Anyway, Missy hadn't been out with her Olympus for a while and suggested an outing so a few minutes later we found ourselves on the Prom. I had acquired a new (to her) lens for her OM-1...a 28mm f/2 made by Vivitar - a name that might be familiar to many of you from back in the day when film was the only show in town. I say made by Vivitar although it now appears Vivitar were a third-party reseller for other manufacturers - Kiron, Komine, Tokina among others. When I learned that I confess I felt somewhat cheated - as a young lad I had assumed they actually manufactured the lenses, rather than commission them from elsewhere. Not that it matters as in terms of quality the name Vivitar is still fairly highly regarded but the nature of the Internet and Pixel-Peepers means that certain serial numbers (i.e., certain manufacturers) are deemed 'more desirable' than others. Whatever. Maybe I’m not that fussy but I can’t remember ever thinking ‘Right, that lens is rubbish and I’m never using it again’. Even if a lens is a bit soft wide-open all more reason to use it for the right subject matter. Anyway, the Vivitar/Komine 28mm that found its way onto Missy's OM-1 feels very nice in the hand - a solid little thing, it is. And being an f/2 it means the view through the OM is pretty bright. A nice little find and one that didn't break the bank, at a whopping £25.
So as we wandered about and I encouraged Missy to go into Garry Winogrand mode and shoot away at whatever caught her eye. This one caught the mood nicely:
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| Fish 'n' Chips down the Prom on a sunny July evening - what could be better? Ilford Warmtone RC paper. |
Contax didn't make my Contax 645 (Kyocera) and Zeiss (Cosina) didn't make my Zeiss Ikon ZM rangefinder, but they are both beautiful machines. I'm sure Olympus were looking over the manufacturer's shoulder to make sure everything was okay.
ReplyDeleteI like the photograph, but at first I thought the wooden rail was the ocean! I figured it out once I clicked and looked at the larger version . . . .
It's quite nice you can share your hobby with your daughter.
I do see what you mean about the rails, Marcus. Those are our new(ish) chrome rails that seem to be everywhere these days.
DeleteI really enjoy going out with Missy and the cameras. She did the developing of this film herself, under instruction. I’m pleased she’s taking an interest in it.
Chrome! What I thought was wood grain turns out to be reflections of benches, etc. I see it now.
DeleteGarry Winogrand mode sounds hectic, to tell the truth... but I would really like to see what that might have looked like :)
ReplyDeleteAnyway, it's a really nice snap done with the good wide angle Vivitar on the OM-1, and I can instantly tell she must have picked up a trick or two from someone she knows quite well. A really cool wide angle shot it is for sure, with the leading lines and points of interest far away into the frame.
She seems to be a tiny tad braver compared to her father though, getting quite close to where the action is... but then again the youth and all that stuff, I know!
Haha you're correct in pretty much everything, Roy. She is a tad braver, too - I think she's also a little more inconspicuous than her old man, which helps ;)
DeleteOh... I didn't think of that, but you are quite right of course. It helps a whole lot, actually :)
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