olympus trip 300 review

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Olympus Trip 300

The Olympus Trip series of cameras is one that’s been featured on this page alone at least twice already with appearances from my custom trip 35, and the AF-61

The camera itself has almost all the same features as its cousins of the same age bracket. what I prefer about this model over say the AF-61 is that the design is so much more sleek than it comes in black.

Despite the limitations inherent with being a point and shoot cameras, it is a very well made one. The 34mm lens is no slouch rendering decent focus at various ranges and really saturated colours on Kodak Gold 200.

When the faceplate is closed, the camera has no trouble fitting neatly away into a pocket or small bag making it ideal for use as a visual scrapbooking camera or as a daily carry due to its small size and weight. It features DX code reading so all exposure is taken care of by the camera leaving you to focus on shorting carefree!

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• 35mm Lenses
• Camera Reviews
• Point and Shoot

Olympus Trip 35 – Camera Review

Josh solomon.

• October 3, 2016

As enthralling as photography can be, long days, months, and years spent shooting can wear you out. In the worst case, it can lead to a photographic malaise that can dismantle even the most well-built minds from the inside out. It can render the best shooters incapable of even the simple task of pressing a shutter button. It’s shooter’s block, our equivalent to writer’s block, and it hit me hard over the summer.

I jumped out of bed one morning full of energy, ready to take on the world with my trusty Nikon F and Leica M2. But instead of plunging into a world filled with beauty, intrigue, and possibility, I found my surroundings cold, ugly, and indifferent. The images I tried to form seemed trite and overplayed, and I soon lost confidence in my ability to make a decent picture. Even the storied reputations of my F and M2 failed to inspire me. Every time I peered through their viewfinders I saw nothing but dust in the pentaprism and emptiness between the framelines.

Sufficiently depressed, I decided to stay home and put my cameras on the shelf. And it was while I was lying face down on a pillow listening to the opening lines of Chicago’s “Hard To Say I’m Sorry” that I realized I did, in fact, need a little time away. But I didn’t need a full-on vacation from the hobby itself – no, that would be too drastic. I just needed a change from the manual cameras that sat on my shelf. I needed an easier camera, and I had a feeling one camera in particular could fit the bill – the Olympus Trip 35.

The Olympus Trip 35 is a camera I’d heard a lot about but had never tried myself. Its reputation for ease of use and high quality seemed the perfect cure for my shooter’s block. And if the Trip 35 was the prescription, the Pasadena Camera Show was the pharmacy. There I found a beautiful Trip 35 for an absurdly low price, bought it, and quickly threw it in my bag.

One would think the Olympus Trip 35 would seem out of place next to legendary cameras like the aforementioned Nikon and Leica, but it actually fits right in. This camera, although not as capable as the other two, holds an equally lofty place in photographic history. Just as the F and the M defined the SLR and rangefinder genres respectively, the Trip 35 defined the point-and-shoot game. More impressive still, the Trip 35 actually outsold the Nikon F and the Leica M2 by millions. Take that, fanboys.

Olympus achieved these massive numbers by appealing to the casual shooter rather than pro photographers, specifically focusing on the new generation of moneyed vacationers. Racing from landmark to landmark and airport to airport, these sightseers simply lacked the time and interest needed to learn the boring particulars of photography required to operate a camera. Instead, they required a camera that was simple to use, but sophisticated enough to beautifully capture their memories.

Good design marries aesthetics to functionality, and the the camera gods couldn’t have picked a better company to bring the Trip 35 to life. Olympus’ design house, fresh off the ingenious half-frame Pen F, struck gold again with the Trip. The design is classic Olympus; clean-cut lines and an impossibly small form factor, the Trip wastes no time and gets straight to the point. It’s as well designed as any machine of its day, more impactful when we recall that the Trip came of age in an era where cameras were still fully mechanical, save for the occasional battery powered light meter. Automation seemed a distant (and expensive) fantasy, so when Olympus created a genuine auto-exposure camera out of primitive nuts and bolts, the world took notice. This was in no uncertain terms an engineering miracle.

The Trip 35 accomplishes this sorcery by determining the amount of light that enters a Selenium photo cell surrounding the lens, and choosing a correct aperture based on this reading. The camera then chooses a shutter speed of either a 1/200th or 1/40th of a second and we get a perfect exposure. When the camera’s incapable of making an acceptable exposure, a little red flag shows up in the viewfinder and the shutter locks out. The magic of this system is that it takes all exposure-related worry out of our minds. We don’t have to agonize about aperture, shutter speed, or even battery life, a godsend for vacationers and anxious photo geeks.

But before we experience it, it’s quite easy to question the Trip 35’s simplicity. After all, how accurate could a camera this old and primitive be? And could the lens be good enough for our 21st century eyes? As I drove home from the camera show, my new Trip in the passenger seat next to me, these questions rolled through my mind. I really needed this camera to be decent, if I was to pull out of my photographic death spiral.

Just then, I received a text message from my sister. Can you pick up some pork buns in chinatown? thx. With this, I had my mission; buy some pork buns, shoot the Trip, and see if this ancient camera could walk the walk.

The first thing I noticed was its build quality. Comprised of metal and plastic, the Trip 35 is solid, but never heavy; lightweight, but never flimsy. The only disappointing aspect of the camera’s feel is its film advance wheel. A dinky plastic affair reminiscent of disposable cameras, this lackluster cog is forgivable when we remember that the Trip was built to be a consumer-level camera.

Peering through the viewfinder showed bright frame-lines with tick marks both for up-close shots and for landscape shots. These are helpful in view of the Trip’s lack of automatic parallax correction. Having used fancy Leica , Nikon , and Contax rangefinders renowned for brightness and clarity, the Trip’s viewfinder beats most of them. Its relative simplicity is a nice change from the cluttered and overly complex viewfinders of other machines. The Trip 35 also features a small window in the bottom right of the VF (affectionately dubbed the “Judas Window” by Trip 35 disciples) which shows both the chosen aperture and exposure setting on the camera.

So far, so good. But how was I to determine focus? I quickly realized that the Trip’s a scale-focus camera, which is not ideal for accuracy. But before I started feeling like Olympus left me all alone and helpless, I realized that they were kind enough to provide some handy distance-measuring tools. Settings along the lens barrel show a picture of one person for portraits, two people for pictures of two people, three people for group pictures, and a mountain symbol for everything in the distance, including mountains. I stopped hyperventilating, and realized that, for a point-and-shoot camera, this is more than enough. And for all you nitpickers, Olympus also included precise distance measurements in both meters and feet on the underside of the lens. Phew.

Once shooting the Trip started to shine, and I was easily able to focus on exactly what matters most in photography – composition. From the first frame I found myself joyfully snapping away at whatever tickled my fancy, even though I didn’t know what aperture values and shutter speeds the Trip 35 was choosing. Frankly, I didn’t give a damn. All that mattered to me was finding different angles, new ways to play with light, and how to capture Chinatown’s unique charm. It felt like with each and every frame, the Trip was dissolving my shooter’s block more and more, and I wanted to just keep shooting.

So the little Olympus and I danced through Chinatown’s colorful landscape, happily snapping away. In no uncertain terms, it was the most fun I’d ever had with a camera. Even though the heat of the afternoon beat on my shoulders and the sweat sizzled on my brow, the Trip 35 and I ran through the city without a care in the world. The streets led us to the door of a steamy Chinese restaurant, then a pile of steaming pork buns, then back to the equally steamy interior of my car. I didn’t care how long the journey took or how much fluid I lost in that heatwave. It seemed like I sweated out my shooter’s block, and I eagerly raced home to deliver the buns, and develop the film.

But something was nagging me about the camera the entire way home; the focus issue. Had I gotten the focus correct for every shot? How was I to trust those markings? How could I possibly live without a focusing aid? Anxiety began to rear its head again and I had to stop myself from speeding over to a one-hour photo lab to assuage my fears. I gripped the steering wheel tight and told myself to trust the Trip. Besides, I still had a job to do. These pork buns weren’t going to deliver themselves.

After delivering and munching on said pork buns with my contented sibling, I decided to get the roll developed and scanned. My fears were partially founded. Some of the shots, especially photos of close subjects or darker scenes, came back fuzzy due to a combination of my poor distance estimation and the nature of the Trip’s exposure and focus systems. While the Trip automatically helps achieve sharp focus by selecting a smaller aperture for greater depth-of-field, this is only possible in bright light. As things get dark, the ability to shoot at a smaller aperture quickly disappears. In these situations it can be really difficult to nail correct focus. One minor consequence of this is that shooters with an affinity for portraiture and those sweet bokeh balls will probably be disappointed by this camera.

But expecting creamy bokeh and close range performance from the Trip 35 (or most point-and-shoots for that matter) is like expecting a ‘93 Honda Civic to outpace a Tesla Model S. It just won’t happen, and trying will lead to frustration. But just like that Honda, if you regard the Trip 35 as a reliable machine good for an occasional joyride, it will never disappoint. The Trip 35 is capable of a great many things , but we must be careful to recognize and respect its own limits.

When we get the focus right, the Trip’s fantastic 40mm F/2.8 Zuiko lens delivers in spades. The lens is a front-focusing Tessar type lens, which means that it’s very simple and very sharp, and it retains this sharpness edge to edge without chromatic aberration, spherical aberration, or any kind of distortion due to its simple optical formula and Olympus’s masterful execution. The lens’ quality even overcame the limitations of expired film, and ended up giving me some great results.

For whom is this camera best suited? First and foremost, the Trip 35 might just be the perfect camera for the casual photophile. Olympus built this camera to document the daily adventures of the everyman, and the Trip does this beautifully. And for experienced shooters, the Trip 35 can be a great way to break free of shooter’s block, or inject our shooting with something fun and carefree. It emphasizes the art of composition rather than the cold calculations of exposure, but even more importantly, it reminds us to relax, have a pork bun, and not take ourselves too seriously.

Want to try the Trip 35 for yourself?

Buy it on ebay, buy it on amazon, shop b&h photo’s vintage gear, follow casual photophile on facebook and instagram.

[ Some of the links in this article will direct users to our affiliates at B&H Photo , Amazon , and eBay . By purchasing anything using these links, Casual Photophile may receive a small commission at no additional charge to you. This helps Casual Photophile produce the content we produce. Many thanks for your support. ]

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• Camera Review
• film camera
• olympus Trip

Josh Solomon is a freelance writer and touring bassist living in Los Angeles. He has an affinity for all things analog. When not onstage, you can find him roaming around Southern California shooting film and humming a tune.

29 comments

Very nicely done.

Great review of the Trip! This is the camera that lured me away from Lomography and the whole low-fi aesthetic. While the metering system is somewhat primitive and the zone focusing can be imprecise, especially in low light, it’s obvious that all the money and work went into the lens. In the right circumstances it’s absolutely tack sharp. Once I started getting sharp images from my Trip, the Lomo LC-A+ and the Holga started looking a lot less appealing.

The Trip definitely has some big limitations but on its own terms it’s a great camera.

Here’s my Trip album on Flickr to get an idea.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/21156896@N07/sets/72157645739914959

Thanks for adding your Flickr album. It’s great for people to be able to see what these cameras can do in varied situations.

Thanks so much! Those images are fantastic; they really showcase what that lens can do. Funny you mention the LC-A+… ?

