Olympus Begins to Fall
(This entry has long brewed in the back of my mind since first reading about the scandals in Olympus corporate. I just need to get it out even if it is a month or so behind the times.)
I've pretty much been an Oly user for most of my online digital photography life (save for the brief stint with the Aiptek pencam and the Canon G3). I'm a fan of the small format. I'd like to embelish some more, but the truth is it was mostly opportunity that brought the Olympus brand into my life.
The hot-shoe-having C5000Z and the underwater scuba housing that we got at sale price gave me the chance to go digital seriously with my personal photography and at the same time give me digital access to the beauty of life under water. The C5000Z served me well, but my desire for more pixel power and DSLR-like looks and functionality came calling to me in the form of the C8080WZ.
The C8080 was robust, looked a lot like a DSLR, had the hot shoe that I knew I couldn't live without, but also gave you the ability to shoot video. It was one of those models that also allowed you to use two storage media: the XD format which earlier Oly cams took as their staple, and Compact Flash. It gave me more range and control than the C5000Z ever could, but still wasn't quite fast enough to capture those oh so spontaneous fleeting moments in any potential photo-op lost between half-press focus and actual exposure. That meant I needed a DSLR. So I said goodbye to the C8080, and open my life to a pre-loved E-410.
Though it may have been the first Oly I'd purchased pre-loved, I never-the-less showed it the love and respect that it deserved, and it has loved me back. It serves me well to this day. Not to say that I wouldn't trade up if opportunity came a knocking, but recent developments in the world of photography specific to the brand that has brought me the above mentioned tools has got me wondering... with all this hullabaloo about the corruption and chaos in Olympus' corporate structure, is it still a good idea to stand atop this mountain when it seems that it will crumble in the near future?
When or if it will fall is anyone's guess. Whether the damage that the executives of Olympus has wrought will have any lasting effect on the product line and its legacy as a whole is not yet clear at this point. For the moment I will stick with the guns that I have and love, and if I can eventually get my hands on a bazooka (the E3 or the E5), then I might be one of those stubborn enough to stick with the ship until it sinks.
I've pretty much been an Oly user for most of my online digital photography life (save for the brief stint with the Aiptek pencam and the Canon G3). I'm a fan of the small format. I'd like to embelish some more, but the truth is it was mostly opportunity that brought the Olympus brand into my life.
The hot-shoe-having C5000Z and the underwater scuba housing that we got at sale price gave me the chance to go digital seriously with my personal photography and at the same time give me digital access to the beauty of life under water. The C5000Z served me well, but my desire for more pixel power and DSLR-like looks and functionality came calling to me in the form of the C8080WZ.
The C8080 was robust, looked a lot like a DSLR, had the hot shoe that I knew I couldn't live without, but also gave you the ability to shoot video. It was one of those models that also allowed you to use two storage media: the XD format which earlier Oly cams took as their staple, and Compact Flash. It gave me more range and control than the C5000Z ever could, but still wasn't quite fast enough to capture those oh so spontaneous fleeting moments in any potential photo-op lost between half-press focus and actual exposure. That meant I needed a DSLR. So I said goodbye to the C8080, and open my life to a pre-loved E-410.
Though it may have been the first Oly I'd purchased pre-loved, I never-the-less showed it the love and respect that it deserved, and it has loved me back. It serves me well to this day. Not to say that I wouldn't trade up if opportunity came a knocking, but recent developments in the world of photography specific to the brand that has brought me the above mentioned tools has got me wondering... with all this hullabaloo about the corruption and chaos in Olympus' corporate structure, is it still a good idea to stand atop this mountain when it seems that it will crumble in the near future?
When or if it will fall is anyone's guess. Whether the damage that the executives of Olympus has wrought will have any lasting effect on the product line and its legacy as a whole is not yet clear at this point. For the moment I will stick with the guns that I have and love, and if I can eventually get my hands on a bazooka (the E3 or the E5), then I might be one of those stubborn enough to stick with the ship until it sinks.
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