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The Olympus XA-2 is totally an object of lust for so many photographers. Like the Lomography LC-A series, they’re compact and capable. But the cool factor goes through the roof when we find them in pink. And that’s just what we’ve found. The Olympus XA-2 is popular with film enthusiasts and street photographers both. With its sliding mechanism to protect the lens, it’s designed to be put in your pocket. It’s also designed to be used with a wrist strap. But you can get a sling strap mounted into the tripod socket.
In my journey to find the perfect compact for me, I previously owned the Olympus XA-2. Here’s an important quote from our review:
Who is the Olympus XA2 for? I’d say it’s for anyone looking to get into film photography with a point and shoot and street photographers. If you’re looking for something a step up from a disposable camera, this would be it.
What makes the Olympus XA2 so special? That would be the small size, the lens covering, the flash, and the simple use.
When would you want to use the Olympus XA2? The ISOs don’t go up too high, but as long as you’ve got the flash you’ll be fine in lower light situations. Take it with you everywhere. But also keep in mind that you should be careful with it. It isn’t weather sealed.
How does one make the most use of the Olympus XA2? You can make the most of the XA2 by loading black and white film and shooting some street photography. The fairly soft aesthetic of the lens combined with the light leaks this camera gave me is pretty appealing to me.
Why would you get the Olympus XA2? It’s pretty affordable. You can use it before you step up to something like a film SLR, film rangefinder, or a more complicated point and shoot like the Hexar AF.
I still stick by this statement. It’s a good camera, but it’s not the best. There are much better compact film cameras out there. But this one could be the perfect one for you. In retrospect, I think one of the issues I had was due to the flaws my unit had. However, this pink camera in the eBay listing is nearly virgin. If you look on Instagram and Flickr, there are lots of great photos taken with this camera.
The Olympus XA-2 zone focuses. The viewfinder is sort of like a rangefinder. You can focus into certain zones using a tab on the right. Theoretically, this makes things easier. And that’s one of the quirks about the camera. It’s hard to get something in focus unless you’re shooting out to infinity. Even then, the images have a character about them. I’ll liken it to low contrast yet highly sharp photos when the moment allows.
On top of that, again, this one is pink! According to another post we’ve done, this is a commemorative camera. What’s more, it’s super rare. Maybe a few hundred were made in pink. You can find it in blue, white, black, etc. But the pink version celebrated the 60th anniversary of Olympus. Personally speaking, I’d love for one of these to be released today brand new!
In fact, this camera looks pretty much brand new. The listing says it’s in nearly mint condition. That’s evident by the photos. The serial number on this is 30, which is further proof of how rare this camera is. It’s being sold at a good price of only around $500.
All images from the seller and the listing by arigato-jpn