Thanks! The LC-A+ was the camera that got me back into using film after an extended dalliance with digital photography. I used it really heavily for about 2 years before becoming curious about other cameras. The fact that the Lomo is also a zone focuser made it very easy for me to switch to the Trip and the XA2.

Great write up Josh, and really nice album Neilson! I had to do a double take on some of those shots, especially the close up portraits, realizing that you had used a Trip.

I agree, what a great review and some fine shots on that flickr gallery. I’ve just bought my 50th Olympus Trip 35 and am steadily rebuilding them from head to toe. I’ve posted some reviews and other helpful reviews on my site https://trip35.co/

Great pictures from the Trip. You got to love these little cameras!

The Trip 35 was *made* for landscapes and group photos in good light outside. It’s really dang good for those things. For everything else, not so much! But like you, on a day when I’m just out and about shooting stuff, I find the Trip 35 to be big fun.

My last outing with my Trip 35: https://blog.jimgrey.net/2015/04/20/olympus-trip-35-revisited/

If I ever get on an airplane again I think I’ll be bringing this camera… We’ll see. Josh and your post have helped convince me. Thanks for sharing.

Great review of one of my favourite cameras and one of the best free cameras I’ve ever been given. The quality you can get from this little package has always astounded me, this is an example taken with just bog standard Poundland special film (Agfa Vista 200) https://the6millionpman.wordpress.com/2016/09/30/cardiff-bay-sunset-3/

And yet again I confess to being an Olympus fanboy.

Beautiful colors and range on that.

Great article Josh, and thanks for publishing it James. There wasn’t a link, but I started the Olympus Trip 35 users group on Facebook, here is the link. P.S. A few famous photogrpaphers in the group.

http://www.facebook.com/groups/OlympusTrip35

Hey my friend! Thanks for commenting. We did include a link there, it’s in the third to last paragraph where it says the Trip is “capable…” etc.

And for anyone down here in the comments, do check out the FB group. Amazing talent there shooting with all kinds of Trips.

The Trip Flickr group is worth checking out too. Lots of good stuff there.

https://flic.kr/g/5jsssh

Great write-up! I have three of these and, while I’m by no means a great photographer, I do love the pick-up-and-go nature of the Trip 35. For those who are interested, I spent an entire day refocusing the lens on one of mine;

https://teeritz.blogspot.com.au/2014/04/re-focusing-lens-on-olympus-trip.html

Almost drove me nuts!

That post is scary. You’re a brave man.

Bought a Trip after reading a recommendation by Ken Rockwell. At the time I thought I only ever needed one camera – an FE – and I had one. However, the Trip is great for other things. As you say, the pictures are so sharp. And its so easy to use.

I love my Trip 35. Fantastically sharp lens and incredibly easy to use! The zone focusing took a bit getting used to and I do still occasionally misfocus, but when that happens I embrace my inner William Klein. Also, my copy came with a lens cap and zipped up in a bag so the selenium is not at all worn out and the AE is spot-on. I actually trust shooting slide film in this camera more than any of my all-manual cameras!

Hi! Thank you so much. I am seriously considering to buy a Trip. I want to go traveling and bring a good camera. Do you think this one will do? And some people say it’s not really for taking photo’s in the dark/on parties. Are they right?

Thanks again 🙂

Hey Nikki! The Trip is the perfect camera for travel and casual outdoor shooting IMO, but it does suffer in low light without a flash. A little compact flash will help, and it does have a manual aperture override for accurate flash exposures.

If you’re going to be spending lots of time indoors I would suggest either picking up a cheap P&S with a built in flash, or upgrading entirely to a compact SLR/fixed-lens rangefinder with a fast (f/2 and under) lens for low-light shooting without a flash. Hope this helps!

Hello Nikki, I am the Admin of the Olympus Trips 35 Users Group, I recommend you join to get advice, and there are trustworthy sellers in the group.

See the website link below my comment

I’ve recently picked up aTrip 35 and have been very pleasantly surprised by the ease of use and picture quality. I even tried some low light close shots and had better results than I expected. Tip #1: use 400 speed film to increase versatility. You get more depth of field in any situation and therefore more focussing accuracy. You will also hold off the “red flag” for a stop or two. Tip #2: learn how to guesstimate the zone distances as accurately as possible. If you’re shooting close-up in lower light try to nail the actual distance e.g. set the lens on 1 meter and try to be 1 meter away. Use a tape measure at first so you can see what the distances look like. As the light falls or distances get closer then more accuracy is required from the photographer. Tip #3: remember that you can press the shutter button half way down to lock the exposure. Meter off a mid-tone then recompose and shoot. This will help with back lighting and other tricky light. Tip #4: try to shoot within the limits of the design and you will get good results. The Trip 35 was meant for family holidays and a whimsical approach to photography. If you require critical focussing or metering the Trip was never really designed for that. Enjoy!

Hi, Josh. Great writing. I enjoyed reading your review and laughed so much at the pork bun adventure! Thanks!

Thirty-seven years of shooting film and the Trip 35 was a camera I’d always ignored for being ‘too simple’. I spotted one in a local charity shop last week that was cased, boxed and in lovely condition and I got it for next to nothing. I ran half a roll of FT-12 ASA50 cinema film through and the results were far better than I expected. I started out on Olympus all those years ago (still use them) but I’m a bit ashamed of myself for ignoring this little gem. My 8 year old is just starting to take an interest in photography and this is going to be ideal for her.

Thanks for a great review and for pointing out a couple of little features I hadn’t spotted.

Quick pedantic note: In virtually everything I’ve seen online about the Trip 35, there’s one thing that nobody ever seems to say:

The Trip 35 is essentially the full-frame version of the earlier half-frame Pen EES and EES-2.

I had an EES-2 and it was a great shooter for an inexpensive camera. It worked exactly the same way as the Trip: the selenium meter around the lens chose one of two shutter speeds or raised a red flag if there wasn’t sufficient light; it had a four-icon zone focus lens; there was one manual speed for flash along with adjustable f-stops when not in Auto. Of course, the Trip had a different focal length lens to produce a full-frame image, but I suspect it’s of a very similar design to the EES-2’s. And note that the Trip 35’s top plate includes the EES-2’s hot shoe, along with the back cover/rewind knob from the Pen series (and frame counter from the Pen F series), and the viewfinder is essentially the same as the EES-2’s.

My point is: the Trip 35’s super-successful design wasn’t actually new, the camera was scaled up from the already successful Pen EES series.

Thank you… Now I’m on my way for fun an Mindfulness 🙂 A very brilliant text who give me interests and energy. Thank you 🙂

Just bought one, trying it out tomorrow. I would suggest to buy a tripod and a self-release cord, set it to A and just set for the distance. I used to carry a 110 film camera back in 1977 and was taught photography back in 1981 from a WW2 vet. Warhol used a Pentax 35afm because he could set a high iso without flash.

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Both eyes open – fujifilm tx-1 long term review, we review the final canon a series camera, the canon al-1, five cheap (but very good) film cameras you can buy today.

Olympus Trip 300

The Trip 300 is one of the models in a series of simpler 35mm Trip cameras with fixed focus from Olympus . It has motorized film advance, a 34mm f/5,6 lens, and electronic flash. The camera uses DX coding to detect the speed of the loaded film. The camera is powered with two AA batteries.

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• Japanese 35mm viewfinder
• Image by Raúl Sá Dantas

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How To Use The Olympus Trip

April 28, 2023 By Cameras By Max

The Olympus Trip is a super popular camera among beginners to film, so here is our guide on how to use this awesome little camera, and some tips on how to get the most out of your Olympus Trip.

What is the Olympus Trip?

The Olympus Trip 35 was introduced in 1967, and discontinued in 1984, which is considered a long production run for a 35mm film camera. Over ten million Olympus Trip cameras were sold in this time. 

Many people wrongly call the Olympus Trip a rangefinder camera, however we would classify it more as a point and shoot with zone focusing.

What features does the Olympus Trip have?

The Olympus Trip is really easy to use, and has some cool features that set it apart from other point and shoot 35mm film cameras.

• Zuiko coated 40mm f/2.8 lens : this lens is sharp, and the wide aperture makes it versatile in a lot of situations.
• Automatic settings : the Olympus Trip has two shutter speeds and aperture from f/2.8 to f/22.
• No batteries needed : the Olympus Trip is powered by the selenium meter around the lens. This is also what receives light and tells the camera which aperture is needed.
• Red flag feature : when the camera does not have enough light to take a photograph, a red flag appears in the viewfinder.
• Zone focusing : the Olympus Trip has four focus settings depending on how far away your subject is from the camera.

What are the different parts of the Olympus Trip?

The top plate.

The Olympus Trip top plate is very simple. The camera features are easy to find, making it an ideal camera for beginners. Below is a labelled diagram of the camera.

On the left of the top plate is the rewind knob (more on that later). In the middle is the flash hotshoe, used for mounting hotshoe flashes to the camera. The shutter button is the small black button on the top. On some models of Olympus Trip, this button can be silver. The small panel on the right is the shot counter that displays the number of shots you have taken.

The Olympus Trip lens holds most of the key settings for the camera , such as the ASA, focus, and aperture. 

The ASA dial is set to match the roll of film that you put in the camera. For example, if you are using Portra 400, the ASA setting is set to 400. 

The focus settings are simple, and known as zone focusing. There are four zones to choose from. We go through them in more depth later on in this article. 

The aperture settings are only used if you are using flash. Otherwise, the camera is set to "A", which allows the camera to choose the aperture and shutter speed automatically. 

The Bottom Plate

There is only one function on the bottom plate of the Olympus Trip 35: the rewind button. (And the tripod mount, technically.)

The rewind button is pressed when you are ready to start rewinding your film. 

How To Load Film In The Olympus Trip

Loading film takes some practice, but it is really easy when you get to grips with it. 

To load a roll of film in the Olympus Trip, first you have to open the back of the camera. To open the back of the camera, pull down this small silver tab, shown below.

Once you have the back of the camera open, you can load your roll of film. To load the roll of film, pull the rewind knob up. The roll of film goes in with the top of the canister (the part that sticks out) at the bottom of the camera. See the image below.

When the canister is in, as shown above, you can pull the film leader across the camera to reach the other side.

The rewind knob being put back down will lock the canister in place as you pull the film across. In order to lock the film onto the film spool in the camera, it has to go partly into one of the slots, and the notches at the bottom of the spool have to go through the sprockets on the film (the holes). 

In order to be able to advance the film across the camera, you have to fire the shutter . You can do this by pointing it at a bright light or by setting the aperture setting to one of the numbers. 

I recommend firing the shutter, and advancing the film (with the advance thumb wheel) twice before closing the back, so that you can make sure the film is definitely loaded correctly. As you get more confident, you can fire the shutter less times and therefore get more photos on your roll of film. 

How To Take Photos With The Olympus Trip

Now you have loaded your roll of film, and closed the back of the camera, you are ready to start taking photos! 

The first thing to check is that your ASA is set to the same speed as your roll of film. For example, Portra 400 is ASA 400. Or Kodak Gold is ASA 200. 

When looking through the viewfinder, you will be able to see your frame lines, and the focus setting that the camera is set to. The viewfinder of the Olympus Trip does not show you where the focus is set, just which symbol you have the lens set to.

