Newbie Question

[mr weekend]

Hi to all. I'm interested in an entry level DSLR, and I'm wondering if the Olympus E-420 will accept old lenses designed for the OM-1n and OM-2s. I know I'll lose my autofocus and autoexposure functions, but it would be nice to have one digital lens for the point and shoot capability and still be able to use my many Olympus Zuiko lenses. Thanks.

[Franglais]

Hi to all. I'm interested in an entry level DSLR, and I'm wondering if the Olympus E-420 will accept old lenses designed for the OM-1n and OM-2s. I know I'll lose my autofocus and autoexposure functions, but it would be nice to have one digital lens for the point and shoot capability and still be able to use my many Olympus Zuiko lenses. Thanks.

I don't know the Olympus system so I did a Google search and I found:

1. You have to buy the Olympus MF1 adapter to fit an OM lens on a 4/3 body (99$)
2. You lose automatic stop-down i.e. the lens shuts down to the preset aperture when you attach it. You would have to open it up yourself to maximum aperture to focus then close it down manually to shoot, with the viewfinder darkening in the process
3. You have no autofocus so you have to focus manually. Bear in mind that digital SLR's have no focussing aids in the viewfinder apart from a focus-OK light in the viewfinder in some models
4. You can do automatic exposure but on aperture priority only, no spotmetering
5. The correction factor due to the smaller sensor is 2x i.e. a 50mm gives you the same view as a 100mm on your OM camera due to the cropping effect of the smaller sensor

This does not seem to be very usable to me. In particular the loss of automatic stopdown is really a handicap unless you're doing a subject like birds with the camera on a tripod