why I take my olympus xa everywhere I go

Today we talk about why my Olympus XA goes everywhere with me.
The first 1000 people to use the link will get a free trial of Skillshare Premium Membership: skl.sh/thephotodept04211
This video was sponsored by Skillshare.
Be sure to follow me on Instagram / christophermichaelsturm
and / thephotodept
Check out Hannah's ceramics at / hannahhodge.projects
________________________________________________________________
00:00 welcome
02:40 the camera
04:20 the olympus xa is my sketchbook
05:50 photo examples
09:12 the flash
09:55 motivation to create
11:17 do you do the same?
12:55 i love you, bye.
________________________________________________________________
I get all my music from Epidemic Sound
epidemicsound.com/music/featured/
A Million Signs (Instrumental Version) - Vividry
In My Locket - Tayler Watts
________________________________________________________________
#olympusxa
#35mmfilm
#rangefinder

[@ThePhotoDept]

The first 1000 people to use the link will get a free trial of Skillshare Premium Membership: skl.sh/thephotodept04211

[@chrissstttiiine]

man, I love that camera. it's so pocketable which means you're more likely to bring it with you and pull it out without feeling like you're intruding

[@ThePhotoDept]

You really need to get one.

[@chrissstttiiine]

@@ThePhotoDept I had it but I gave it to an ex LOL same as it ever was

[@ThePhotoDept]

Hahahaha worst idea.

[@tonyrigby7948]

XA2 was my 'combat camera' 1981-1987. The shutter delay function allowed me to take group photos of my mates in good places and bad places. I lost one, wore-out one, and bought my third in 2002 in Bangkok.

[@BryceDearden]

I am a fanny pack guy and the XA is a permanent fixture in mine. I have never thought of it as a sketchbook but I would say I use it in a similar way. Ideas and thinking about light but also, some of my most cherished memories. :)

[@MrRuffun]

Very happy to see the bicycle and glad that it's up and running :- ) This has also inspired me to get out my red XA3 again. Such a fun system to take snaps on...

[@filmcicle]

I use my XA2 the same way! The total auto exposure makes taking a snapshot even easier and once you get the focusing zones figured out it's always spot on

[@jonkk]

this yellow mic is an absolute vibe. Love your channel bro

[@ThePhotoDept]

Thank you!

[@michaeldl49]

I have the same Olympus XA camera with the A16 Flash that I got a couple of years ago, because the original one I had fell into the Ganges river over 30 years ago while traveling in India. I loved the photos I got and how tiny and fun it was to go out and take photos in kind of a stealth way. So, one day I saw this camera on eBay and had to buy it. And yeah it was less than 100 and in great condition. Thank you for featuring the XA. BTW I love coffee, bicycles and that poster (X-Files) haha.

[@mikaveloz4258]

Love the video! I do the same thing with my Rollei 35, it goes everywhere with me. Not a perfect camera, but because it's always on me it's produced some of my favorite photos.

[@mardystube]

I'm on the same situation with the Mju ii, so I use an Olympus Trip AF mini and I'm really grateful with it mostly because of the memories I've captured of my friends and my day-to-day life

[@brntgudn]

I love the Olympus P&S film cameras. I had an XA, Mju zoom 115 and now an Olympus stylus infinity camera. I didn't like how slow working with the XA was before and had misalignment issues with the rangefinder (a common issue). I like your idea on using it as a "sketchbook". I plan to do that this summer for location scouting. Use my phone + SLR for 35mm. Return to it later with my Mamiya RB67. With my new DSLR scanning set-up, knowing I can get good scans w 35mm really opens up things for me now.

[@LaLaLaLaLifeFabyu]

My dad got this camera with the flash attachment when he visited Japan in the 80s. Most of my baby pictures are made with this camera too!!

[@Rielcool]

I love my XA for essentially the same reasons. It doesn’t give me an excuse not to create when I could easily just pass something by. I’ve heard about the softness you mention but the lens in mine has yet to disappoint, but I did get a full CLA done before I used mine. I’m more creative because I have it. Really the only downside is I shoot a lot with it, where most rolls took me ages to fill with my other cameras, somehow I can get through a roll on the XA in just one outing. RIP film stash!