When the lens is set to "A", the camera will choose the shutter speed and aperture for you manually. If the image you are trying to take is too dark, the red flag will come up. 

You can override this by setting it to one of the numbers instead, but be aware that these are intended for a flash to be used with it. By setting the Olympus Trip to a number on the lens, it reduces the shutter speed to 1/30 - that's one thirtieth of a second. So you will need to have a steady hand when doing so.

How does the film counter on the Olympus Trip work?

When you first load your roll of film, it may look as though the film counter is not moving. It takes two or three shots for the shot counter to move to the number one. 

The back of the camera needs to be closed in order for the shot counter to start working. 

The counter shows the amount of images you have taken, not how many you have left.

How do I focus the Olympus Trip 35?

The Olympus Trip focus settings are simple, but take some getting used to. There are four settings on the camera. The symbols for these are found on the black part of the lens, as shown earlier in the article. 

The symbols are as follows:

The Olympus Trip has  four focus settings . The viewfinder view does not change as you change the focus settings, so you need to know which setting is correct for how far away your subject is. Luckily, this is  not hard.

The first setting has the symbol of one person. The first setting is used for close-up photographs , where the subject is less than 1 metre away.

The second setting is of two people, which is to be used for subjects from 1.5 to 3 metres away. 

The third setting is a symbol of three people. This setting is used for subjects that are between  3 and 6 metres away. 

The final setting is a symbol of a mountain, which is used for anything beyond 6 metres away. 

If you ever forget these numbers, they are engraved on the underside of the lens (opposite to the symbols on the top). 

How does the Olympus Trip 35 red flag feature work?

The purpose of this Olympus Trip feature is to stop you from taking a photograph that is not exposed enough and therefore will not be visible when developed.

When there is not enough light in your image, the red flag will pop up in the viewfinder. You will clearly be able to see it if you are looking through the viewfinder. It also blocks the shutter button from being pressed.

Can I use the Olympus Trip at night?

Yes, you can. 

The easiest way to do this is to attach a flash to the top of the camera.

Attaching a flash to the top of the camera is easy and most flashes can be used on the Olympus Trip. It has a standard flash hotshoe on the top of the camera. 

Here is an example of a flash that can be used on the Olympus Trip:

When using a flash on the Olympus Trip, there are different settings to use. These are the aperture numbers on the silver barrel of the lens closest to the camera. 

The aperture you use needs to be read off of the meter table, which is usually displayed on the back of the flash unit. 

You can read more about using the Olympus Trip at night here .

How To Rewind Your Film

Congratulations, you've finished your roll of film. 

How can I tell if the roll of film is finished?

You will start to feel some resistance when trying to advance the camera. Do not force it, as you will snap part of the mechanism. 

If you are using a 24 exposure roll of film, you will have reached the 24th shot. The shot counter should show the number 24, or near to that number. The same applies for a 36 exposure roll of film, as this will show the number 36. Sometimes you are lucky and get 37 or 38 shots out of a roll of film. 

When the film will not advance any more, the film is finished. 

How do I take the roll of film out?

On the bottom of the camera is your rewind button. Push this button in. It should stay in after you have pressed it once. 

You can now use the rewind knob to rewind the film into the canister. Turn the knob clockwise. 

Rewinding the film usually takes around thirty seconds of rewinding. You will feel when the film comes off of the spool at the end, because the rewind knob will have less resistance. Keep rewinding it until you feel certain that the film is back inside the canister. 

You can now open the back and take the film out. 

That's just about everything you need to know about the Olympus Trip 35 35mm film camera! We really recommend this camera for beginners, so we hope you have a great time using it and create some lovely images. 

I think my Olympus Trip is broken; what should I do?

A lot of Olympus Trip 35mm film cameras have never been serviced in their lifetime. Because they are holiday cameras, a lot of them have sand in the mechanisms. 

We highly recommend getting your Olympus Trip serviced if it hasn't been used in a while. 

Maintained, these cameras can last many years, however when they have been left for decades, they can develop a few issues, such as stuck aperture blades, stuck shutter, non-functioning light meter, etc. 

All of our Olympus Trip services and repairs are very affordable, so definitely consider sending it to us before deciding that it doesn't work, or putting it back in a drawer. 

Shop our full range of Olympus Trips and accessories here:

Find out more about the olympus trip here:.

Featured Camera: The Olympus Trip 35

Can You Use the Olympus Trip At Night?

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Article written by: Max

Max is the owner of Cameras By Max. They work full-time repairing and refurbishing all the 35mm film cameras you see on the website. Their favourite camera (at the moment) is the Olympus XA, and their favourite city in the world is Edinburgh.

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The Olympus Trip 35 Review: Everything You Need To Know

I’ve worked with many Olympus Trip 35s over the years and I’ve discovered the pros and cons of this brilliant little rangefinder camera!

The Olympus Trip 35 is so popular because it’s very easy to use, it has a great lens and it’s ideal for the novice photographer. Also, the Olympus Trip 35 is one of the only 35mm cameras powered by the sun, making it really handy to take on holiday with you. Since 1967 10 million units have been sold, which is a tremendous amount even today.  

If you want to know how this camera compares to others, how much you should be paying, some of its common issues and much, much more then read on!

I’ve worked with a hell of a lot of Trip 35s over the last few years and I like them because they’re really simple. If there’s something wrong with a Trip 35 I usually know it pretty much instantly because they aren’t especially complicated.

I’ve sussed out all the common issues, what can be fixed easily and what spells the end for an individual Trip 35. Usually, it’s lens fungus or an unreactive aperture that means doom for this little camera.

After years of working with them, I took one to the south coast of England to do a full review and I was actually pleasantly surprised by it. As you’ll see throughout the article, there are actually some good pictures that came from this ancient camera.

Some shots were let down by the very real limitations of this camera but on the flipside, due to the brilliant 40mm Zuiko lens, when the exposure is correct, its shots are great.

There are a lot of pros and cons to this camera so it’s well worth reading up on it to figure out if it’s the right fit for you. I enjoyed shooting it more than I expected but it wouldn’t be a camera that I’d rely on regularly.

Olympus Trip 35 Specs

Format – 35mm

ISO – 25 – 400

Battery – Solar Powered Selenium Battery

Exposure – Automatic

Shutter Speeds – 40 – 200

Flash – Hot Shoe

A Brief History Of The Olympus Trip 35

Introduced in 1967 and rolling on until 1984, the Olympus Trip 35 was completely ahead of its time. Sporting a solar-powered light meter in the late 60’s was pretty special.

Of course, Olympus’ market audience was pretty obvious, being named ‘Trip’, it’s kind of spelt out for you. Strong, reliable, doesn’t need any batteries, anyone could use it, that pretty much ticks all the boxes when it comes to a holiday camera.

Incredibly, over 10 million Trips were sold (Up for debate) and of course, they’re still being bought and sold to this day.

How Does The Olympus Trip 35 Battery Work?

The Olympus Trip 35 is powered by the sun using a selenium light meter which is the ring around the lens. This powers the light meter and allows the camera to choose the shutter speed and aperture (depending on which settings you have on). This would have been very unusual in its time but the fact that it’s still reliable today is brilliant.

Is The Trip 35 Lens Good?

Yeah, the Olympus Trip 35 has a pretty good lens but I’ve got to say, there are quite a few drawbacks. The lens itself is a beautiful 40mm 2.8 Zuiko lens, it’s pretty high quality for a camera that feels like a point-and-shoot.

I’d say the main drawback is that the focus is zonal and you only have 4 options. You should be able to see above, there’s a picture of one person, then two, then a group and then a landscape symbol. These are your focus options and it’s basically, 1.5m, 2m 3m and 6m and beyond.

This does limit the camera quite a lot but you’ve got to forgive a 50-odd-year-old camera sometimes.

The focal length is interesting, 40mm is pretty unusual but it’s still just wide enough to take the kind of pictures you’d usually take when you go on your holidays. It’d probably be preferable to have a 35mm lens but beggars can’t be choosers.

The Olympus Trip 35 Compared To The Olympus OM10

It’s worth comparing the Olympus Trip 35 with the Olympus OM10 as they’re currently at similar prices.

The Olympus Trip 35 isn’t that similar to the Olympus OM10, the Olympus Trip 35 is a small point-and-shoot rangefinder and the OM10 is an SLR however, it’s good to see what the Olympus Trip 35 is like in comparison to another well-known camera.

The Olympus OM10 would provide much better shots as it has better quality lenses and more control however, the Olympus Trip is more convenient, more compact and easier to use.

How Much Is The Olympus Trip 35 Worth?

Currently, the Olympus Trip 35 is worth around $100-125 or £70-100. You can of course get the Trip 35 for less if you try bidding for it on eBay or search thrift stores and flea markets but it’s worth trying to make sure that your Trip 35 is all working correctly.

What Kind Of Photography Is The Olympus Trip 35 Best For?

The Olympus Trip 35 is unsurprisingly best for travel-type photography. This camera was made with travel in mind as it’s small, compact, strong, easy to use and doesn’t require any batteries. Otherwise, this is also a good camera for day-to-day use. Photographers like David Bailey championed the Olympus Trip 35 believing that it was an incredibly high-quality camera. 

Although the Olympus trip 35 has a great lens it’s not necessarily overly accurate and it’s not easy to focus correctly so despite the fact that it has a 2.8 lens it doesn’t mean it’s very likely that you’ll be able to focus correctly close range and get the most out of that lens. 

This is not necessarily ideal for more professional types of photography and is definitely better to be used in day-to-day life and travel photography. 

Is The Olympus Trip 35 Fully Manual?

The Olympus Trip 35 has two settings, one is an automatic setting that chooses your aperture and shutter speed for you, it decides between a shutter speed of 40 and 200 and between apertures of 2.8 and 22.

Alternatively, you can decide the aperture and the shutter speed will be decided by the camera. All focusing is manual and all ISO needs to be changed manually.

How To Use The Olympus Trip 35

Olympus Trip 35 is a very simple camera to use once you get the hang of it, until then understanding its limitations can be slightly hard. 

If your camera seems not to be working properly try to leave it in the sun for some time to effectively charge its battery.

To open the back of the camera there is a small lever on the bottom of the side of the camera which just needs to be pulled down until the back pops open. 

To change the aperture just rotate the ring at the base of the lens, this ring will show numbers from 2.8 two 22. If you want to shoot in automatically then turn it all the way around until the red ‘A’.

To change the ISO you just need to rotate the ring on the outer edge of the lens until you are to the correct ISO.

In order to focus you need to rotate the black ring on the lens. The closest focus mode is portrait mode, then there is middle-range portrait row mode, next, there are people standing further away from you and finally, there is a full landscape mode.

To attach a flash you simply have to slide it into the hot shoe located on the top middle of the prism. 

To shoot and wind on you just have to press the shooting button on the top of the camera and then wind the black winder on the back of the camera until you can’t wind it any further.

To rewind the film you must first press the black button on the bottom of the camera to release the film and then wind the silver winder on the top left of the camera all the way back until it feels loose. 

Common Faults Of The Olympus Trip 35

As the Olympus Trip 35 is a very old camera it has a number of common faults, hopefully, I can shed some light on these and help you avoid them or potentially fix them.

