rd party
zoom in that range. A T-20 flash. And finally maybe a
winder 2.
If you want a totally barebones system to slowly add
to just get the OM-2 series camera, the 50/1.8 lens,
and the T-20 flash.
All this stuff may seem a bit expensive, and most of
this stuff you cannot find new, but a good condition
used OM will most probably outlast any plastic wonder
you would find new at a camera store and I guaranteee
you will get better pictures if you take a bit of time
to learn how to control this system rather than
shelling out 300-350 bucks a pop for a consumer SLR.
Getting a higher level C*non or N*kon is about as or
much more expensive than getting this system as well.
Finally, If you decide that all you want to do is take
pictures pretty much hassle free I would suggest
foregoing and SLR system altogether for an excellent
point and shoot like an Olympus Stylus Epic. A camera
like that would serve its function much better than
spending 300 plus for an SLR that does the same thing
only worse. Many apologies for the length of this
post.
Mark Lloyd
--- John Hobson <goalie_john@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> I had just discovered that FAQ and was looking at it
> as I received your
> e-mail! I am still a little confused with the model
> numbers. I assumed
> that the model range started with the single digits
> and moved on to the
> later numbers. From what you say it sounds like
> there were 2 'lines' of
> cameras - the single digits and the 10, 20, 30 etc?
>
> What exactly do you mean by 'system' camera? Are
> you implying that the
> om20 is the best in that series?
>
> sorry for all the questions!
> cheers
> John
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