[@kevinpazmino6042]

I use it in a very similar way. I actually take it with me on long runs. I see so many photographable moments when I’m running. Funny that some of my most like photos on IG is from the XA and I shoot on a Leica M3 and don’t get nearly the love. Maybe I’m over thinking it with the Leica and the XA is more honest? Great video btw

[@peterahn6832]

For me olympus pen ee3 is my carry around camera. Being half frame it really do me good in not having to worry about film counts

[@RichardStroffolino]

I've started using a Canon Multi Tele the same way. Shooting it in half-frame mode makes it perfect for little "photo sketch" ideas (and also saving money on film lol).

[@ThePhotoDept]

oh sick. I wanna check one of those out.

[@NotMyWiFi]

Nothing panics me more than locking my bike in LA, lmao. Searching for my first film camera as I too have mannnnnny iPhone galleries that I never revisit after the initial snap. Looking to take my time and appreciate the moment. New sub and love the content!

[@ThePhotoDept]

i havent locked my bike anywhere just yet, I usually dont bike anywhere i need to leave it. im sure i will at some point though.

[@thedondeluxe6941]

Same here! I use my XA and a digital Ricoh GR2 in the same way. But the Ricoh has some of the same problems as the mobile phone. It's just so easy and I end up with thousands of shots. Great camera though.

[@NPJensen]

Well yeah, I do have an XA and two A16 flashes for some reason (I mostly shoot outside in natural light). In fact, I just finished replacing the light seals on my XA today, and I'm getting a fresh load of film tomorrow, so it will be in my pocket from now on when ever I go anywhere. For me it's not a "notebook". I'll use it to take advantage of good light and subjects and occasions, that are happening in the moment, and won't be there, if I return another time with a high end camera. I do have a handful of AF point and shoot cameras (Pentax and Minolta), that I will also be testing at some point, but they are nothing like the XA. I was considering getting a Minox GL or GT, but simply never got around to it.

[@rolandorodriguez1132]

Although I shifted into large and medium format, I still use my voigtlander bessa R for my snapshots and small trips!

[@danieljung8046]

JUST DO IT. "you have a camera in your pocket" love it

[@itakepicswithalightcapture]

Quill stem and friction shifting babee! Love the bike! @bicyclelad approved 👍

[@ThePhotoDept]

hell yeah! come to LA and lets ride.

[@MegaSoundscapes]

I just got mine yesterday for a good price. Film is loaded. Will be interresting to see what I can get out of this little camera. the fact that it is so small is already exciting (a camera for any time, anywhere ). Having the peak design everyday sling 3L helped already a lot because it enables me to take a small SLR setup anywhere but the XA just takes it even a step further. Thankx for your video and thoughts about this little gem ! ....

[@ThePhotoDept]

awesome! i’m sure you’re gonna love it. that lens is wonderful.

[@aucariseverywhere5360]

Iced coffee, a bike, glasses, analog photography ... yes, i am on the hipster side of KZbin. Love my olympus XA! :)

[@ThePhotoDept]

Haha truly. I’m glad my crappy vision makes me hip

[@anthonygibbs614]

I'm learning on a Olympus xa2 but I will get the camera that you're talking about the XA it uses the same flash how cool is that I think the A11 is good enough I like the pictures that you took

[@SteveMorton]

The old yellow two door car, is an old Austin/Morris 1100 or 1300 from the late 1960’s early 1970’s. I passed my driving test in one in 1976!! What film do you typically use in the XA? If 126 film was still readily available I would use my Kodak Instamatic 25 as a carry around film camera!!

[@ThePhotoDept]

I use a lot of Fuji Superia in mine. I always have a ton on hand.

[@terrywbreedlove]

Kind of thinking about this little camera as a film version of my phone camera. Something small and easy to shoot that will be easy to keep on me most times. Set focus to 3 meters F5.6 or F8 for big depth of field zone focusing point and shoot :)

[@GregoryVeizades]

The camera that is with me all the time is my Yashica Electro 35 GT. Its almost perfect for what I want. Key among that being a damn good rangefinder patch. Mine is having some shutter/exposure issues. Need to track that down. Cons are weird metering display that i've grown to like, and a long... long shutter travel that can need a very firm press to get the shutter to fire. Don't know if that is just mind and I need to fix it or endemic to the camera.

[@ThePhotoDept]

i had one of those for a long time! cool camera, but I didnt love how cheap it felt.

[@andrewnoden9117]

Hi Chris, Andrew here in Ottawa Canada . I got to your site via a podcast by Analog Talk. Daniel Milner likes Bikes 🙂 he has a great show. Immediate fan of your show. Take care . Andrew

[@ThePhotoDept]

Awesome! Thank you!!!

[@Fjalll]

The XA was my pocket go-to for years until I switched to the XA4. A wide zone focus camera with the same form factor. Until I find a Summaron 28mm for my Leica the XA4 will be the visual note book of choice.

[@ThePhotoDept]

ooh, def something i wanna try!

[@AbDaniel21]

i received my xa yesterday and suddelny it fell on concrete but survived somehow. i also have an xa2 wich serves me since 2019 and this series of camera is the best off all

[@ThePhotoDept]

my gf has dropped all four xa’s we’ve had multiple times each. surprisingly resilient cameras’

[@AbDaniel21]

@@ThePhotoDept yeah, i was also surprised, some minor scratches after it fell but really nothing drastic, do you have an instagramaccount?

[@leodari915]

Amazing! What film do you use for the photos in this video?

[@tychomagneticanomaly]

I always loved the XA, but just went the other direction, sizewise. I got into large format with a 150, 90 and 58 mm lenses and use the F2 and F3 as notebooks ;))

[@ThePhotoDept]

Haha nice. Wish I could take a large format camera with me everywhere.

[@tychomagneticanomaly]

@@ThePhotoDept Its great, you lug around 20 kilos of stuff and have the added fun of developing the sheet film in a Jobo CPP2 with a rotating Expert drum that needs reopening with a pump afterwords, while you fix your next coffee. Actually your thing! ;))

[@alextat]

I've thought about grabbing an XA as it seems quite capable and fun to use. I nabbed the Mju II for $200 for the same purposes you grabbed your XA. $200 sucks, but surprisingly less than what it's currently going for. The "hype tax" for these cameras stings, but I'm in the same boat in that I won't shell out the hype tax for a T2 or something similar.

[@ThePhotoDept]

The hype tax is truly a bummer. I’m hoping eventually the fad passes and we can access good cameras for reasonable prices again. But who am I kidding...

[@MisterShimizu]

Would you believe I just found the XA and the XA2 at a local thrift store for $1 each… I’m so damn excited to get to using the XA.

[@ThePhotoDept]

WOW. incredible deal. congrats!

[@kkam319]

I used to own two XA at one point, as I fell for it because of the cult following and stayed with it as it proved it self as a very capable little sidekick.

[@ThePhotoDept]

I sold my last one and I don’t remember why.

[@nealdinkelman9551]

Do you still have the link to the MKE film? I'm from there and would love to see it!

[@chriswilcockson8595]

And the XA is a rangefinder so you have total control about where you put the focal point of your image!

[@ThePhotoDept]

exactly! thats what attracted me to it in the first place

[@tresnic09]

Great channel. Is your name a play on The Radio Dept?

[@ThePhotoDept]

thanks! and maybe...

[@psychoanima]

I own this small beast and using it daily for street photography. Lens is a hit and miss with wide open aperture. I believe that the softness is caused by focus shift at closer distances. While trying to shoot wide open at 2+meters pictures are quite sharp.

[@ThePhotoDept]

I agree, it can be a little hit or miss. I think I’ve gotten used to the quirkiness and now 100% of my shots are great for the most part.

[@ella-du1ub]

What should I set the apature distance and asa to for close pictures and for far pictures?

[@DVisser14]

I use my Agfa Optima 1535 often for the same purpose 🤙

[@jezheywood9608]

I use a Lomo LCA+ for the exact same reason

[@zguy95135]

The lens definitely does its best at f4 and above. Still its so freaking tiny you can forgive a little softness wide open.

[@ThePhotoDept]

honestly true. and with a little sharpening in post? wow. amazing lens.

[@JohnKrill]

eBikes! Have a RAD City. Love it.

[@boblofblad8802]

Is that a Bedlington Terrier? Best dog!

[@brookswilson3588]

What type of film would you recommend for the vintage look?

[@ThePhotoDept]

Hm, Kodak gold always has a nice warm vintage nostalgic look if shot in the sun

[@Nanijie]

When you shoot certain places do you write notes? Or do you just wing it

[@ThePhotoDept]

I carry a field notes notebook with me and write things down.

[@donelljanvier9967]

where can i get a pink "phot dept." shirt that I saw in grainyday's bay are video?

[@ThePhotoDept]

the-photo-dept.creator-spring.com/

[@timzegstroo]

I use an olympus mju 1 for the same thing. Just to always have a camera on me👍

[@ThePhotoDept]

It’s a great camera for that

[@spyratekodaks7494]

Yeah I do this!! I just do it with my mju ii dlx!!

[@ThePhotoDept]

great camera for that as well.

[@JohnKrill]

Do you take written notes on where you took the photos with the Oly?

[@ThePhotoDept]

i do! i have a Field Notes notebook in my pocket usually.

[@TrevorHayes]

Possibly sacrilege to say on an analogue photography channel but I feel the same way about my GR3.

[@ThePhotoDept]

No way the GR3 is great. I don’t discriminate!

[@tallasianchick]

Support

[@aaronshapiroedc]

I like bike stuff fwiw!

[@ThePhotoDept]

That makes two!

[@toulcaz31]

I got the XA4 just before the prices increase. Cool cameras.

[@jakeoliveira5086]

its funny to me because we pretty much run the same standard setups. Pentax 645n, usually with the 45mm. Carry an XA with me at all times. I have a few other cameras I use sometimes but, at this point, im 90% of the time using one of those two. @jko.pictures on instagram if you want to see any of it. keep up the good work, man.

[@ThePhotoDept]

did we just become best friends?!

[@jakeoliveira5086]

yup

[@mp3remix171]

My new rule is i cant watch an episode of tpd without sippin some coffee

[@ThePhotoDept]

Absolutely correct.

[@melaninxhalide1165]

I have the XA2 and the Trip 35. I prefer the Trip 35 for the solid metal build, superior lens & rangefinder esthetics, but functionally the XA2 is the superior camera just cause Olympus made some really bad design choices when they made the Trip 35. 1) ISO maxes out @ 400. WHYYYYYYYYY? 2) Only 2 shutter speeds: 1/125 & 1/40. WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY? 3) Also, you can manually choose your aperture, but anytime you use the camera manually, you’re locked into the 1/40 shutter speed. WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY?!?!? I get why everyone loves the XA/XA2, but the lens is mad soft & focusing on the XA2 is a crap shoot cause it’s zone focusing. Blah. The photographs I make on the Trip 35 are way better....lens is sharper than a Chef’s knife.....and it has a selenium meter which means no battery! I just can’t use it in low light like I can the XA2. It really depresses me when I think how bad Olympus screwed up the design of the Trip 35. It could’ve been my ultimate 35mm camera. 😢

[@ThePhotoDept]

So i thought the same, but recently Ive been adding some sharpening in post and, damn. the Olympus XA really pops now.

[@HisBeverness]

Re: your first point about the 400 max ISO - don't quote me on this but I'm guessing it's because 400 ISO films were about as fast as you could buy in the 1960s. Film technology has come a long way. Edit: a quick glimpse on Wikipedia seems to confirm this.

[@Dahrenhorst]

I'm no millionaire, so I can't afford an analog camera to be my daily sketchbook. I have an Olympus Tough TG-6 for that. Much more convenient, too. All other photography I'm doing is on film, though (or paper, I'm creating paper positives with my large format cameras).

[@ThePhotoDept]

I am also not a millionaire, but I process film at home, avoid using the overpriced hype films, and budget for it. Costs less than my coffee habit all said and done.

[@Dahrenhorst]

@@ThePhotoDept Well, I rather spend that money on quality material for my medium and large format photography, when I easily can do everything I can do with a XA not only for free, but often also easier and better with my TG-6. Makro, for instance. Or switching between b&w and color. Or selecting between wide angle and tele. Or taking a picture under water. All that for free. If I'm looking for a good tool to document my life, I rather stick to the TG-6 and happily nod to my mju II and O-Product sitting on the shelf.

[@dunkkid23]

I care about bikes, keep talking about them!

[@donots94]

everyone cares about bike stuff!

[@ThePhotoDept]

they should!!!

[@tychomagneticanomaly]

Absolutely!

[@nobraidps]

This camera is overhyped/overpriced because of people like you ranting about it on KZbin 🤣 Ps. That goes for every piece of gear, ever.

[@ThePhotoDept]

They are overpriced because people with no understanding of the camera leverage it for profit rather than using it to take photos. Talking about a camera you like doesn’t make it more expensive. Also I have less than 10k subs, it’s def not me.