Commonly the red flag of the Olympus trip 35 will stop working, the red flag usually shows you when the scene would be too under-exposed. The red flag would appear at the bottom of the viewfinder when you are looking through it and would usually stop you from taking a picture if it’s too dark.  

Sometimes the lens won’t react correctly to light, this is a great thing to check because if this is happening then it’s not really something that you can stop and it will ruin your photos. If this is happening the only advice I can give is to put it in the sun for a bit to see if this charges your selenium battery.

It’s likely that the light seals have worn away unless you bought your camera from a reputable dealer. You will probably have to replace a small number of light seals just to ensure that you do not get light leaks, this is fairly easy and if you want to find out how to do it then go to this link .

Lastly, the lens may have fungus and if the fungus is internal and it’s not something that would be easy to fix it would be much simpler just to get another one.

Final Word On The Olympus Trip 35

This is a great camera for travel and is certainly a camera to consider using. Personally, it’s not my kind of camera, I prefer more control and this just doesn’t cut it for me!

For a camera of its age, it truly is fantastic, a solar-powered vintage wonder that can still produce some beautiful shots!

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Hey! I've been shooting film for a very long time and throughout all of my 20's it's been my main format. In 2019 I started to buy and sell film cameras and I became a top rated seller on Etsy and eBay. I've built up a wealth of knowledge about different kinds of film cameras and their common issues.

Since I started photography I've produced a number of zines/prints and more recently made a book called 'So Far So Good'.

I started this website in late 2021 with hopes of helping out people who had been looking for similar information to me and so far, I'm really enjoying it.

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Olympus Trip 35: Every bit as good as its reputation

I didn’t just stumble on the Olympus Trip 35. I knew all about its excellent reputation as a sharp, simple camera with a good pedigree.

I’m fairly certain I first heard of the Trip 35 on the the Film Photography Podcast some years back, when the hosts were going through a bit of an obsession with the little powerhouse.

It’s the 1960s equivalent of a point and shoot — much more than a box camera, but almost as hands-off as can be. Set the ISO and the focus range, and fire away.

I mentioned the Trip 35 back in February , and discussed a little about production numbers and dates, etc. The important parts are: black ones were only made for a couple years and tend to command much higher prices, especially in good shape — but they’re the same as the silver ones underneath the enamel.

Description

The Trip 35 is a small camera, just a little larger than the later Olympus 35RC , and fairly lightweight. It still feels good, though, in line with many other cameras of its era. Though it has some plastic in it, it is primarily a metal camera with all that vintage solidity.

Being a product of an era when high standards of quality seemed to apply across the board, it’s a whole lot better than one might expect today based on the quality gulf between high-end and low-end, which started to broaden noticeably in the 1970s and is now rather abyssal. The lens is exceptionally sharp, the auto-exposure system is at the top of its class, and the viewfinder is bright and accurate.

The lens is a 40mm f/2.8 D.Zuiko — a four-element design that bests a lot of the Trip 35’s direct competitors’ three-element lenses. While it’s not as fast as some of the f/1.9 and f/1.7 lenses in the pack, the sharpness is tough to beat.

The light meter uses a selenium photovoltaic cell, with a large light-gathering matrix surrounding the lens. The Trip 35 requires no batteries to operate, but if the meter dies, the camera will not function in auto mode.

The auto-exposure system features only two shutter speeds — 1/200 second and 1/40 second. In auto mode, it hunts through apertures at 1/200 in an attempt to make a proper exposure, and then slows down to 1/40 to continue the hunt if necessary. If a proper exposure isn’t possible at 1/40 second and f/2.8, a translucent red flag will pop up in the viewfinder. Otherwise, the exposure is made.

Looking through the viewfinder, you’ll notice a simple brightline frame with some parallax correction marks. It’s not huge, but it’s big enough, and it’s bright enough, too. Below the main viewfinder is a tiny prism that adds a view of the markings on the control rings on the lens barrel so you can see the aperture and focus.

On the lens barrel you can set the film speed (from ASA 25 to 400) by turning the 43.5 millimeter filter ring, and also the aperture for flash mode. The aperture ring has an “A” for auto mode, and the rest of the fixed aperture settings are meant to pair with the subject distance to match a flashgun’s guide number. When a manual aperture is selected, the shutter is locked at 1/40 second. The shutter can be permanently modified to stay at 1/200 , but this will limit the camera’s low-light abilities.

The third setting on the lens barrel is the expected one — focus. The Trip 35 uses zone focusing rather than a rangefinder. The four pictographs correspond to fairly standard distances: a little head and shoulders for 1 meter, two little heads and shoulders for 1.5 meters, two full-length people and a kid for 3 meters, and a mountain for infinity. In case you forget (or just prefer numbers to pictographs), the opposite side of the focus ring has distance markings. The pictograph is what gets shown in the viewfinder, though.

The shutter release button is threaded for a cable release. The rewind knob has a flip-out crank, and there is a frame counter on the right shoulder. The film advance is a thumbwheel on the back edge of the top cover behind the shutter release button.

Be sure to push in the take-up spool release button on the bottom cover before rewinding, and rewind before opening the film door with the small silver latch tab on the bottom left corner of the camera.

There is a standard tripod mount on the bottom, and the top features a hot shoe (and there’s a PC sync socket on the front cover, below and to the right of the lens).

And that’s about it — there just isn’t a lot of technical detail to the Trip 35, but there is elegance in simplicity.

With that, let me tell you what I like about it.

I didn’t expect to like the Trip 35 so much at first. I mean, hearing it talked about and seeing so many articles, I expected it to be just another 1960s-70s rangefinder-wannabe. Don’t misconstrue that to mean I expected it to be bad — but I didn’t expect it to set itself apart.

I think I was wrong. It’s not the best camera I’ve ever used, by any means, but its euphony of size, fit and finish, function, and image quality is really pretty special.

I’m not shy about my troubles with zone- and scale-focus cameras. I have terrible luck with them, mostly because I don’t remember to focus them before I press the shutter. I don’t know that I wouldn’t have better luck if I used them (or, more likely, one of them) more of the time, but in the limited experience I have with them, I just don’t remember more than half the time.

The Trip 35, though, solves that problem for me by showing me the focus setting clearly and brightly in the viewfinder. For me, this clears the biggest roadblock in the way for me to get good images with this class of camera. And for me, at least, it was by far the biggest roadblock.

Okay, okay — the images I’m attaching here aren’t so great — but they’re meant to check the thing out: to see lens distortions and aberration, focus across the breadth of the frame, and so on. And a lot of them also are taken as opportunities for me to test out the feel of the camera.

The film counter on mine was stuck at first. In fact, it was stuck all through my testing. I didn’t figure out how to unstick it until I was writing this. I’m not sure how I managed to miss the solution — I just opened the film door with the shutter uncocked and operated the advance, and the counter reset to the “S” (for Start). Everything else worked right from the start.

I found my Trip 35 at an antique mall, and while I paid below market for it, I didn’t get a thrift-store price. I’m okay with that. I’d been expecting one to turn up in a thrift store after all the talk, but not having actually seen one in five years of trawling thrift stores for photographica, I decided to go for it. Once I had it my hands, it pretty much wasn’t going back in the cabinet.

As stated above, it’s the much-less-common black version of the Trip 35. It’s not perfect — it has a few scuffs and signs of use on the enamel. But the lens is crystal clear and everything works as it should.

I found the size exceptionally right. It’s almost as small as a camera could be and still feel like it fills my hands adequately. The arrangement of the controls is good — really good. The film advance is smooth and fast. The shutter release has just the right amount of tension.

The shutter is quiet, too. Not silent — or even quite as silent as some others — but it’s impressively quiet. I can see why it’s prized for street photography. No batteries required, easy to zone focus, and, in decent light, no fiddling with exposure. It truly becomes point and shoot.

The results are great, too. Sharp from edge to edge, no noticeable distortions, and minimal chromatic aberration. My color tests were with expired film, but the results struck me as good. Contrast on the black and white shots, taken with Ilford Delta 100, was excellent.

If I had a complaint, it would be that the Trip 35’s aperture ring is narrow enough to be difficult to operate with my big sausage fingers. But it’s not really designed to be used without a flash attached, which is something I just don’t do very often.

One minor issue I had — and it was all me — was missing a ton of pictures because I didn’t check that it was loaded. With or without film, the Trip 35 happily clicks away. I think, at one point, I took about 40 pictures and started to wonder why I wasn’t out of film. Turning the rewind knob a bit, I realized there wasn’t any film in the camera, so I loaded it and spend some time retracing my steps to re-take what I could.

The only realistic avenues for improvement with the Trip 35 would be to give it fully manual controls, or a coupled rangefinder. Those deficiencies prevent me from rating the Trip 35 a perfect five stars, but don’t take that to mean you shouldn’t try one out if you have the chance — it’s a really great little camera.

Here are the rest of the test shots I feel like displaying:

Olympus Trip 35 Film Camera Review

A cult classic, an engineering marvel, and an excellent value for a modern film photographer.

Olympus Trip 35 is one of the most popular 35mm film cameras ever produced. It’s affordable, it’s easy to use, the lens is sharp, it needs no batteries, and it’s compact.

Trip 35 uses a scale focus system, which may seem daunting at first — but it’s not difficult, and the camera has unique aides to help you get the right distance — I’ll explain below.

I’ll also cover all the basics of operation (including the auto and manual modes), lens performance, and build quality of this excellent entry-level Olympus film camera .

➜ Get the manual for Olympus Trip 35 . In this review: Why is Olympus Trip 35 a favourite of so many photographers ? Olympus Trip 35 specs and features . Free Olympus Trip 35 manual download . Taking the first photo with Olympus Trip 35: loading film & setting focus . Olympus D. Zuiko 40mm 𝒇2.8 lens . Olympus Trip 35 portability and ease-of-use (ergonomics) . Olympus Trip 35 build quality & variations . Trip 35 mods, hacks, and repairs . How much does Trip 35 cost, and where to find one . Support this blog & get premium features with GOLD memberships !

Why is Olympus Trip 35 a favourite of so many photographers?

Olympus Trip 35 is not an expensive camera. It has decent specs, but it’s not the sharpest, fastest, or most compact camera. Yet, it’s loved by many photographers of all levels today.

Back when it was introduced — over 55 years ago — it was a huge hit. The camera was in production for 15 years, having sold between five and ten million units .

Trip 35 sold for $59.95 at launch in 1968, or $530 in today’s money. But you may still find a working copy for $50 in 2024!

But it’s not just the price that makes this camera good. Trip 35s are built very well with lots of metal components and an excellent glass lens. They are a pleasure to hold and use. They’re nearly pocketable and don’t require any advanced photographic know-how or a manual to get started: if you know how to load film , you can use this camera.

🤓 Trip 35’s automatic exposure system that chooses an aperture and shutter speed by converting light energy into mechanical force is of particular interest to film nerds like me. Though many fancy cameras from the era used selenium light meters for aperture or shutter-priority modes, Trip 35 combined both functions in a relatively simple and remarkably reliable design .

Olympus Trip 35 specs and features.

Trip 35 is a successor to Olympus PEN (namely, EES and EES-2) cameras’ excellent mechanical/optical design and portability.

