…and back in love with photography again and again.

Warning: the following review of the diminutive Olympus XA is highly biased and totally subjective. I love the darn thing and actually own 2 of them. Just because.

Quite a few years back I was over the moon at the idea of finally getting my hands on my first DSLR. A Canon 7D, not a bad starter kit mind you! It did serve me very well, nothing bad with the camera, a very solid piece of gear. But here we are on EMULSIVE and you must know I won’t be talking about pixels, promise!

It’s noteworthy that this 7D was my go-to camera for just about everything as I taught myself to take half-decent photos, from studio portraits to hugely under-lit concerts to conceptual videos. It was a sturdy workhorse I brought everywhere with me.

…until I finally got my hands on my first Olympus XA, that is.

It was an epiphany. This camera had built itself somewhat of a cult following in my photo club and when I gave in, I was pretty sure I would like it. I had no idea of how much of a role it would play in my creative life.

There two major reasons for this: it’s a film camera and a rangefinder. Make that 3: the sheer minuscule size of it does appeal a lot to me.

Let’s start with the tech side.

The Olympus XA is a tiny aperture-priority rangefinder which packs a surprisingly great F.Zuiko 35mm f/2.8 lens. [EM: The “F” denotes that the lens is contructed from 6 elements].

It was quite inexpensive before its reputation took hold of the market price and drove it straight up but it can still be found at very competitive prices with a bit of luck. It usually comes with a screw-on flash attachment which extends flush along the side of the body and allows for some low-light fun. The first one I got actually didn’t have the flash and I almost never used the one of my second XA, so I won’t cover it much in this review.

When I say tiny, I mean pocketably tiny. In a real-life pocket. It usually sits in my jacket’s inner pocket and gets forgotten immediately, but I’ve kept it in my jeans front pockets without hassle. Think digital compact camera size, but with a 135 film inside.

I wouldn’t say it’s a point-and-shoot (contrary to later XAs), as you do have to focus and choose your aperture, but with some practice, it’s so quickly done you don’t notice it anymore. That means lightning-quick shots. Oh and you have to frame your pictures too. Photog life is tough life.

Now to the point.

When I started shooting the XA I had a good few years of photography already behind me. I had tried my hand at quite a few types of shooting and given a few tries at film but it didn’t stick. Since then? Since then my DSLR is used almost exclusively for photos of darkroom prints. My Canon lenses are at home on one of my EOS 300s, and one of my two XAs almost never leaves my side. I got used to always having a camera at hand, a camera on which I can depend and which I can whip out almost instantly when something catches my eye. I guess my phone could have done the job, but hey, why keep it simple? Also, where’s the HP5 PLUS “800 push” button on my phone?

A few years back I suffered from what I’ll call here the “enthusiast with a DSLR” syndrome. I had some decent gear, not that bad an eye and a working knowledge of camera settings. I could take ok pictures of most things and I did. But I did not take that many photographs. Or good pictures really. I had no style of my own and didn’t achieve much in terms of creative research.

I’m not saying the Olympus XA has the sole responsibility for the changes in my more recent work, but I’m not saying it isn’t either. I’m pretty sure it played a big role in several ways. First of all, it brought me to film – for real – as the prime tool I use for photography. This is a big deal as it’s not only the tools we use as film photographers but a whole relationship to the photographic medium that we build on every day. And this medium has taken a preponderant place in my work — I’m actually working on an eponymous series — and in my life. And I do mean life, as I’ve recently taken a part-time job to allow for more darkroom fun.

I’ve found myself more and more mindful of details everywhere, I’ve found myself more and more focused on the tasks at hand, I’ve found myself thinking more and more openly about lots of different approaches. Again, I’m not saying this is “buy 1 (XA) get 1 (life-changing experience) free”, as I’ve been evolving in lots of areas of my life at the same time, but I can pinpoint the start of my real evolution as a photographer to my second exhibited series: “Please Look Up”, which was shot (and in my mind made possible) exclusively on an XA.

The fil rouge there was exhorting people (myself first, then everyone looking at my work) to actually look up. From their feet, their phones, their struggles, from anything holding them from looking at the world surrounding them. I spent quite a few hours wandering around the streets, on my daily commutes, while out for drinks, pretty much anytime during my daily life really, XA in the pocket, and looking around, looking up. And I took photos of banal buildings. So bland, so boring — in theory. It launched me on a path to open people’s and my eyes. Not to anything in particular, but to at least open them and allow them to look and not just see.

Now, years later, I’m still out and about my everyday wanders with a camera. I may have given in to a bigger rangefinder spot (and the camera that goes with it), and so use a neck strap instead of my pocket, but the purpose remains. And the XA remains. Every time I’m not sure what camera to take, anytime I need a quick shooter, anytime I might need a 35mm lens, I take an XA and stuff it with some bulldozer film. Just in case.

I still feel just as comfortable with my tiny plastic box as I did on day one. The rangefinder might be on the dull side, the ergonomics might seem quirky (but don’t be fooled, they’re spot-on), the thing might very well just look like a toy, but trust me it works. Beautifully. Better than that even.

I went and traveled Egypt, I went and commuted to work, I went and enjoyed holidays with an XA or two. I shot at night and in plain desert noon, I shot concerts and family portraits. And rarely — so rarely it’s ridiculous — have I been disappointed. The amount of work that went into the Olympus XA is staggering. They pretty much invented internal focus lenses for this camera. They fitted every part so tightly you can’t figure out how it’s even possible (and I took one apart to find out). Even the flash unit is incredibly well integrated.

