Olympus XA users

[windraider]

Hi any Olympus XA users out there?

I’ve been using an XA for the last 20yrs & have noticed the following:
When focusing at objects between 0.85-2m, resolution of the subjects seem to be soft at apertures lower than f5.6. Particularly at f2.8, subject seems to be out of focus (resolution of background is soft but not as bad as subject). I’ve already checked the rangefinder accuracy by comparing lens distance readouts to measurements made via a measuring tape. The problem is gone and subject is sharp (together with background) at f8.

Anyone have a similar experience? Is this a limitation of the retro-focus len’s short focus throw or is a lens alignment problem?

Additionally when using flash in low light situations (handheld), subjects 1.5-3m away tend to be overexposed & seems out of focus, but background is usually OK.

Also from a user perspective, how would you rate the performance the XA’s lens?
My dad commented that resolution seems soft when compared with his 50/1.4 AIS Nikkor.

Would appreciate any inputs from all users.

 

[Keltzar]

I had the XA and XA2 before...
I never noticed this problem.

Given the philosophy behind the XA series as streetshooters, it could well be that the lens is not optimized for close distances.

Maybe you should try asking on the global olympus forums?

 

[Ben1223]

Wish I had one. Anyone selling?

 

[sathea]

here's one taken with xa4 at close distance.

 

[Ben1223]

here's one taken with xa4 at close distance.

Hi Sathea,
Do you remember what film you used for this photo? It has a very arty feel.
But it looks like some details were lost

 

[sathea]

it should be tmax 100 which has expired for more than 10 years if i'm not wrong.
here's another one with xa4 when i went to yunnan last year

 

[windraider]

Yup most of my close focus shots at f2.8-4 or with flash turns out like Sathea's, even at speeds above 1/60. Gives you an artistic feel with black & white film but sucks when using color film. The XA that I'm using has a rangefinder for focusing, unlike the zone focus of the XA4. So I guess it is a design limitation rather than a problem with my camera. This means that the rf isn't really that useful. Having said that, the camera performs well for its size when stopped down to f8, so when taking subjects at close distances just remember to stop-down. Pictures taken with lens wide open are also useable when focused at subjects 3m and above.

 

[khairi]

OOOoooo...u calling XA users? Sharpness prob? not really, unless if you pre-focus with the Oly XA, then you'll get soft-reasoanble sharpness-sharp images. But if you bother to focus with the XA, i dont see a prob.

I got the Oly XA, and i usually, use it at f2.8, ISO 800, pre-focus at 3m then just shoot during my street shooting, simply bo chap abt the focusing patch...only when i thing i need to focus, then i'd bother to look at the small and sometimes invisible focusing patch.

here are some samples:

pre-focused shots:

shots i bothered to focus:

"with neopan 400"

 

[n0d3]

I managed to get an Olympus XA off another CS user a few months ago, fantastic camera! I'm looking at getting the XA3/4 now.

http://www.diaxa.com/xa/xastart.htm

And heres some Flickr XA group:
http://flickr.com/groups/olympusxa/

 

[ricohflex]

think i have at least 2 of these.
i think XA lens is OK.

this is my guess on the topic mentioned by windraider.

the softness windraider alluded to may be caused by the rangefinder.
the XA is a small sized camera.
this means the "BASE" of the rangefinder is very short.
the shorter the base, the less accurate is the RF.
so when focusing short distances, it may be that the Olympus XA's RF is less accurate.
actually the lens is reasonably sharp.
according to khairi's post, if you prefocus the shots he showed are OK
stopping down increases depth of field, so covering up for the slghtly wrong focus distance.
so next time you shoot close distance, measure or guess the distance and set it manually on the lens.

another possibility is the RF mechanism is slightly out. Send it in to repair shop for a test.
very cheap to adjust.

I hope this helps.

 

[windraider]

Thanks all for the pics & technical explanations.
While I’ve already tested the rf accuracy of my XA using measuring tape, I agree that I find it difficult to focus using the rf especially in dim lighting. I’ve often been unconvinced with the indicated distance readouts when using the rf, sometimes it shows 3m when subject is less than 1.5m! This probably means even if there is nothing wrong with my XA, I’ll probably have to get use to zone focusing and stopping down to f8 for good results.

I’m going to run some more test shots using a measuring tape & tripod before I decide whether to send it for servicing.