My black paint brass Olympus Trip 35 version weighs 413g/14½oz , though some copies of this camera may weigh up to 20g lighter. The camera is nearly pocketable at 12×7×6cm (4 ½ ×2¾×2¼”), though it’s not the smallest .

Olympus Trip 35’s remarkably small (for the time) dimensions and ease of use are undoubtedly at the core of this camera’s name and ethos: a camera that’s easy to throw in a small bag or a pocket for a trip.

 ☝︎ Further reading: “ How to Travel With Film Through Airport Security .”

The leaf shutter on Olympus Trip 35 has two speeds: 1/40s and 1/200s. It can switch between the two automatically via the mechanical trap-needle system. In manual mode, Olympus Trip 35 only uses the 1/40s shutter speed. There are no Bulb and no self-timer modes.

The lens is a non-interchangeable Olympus D. Zuiko 40mm 𝒇2.8-22 (four elements in three groups). The closest focus distance is 1m/3ft. The lens uses an odd 43.5mm screw-in lens filter thread that can be adapted to the more common 40 or 46mm threads .

Fully automatic exposure (A) is controlled mechanically by converting ambient light energy via selenium cells (bubbles around the lens) into mechanical movements that modify the aperture and shutter speeds. The camera can be operated manually via the aperture ring around the lens, which will always trigger the shutter at 1/40s if not set to A. The exposure meter is operational between EV8 and EV17 ; it accepts films with ISO 25 — ISO 400 (which needs to be dialled in manually before shooting). No batteries needed.

The viewfinder features a mechanical “red flag” warning system for scenes with insufficient lighting (the camera will also prevent exposures in those conditions). It shows bright lines with parallax markings inside a small but bright window with 0.55x magnification. The eye relief isn’t great, but if you aren’t wearing glasses, you’ll notice a “ Judas window ” that overviews the camera’s shooting mode and distance settings.

Film advance is done with a thumb wheel; rewinding via the rewind knob is unlocked with a rewind button; the film cover opens with a small latch a the bottom-left when looking at the camera’s back.

Hot shoe and a PC socket are available for flash sync. Learn how to use flash with cameras like Trip 35 here .

Free Olympus Trip 35 manual download.

I’ve recently scanned the manual that my camera came with and converted it to a convenient PDF file that you can download for free here:

➜  Free Download :   Olympus Trip 35 Instructions Manual  (PDF)

This manual took some cropping and assembly as its pages aren’t standard (it’s folded like a map). I hope that this little bit of extra effort makes it easier to read on your screen. However, I’m not sure how well it will look in print.

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Taking the first photo with Olympus Trip 35: loading film & setting focus.

Trip 35 is easy to load — the only tricky part is finding the latch to open the film door. ( If you’ve never loaded film in these types of cameras, check out this guide .)

Given that you’ve loaded your Trip 35 with film rated between ISO 25 and 400, you’ll need to set the ASA/ISO dial to match your film speed . In general, ISO 100-400 films do best with this camera (a higher-ISO film works best in subdued light, and lower-iso film provides finer grain).

For automatic exposures, the ring around the lens closest to the camera body should be set to “A.” But manual exposures are possible at the constant 1/40s shutter speed (can be metered as 1/30s) with the apertures selected via the same ring (i.e., any number other than the “A”). Learn how to shoot film cameras in manual mode here .

I appreciate the bright frame lines with parallax markings in the viewfinder . They make framing feel a little easier than on cameras with masks . Though I would prefer the self-illuminating kind.

The viewfinder window is fairly small. It’s usable with the glasses on; however, I had to use contacts to take advantage of the “Judas window” — a small secondary view below the main finder frame lines that shows the set distance icon and camera shooting mode/aperture.

Pointing the camera at things that are insufficiently lit for the film ISO/ASA set on the camera would raise a small translucent red plastic flag and block the shutter button. This would not happen when the camera is in manual mode (i.e. when an aperture value is selected instead of the “A”).

Olympus Trip 35’s shutter button provides medium-high resistance, it has a long travel distance, and it’s very well-balanced with the rest of the body for shake-free hand-held exposures . The leaf shutter is also shake-free (though it feels a little loud for what it is ).

Trip 35 uses a zone-focusing system. For a casual photographer, it works by turning the focus ring around the lens until it clicks to either a single-person icon 👤 for portraits, a two-person icon 👥 for group portraits, a red “group-snap” icon ⍒.⍒ , or the mountains icon 🏔️ for landscape photos.

Below the lens barrel, there are more precise focus markings in feet and metres. Learn how to zone-focus quickly and accurately here .

Olympus D. Zuiko 40mm 𝒇2.8 lens.

One of the most celebrated components of this camera is its lens. It’s very sharp in the middle , especially at 𝒇5.6-8 , with only minor swirl and softening in the corners.

The lens renders a medium-low amount of contrast on my copy, but the coating appears to work well, as I noticed no overwhelming or unexpected flaring in any of my photos.

Overall, I found D. Zuiko 𝒇2.8 well-corrected, suitable for reproducing fine detail on high-resolution films.

The 40mm focal length is common and well-suited for a non-interchangeable camera system. It translates to ~57° diagonal angle of view — very close to the 60° in our central vision . Essentially, this means easy framing for most situations.

The 40mm D. Zuiko may not be appropriate for interior/architecture photography, close-ups, telephoto, or certain landscape images.

Olympus Trip 35 portability and ease-of-use (ergonomics).

Even though Trip 35 isn’t the smallest or the lightest 35mm film camera , it’s reasonably portable for the type of lens it uses and a full metal body. All of its controls are perfectly positioned for quick, intuitive action. With a little practice, you can use this camera one-handedly.

I kept mine in wool jacket pockets and hoodies with no issues. Despite fitting will in hand, Trip 35 is noticeably hefty; my Peak Design wrist strap solved any danger of dropping this camera.

Olympus Trip 35 build quality & variations.

Trip 35 was a remarkably successful design; understandably, Olympus didn’t want to change it much while it continued to make record sales. All of the Olympus Trip 35s look nearly identical, with some known changes introduced in the 1970s that had little effect on appearance and no effect on performance (i.e. a plastic shutter button instead of the metal one).

The only significant divergence from the standard design was the black paint brass Trip 35 , which remained in production for just two years. This variation is much rarer than the silver aluminum bodies, but in Olympus’ world, this means that there are less than a hundred options available at any time, and they cost $50 extra.

If you plan to keep this camera for a while and are willing to spend a little more, the black version may be worth it (if you like the look of brassing). It has excellent build quality and an impressive appearance; every part fits perfectly, in line with what you’d expect from the much more expensive Olympus PEN half-frame SLRs .

But despite their clever design and quality assembly, Trip 35s can be prone to deterioration.

In my copy, the light meter over-exposes every brightly lit frame by 1-2 stops. It’s difficult to say if it’s the time taking a toll on the intricate cells or if it’s the imprecise nature of the selenium metering that’s preventing me from taking perfectly exposed images.

A clever photographer can always compensate by setting the film ASA/ISO higher in full sun or shooting Trip 35 manually. But if you’re looking to get a copy, you should verify that the camera is sold as fully functional . An online listing would say that in the title or the description.

Trip 35 mods, hacks, and repairs.

Repairing Trip 35s may cost as much or more than the value of the camera. The good news is that simple fixes (like cleaning oil of the shutter and aperture blades) aren’t difficult if you’ve got the right tools and know-how.

Another common issue with cameras this old is the light seals. The soft, spongy material tends to crumble over time, which in turn can create light leaks . I have a guide on fixing that quickly and cheaply here .

Being a mechanical camera with manual controls, Trip 35s can survive past the span of the selenium cells that power its fully automatic shooting mode. Some photographers may prefer to use the camera in the manual mode for more precise control over exposure. You may even modify yours to shoot with the faster 1/200s shutter speed for improved action snaps and reduced motion blur.

How much does Trip 35 cost, and where to find one.

Olympus Trip 35 film camera is a fantastic value in terms of fun, image quality, and build quality. Most copies of these cameras can be bought between $20-120 — depending on the condition. And a few bucks more can get you the rare-ish black paint version .

❤ By the way: Please consider making your Olympus Trip 35 purchase using this link so that this website may get a small percentage of that sale — at no extra charge for you — thanks!

About this article :

It can take five hours of work (or more) to write and proof a quality five-minute read with high-res illustrations. Below are the people who made this one possible. All content is reviewed, styled, and edited by Dmitri .

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Why the Olympus Trip 35 is a Classic Camera Worth Owning

David Johnson | April 14, 2023

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The Olympus Trip 35 – a perfect travel film camera

The Olympus Trip 35 is a compact, battery-free point-and-shoot 35mm film camera known for its ease of use and quality. When it was released in 1968, it was marketed as the perfect film camera to take on your travels.

NOTE: Travel is not recommended at this time. These posts are here to serve as inspiration when we can explore again. Hey there – this post likely contains affiliate links, which means I earn a commission (at no extra cost to you) if you purchase from them. This helps me earn a few dollars to run this website.

Imagine yourself as a traveller in the 1970s . Airlines were becoming more popular than ever, with more and more destinations opening up to international exploration. The Grand Tour of the 19th century had felt a resurgence for the everyday person. You only connected with those back at home by postcard and you took photos on film, waiting to share them once you returned.

With over 10 million units sold during its 16-year run, it would be likely that as a traveller in the 1970s, you would have had (or would have wanted) the Olympus Trip 35. How about today? With film photography becoming more popular again, is the Olympus Trip 35 a worthwhile film camera to take on your travels?

What is the Olympus Trip 35?

The Olympus Trip 35 is what is known as a point-and-shoot camera – one that does most of the work for you. The camera has a fixed 40mm f/2.8 lens. The camera uses just two shutter speeds and a selenium photocell as a light metre.

The Olympus Trip 35 was marketed as an easy-to-use, compact camera to take with you on your travels. They are super lightweight, take regular 35mm film and work with a click of a button.

How does the Olympus Trip 35 work

The Olympus Trip 35 doesn’t need a battery to operate, which is pretty darn cool if you ask me. It uses a solar-powered selenium photocell light metre to automatically set the aperture and select a shutter speed.

First up, the Olympus Trip 35 has an ISO range of 25 to 400, which makes it perfect for a film stock like Kodak Gold 200. You can use (the crème de la crème) Kodak Portra 400, but because that film stock is so expensive, I’d use the cheaper Kodak Gold 200 or Kodak Ultramax 400 in this point-and-shoot camera. You could even try a nice black and white film stock, although I haven’t done that yet myself.

The Olympus Trip 35 just has two shutter speeds – 1/40s or 1/200s, which the camera chooses automatically based on the available light. The camera’s aperture ranges from f/2.8 to f/22, which it also chooses automatically when in “A” mode. You can take the camera into Aperture-priority mode by twisting the aperture ring on the lens, but there’s really no need to.

The camera has a hot shoe where you could sync with a flash, although I’ve not tried that yet.

Lastly, the only thing you really need to think about when using the Olympus Trip 35 is the focus setting. The camera has four focus zones marked by four symbols: portrait, two people, a group of people and landscape. It’s relatively easy to figure out what focus range you need, but if you need more specifications, the focus zones are 1 metre, 1.5 metres, 3 metres and infinity. For most travel photos, you’re going to stick to the landscape focus zone.

Is the Olympus Trip 35 easy to use?

