First Roll Photos - R3M with 50/1.5 Nokton

D

david.elliott

Well-known
Local time
3:22 PM
Joined
Nov 29, 2008
Messages
1,558
I want to, again, thank my fellow forum members for advising me with regard to my purchase (previous thread). And thank you to Mr. Gandy too!

I purchased a R3M with 50/1.5 Nokton. It is my first film camera, and my first rangefinder. I realize that I am no great photographer - though photography is a wonderful and enjoyable hobby for me. But I thought I would share some photos from my first roll regardless of their technical competence. I had a ton of fun taking the photos!

I used TMAX400 and scanned with an Epson V500 and vuescan. Editing performed in Lightroom. The negatives were developed by Penn Camera in DC. I hope to learn to develop my own film at some point later this year - perhaps over the summer.

Some things I have learned, in no particular order:
(1) I dont really handhold well at 1/8 or 1/15. Thought it was worth a try though. :)
(2) I need to flatten my negatives before scanning; they were slightly curled. Will try with a book next time. If that doesnt work well, I might buy those ANR glass inserts i have read about on the forum.
(3) Using film really helps me to slow down and think more about my photos.
(4) ISO400 wasnt high enough for me in most circumstances - I would like to use a faster shutter speed. 1/15th to 1/60th at wide open isnt cutting it. I am going to try shooting a few future rolls at ISO1600.
(5) I think either my vertical alignment is slightly off or my eye isnt centered well. I do wear glasses so the latter may be more likely. Since this doesnt affect focusing accuracy, it doesnt bother me enough to send the camera back to be checked.
(6) scanning was a pain to figure out but once I got my settings entered, I think things turned out okay.

I probably forgot to mention a few things. I know I learned more, but that is the gist anyway.

Anyway, on to the photos! All were shot at or near wide open. Oh and in some of the photos I left on the funky borders that showed up during scanning. In others, I cropped the borders out.



A glass table lamp. Dont know anything else about it, but it looks pretty cool.
3194159452_f7dc6df077_b.jpg




One of the two cats, posing and wondering what exactly is going on.
3193314483_dbd6ef008d_b.jpg




Grandma and one of the aunts reviewing some old slides from decades past.
3194160860_71b8911ecb_b.jpg




Another aunt, relaxing after a family dinner.
3193316381_02a5bbb5f9_b.jpg




Same cat as before - backlit and deciding whether or not to get back in the box.
3194162928_1b44e7a6c3_b.jpg




One of the bedrooms.
3194163824_8df90e7b3f_b.jpg




Thanks again! Hope you enjoy viewing the photos as much as I enjoyed taking them.

-David
 
Thanks for sharing your experience with the forum. I really enjoy your pictures.
I only own a DSLR and I m about to save some money to get the same stuff you have. It would be nice if you could post some more comments about how you get along with your rangefinder. It would encourage me to get my money together.
 
nitrogen28 said:
Thanks for sharing your experience with the forum. I really enjoy your pictures.
I only own a DSLR and I m about to save some money to get the same stuff you have. It would be nice if you could post some more comments about how you get along with your rangefinder. It would encourage me to get my money together.
Click to expand...

Thanks for taking the time to read my post. :) I'll ramble off some comments to you about my experience thus far. Hope it helps.

My other camera is a Nikon D70, and it is the only other camera I have ever used (apart from point and shoot digital compacts).

The R3M with nokton isnt too much smaller than the D70 paired with a smaller prime, but it looks like it is.

I find the bessa much easier to focus in low light. Though, the D70 viewfinder leaves quite a lot to be desired so that isnt much of a surprise. It is easy to see whether you need to focus closer or further with the bessa, something that was not always apparent with my D70.

The shutter is very quiet. Sort of like a muffled click. Quieter than a standard keyboard button press for sure - hope that provides some reference.

I do wish the bessa had a thicker neckstrap - so I might purchase one of those at some point.

Loading film was very easy. I just followed the directions. I'd never loaded film before and I didnt have any trouble with it. Same holds true for rewinding the film.

Ergonomically, everything works great with the bessa - except I wish the shutter dial was easier to turn. If it overlapped the edge, I think it would be easier to use.

The frame lines are bright and easy to see. With my glasses, I cannot see the 40mm framelines.

I did purchase a soft release and I really like it. For $10 when purchasing the camera, I figured I would give it a go - and I am glad I did.

The build quality on the nokton seems great to me. Very smooth focus, snappy yet smooth aperture control, etc. No complaints. Nicer than my old nikon AI and AIS lenses. It is solid - much nicer to use than the modern budget / consumer grade lenses. The hood for the lens is very small compared to what I am used to with my nikon lenses. Didnt even realize it had a hood at first - just thought the element was slightly recessed.

