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.
Olympus XA Goes to the Oregon Coast
When you work at a camera store it is far too easy to acquire "too many" cameras. What even is too many is a philosophical debate waiting to happen. But in my case, I have a lot of cameras. Over the years I have learned to balance them and pair them well with my creative inclinations on any given trip. I have well learned the lesson of diminishing returns in trying to take everything... or at the least, too many cameras. These days I select one or two main cameras, and maybe one or two supplementary cameras. For example a recent trip to the Oregon Coast saw me take along my Hasselblad 500C/M (main camera) and Reality So Subtle 6x6 pinhole (main camera) along with my Reality So Subtle 6x17 (supplementary camera) and Hasselblad Flexbody (supplementary camera). The Olympus XA was thrown in almost as an after thought. I had it loaded with a roll of Kodak Portra 160 that I was trying to shoot to expand my sample library (and Film Friday library) of images. One of the things I so love about this camera is how easy it is to throw in a pocket. Yes, it can be a main camera. I have carried mine in the past as my sole camera. It can also be a great supplementary camera. And yet it can also be something you slip into a pocket of your backpack or coat on your way out the door just because you can. In this case I did and in the event of it all I ended up using it more than my Flexbody or Reality So Subtle 6x17. Go Olympus XA.