Zeiss Ikon SW

[MikeAUS]

What does everyone think of the 'SW'? IF I could get one cheap would it be a good buy? What is the view like through the accessory viewfinder? I was thinking of getting the Voigtlander viewfinder/s and lenses to keep costs down. I assume you are not limited to just the wide angle lenses. Any advice appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Photog9001]

if I could get one cheap i wouldn't hesitate!

how it is looking through the aux finder depends on the finder, i have a c/v 21 and i can't say i enjoy it much, but it gets the job done.

fwiw i would not use anything longer than a 28 on such a camera, but that a personal pref..

 

[Keith]

From my point of view it would have to very cheap due to the fact that the best part of the Ikon is it's rangefinder and viewfinder. Without those features a similarly equipped Bessa would do as good a job surely!

How cheap is cheap though ... because the Zeiss would have the better build quality ! 🙂

 

[EcoLeica]

I have to agree with keith...it is a lot to pay for a scale focus body with no built in rangefinder. If i was you I would try and pick up a bessa L and try it out first to see if you like it. build quality wont be near the ikon but you could spend the rest of your money on some really nice lens 🙂

 

[Roger Hicks]

With the Zeiss finders, in particular, it's wonderful. Yes, it's a lot more expensive than a Bessa, but it's nicer, too -- and the twin shoes are great if you want a spirit level at the same time as a finder.

Personally I wouldn't buy one -- I have enough cameras already -- but I think my wife may well try to come to an arrangement with Zeiss over the one we have on loan with the 18mm on it.

Cheers,

R.

 

[whitecat]

I had a Bessa L and it does the same thing. Glorified point and shoot.

 

[Dingo]

I had a Bessa L and it does the same thing. Glorified point and shoot.

Almost, SW has AE with aperture priority.

Personally I won't consider a SW because of its price, if you can get one with really cheap price, go for it.

 

[Avotius]

get the bessa body and then save money for lenses, I would not even give the sw a second thought because at the new price a zi with a rangefinder is only a little more and well worth it. If the SW body is really really really cheap, like under 500 dollars, then consider it maybe, but even at 500 dollars I wouldnt buy one.

In the end, my advice is to consider a Bessa body, even a r2a or even better an r4a will be better and more useful later on down the road.

 

[Tom A]

I do have a SW Zeiss. Admittedly it is not my most used camera, but I do put a fair bit of film through it. Usually with a scale focussing lens like the 25 Snap Shot Skopar or my Nikon 21f4.0 F lens with a F-L adapter. I also use it for my favourite truly vintge lens. A pre-war Zeiss Tessar 28mm f8.0 on an orion style adapter. Great lens, tiny package and if you stop it down to f32 it looks like a pinhole! Has all the hallmarks of prewar widenagles too. Lots of edge fall off, flare and no coating gives it a rather "mellow" contrast.

I have been using it with the 18f4 Biogon too. Only problem I have with that, apart from its size, is that I tend to use the 18 in close focus a lot and the lack of rangefinder coupling comes into play. I have no problem judging distances 1.5 meters and on, but woefully screw up in the 0.5-1 meter range!

If you are going to be using LTM mount lenses, I would suggest the Bessa L as you have the option of using adapters for use on other M type bodies, but with straight M mounts the Bessa T and the SW are the only choices.The AE feature on the SW is nice, but you have to watch for lens coverage as the wider lenses take in a lot of sky outside and usually pick up peripheral light sources indoors and skew the meter reading a bit.

 

[back alley]

when it first came out i found the sw very interesting and would have considered it if i could have afforded one.

but with the r4a from voigtlander i have pretty much lost that interest.
i quite like the r4a camera.

joe

 

[mfogiel]

I have the SW, and I tend to use it most often as a shoot-in-the-face camera to take pictures in a crowd with a 21mm of 25mm lens - it is lighter than rangefinders and it has the AE, which in these circumstances helps a lot. If I were on a budget, I'd probably get the R4A instead, which is built just slightly "cheaper", but has a very nice VF and of course a coupled RF, which helps a lot at short distances.

 

[corazon]

I would not even give the sw a second thought because at the new price a zi with a rangefinder is only a little more and well worth it.

My thoughts exactly. If you're willing to invest that much for an Ikon in the first place the leap in price from SW to ZM is only about $400 (but would be more since you are getting a deal), but in exchange you get the amazing viewfinder instead of needing one for every lens you purchase (that gets pricey), plus the use of non-wideangle lenses with more ease.

 

[Anupam]

Bessa L, T, or R4 depending on your needs. And a ZM for other stuff.

 

[sockeyed]

It would be kind of nice if Voigtlander released a new Bessa L, with M-mount and less plastic than the original one. I think that the L and the SW are based on a great concept, but the SW is too pricey to be considered by most folks.

 

[Anupam]

It would be kind of nice if Voigtlander released a new Bessa L, with M-mount and less plastic than the original one. I think that the L and the SW are based on a great concept, but the SW is too pricey to be considered by most folks.

At its price, isn't the T that camera with a great rangefinder thrown in for free?