The Rolleiflex isn't my cup of tea...

[johnny9fingers]

I'm just not taking to my Rolleiflex 3.5 B Automat MX-EVS. The pictures are great, but it doesn't feel right when I'm using it. As a matter of fact, I've gone through a series of medium format cameras and none has been comfortable for me to use. I hear the siren call of larger negatives but using the cameras are a struggle. 35mm cameras are comfortable and I can use my Hexar, Yashica Electro, and Oly XA almost without thinking. I would like to get my hands on a Minolta CLE with the 40/2 Rokkor lens. Probably should try to work a trade with someone.... Has anyone else gone through this???

 

[MCTuomey]

I have an idea. I'll lend you my 4x5 field camera. Use it for awhile. Then switch back to your Rollei. It'll seem easy at that point ...

 

[Sanders McNew]

I'm just not taking to my Rolleiflex 3.5 B Automat MX-EVS. The pictures are great, but it doesn't feel right when I'm using it. As a matter of fact, I've gone through a series of medium format cameras and none has been comfortable for me to use. I hear the siren call of larger negatives but using the cameras are a struggle. 35mm cameras are comfortable and I can use my Hexar, Yashica Electro, and Oly XA almost without thinking. I would like to get my hands on a Minolta CLE with the 40/2 Rokkor lens. Probably should try to work a trade with someone.... Has anyone else gone through this???

Most people grow up shooting 35mm cameras
(or, now, digital cameras built around the 35mm
camera paradigm) so it's not surprising to hear
your first experiences with a Rolleiflex have
been less than comfortable. Like any tool, it
takes practice to understand it. The Rolleiflex
has its own order and logic. Once it hits you,
then it will feel as natural on its own terms
as your 35mm cameras -- assuming you stick
with it long enough to get there. I shoot
Rolleiflexes for 90 percent of my photography
and they feel like extensions of myself now.
But they didn't when I first picked one up.

 

[easyrider]

I'm just not taking to my Rolleiflex 3.5 B Automat MX-EVS. The pictures are great, but it doesn't feel right when I'm using it. As a matter of fact, I've gone through a series of medium format cameras and none has been comfortable for me to use. I hear the siren call of larger negatives but using the cameras are a struggle. 35mm cameras are comfortable and I can use my Hexar, Yashica Electro, and Oly XA almost without thinking. I would like to get my hands on a Minolta CLE with the 40/2 Rokkor lens. Probably should try to work a trade with someone.... Has anyone else gone through this???

I recommend counseling. There must be a psychotherapist who specializes in Rolleiphobia. How can anyone NOT love a Rollei? 😀

 

[johnny9fingers]

Mike & Easyrider, ha ha ha... good replies... I did shoot with a Crown Graphic
once upon a time so I've done the 4X5 thing. As far as counseling maybe I just need more alone time with the rollei as Sanders suggests. Maybe I'm too impatient to work through the shot. I'll stick with it and see if it grows on me. It is a sweet camera and is uber-cool......

 

[reala_fan]

I'm just not taking to my Rolleiflex 3.5 B Automat MX-EVS. The pictures are great, but it doesn't feel right when I'm using it. .... Has anyone else gone through this???

The Rollei's are a little weird to handle because they are 'two handed', focus with one hand, expose and advance film with the other. The two wheels for speed/aperture is also a little odd. I use to have a friend who loved to make fun of the Rollei's because they were so 'un-ergonomic'.

Getting use to the Square and making sure the horizon is level is also a bit of a challenge.

I use to like the Rolleicord's better when it came to handling.

In the meantime, you would find "Rangefinder" style medium formats a lot easier. Mamiya 6, Mamiya 7, all the nice Fuji cameras, and even the Koni-Omega (if you have strong arms)....🙂

 

[johnny9fingers]

Hi reala fan, I have owned a Fuji GA645, 690, and Mamiya Universal press. Also shot with a few folders.... The Rollei is nice and light, easy to carry, has the nice big neg, but is awkward for me. I'll hang in there a while tho and see if I can get the hang of it......

 

[f16sunshine]

Take it to a B+B with candles and wine. Oh and bring a model. That should do it 😀

Mike & Easyrider, ha ha ha... good replies... I did shoot with a Crown Graphic
once upon a time so I've done the 4X5 thing. As far as counseling maybe I just need more alone time with the rollei as Sanders suggests. Maybe I'm too impatient to work through the shot. I'll stick with it and see if it grows on me. It is a sweet camera and is uber-cool......

 

[johnny9fingers]

I think part of my problem is I sometimes suffer from delusions of grandeur. I'm not a working pro, and not really shooting with the intent of selling photos. I just like taking pictures. And a lot of the time its just having a camera I can use quickly and confidently, and the Hexar is perfect for me.....

 

[CK Dexter Haven]

Have you tried a Bronica RF645?

 

[johnny9fingers]

Have you tried a Bronica RF645?

No, but I did have a Fuji GA645. The Bronica sounds like a nice camera, but is probably out of my price range....

 

[charjohncarter]

I'm just not taking to my Rolleiflex 3.5 B Automat MX-EVS. The pictures are great, but it doesn't feel right when I'm using it. As a matter of fact, I've gone through a series of medium format cameras and none has been comfortable for me to use. I hear the siren call of larger negatives but using the cameras are a struggle. 35mm cameras are comfortable and I can use my Hexar, Yashica Electro, and Oly XA almost without thinking. I would like to get my hands on a Minolta CLE with the 40/2 Rokkor lens. Probably should try to work a trade with someone.... Has anyone else gone through this???

I bought my Rollei T on a whim for $75.00 (US) 20 years ago. I felt like you for about 10 years, now after many stops and starts with I realize it is the best tool I have. Too bad I wasted all that time.

 

[john_s]

The Rollei's are a little weird to handle because they are 'two handed', focus with one hand, expose and advance film with the other. The two wheels for speed/aperture is also a little odd. I use to have a friend who loved to make fun of the Rollei's because they were so 'un-ergonomic'.
.............

And they continued that tradition with their 6x6 SLR, the SL66. Great camera for people with three hands. I love it anyway.

 

[35mmdelux]

I'm just not taking to my Rolleiflex 3.5 B Automat MX-EVS. The pictures are great, but it doesn't feel right when I'm using it. As a matter of fact, I've gone through a series of medium format cameras and none has been comfortable for me to use. I hear the siren call of larger negatives but using the cameras are a struggle. 35mm cameras are comfortable and I can use my Hexar, Yashica Electro, and Oly XA almost without thinking. I would like to get my hands on a Minolta CLE with the 40/2 Rokkor lens. Probably should try to work a trade with someone.... Has anyone else gone through this???

How could it feel right? Its ergonomics is like shooting with a brick sans weight. Try the Mamiya 6.

 

[MikeL]

Mister 9fingers, shoot with whatever you want.

But if you want to pick up babes, keep the Rollei with you and at least act like you are using it. Almost as good as a cute puppy. Seriously.

 

[Melvin]

I can empathize. I've been using a Leica II recently and now my M2 seems like a behemoth, much less my Rolleiflex. But I force myself to use it anyway. Discipline!

 

[johnny9fingers]

I bought my Rollei T on a whim for $75.00 (US) 20 years ago. I felt like you for about 10 years, now after many stops and starts with I realize it is the best tool I have. Too bad I wasted all that time.

I'm afraid it would sit unused as I find my Hexar AF so simple to use, and I love the pictures it makes. The Rollei takes great pictures too, but I really don't need the big neg as I rarely print larger than 8 X 10. It was a knee jerk purchase cause it looked so darn nice...... I'm thinking my Hexar and a CLE would satisfy all my needs for quite some time.....

 

[chasfreeland]

I received my Rollei 3.5 as an inheritance from my wife's uncle who hadn't used it in 30 years. I serviced it and it worked well enough, but, compared to the Hassy 503CW and the Mamiya 7II, it did seem rather old fashioned. At first, it seemed so awkward to operate that I didn't think I would get much, and was pleasantly stunned by the excellent results. The shutter is quiet. It got even quieter when it broke in the middle of a roll of film recently. Apart from that one mechanical failure, it's turned out to be a great camera, but the two-handed operation did take some getting used to.

 

[Sanders McNew]

I think part of my problem is I sometimes suffer from delusions of grandeur. I'm not a working pro, and not really shooting with the intent of selling photos. I just like taking pictures. And a lot of the time its just having a camera I can use quickly and confidently, and the Hexar is perfect for me.....

A few thoughts:

Rolleiflexes are not for everyone. Ask
Roger Hicks what he thinks about them.
HCB preferred Leicas. Doisneau shot
Rolleiflexes.

Rolleiflexes can be confusing for those
used to 35mm cameras in a number of
respects. BUT the Rolleiflexes are intuitive
and ingenious in design. Once you figure
them out, they will astound you with their
economy of design and function, and all
other cameras will pale by comparison.

I hear you about not being a pro, and just
wanting to shoot pictures -- I'm right there
with you. But a Rolleiflex will make you
look like a pro, if you bring a discerning
eye to it. There is a long tradition of
amateurs shooting Rolleiflexes, from the
likes of Eudora Welty (known for her pen,
not her Rolleiflex) down through the decades
to today -- an unknown Chicago woman,
Vivian Maier, died earlier this year. The
buyer of her storage locker contents found
a trove of 40,000 negatives, and thousands
of undeveloped rolls, of street photography
she shot as a young Jewish emigré in Chicago
in the 1950s -- all shot with a Rolleiflex:

http://vivianmaier.blogspot.com/

Here's a link to my favorite that the buyer
has scanned and posted online so far:

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_YUrw6ooCZj4/Sias55SapUI/AAAAAAAAAOg/7wSlLLIwb0g/s1600-h/A36.jpg

Somehow, it would not have carried the same
impact if it had been a Nikon or a Pentax.

Sanders

 

[johnny9fingers]

Thanks for all the commentary folks. The Rollei line of cameras has passionate users, and you have convinced me to keep shooting and give it a proper chance. So the Rolleiflex will be my constant camera companion for the next couple months, and we'll see how it goes. I do like the fact it's a mechanical camera, and has a fixed lens to keep it simple. And if I need help determining the proper exposure, a VC Meter II will be in my pocket...... I will post some pictures from time to time and share this experiment with you.