Once you get the hang of it, yes, the Olympus Trip 35 is so easy to use! The first step is to choose your film stock. The ISO ranges from 25 to 400 so you’ll want to choose a film stock in that speed. (Kodak Gold 200 and Ultramax 400 are some of my favourites).

Next, you need to load the film. There’s a small release button on the left-hand side to pop open the back cover. The 35mm film loads in like most other 35mm film cameras. You need to pop the rewinder knob up, fit in the film and push the rewinder knob back in. Then thread the leader part of the film into the take-up spool making sure that the teeth are grabbing onto the perforated part of the film. Tighten the film by using the film advance wheel, making sure the rewinder knob is turning as you crank the film advance. Close the back of the camera and advance the film three times until the counter is at 0.

Make sure you’ve set your ISO to match your film stock. You can do so by twisting the outer ring of the lens.

Make sure the aperture is set on “A” so that the camera can decide what aperture to use. Once you do that, the camera will decide on either 1/40s or 1/200s for the shutter speed based on the available light.

Next, choose your focus zone. If you’re taking a portrait, use the portrait focus zone, if you’re taking a landscape, use the landscape focus zone. It’s pretty simple.

Then you look through the viewfinder you’ll notice that you can see the lens in the viewfinder. That’s because it’s a parallax viewfinder, rather than a mirror system like you see in most DSLR cameras. The viewfinder in the Olympus Trip 35 has parallax markings, which help you frame up an image when your subject is close to correct for this viewing error.

The second, very small window you see under this (which is called the Judas window – don’t ask me why) shows the aperture session and distance symbol that you’re using.

Once you look through the viewfinder, click the small shutter button on the top right to take the picture.

If a small red flag appears in the viewfinder, it just means that the camera has decided there’s not enough light and won’t take the photo.

Finding an Olympus Trip 35

I think what sold me on the Olympus Trip 35 was how easy it was to use. I had just started my journey back into film photography and I already had the 100% manual Canon AE-1. I wanted something light, enjoyable and fun to use, while still being vintage.

I think I stumbled across the camera while perusing YouTube and thought I’d look it up. I was surprised at the range of cost. Some were selling for over $300 CAD, while others were listed for only $60 CAD.

I learned that people were buying these cameras cheap, replacing the exterior with new leather and reselling them for a lot more, which is why you see Olympus Trip 35s in fun colours. I ended up looking at three Olympus Trip 35s that were for sale but weren’t functional before buying the one I found. There are two major things you need to look out for when searching for an Olympus Trip 35.

First, make sure the aperture blades aren’t stuck. Sticky aperture blades is pretty common in these vintage cameras. You can test to make sure the aperture works correctly by looking through the front of the lens as you change the apertures and pressing the shutter. The aperture blades should change accordingly, opening and closing with ease. If it doesn’t it’s not the end of the world. There are a couple of tutorials on how to fix this online.

Second, make sure the selenium photocell functions. This is key because if doesn’t work properly, the camera won’t metre light properly and your images won’t come out. To test this, you can place your hand in front of the photocell, covering it completely. Try to take a photo, if the red flag appears, it means that it works. If it takes a photo, then it means the selenium photocell isn’t working.

I looked at three different Olympus Trip 35s where the sellers didn’t know if it worked properly or not. I ended up passing on all three before finding one at a camera store in Collingwood that actually worked.

Then I put just one roll of (relatively) cheap film through it and found it worked perfectly.

The tip is to keep a lens cap on it or in a case while not using the camera. Use this handy guide for more tips when buying an Olympus Trip 35.

Why the Olympus Trip 35 is a great travel film camera?

The Trip name is a reference to its intended market—people who wanted a compact, functional camera for holidays.

For me, I think the joy of it is wrapped up in one image I took while on a camping trip in the summer. I was headed out on a kayak on Stormy Lake near Restoule Provincial Park. I wanted to bring my camera, but because I use my camera for my wedding photography business, there was no way in hell I was putting it in a kayak, even if it was protected by a dry bag. I just didn’t want to take that chance. So I put my phone and my Olympus Trip 35 in a dry bag and set off.

I had just brought my film camera out to take a photo when suddenly, a loon popped out of the lake in front of my kayak. I love the sounds of a loon and had heard them often, but I had never seen one so close. I snapped a quick photo of it with my Olympus Trip 35. I didn’t have to worry about aperture, shutter speed and I knew I already had it on landscape focus, so I just pointed the camera at the loon and snapped the photo.

By the time I put down my film camera and picked up my phone to take another photo, the loon had dove back into the depths and when it resurfaced again a few minutes later, it was too far away.

I had to wait another 3 weeks before I saw that photo, and it was even more magical once I saw the image developed.

So why is the Olympus Trip 35 such a great travel film camera?

Hopefully, by now I’ve convinced you that it is easy to use. The camera is lightweight and compact, plus it won’t accidentally take a photo if you’ve got it stashed in your bag. Plus, since it doesn’t need batteries, all you really need to worry about is making sure you have enough film!

Olympus Trip 35 sample photos

So far, I’ve put four rolls of film through this camera and I’ve loved how it turns out every single time. The camera is so light, it fits in my waist bag, and makes shooting a breeze. I can’t wait to take this on my next photography adventure! Here are some sample photos from the Olympus Trip 35.

Love film photography? Join Grainery.

I’m pretty new to film, but I’ve absolutely LOVED this new app called Grainery . It’s Instagram-inspired but focuses solely on analog photography. It’s really new, the actual app for iPhone and Android is still in development, but the website works perfectly. And it’s free! Plus, the guy who is developing it is super grassroots and is planning to keep it ad- and algorithm-free.

If you are looking to upgrade to Grainery+, it’s only $3/month, which helps support the developer. (Not sponsored, just something I genuinely LOVE.)

If you love film photography, then what are you waiting for! Join Grainery and follow me @mywanderingvoyage . It’ll be fun!

Love beautiful photos?

I’ve launched a print shop!! After a couple of years of imposter syndrome, I finally launched my own print shop and I am stoked to share it with you!

You can hang up your favourite prints in your home, get a canvas print or even print on metal! Check out the Print Shop now!

Want to know when a new print collection drops and get exclusive discount codes? Sign up for the Print Shop list and you’ll be the first to know!

Olivia Rutt

Olivia Rutt is the travel writer and photographer behind My Wandering Voyage, a travel website helping working millennials find time to travel. She shares insight in trip planning, travel inspiration and photography tips. Olivia hails from southern Ontario, Canada where she works in the media industry between travels. Follow Olivia on Instagram where she shares her travel photos, or catch up with her on Facebook or Twitter.

Further Reading...

How to take better travel photographs

What’s in my camera bag? Camera gear for travel photography

Gift guide for travel photographers

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Lens advice for Moscow on a budget?

• Thread starter sjducks
• Start date May 10, 2012

Mu-43 Rookie

• May 10, 2012

Sorry for another "what lens" post, but I figured that there are many people who have been in similar situations that can help. I'm leaving for Moscow in the middle of June and am interested in adding a lens to my m43 kit. My gear is still a work in progress, but I have an E-P2 and E-PM1, with the II R kit lens and the Sigma 19mm 2.8. I would like to add another lens to take along with my as I'll be taking photos all over indoors/outdoors, daytime/low light. I am however on a budget and really do not want to spend an excessive amount on this lens. I am interested in the Oly 45, but am not really going to be taking any portraits while there (or elsewhere for that matter). Maybe squeeze in a P14 for the wide angle? Any advice would be fantastic. Thanks much!  

forgot to mention that I am looking more for native glass if possible. I also have an OM Zuiko 50/1.8, although I am not sure if it will make the trip with me. Thanks again.  

Mu-43 Veteran

p20/1.7 - best choice  

Mu-43 Hall of Famer

Both of those focal lengths are covered by your kit zoom, so you should be able to figure out which one you use more - wide-angle or short tele? Or are you generally 'stuck in the middle'? My personal preference would be something wide (particularly indoors and urban shooting), so the obvious budget option would be the 14/2.5. The 12, while expensive (and thus probably out of the question) would actually give you something very different in terms of field of view (extra mm on the wide-angle side mean more than on the tele end). Or even the 9-18 ultra wide zoom, although not everyone likes ultrawides equally. I enjoy them from time to time (I have a 17-40 on my full frame), but 24 is usually wide enough for me.  

Mu-43 Regular

I visited Moscow just the other week and would definitely recommend a tele zoom as well. When walking around you will want to zoom in on the wonderful buildings and architectural details, and the 45 (good as it is) will not bring you close enough in my opinion. I shot most of my pictures last week with either a wide angle (I used the 9-18 Oly lens) or tele (the Oly 40-150). Since you mention you do not want to spend too much and maybe only want to add one lens I would suggest the 40-150 in your case, not too expensive and very versatile. Combined with your kit lens you will have a light and small but very usable combo that will give you a lot of picture opportunities. If you can stretch the budget think about the 9-18 as well though, great for interiors! https://www.mu-43.com/f56/moscow-color-b-w-25585/ To give you some idea, most outdoor pictures in my Moscow thread (above) were shot with 40-150, most indoor shots with 9-18 Regardless of your choice, you will have a great time there, wonderful city for a photo trip!  

My wife and I went to London, UK, last summer. She was there for two weeks before I got there, and she took along her E-PL1, m.14-42 (mk. I) kit, and the m.40-150. She never complained about any restrictions, with the exception that 14mm wasn't wide enough for a very few architecture shots. I brought my old E-620, 11-22mm and 50mm f/2. It would get to be too much weight for a 10-12 hour day of walking around. I envied the little E-PL1. I would say that if your goal is to enjoy Moscow, and not to earn a profit off your shots, then get the m.40-150mm, a few extra batteries, and a few extra SD cards. It's a very sharp lens for the price, and extra batteries and SD cards are more important than another stop of light.  

Just this guy...

Since you don't have a strong idea of what you want I'd go along with the others suggesting the 40-150. It gives you a good general purpose kit. The two zooms and faster normal on two bodies will be very versatile on a tight budget. Fred  

Moscow lens Since you already have Oly cameras, I can recommend the 14-150 zoom. Compact, wide range, good quality (no equal to the primes, but plenty good enough). Just traveled to New Zealand and used this lens most of the time. It's $499 at Amazon, perhaps out of your budget but worth a look.  

Mu-43 All-Pro

Save your money for your trip. Since you have no idea what you want, it would suggest you don't need a lens at all.  

Wide. Wide. Wide. There are many very interesting interiors in Russia. The chapels inside St. Basil's for example. IMHO it takes 24mm equivalent or better to shoot an interior and give an adequate sense of space. My "travel wide" is the 9-18. (Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood in St. Petersburg is another photogenic interior. Don't miss it if you get that far.) Those photogenic interiors are usually pretty dim. I suggest a 5 or 6 section carbon monopod that collapses to around 16" Put a Velbon QHD-41Q or one of the Manfrotto ball heads with the QR2 system on your monopod and you will be a happy low-light shooter. IMHO you have enough longer lenses unless you are a birder.  

either kit zoom or 9-18mm  

lenshoarder

I would pickup a M39 adapter and buy old Soviet glass while there.  

Thanks for all the suggestions fellas, much appreciated! Keep em coming.  