That is all I can think of for now. If anything else comes to mind, I'll post an update. All in all, I am extremely happy with the purchase.
 
thanks for the writeup, i'm considering a similar setup and nice to get a beginner's point of view. i'm an slr user too and not sure if i should make the jump to RF's.
 
The R3M and the Nokton 50f1.5 is a great combination. The metering system of the R3M is very good and the Nokton 50f1.5 is one of the best fast 50's around. I am sure someone is going to say that a MP and a 50f1.4 Asph, is better - but it would not be $5000 better, I can assure you as I have that combination too - and truth be told, my R3M and various 50's gets more use!
David Elliot. I loved your statement " Filmloading was easy, I had never loaded film before". I read it several times and laughed - times have changed - I remember staring at a SD card and a Epson RD1 (the first M- mount digital rangefinder) and wondering "Where does it go and how do I get it out".
 
That's a good rig - used to have an R3M and CV 50/1.5. The body is a good value and the CV 50/1.5 is a sharp lens.

I've been doing quite a bit of low lightphotography lately, and all I can say is push, push, push. I assume your lab does push processing, so just tell them what you rated the film at.

Here's a recent shot - Arista 400 Premium rated @ 3200, and developed in XTOL 1+2 (and a dash of Rodinal).

3207937185_5e7b6bccc2.jpg


And another...
3208779932_f337810d4a.jpg
 
FA Limited:

Glad you found it helpful / interesting. Best of luck with your decision making.



Tom:

Thanks again for helping me out in my initial posting here at the forum. I am really enjoying the setup.

That is pretty funny about me with the film as compared to you with the sd card. Times really do change I suppose. Glad we both figured out our respective challenges. :D



kxl:

Penn Camera does indeed to push processing. Thanks for sharing the photos - they look great. I have a dozen rolls of Arista Premium 400. I am definitely going to give it a go at ISO 3200!
 
David, I love the silhouetted cat shot!

Glad you like your camera! I was very tempted by the R3M...what do you think of it, compared to an SLR?
 
Thanks for the report.
This is a lens that I have my eye on, and I really like the results you've gotten with it.
I must also say that I like your cat.
 
I like the Nokton very much and my only complaint is that it does not focus closer... 0.9 and 0.7 is a big difference when I want to shoot close up...

I also use V500 for scanning and when the films are still curled, it doesn't do good job, so I always keep films in a phone book for a few days before I scan it. Maybe I should try better scanner glasses, but phone book and a few days work okay right now.

By the way, when I want to go high ISO, I use Neopan 1600, which is good enough for me (I don't do self developing).

Hiromu
 
Congrats on your new kit. If you don't already have a slide projector, check your local craigslist and buy one for a few bucks. Grandma will love it! My kids really enjoy seeing our vacation photos on a slide projector.
 
calexg said:
David, I love the silhouetted cat shot!

Glad you like your camera! I was very tempted by the R3M...what do you think of it, compared to an SLR?
Click to expand...

Thank you. The R3M is a lot of fun!

I think I noted above most of the differences between the R3M and the D70 that had an impression on me.

Is there anything in particular, any aspect of the cameras, you would like me to think about?
 
Bassism:

Thank you. I have to say I am very impressed with the lens, and so is my cat. :D


Hiromu:

I will definitely give the phone book method a try. When I run out of arista 400 premium, I will give neopan 1600 a whirl.



jja:

Thanks! Great idea regarding the slide projector. We dont have one. I am definitely going to have to pick one up.
 
Tom, you also advised me to get a R2M and 35 2.5 PII about two years ago. Your additional advice was to shoot a lot, learn the camera, the lens, the film, and how to slow down and think about what I was trying to accomplish. I took that advice. I am still very much a novice but I am much better than I was and occasionally I get some really nice shots. I don't have a scanner or I would post some pics (maybe I can have a few of my negs scanned by a third party). I have sold the 35 2.5 PII and added a 40 1.4 nokton which I really like and a Zeiss 35 F2 Biogon which I also really like. For now that is my kit, I am having a blast, and I have learned a lot and expect to continue doing so from all of the great contributors to RFF. Regards
 
Hi david! Thanks for sharing your first impressions. I am also considering a Bessa / Voigtlaender Lens. But then there is also the idea of getting an old Leica M6 .... Maybe i can save myself a whole a lot of money. The results look very convincing. Best wishes from Munich, Germany. Daniel
 
Nice shot, I'm considering a R3M as well but the fact that I got 7 bodies right now make that sounds kinda ridiculous :)) Nice fat cat you got there ;)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom