Olympus Pen FT - Shooting 35mm Half Frame!
Вставка
- Опубліковано 15 жов 2024
- In the half frame world of cameras, the Olympus Pen is the cream of the crop. There are a few different models of this camera and today, we're taking a look at the Pen FT. I'm going over some of my favorite photos I made while I had the camera in my hands and what it was like shooting diptychs for the entire roll.
You can purchase this kit at: mpex.com/
The original gangster of the APS-C/crop format XD
Wouldn't it be the OG Micro Four Thirds? Lol
@@Roflmao0001 Around x1.41 crop, I think :)
(1.4 high x 1.4 wide = 2x area, whereas m4/3 have a quarter the area of 135-format, i.e. 2h x 2w = 4.)
16mm exists
These were very good cameras - so good in fact that many professional school and bulk portraitists bought it because it only used half as much film as conventional 35mm cameras yet returned acceptable results for their purposes. The issue was of course film cost - rather than not needing to reload so much. The result is that today we must be very careful when purchasing this equipment. Good condition, used (but not abused) privately owned models and lenses are wonderful. Beware, however, of any model that seems unduly battered or has worn pressure plates. These could have been used to their death by portrait professionals.
Really love the discussion of taking multiple shots for a single event/scene. Such a simple concept but creatively invigorating!
Also, don't really see any film cameras available on midwest photo. Come on guys!
I've been waiting for this one. Great overview, Matt. I snagged a Pen EF before the inevitable explosion of prices on half-frames.
I love the vertical viewfinder. I love making the diptychs in-camera. Such a different shooting experience and a ton of fun.
Fully agreed! Such a fun exercise. One of these days, I’ll add a Pen to my permanent arsenal.
I bought one of these in 1968 while I was stationed at Phu Cat AFB in the Republic of Viet Nam. Shot a lot of pictures with it and took it with me to Hawaii on R&R to see my wife. I have very fond memories of that little camera.
Diptychs....definitely heard something else.
🤣🤣🤣
@@mattdayphoto 😅😅 I'm gonna have to grab one of the cheaper models. Really started thinking with your suggestions of how to shoot it. Great video.
So he needs two shots?
hahaha....
I was about to type the same thing, haha... I had to turn on captions just to make sure. xD
Hey Matt, I guess I’m still technically a newcomer to your channel, only discovering you about a month ago.
Last week I bought myself the Pen FV as my first ever camera, and you were the person to make me fall in love with it.
Due to some eBay hassle, I already have been able to hold the FT in my hands, and it made me fall in love with it even more.
Thank you for bringing me into the film photography world
Found one of these at a church sale! Had no idea it was a half frame camera. So excited to try it out. Thanks for this great video!
I have this exact camera in my bag right now. I wanted to get a manual camera and I love that you can use it with or without the meter. It is helping me learn sunny 16 and with so many shots it is almost like you have so much practice. Teach yourself composition or exposure or any trick of the trade with this camera. I love this camera and I love this video. So glad you got to try it out Matt!
Ever since I got an Olympus XA I've wanted an FT as well, I think this might have pushed me over the edge. I feel like Olympus is criminally underrated when it comes to good fun film cameras.
Great video, didn't realize I had such a special camera. Picked mine up in Viet Nam "70". Also have a 200mm lens that fits nicely but not bulky. While I haven't used it in years I may get back into photograpy.
The reason the shutter sounds so sharp is cause it's a rotating metal one, like on a cine camera! It also means you can use flash sync up to the max shutter speed like with a leaf shutter. Bloody love the Pen F and FT. Have a look at the pancake lens as well, a friend of mine picked on up from an ex-Olympus exec here in the Netherlands. Absolute joy to use.
Wish these little beauties weren't so expensive, would love to have one in the collection. Lovely images
Great photos Matt. You also have a relaxed and informative way of presenting. Thank's for sharing.
I have been using one for years. It will always be my favorite camera. Granted not the best photo quality with only half frame, but it feels so good in the hands
From what I've read, the FT, with the meter, was actually the second model, FV (without the meter) was the third. Apparently the FT has a dimmer view finder that the F and FV, and the mirror is a bit more prone to corrosion. (man, I really want a Pen F though).
I have the Pen-F. No self timer or light meter. Got the 35mm 1.8, and also the 20mm 3.5. The camera is possibly the most beautiful thing i've ever owned. There's something about it that makes you love it. Don't get the time to use it as much as i'd like unfortunately. I did have the idea of trying the diptych photos, and after seeing this i really will have to find the time and give that a go. I also have the adapter for M4/3 so can use the lenses on the digital Pen-F.
You've not just reminded me to get out with the camera, but inspired me to ditch the digital sometimes and just get out with the film camera, so thanks :-)
I feel the same. I LOVE shooting different film cameras with expired film just to see what I get. Then, when I get too many cameras, I flip them. You have me wondering about that Olympus Pen FT now. Makes me want to go searching for one now...
That crisp shutter sound I believe is due to the one piece circular shutter which just spins once around as apposed to having a normal 2 curtain shutter.
Also the Pen's shutter can flash sync at all speeds.
I was itching to buy a Canon Canonet a couple of years ago when I started shooting film. Almost did buy one, then on the eBay recommended listing below I saw a Canon Demi EE17. Thought it was a much nicer looking camera and loved the half frame concept and diptych and triptychs I saw done with half frame. So I bought it, more recently I also bought a Canon Demi C, which is interchangeable (still zone focus but half frame is sharper by nature). Love half frame!
If you like half frame format cameras, you should check out the weirdest one, the Yashica (or Kycorea in some cases) Samurai. Yes it's a half frame, looks like old school camcorder, shoots horizontally yet you hold it kinda vertically, and the film goes through it in the similar fashion like through a real cine film camera. Oh yes, it's all - in - one, with built in zoom lens and autofocus...
I was gifted an EE3 a few years back. Very basic compared to the one you reviewed lol, but I’m excited to try it out.
I’ve only just got around to replacing the light seals but now there’s a roll of film in it. The final issue is to wait for a bright day as I’ve got 200 film in it.
This camera is and will always be absolutely gorgeous. The engineering work is amazing. If I'm not mistaken, I believe it's the smallest 35mm SLR (not the smallest SLR because that's the Pentax 110). I'm considering to buy one in a few months and maybe turn it into my everyday camera.
The lens performed so nicely! I just bought a Pen S from ebay to see how I like the format. Looking at your photos makes me want the slr! Wonderful images Matt.
Thanks for the video, Matt. I had the model with the gothic F on the front and it was a beautiful camera, no light meter just sunny 16. What was great about that model was the shutter and aperture controls were both on the lens and once you got your exposure correct you just turned both rings together to change the aperture and shutter speed but keep the same exposure. I didn't like the noise of the shutter though, it was really loud and noticeable if you took a photo in a cafe for instance, everyone would turn and look at you.... If they weren't worth so much money I would definitely have kept it. I just use an EE for half frame now, they're only worth around $40 not $400.
Fabulous video as always. I've been itching to get my hands on a half-frame purely for diptychs and you really sold the FT! Love your shots - really interesting approaches to the multitude of ways you can tell a story in two frames. Thanks!
This makes me regret ever selling mine. I know exactly what you mean when talking about the shutter sound, i used to occasionally pick it up when it wasn’t loaded and fire it a couple of times just to hear it lol
I have the Digital Pen F and love the small size especially with the fantastic little primes. Great little travel kit. Yours looks like it would be much the same experience in a film sort of way. Such a fanatics looking old gem
You can pick up an EOS to penF adapter for around $40, and then adapt pretty much any lens mount that's adaptable to EOS via adapter rings. The biggest cost in the world of Pen-F/FT/FVs are the native lenses. What's the point of interchangeable lenses if you only have one lens? The native lenses range anywhere from as much to more than double to cost of the body alone. If you've already got a collection of M42, PK, or EF lenses, $50 and you've already got a full range of lenses to choose from, albeit with a 50% crop factor, but that's only on the horizontal plane, the vertical is still 24mm.
Ive never realized that kind of parallel photos kind be made, that sound very interesting because in one photo you have 2 different pics of the same object, awasome
You could take 2 separate pictures of 2 different things
What a beautifully design camera. Wow.
About 30 years ago, I developed an interest in the Pen F system. I pulled the trigger for an FT and several lenses. For me the devil proved to be in the details. The TTL metering system involves a hocky index number transfer process. Some lenses have the metering index, some do not, and some of the "not" lenses are adapter with a little scale pasted on the lens barrel. So slow working as to be a real pain. On the FT, metering is measured with light drawn from the viewing system, making viewing noticeably dimmer. The SLR viewing system does not use a pentaprism like a normal 35mm SLR, but a porroprism made up from a series of mirrors, which is noticeably dimmer still. I found the viewing dim and the focusing difficult in lower light which would be no problem for an SLR. In the end, I sold off the Pen equipment after using it on one weekend photo trip. No regrets; would not buy again..
Thank you for the inspiration - you made me go to my camera cupboard to look, and lo and behold I have an Olympus FT in my collection, complete with battery adaptor. So it’s ready to load with some Ilford Delta 100, all set for this weekend !
Funny you’ve done a video on half frame camera, just got one, Olympus pen EE3. Just developed and print my first film and must say I am really happily surprised with the results. Excellent for street shooting. Fully agree with your challenge definition for this half system
I’ve always wanted a Pen-F. They seem like a ton of fun and I wouldn’t mind the challenge of shooting 72 frames.
I have a black FT staring down at me from my shelf...thanks for giving me the motivation to shoot it.
Great review! I picked one up recently, and I really like it.
It actually does have a shoe mount, which detaches like early Pentax Spotmatic cameras. Also, the shutter sounds so cool, because it uses a unique titanium rotary shutter that flash syncs at all shutter speeds.
Beautiful camera, the shutter button is similar to the Kodak Instamatic 50.
The unique shutter sound is because it doesn't have a regular front/rear curtain or leaf shutter but rather a Rotary Focal Plane shutter.
I just bought a Konica AA-35 to mess around with. Should be fun to see what sort of things can be done with. Seeing this gives me some ideas, Thanks Matt!
Going to try the two vertical frame story idea! I always tried to match 2 frames from the roll but shooting 2 next to each other, to tell more, is a challenge. Thank you for showing something new to spark creativity.
Wow, this is so dope! I’ve only seen half frame shots occasionally on insta but hadn’t thought about storytelling with it.
You'd definitely enjoy the shutter sound on the Bessa Cameras if you like that mechanical snap!
Interesting review Matt. Nice pictures, I tried to do the same technique with my Pen EES. It’s really challenging but fun to do these pictures. You should try the EE series they are inexpensive and fun to shoot. Love your videos and the content!!!
I just found my grandpas pen FT that he took with him to Vietnam. Having a buddy look at it to make sure its in good working condition.
Matt! your compositions are awesome! loved the photo examples and review. Thank you
The World Is A Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid To Die records @9:08. Never would have expected that to be in your collection.
I think you got the creative point using this camera. I love using my old G.D.R. Penti for this, but sometimes it’s really hard finding 2 matching pieces into 1 frame
Ive been shooting my pen fv for 2 years now. Really enjoyed the camera also the lens i had (40mm f1.4) is really sharp. Will keep this since diptych is my style.
Beautiful camera. I can see you are completely recovered. Good news! Luis
My first SLR was the Olympus Pen F, with a hand-held meter. Odd thing between it and the T, it took two advance strokes to advance to the next frame.
The sound is from the rotary shutter. Its similar to the univex murcury and murcury II . Its also like the shutter on Cinima cameras
I love the diptych idea! Thoroughly enjoyed this Matt.
Great photos, wow!
I love how their digital versions don't look too far from the orginal.
4yrs later with the cost of film double this is an interesting option. Love the compact size.
Wow, great for the diptychs of your kids and pup.
Thanks!
i love this camera. great to see you talk about it. the lenses are awesome and its one of my favourite looking cameras out there - the same kind of coolness and clarity of design that something like Leica mda or Kowa SW evokes. great video.
Great camera. I have 2. One is a medical version which has a circle view thru the viewfinder; for microscope attachments at the lens. It is mint with low mileage use because hospitals/clinics didn't use them to the extent like those designated for the public. My second one is the regular one for the public, although it is in great condition doesn't seem to feel and sound as good as the medical version. Both work great with modern films!!! You can get the adaptor and use Olympus OM lenses on them as well.
I'm a fan of the Pen F, which, unfortunately, Olympus has just canceled. It's a great digital camera, especially good looking in the silver version, like your Pen FT. Apart from looks, it's also been a pleasure to use. It has a superb EVF and can use all current Olympus and Panasonic 4/3 lenses. The only complaint I had initially was the grip -- the lack thereof. Really Right Stuff solved that for me with a perfect add-on grip. The Pen F with the Zhongyi 25mm Speedmaster, also in silver, is a wonderful combination. Aesthetics, ergonomics, and image quality, a happy trinity of usefulness.
Another great video and thank you, as always, for the exemplary photos.
Sounds like a winning combo!
Your results with this camera are stunning. Nice work.
I've had this in mind for a while now. The 72 vertical frames, and precise SLR framing in that miniature formfactor greatly appeals to me. I have an M6 which itself doesn't see enough use, though, so I can't quite justify it :/ (I wish it could take M lenses...!)
I believe that it has a very rare rotary disc shutter mechanism which may account for the cool sound.
8:50 - A nice collection and project. Really inspiring. I'd like to shoot like this.
Somtimes a man has to buy what he is loving so much 😍
That, is a microphone. Please let us know how to rig the camera to make the meter work. Great videos!