Keep em coming. Click to expand...

oldracer said: One more re budget: You could buy a 9-18mm for the trip and sell it when you get home. Click to expand...

I actually have the same dilemma for Italy next year. The Oly 12,f2.0 is way out of my budget. I was probably going to buy the Pany 14,2.5. At < $300. I looked at the Sigma 19,f 2.8, but I didn't think the reviews were overwhelming. I have the EPL1. Type I. Kit lens, and the 40-150 tele-zoom ( love that lens ). I also have the Holga lens ( I actually like this one alot ). So, judging by the responses here, the Pany is the way to go. Thanks.  

I am leaning a little more towards wide angle than zoom although the prices for the 40-150mm olympus are pretty cheap now (same goes for the 14mm panasonic). BAKatz, I'm with you...I'd love to get the Oly 12, but it's out of my range as well.  

You can always take multiple images and stitch them together rather than buying a wide. I often do handheld panos. The gridded display is very helpful in taking the series.  

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Matt's Classic Cameras

home of Matt's world famous vintage camera collection

click for sample

• Produced 1955-59 (1958) KMZ, Krasnogorsk (Moscow), USSR
• Film type 120 rollfilm
• Picture size 6cm x 9cm (6×6 with mask)
• Weight 30.6oz (867.5g) without mask
• Lens Industar-24 105mm, f3.5-f32 (4 elements, 3 groups)
• Focal range 1.5m to infinity
• Shutter Moment-24S
• Shutter speeds B, 1-1/250
• Viewfinder COUPLED rangefinder (oooooooh!)
• Exposure meter none

The mighty KMZ made this brilliant ‘copy’ (some say improvement) of the famous Zeiss Ikon Ikonta C. Sharp large and lovely coated Tessar-style Industar-24 lens in a strong Moment-24S (S for Sync) shutter, with flash sync and a self-timer. It’s large for a 120 format folder, feels more like the Kiev 4 than a Zeiss Nettar in the hands. Speaking of Zeiss, this example has the infamous ‘Zeiss bumps’ where the old brass rivets have popped up bumps in the leather. That should tell you something about how closely the Russians liked to copy the German classics. More often, though, they added their own design innovations along the way like the geared focusing on the Lubitel , originally a copy of the Voigtlander brilliant . I don’t have an Ikonta but here’s someone’s notes (about halfway down the page) on how this is an improvement. Note that a few people in that discussion talk about using this as a good camera to put in their backpacks while hiking/biking. I personally would find it too large and heavy for that, it weighs more than a K1000 with a 50mm SMC lens attached, I’d take that instead or better yet a little rangefinder like the C35, but that’s just me. This is not a snapshot camera, it’s a serious high-quality take-your-time shooter.

The rangefinder is coupled (yes, oh yes) with a seemingly simple swingout standoff lens that aligns with the rangefinder window. It seems to utilize rotating lenses or prisms inside it to give the split image, I’m not really sure how it works but it does. There is a separate viewfinder window whose framing format changes with a simple switch on top of the camera (you hold it lengthwise) for square or long format. In fact, this switch appears to do nothing more than change a frame in the viewfinder – to change film formats you have to insert / remove a metal mask in the back of the camera as in the (much smaller) dual-format Agfa Plenax and others. Also inside the removable back door of the camera is a simple lever for format-switching that blocks the slider for the red window of the format you didn’t select. (That makes sense I swear.)

Other notes: the shutter release button is on the left side for some reason (as on the aforementioned Nettar). Where you’d expect it to be is really the bellows release button. There is a double-exposure prevention similar to but not as complicated as on the Balda Baldix , though no auto counter. Self-timer is a little button that when moved aside allows you to cock the shutter farther to engage the timer.

Bellows is sound, lens is clear, shutter strong like bull. The rest cleaned up very nicely, I did see that part of the mechanical linkage for the shutter release mechanism had popped out of alignment, and that was a simple matter to put the pin back in the hole. This can happen if you press the shutter release while the camera is folded, I did it by accident once on the Baldix . I was originally hesitant to take off the top cap to clean the obvious dirt & dust inside the viewfinder windows but it turned out to be a fairly straightforward task. The round rings surrounding the little windows screw off (you’ll see, they’ve got knurled edges) and then the rest is easy. Not too complicated inside.

Extra Credit

Nice leather case, but adds a lot of weight. So I did the same trick I did with my Kiev 4 case and replaced the rivet with a snap so the top comes off easily. One small note – the rivet is pretty small and close to the case bottom, so there’s not much clearance for the larger snap component. To get around this I trimmed a little slice off the edge of the inside snap base with some tin snips to have a flat side to rest against the bottom of the case. I’m sure you could file it down if you don’t have tin snips.

Tips & Tricks

One, remember to fold up the flipout rangefinder and setting the focus to infinity before closing the camera. Also, though the back door opens with a sliding switch at the handle as per usual, it is not hinged, but pops right off! Actually the removable back thing is true of my other vintage Russian cameras and my large older folders, but for some reason I was surprised enough that at first I thought it was broken.

Speaking of broken, the manual indicates that you must cock the shutter only after changing speeds; e.g., change speeds with the speed ring first, then cock the shutter, or you could damage the shutter. Counter to the advice for most Russian cameras! But I think true of many rim set shutters you see on folding cameras. Also you should only set the self-timer at speeds of 1/100 or slower, faster is not recommended per the manual. I actually don’t recommend ever using the self timer on old mechanical shutters that haven’t been CLA’d, they’re the weak link in the chain that often causes old cameras to jam.

There is a general purpose focus setting as you find on some folders (Agfa, Voigtlander) — the red dot on the focus scale indicates 10 meters and the dot on the f-stop ring indicates 1:11, setting both will give acceptably sharp pictures from 4.5m to infinity.

This camera has a double-exposure prevention lock that is working but a little differently than I expected – how I thought it’s supposed to work is that after cocking and firing, the red dot appears next to the shutter release and resets to silver after you wind on sufficiently. My example seems to work the other way, only firing when the red dot appears and locking when it’s clear. I think maybe the red doesn’t mean ‘stop’ as I’m used to seeing, but ‘ready’ as a gun would. Those Soviets!

I was lucky to get the (apparently elusive) frame mask with this example, though I’m not likely to use it – I have enough 6×6 format cameras, I would use the Baldix before this one if I was going to shoot 6×6. The mask is a thin metal thing that aligns with some bumps and presses into place at the film plane. It is easy to bend when removing, so be careful. You could probably even cut yourself on it, come to think of it. If yours is missing you can get a new replacment at rafcamera.com .

Related Links

• Read all (and I mean all) about it at Alfred’s [wonderful] Camera Page . Includes the history of the model.
• Classic Cameras has the very thing
• Some user-submitted commentary about the Moskva-5 at Medium Format Home
• Rafael of rafcamera.com sells accessories for the Moskva and Lubitel.

3-4-3 to Moscow: Flying Aeroflot's 777-300ER in Economy

[tpg_rating tpg-rating-score="66" ground-experience="2" cabin-seat="16" amens-ife="11" food-bev="16" service="21" pros="Professional service (for the most part), good value for money and more amenities than expected in coach." cons="Dismal ground experience at JFK T1, cramped configuration and hit-or-miss food." /]

Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here .

After returning from a whirlwind trip to China in June, it was time to begin piecing together yet another marathon trip that would have me spending more time in the air than on the ground -- which, to me, sounded like a dream. After hours of planning with help from other TPG team members, we were settled on all but one leg of the journey: We needed to find a positioning itinerary from the US to the Middle East, ideally in economy, as costs were sky-high across the board and award availability from the US was slim.

Russia's Aeroflot emerged as the top contender. The airline serves several key US markets and has an expansive connecting network to Europe, the Middle East and Asia. The 96-year-old airline has historically been quite conservative with its network growth, especially in the US, but serves 146 destinations across the globe with its fleet of about 250 aircraft. Plus, if you've searched transatlantic fares on Google Flights, you know that Aeroflot consistently tops the results with the cheapest fares, even at the last minute.

I've often been asked for my opinion on Aeroflot by hesitant friends and family weighing their travel options. Up to now I had never flown with the Russian airline, so I always pointed to its good safety record and modern fleet. Finally, though, it was time to find out for myself.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BzIYhp_B4so/

I had a Wednesday evening departure from Abu Dhabi, so I was aiming to depart the US on Monday afternoon and arrive in Abu Dhabi at sometime on Tuesday. Unfortunately, Aeroflot doesn't offer service to Abu Dhabi, but they do fly twice daily to Dubai, a mere one-hour cab ride down the Persian Gulf coast.

When searching Google Flights, I noticed that Aeroflot's cheapest fares were routing on their New York-to-Moscow flight, even if departing from a city where it offers nonstop service (Washington, Miami or Los Angeles). The airline codeshares with Delta, a SkyTeam partner, for all feeder flights within the US.

I settled on a $1,062 one-way fare from Washington, DC, to Dubai, connecting through New York (JFK) and Moscow (SVO). The three-segment itinerary was operated on Delta Connection E-170, Aeroflot B777-300ER and Aeroflot B737-800, respectively.

As always, we booked the trip using The Platinum Card® from American Express, which earns Membership Rewards at a rate of 5 points per dollar when booking airfare (directly through airlines or through American Express Travel; up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year). The $1,062-purchase yielded 5,130 MR points, worth about $102, according to TPG's current valuations.

[flight_stats ticket-class="econ" review-stat-section="Ground Experience" tpg-rating="2" tpg-rating-max="10" tail="VP-BGF" age="6.3" departure="14" departure-2="15" duration="9" duration-2="10" live-tv="0" tailcam="0" headphones="0" comp-alcohol="0" extra-pillows="0" turndown-service="0" /]

My morning started with an 11am departure from Washington Reagan (DCA) to New York (JFK) with Delta Connection -- an easy and uneventful flight of just 50 minutes. Delta operates out of both Terminal 2 and 4 at JFK, while Aeroflot exclusively uses Terminal 1, so I knew I'd need to change terminals once I arrived. After touching down at JFK, the Embraer E-170 pulled into gate C67 at JFK's Terminal 2, where upon deplaning, I happened to catch a glimpse of my next ride getting tugged into its gate after arriving from Moscow.

Unfortunately there is no airside connection between Terminals 1 and 2, so the transfer involves exiting the terminal, walking outside along the departures-level driveway, and re-entering through security. I had about two hours of layover, so it wasn't a big deal, but it's definitely something to consider for those with tighter connections.

About 15 minutes after getting off my Delta flight, I arrived at the Terminal 1 departures hall.

Aeroflot operates three daily flights between JFK and Moscow, making it the airline's busiest long-haul route with up to 1,105 daily seats each way. My particular flight, SU101, was the first flight of the day with a scheduled departure time of 2:15pm. I reached the counters just after 12:30pm and they were busy as expected.

There were no self-service kiosks, so all passengers were required to visit the counters for both check-in and bag drop. The business-class and Sky Priority lanes were fairly empty, but there was a long queue for economy check-in with a likely wait of at least 15 minutes.

Luckily, the Delta agent in Washington, DC, had issued my boarding passes for all three flights through to Dubai. I had everything I needed, so I proceeded straight to security.

