It's a brand new, old world and I'm loving it.
I admit that form and function are important to me. After reacquainting myself with film through the Olympus Trip I turned my attention to finding an old SLR camera. What to look for? It was a no-brainer. The Olympus OM-1, a well storied, professional quality SLR was my first choice. I was fortunate to find what I was looking for on Etsy, in fact I got more than I'd bargained for as the OM-1 I bought came with 'nifty 50' lens, an original case, strap and flash. A complete package that had been lovingly reconditioned. The camera is as much a work of art as it is functional and it's not just me that thinks so. An upcoming YouTube channel, Analogue Insights, have a great review of this stunning camera.
Rather like my first roll of film with the Trip, I just wanted to test out the OM-1. Whilst out in Vancouver I took the opportunity to play hometown tourist and get used to a fully manual and mechanical camera again. The aspect I love about the OM-1 is the shutter speed selector being at the base of the lens ring. It makes adjustments so easy and when starting from a known 1/125th, F8 I can swiftly fine tune my exposures. With a single ISO setting to make along with full stops of shutter and apeture adjustments, the OM-1 is a joy to use, it's about simplicity, it's uncluttered, it's about the possibility of the image.
I used a local camera shop to get the roll developed and scanned the negatives myself before lightly retouching in Luminar. The images below are a good representation of what a forty year old camera can capture.
Using film again is becoming a very relaxing and creative experience, plus there's the joy of waiting to get the film developed before finding out how well I've shot.