Different cameras teach us different lessons!
Agreed!
love the half frame format! so cool!!
I have a pen-f,which is a great camera ,I love it
Hearing about the built-in meter made me want to buy one of these over my Pen-F.. and next you say you're shooting it without the meter, making it essentially the same camera ;)
I also usually shoot diptychs with mine. It's such a fun challenge!
Go on man keep it I won't say anything, especially to Mid West.
Great video Matt! Love this
I've been shooting with a Pen-FT on Arista EDU Ultra 400 and developing in Rodinal. The grain is f**king real and I love it, lmao.
Matt, I like your videos, but please do some more research:
1.The Pen does not use the LV scale! The numbers on the lens are to accommodate the different lens speeds.
2. The shutter sound is due to it being a rotary titanium focal plane shutter.
3. The PX625 mercury cell was pretty much universal in cameras for more than a decade. There are several simple replacements.
4. You typically get 78 frame on a 36 exposure roll.
5. The zoom you had (although quite cool) is very much looked down on. Zoom lenses were just coming around at this time and the image quality pales when compared to the primes.
Sorry if someone else already asked this, but I didn't see the question. How is the image quality? What size prints can you get out of a photo? I have the Pen S in great condition, but I think the lens on that one is limiting
Oh... I think I've come down with a case of G.A.S. As I was watching this , it sparked so many ideas.
Cool video! Always wanted to try one of those. I keep hearing about the excellent quality of lenses for that system.
Hey, everyone needs a half-frame. Buy it!
Love this camera
Love the turntable and record album diptych! Thanks for the heads up on @halfframeclub. I’ve got an Olympus Pen EES-2 and am always looking for inspiration in portrait orientation. I just “see” in landscape mode.
I recently finished the roll in Chaika II , love that camera ,pretty good lens also!
Olympus Pen is great!
I always wanted the pen F. I do have a Yashica Mimy which is a good half frame camera love your thoughtss on ways to use it as I have struggled taking 72 photos as I am a slow shooter takes me forever to finish a roll of film. Really enjoyed this video.
The only shame is that the M mount is slightly shorter than the Pen F mount. It would be pretty cool to use M lenses on this camera.
You would need someone to specially mod the flange mount. Keep in mind that those Pen lenses are pretty sharp themselves since they were designed to work with the negative size of the camera. The image circle of those lenses were most ideal for that frame size.
This is my primary camera, good camera to learn on, be creative and make mistakes. I really like how you scanned your negatives, what did you use?
Finally, an SLR for the mobile phone era. ;)
Thanks Matt, now my next roll is going to be all diptychs :)
It is so beautiful
Used one of these back in the pre-hipster era and once you start using it a lot, some of the charm starts to wear off. Don't bother trying to rig up a battery so you can use the meter - reading numbers off the scale in the viewfinder and then turning the lens over to set the same number on the scale is a huge PIA. Even if you don't use the meter, you pay for it another way: the mirror is partly transparent to steal some light for the meter, which makes the view through the finder dim and focusing in dim light is kinda mushy. The original Pen F (with big gothic letter F on the front) and later Pen FV (same as Pen FT except no meter) are much brighter and easier to focus. Also, wind lever stroke is ridiculously long considering you're only moving 18mm of film, don't ya think?
Hey! I own this camera and your video has been super helpful. What shutter speed did you use for your photos? Thank you!
Ah half frame cameras, so many shots you probably aged 10 years by the time youve finished the roll
does molly know your feelings about this camera ;) lol. it is a very cool camera... when i buy one i think i'll probably shoot horizontally mostly. vertical orientations are so hard for me to do... even for skyscrapers...
Nice! That camera has always intrigued me too. I will check out Midwest camera for the price and availability!
Awesome! It’s such a fun camera.
There is also Hasselblad X Pan, 35 mm film camera. It is so much fun to use, I guarantee Next time check that out !
Just picked up a Pen FT. I was surprised at how heavy this little guy is…should help with slow shutter speeds though.
Such an interesting camera! Nice video :)
my trusty Olympus pen ee-2 is the go-to insta film walkaround camera... super jelly of this thing though.
Funny you should post this, I just made a video about adapting these lenses for Fotodiox last week. I have a Pen-F 20mm lens but no body yet :P One of these days...
Always wanted a half frame camera but not sure about the quality and size of the media, the difference with 35mm is so evident?
Good video Matt!
You got a big ol Smile on your face!, that must have been alot of fun.
Great pictures. What ISO you shot HP+?
I used to shoot with it, pretty sad when I sold it but I had too many cameras back then so it is okay : )