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Absolutely groundbreaking design – the XA-series were the work of a genius. With their tiny size and smooth rounded edges the XA cameras are truly the camera that you can take everywhere. |
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During the 1950s – 1980s most cameras were of the same overall design – shiny silver metal bodies with a leatherette cover. The genius at the helm of Olympus (Yoshihisa Maitani) threw these designs out of the window when he designed the XA-range of cameras. There were actually 5 cameras in the XA range, and all share the same overall size and shape. These cameras were revolutionary for a number of reasons: Body Firstly the body was made of plastic, but no ordinary plastic. We aren’t sure exactly what it is made of, save to say that it survives extremely well over the years. It is very rare to find any cracks or major scratches on an XA body, and normally the only signs of age are wear resulting in smoothing of some of the surfaces.
Sliding cover, the camera protects itself, and doesn’t need a lens cap (the losing of which and resulting scratches have been the demise of many a retro camera). Sliding open the cover also turns the camera on and reveals the camera’s viewfinder.
Size: these are some of the smallest 35mm cameras ever made. A number of clever techniques were used to pack all of the functionality inside.
Shutter speeds: in order to make these cameras smaller than their predecessors these cameras introduced an electronically controlled shutter (smaller to make than a mechanical one). This also gives the camera the ability to produce a very wide range of shutter speeds and so capable of handling a very broad range of lighting conditions, including great night-photo capability. Specifically, the XA (the first of the range) can actually produce a shutter speed of up to 10 seconds long. |
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Let’s look at the cameras that make up the range. They start with the original XA (1979) followed by the XA2 (1980), XA1 (1982) XA3 and XA4 (1985).
Olympus XA The original XA has the most functions of the cameras in the range and was designed to appeal to keen photographers who still wanted a good deal of control over their photos. Historically photographers were used to having full control, and the XA provided this while introducing some automation.
It has a true Rangefinder focusing system. Click here for a great description of rangefinders. In short, in the central area of the viewfinder you see a split image of what you are looking at. You simply turn the lens focusing ring until the split image merges into one image and then your camera is perfectly focused. It is a simple system, but very accurate. As far as we are aware, the XA is the smallest 35mm rangefinder camera ever made. Olympus XA shooting into the sun For exposure control it has Aperture priority automatic. To the left of the lens (when looking at the camera from the front) there is a little lever where you can select your lens aperture. The camera then automatically selects the right shutter speed given that aperture, your film speed, and the lighting of your subject. The shutter speed (that the camera is selecting) is visible to the left in the viewfinder. Aperture priority automatic was a very popular method of exposure control – if gives you direct control over the lens aperture (and therefore the depth of field), while also giving you control over shutter speed.
Olympus XA indoor night shot In use despite it's size, the XA is very easy to use. The focus lever is large enough and logically located to be easily found even when looking through the viewfinder. It moves in a relatively small arc so it is very quick to focus and with a very clear rangefinder area in the viewfinder accurate focusing is not hard to achieve. Similarly the aperture lever is easy to locate with your fingers and being on the front / right of the camera falls naturally under your fingertips. Olympus XA1 The XA1 was sold as the budget version of the range. While it shares the same body style as the others, it has a much simpler set of specs. Still a nice camera to have but eclipsed by the others in the range. Metering – the XA1 is the only member of the range that doesn’t need a battery. It has a selenium cell around the lens (similar to the Olympus Trip 35) which gives a fairly narrow range of automatic apertures and shutter speeds. Don’t expect it to cope so well in poor light. The lens is also less capable, with a smaller maximum aperture and less lens elements. Think of it as a simple point and shoot sibling. The Olympus XA - note the aperture lever to the left of the lens, and the rangefinder window next to the viewfinder. The lever below the lens is for focusing. Olympus XA2 The XA2 was the biggest selling member of the family. Reacting to consumer demand to make cameras even simpler to use, it ditched the rangefinder focusing system of the XA and replaced it with simple zone focusing. This gives you just 3 focus settings for the following subject distances:
Note that the middle distance will still give sharp images for distant objects, so most of the time you can just leave the focus lever on that setting. The camera makes that even easier by resetting the focus to the middle setting whenever you close the front slider, making it ready for action. Olympus XA2 The focus lever is on the front of the camera in the same position as the aperture lever on the XA. The XA2 doesn’t have an aperture lever as it has program exposure control (i.e. fully controlled by the camera). In effect, the XA2 is really a point-and-shoot. The XA2 has a very wide range of automatic shutter speeds (not quite as wide as the XA) so again is good for night photography. In use the XA2 layout works well. Since both aperture and shutter speed are controlled by the camera, only the focus lever needs to be operated. With only 3 positions it isn't hard to get used to.
Olympus XA2
Olympus XA3 The XA3 was the same as the XA2 but with a couple of features added. Firstly, it used the newly introduced film speed DX coding system, whereby 35mm film cannisters had a simple bar code printed on them which told compatible cameras what film speed to set. Until this point all cameras required the film speed to be set manually. The other XA3 new feature was backlight compensation – the lever on the bottom of the camera has an extra position to add 1.5 stops of exposure. Very useful if you are taking a photo of someone against strong lighting. The Olympus XA3. Like the XA2 is has a simple zone focusing lever to the left of the lens. Olympus XA4 The final model in the series is not one that we come across often. It could do everything that the XA3 did but had a different lens: 28mm instead of 35mm, giving a slightly wide angle. The lens also had a macro capability, so you can shoot sharp photos at subjects only 30cm away from the camera (the other models could get no closer than 85cm). To help with this the camera replaced the 3-position zone focusing of the XA2 / 3 with a more detailed distance scale.
Common features All models except for the XA1 have a lever on the bottom. This is a switch for an audible battery check and also for the self-timer. In another stroke of genius, when it is switched to self-timer mode the lever sticks out to the front of the camera at 90-degrees, providing a little leg for extra stability. Just what you need when your camera is perched precariously on a tree trunk as you gather for that selfie. For batteries all except the XA1 simply take 2 x widely available LR44 (or SR44) cells. The batteries last a very long time. For flash photography the XA range was sold with a dedicated flash unit that attached onto the side of the camera. This is the only way to take flash photos with the range as they don’t have a hot shoe or flash cable socket. Many of the flash units haven’t done well over the years (unlike the cameras themselves) and it is common to find one that is effectively dead, so make sure you buy one that has been tested if flash photography is your thing. In summary all of the XA range are a great camera to take anywhere, on the basis of their superb body design, high quality optics and excellent exposure systems. There really is no reason not to have one in your pocket at all times !
Summary of specifications
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