It does have some caveats though, the main one being the aperture-priority meter only ranging up to 800 ISO, which was “fixed” in later XA2/3/4s. But the lens is sharp, the use reliable and the aforementioned meter almost impossible to fool. Seriously, this is one of the best metering systems I’ve ever used, and that includes much — MUCH — pricier cameras.

There aren’t many cameras I have this sort of relationship with. I enjoy using most of them, I find uses for everyone, but I don’t love them so dearly. My 7D was a great big sandbox, my Yashica Mat a thing of beauty and my Bessa R2 is the camera I’ll probably use most of the time, but my XA remains as the little thing that changed my photography. The only other thing that springs to mind when I think of game-changers is darkroom printing. And that says a lot about the tiny Olympus!

I think that’s about enough or I might start singing soft rock ballads (and nobody wants that).

~ Virgil

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27 responses to “The Olympus XA review: how I fell in love with a tiny plastic box…”

  1. I love mine, but the light meter is out by about 3 stops. Does anyone know if it can be adjusted?

    1. I read somewhere that the light meter has an adjustable resistor somewhere under the hood (top-side if I remember well) that you could use to hack it to ISO 1600 capabilities. You might want to look into it to fix yours 😉

  2. Martin Johnson Avatar

    Great article Virgil. I bought one of these beautiful little cameras way back in 1984, and it went nearly everywhere with me until I stupidly sold it a few years ago, as I’d been seduced by the digital onslaught. More fool me; that little XA took photos that appeared full bleed on magazine covers, postcards and calendars, and I loved it. Not long ago, and full of remorse for parting with my little companion, I found a beautiful example on Ebay, and have now acquired another mint condition partner for it. The XA may be over 40 years old now, but it just doesn’t look it and could have been introduced yesterday in my opinion. The appearance and design is just iconic and timeless. It also takes absolutely superb photographs! I just hope that my original XA found a happy home and is being used an looked after the way I did. Something tells me it has.

    1. Thank you Martin!
      Your words feel right, and I’m sure your original XA had a great life and is still rocking great images 🙂

  3. Nicely done, Virgil. It is always exciting to see other photographers as excited about the Oly XA as I am. It really is a workhorse of a little camera. You’ve captured some great images, as well!

  4. In the years before phones etc, I used to take my XA2 while running. Got some awesome shots in… https://t.co/96WhCiwtFh

  5. I have just got hold of AX 11, that’s going to be interesting, and also Rollei 35 SE somethng to test,

  6. Oh the love! This camera sure is unique in the way it builds long-lasting relationships with its owners 🙂

  7. Hi. Thanks for sharing your love for the xa! I agree with all you said… Many years ago it was the xa that opened me the doors to black and white photography and the world of rangefinders, and this became the beginning of an ongoing adventure. I later left it because I was tired of the forced automatic exposure, and I courted more prestigious cameras… but then I went humbly back to it, asked for forgiveness, and never left it out of my backpack since.

  8. Brilliant review Virgil, thank you for sharing! Seriously beautiful photos too. Your results pushed with HP5+ pushed to 800 are exactly what I’m trying to make my photos look like – contrasty, lovely grain, inky blacks. Stunning! Do you have any developing tips? Love your shot with TMax at 800 too.

    1. Thank you Jake! It sure means a lot.
      As for developing, I tend to overdevelop a bit and agitation-wise I usually do slow rotations along the axis of the tank. Watch out for water temperature too !

      1. Thanks for the response Virgil! In terms of overdeveloping, would you go all the way to 1600? Or somewhere in between 800-1600? And do you know what developer you used? Sorry to bombard you with questions! Thanks again

        1. I usually push my films at least one stop, so 1600 or even 3200 is far from impossible 😉
          But if I shoot my XA at 800 I’ll increse dev time by somewhere around 30s.
          As far as dev go, I used a lot of LC29 but I am now using ID11 / D76.
          No worries about the questions, it’s why we’re here!

  9. Awesome, man! Makes me want to give one a go… Fancy lending me one next month? ;p

    1. Sure thing buddy, gotta share the love right?!

  10. Oh this is a nice little fact! It says a lot about Teek 🙂

  11. I have 4 of them XAs but two are adequately functional and serviced. I do understand you and am in love with them. I glued a tiny bubble level close to the shutter to keep lines level and allow some stealthy shooting. Thanks for sharing.

    1. And here I was thinking two identical cameras was a bit much ahahah.

  12. This was my first film camera. Since then I’ve gotten a Nikon N8008S, Mamiya C330, Olympus 35SP, and a Fuji GW690III. While the Mamiya is my favorite portrait camera, the Olympus XA remains my go-to for walkabouts. I still find myself surprised on occasion when an absolutely brilliant photo emerges that appears as if it is from a far larger or more illustrious camera. Lovely, spot on review for the XA. There’s just something appealing about it that is difficult to quantify for those who haven’t used it.

    1. That’s exactly it, there’s an aura about this camera, it just feels right!

  13. I still have one. We called it ‘Teek’ for ‘The “k”amera’; got it right after we we married.
    We took it to LA, Paris, etc, as a back-up to my M2.
    It was issued to NY Times photographers as an off duty camera just in case…Jill Kremetz used one as her back-up. Tough little buggers.
    Glad to hear that it has a following.

  14. I have sometimes gone out with an XA, XA2 & XA4 on one photo trip 🙂 I love ’em all.

    1. Now that’s dedication to the cause 😀 Keep up the love!

  15. Brilliant camera, I also love the XA2, like you I shoot HP5 at 800. :-), it’s improved my photography just using this lovely camera

    1. It’s interesting how sometimes the tools help you get better. And I’m far from believing gear is the most important part of photography.

 

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