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Olympus XA
A legendary camera designed by a legendary man. The Olympus XA is the brainchild of famed Olympus camera designer Yoshihisa Maitani and was produced between 1979 and 1985. Maitani was the genius behind the Olympus OM-1 as well as the Olympus Pen, and later the Mju line of compact cameras. (If you have never read the biography and history of Yoshihisa Maitani we heartedly recommend it.) Maitani's realized dream with the Olympus XA was to make as compact a camera as possible while not sacrificing functionality. In this manner his accomplishment is pretty comparable to Oskar Barnack's with the original Leica camera.
At its most basic, the Olympus XA is a fixed lens rangefinder camera that exposes via aperture priority. The camera has an ultra sharp Zuiko 35mm f/2.8 lens, itself a marvel of engineering. The lens uses a six element design and manages to be shorter in length than its equivalent focal length, classifying it somewhat uncommonly as a "telephoto" wide angle lens. It also manages to be fairly bright with a max aperture of f2.8. A nearly silent leaf shutter and a simple two-bladed aperture mechanism round out the camera's exposure capabilities. A vertical aperture slider with settings from f2.8 to f22 to the side of the lens allows quick, manual adjustment of the aperture and the camera's meter takes care of setting the shutter (with automatic speeds ranging from 10s to 1/500). The ISO is set via a switch below the lens with adjustments from ISO 25-800 being possible. The camera is battery dependent and requires two SR44, or equivalent, for all functions.
In addition to its functional specs, the size of the Olympus XA is what often most impresses. The camera is only 4 inches long, 2.5 inches tall and 7 ounces in weight (without the accessory flash). It fits in the palm of the hand and easily slips into a shirt pocket, coat pocket or handbag.
This is one of the ultimate pocket rangefinder cameras that you can find.
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