...or so I thought. After glancing at my boarding pass, the TSA agent turned me away, saying, "Delta doesn't fly out of this terminal." I tried explaining that my ticket was for an Aeroflot flight to Moscow and my boarding pass had simply been printed by Delta, but to no avail. She insisted that I needed an Aeroflot-issued boarding pass to go through security.

I walked back to the check-in desks and explained my situation to the employee guiding passengers into the queueing area. Since I was checked in and my bags were already tagged and on the way, he kindly offered for me to use the empty SkyPriority counters rather than waiting in the lengthy economy line. The counter agent happily printed my boarding pass and I was back at the checkpoint a few minutes later.

I'm no stranger to the horror stories coming out of JFK's Terminal 1. Long lines, angry people, crowded spaces -- my expectations were low, but even then, I figured, "How bad could it be?"

Just as I entered the queue for security, they closed two of the four open lanes and the lines instantly doubled in length. I ended up waiting nearly 20 minutes to reach the X-ray machine only to have my bag flagged for further inspection, along with a dozen or so others. I waited another 15 minutes until it was finally my turn to have my bag inspected, only to have the X-ray machine break down as the TSA agent was pulling up the scan.

The agent apologized and said she'd have to run the bag through again in the adjacent lane, which dragged out for another 10 minutes or so. Finally, over 45 minutes after initially getting in line, my backpack made it through (without getting flagged again).

Now with the security debacle behind me, I was hopeful that Terminal 1 could redeem itself. I made my way down the concourse, which had a fair number of food and shopping options to choose from. I got an up close look at the sleek 777, registered VP-BGF, that would be operating my flight to Moscow that afternoon. It was delivered new to the airline in April 2013 and serves major gateways like New York, Shanghai, Beijing and Los Angeles from Aeroflot's Moscow hub.

The Gate 6 podium posted an on-time departure and the agents were making occasional announcements that boarding would begin around 1:35pm, exactly 40 minutes before our scheduled pushback time.

For boarding, Aeroflot offers Business Class, Sky Priority and two standard economy lanes (rows 17-37 and rows 38-51). Although the signage didn't explicitly state it, Premium Economy passengers were eligible to use the SkyPriority lane.

The Aeroflot ground staff began inviting passengers to line up in their respective groups about 15 minutes before boarding was scheduled to begin.

The 403-seat 777 was completely sold out, so as boarding time drew closer, passengers began flooding into the area, and the boarding lines kept growing.

A Korean A380 and Saudia 777 began boarding across the hall at Gates 5 and 7, so the concourse walkway soon resembled an indiscernible sea of passengers.

With three wide-body jets now simultaneously boarding more than 1,000 passengers combined, the crossfire of announcements made it difficult to tell which gate was boarding which zone. I didn't hear the agent make an announcement for economy-class passengers, but I just followed the pack once it started toward the podium. It turned out the two economy groups board back-to-front, i.e., rows 38-51 followed by rows 17-37. My assigned seat was 35K, so I was one of the last people to board the aircraft.

[flight_stats ticket-class="econ" review-stat-section="Cabin and Seat" tpg-rating="16" tpg-rating-max="25" configuration="3" configuration-2="4" configuration-3="3" width="17" pitch="32" tray="10" tray-2="15" lavs="8" live-tv="0" tailcam="0" headphones="0" comp-alcohol="0" extra-pillows="0" turndown-service="0" /]

All 19 of Aeroflot's 777s sport the 3-4-3 configuration, which, unfortunately for flyers, is becoming the new norm among airlines except for a handful that are bucking the trend, like Delta and Singapore Airlines.

The cabin was outfitted with Aeroflot's traditional color scheme of bright orange-red and dark blue. The seats were upholstered with cloth, which I tend to find more comfortable than leather.

The standard adjustable headrest was simple but did the trick. It held its shape pretty well throughout the flight.

Each economy-class passenger had a pillow, blanket and small amenity kit waiting on their seat.

I measured the seat pitch at roughly 32 inches, which is pretty decent. I fit comfortably in my seat with some extra room between my knees and the seat in front.

What did prove to be a problem, however, was the seat width -- I measured just 17 inches between my two armrests. Since the 3-4-3 configuration is squeezing in an entire extra seat per row over its 3-3-3 predecessor, I really began to feel the narrowness after a few hours in the air. It seemed like my neighbor and I were constantly bumping shoulders unless I was leaning against the window.

On the flip side, I found the seat recline to be quite generous, and with a 32-inch pitch, it didn't feel particularly cramped when the seat in front of me was reclined either.

The seat-back tray table folded out in two sizes. The smaller tray was especially convenient for sipping a beverage without needing to bring out the full-size meal tray.

It was plenty large enough for my 13-inch MacBook Pro with some elbow room left on either side.

Each seat-back boasted a 9-inch IFE touchscreen, original from the aircraft's 2013 delivery. It certainly wasn't modern, but despite its age, it was fairly responsive. There was also a latched IFE remote stowed right beneath it.

SeatGuru says Aeroflot's 77W doesn't have in-seat power, which is partially true. There was no standard AC outlet, but each seat had a USB port located just to the right of the seat-back screen. I was pretty bummed to find out mine was broken after plugging in my phone and getting no charging response.

Except that it was only partially broken -- later in the flight, I discovered that I was able to charge my AirPods case without any problems, but still not my phone. My seat neighbor was able to charge all of his devices, so I guess I just got unlucky with a half-broken USB port.

Like many foreign airlines, Aeroflot does not offer personal air vents on its 777 fleet. In this case it wasn't an issue for me as the cabin was kept comfortably cool for most of the flight.

The 324 economy seats were spread out across three mini-cabins, which cumulatively shared eight standard-sized bathrooms. They were kept decently clean throughout the flight.

[flight_stats ticket-class="econ" review-stat-section="Amenities and IFE" tpg-rating="11" tpg-rating-max="15" screen="9" movies="156" tv-shows="97" live-tv="0" tailcam="No" wifi="0.30" wifi-2="0.27" headphones="Yes" comp-alcohol="0" extra-pillows="0" turndown-service="0" /]

Aeroflot's provided pillow and blanket were great quality and very comfortable, which made sleeping in the tight seats a bit more feasible, especially since I had a window to lean against.

I was amazed by the amenity kit Aeroflot provides in economy class. It was stocked with a small bottle of lotion, earplugs, an eye mask and even a pair of slippers.

The bathrooms offered some additional amenities, including a bottle of hand lotion and toothbrush kits.

Small earbuds were also handed out shortly after takeoff. I forgot to bring my own, so I used them the entire flight – they were OK quality.

The IFE had a great variety of movies (both Hollywood and foreign) and plenty of TV shows. It also offered games, audiobooks, music and a decent flight tracker.

Unfortunately my IFE screen became a bit glitchy about midway through the flight, which made it difficult to use the touch navigation. Luckily, the remote still worked, which was an easy workaround.

Aeroflot's entire long-haul fleet is equipped with onboard Wi-Fi, but it is expensive, starting at $5 USD for a small 15-minute or 10MB session, going all the way up to their $50 "infinite" plan, which didn't have a time limit but had a data cap of 150MB.

I originally went for the smallest plan, but I burned through it almost immediately after connecting with one sync of my email inbox. I bought another small plan to run a quick speed test, which returned a download speed of 0.27Mbps and upload speed of 0.30Mbps.

Needless to say, the Wi-Fi left a lot to be desired. Each webpage took 1-2 minutes to load, and at times, they wouldn't even load at all.

On the bright side, the online portal had a "News" tab, which was a pretty neat alternative to live TV. It offered plenty of "breaking news" to keep yourself up to date with the world 30,000 feet below.

[flight_stats ticket-class="econ" review-stat-section="Food and Beverage" tpg-rating="16" tpg-rating-max="25" live-tv="0" tailcam="0" headphones="0" comp-meal="2" comp-alcohol="Yes" extra-pillows="0" turndown-service="0" /]

About 70 minutes after takeoff, the dinner service began with a round of beverages, anything from juice and soda to beer and wine. I started with red wine.

A full hour after the beverages were served, the flight attendants began delivering the hot meals. There were two options: chicken with rice or beef macaroni. I went with the former, and I was pretty happy with my choice. The chicken was actually well-cooked and quite flavorful. The entrée was accompanied by a small side salad, plastic-wrapped bread roll, and a slice of cheesecake for dessert. Overall, the meal was well above average for what you typically find in economy class.

The trays had been delivered with a plastic "mug" for tea and coffee, which were offered at the tail end of the meal.

Less than three hours after the dinner trays were picked up, the cabin lights were turned back on and the beverage carts were brought through the aisles with a round of drinks before breakfast.

Although the dinner service was a hit, the breakfast was a big miss. My entrée was a scoop of rather unappetizing eggs with a single cherry tomato and piece of broccoli. The small side salad with a cold piece of fish didn't do much for me either, so the strawberry Nutrigrain bar was really the highlight. The other entrée selection was a crepe, which didn't look great but in hindsight was probably the better choice.

In general, it's difficult to find a decent hot breakfast in economy, which I guess is why more carriers are resorting to a cold continental breakfast instead -- typically some combination of yogurt, cereal and breakfast pastries. I would've been happy with something of that sort, especially since this was just three hours after dinner had been served.

[flight_stats ticket-class="econ" review-stat-section="Service" tpg-rating="21" tpg-rating-max="25" live-tv="0" tailcam="0" headphones="0" comp-alcohol="0" extra-pillows="0" turndown-service="0" blurb="Aeroflot's service was a bit of a mixed bag, but with more positives than negatives. " /]

Service on this flight was extremely slow-paced, which is especially inconvenient on overnight transatlantic flights where passengers need to maximize sleep. The dragged-out meals on either end of the flight left less than three hours of uninterrupted time in between, which is unnecessarily short given that the total flight time exceeded nine hours.

But although the service wasn't particularly speedy, all of my interactions with the crew were enjoyable. They spoke fluent English, which was definitely useful since a large portion of the passengers on board were American. The flight attendants weren't particularly warm, but they definitely were friendly enough -- more important, they were highly meticulous and professional in their duties.

Arrival and Transit

We touched down in Moscow about 20 minutes ahead of schedule. Our 777 taxied past the main terminal and came to a stop at a remote stand. We deplaned via air stairs and were bussed over to the arrivals-processing area.

Although US citizens typically require a visa to enter Russia, the Moscow airport offers a sterile transit option that allows connecting passengers to bypass immigration requirements by staying airside. The transit was painless -- I was able to make my 90-minute connection with plenty of time to spare.

Unfortunately, my bag's transit wasn't as seamless. Upon arriving in Dubai I was informed that my bag was left behind in Moscow but would be expedited overnight to my hotel in Abu Dhabi, 80 miles away. I was a bit uneasy since I was due to catch another flight from Abu Dhabi less than 24 hours later and figured if I wasn't reunited with my bag before then, it'd likely be a few weeks before I see it again. Thankfully, my bag was delivered to my hotel room door by 7am the next morning, a huge relief. Delayed baggage is an annoying reality with air travel, but the way Aeroflot handled the situation was as good as could be expected.

Overall Impression

Aeroflot offers solid value for your money. As 3-4-3 configurations are becoming the norm on 777s, the airline's economy class ranks about average when stacked up against other carriers. The food was hit or miss, but the professional service and solid amenities make it an attractive option for jetting to Europe and beyond.

All photos by the author.