Bronica RF645 - Wow!

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tslesicki

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A friend of mine invited me today to show me some of his photos. He's more of a gear freak than a photographer so I wasn't expecting anything artistically inspiring, but he sounded quite excited about his new "toy". So, when I got there he showed me a few of his prints and while the photos were quite bad the quality was astonishing! They were obviously taken with a medium format camera but there were so... Nice. I don't know how to describe it, but it was somehow Leica-like - sharp, contrasty and very pleasing. I asked him what camera he used and he told me it was a Bronica RF645 😱
I've heard about this camera before but it was the first time I actually saw some pictures in real life (internet isn't that good for determining image quality). I've seen some prints from Hasselblad and Mamiya MF cameras but the Bronica image was somehow superior.

So, to the point now 🙂 I thought it would be nice to get myself a RF645 kit (this is: a mint body + all lenses). So, a few questions to you, guys 🙂

1) What do you think of this camera?
2) Are they really that rare?
3) How much would you pay for an entire kit? This is including a 45mm, 65mm and 100mm (my favorite!) lenses?

Best regards,

Tom
 
what would make a bronica's picture quality superior to a mamiya 6/7's or hasselblad's?
the mamiya 6 lenses for example are more or less as good as it gets in sharpness/contrast/distortion (or lack of it) and provide VERY beautiful rendering.
the bronica system sure is very nice, but I see no reason to think that the pictures will look better than if you'd use another high-end medium format system.
 
There is nothing wrong with a RF645, if you want or need a small medium format rangefinder. But be aware that the image quality is first of all a feature of its image size - any 6x4.5 camera with recent lenses, whether Bronica ETRSi, Mamiya M645 or Fuji GA645, will deliver just as excellent results, and bigger ones are even better.
 
Despite having used a Mamiya 645 for many years I have a reservation about the shape of the 645 negative...basically it's a bit weird! The 35mm neg is rather nice with a 3:2 aspect ratio and 67 is nice too as it's near to square but not actually square. 645 falls somewhere between and just doesn't work for me, so I sold the Mamiya and bought a Bronica SQB. If you usually crop then of course it's not a problem but you'll also find it a bit of a pain to fit your 645 negs into sleeves that were designed for 66. And the Bronica 645 has a viewfinder with 'portrait' orientation, just to make things even more far out!
 
I own both, the RF645 and the Mamiya 7II. I prefer the feeling and handling of the Bronica, never use the 7II. Too large and I don't like to use it.
The RF645 feels more solid. There are 45, 65, 100 and 135 lenses for this system, 100 is rare to find and 135 very rare. Body with 65-lens and also the 45 with external finder are quite common and normally well priced.
And ... if making slides you will find easy a good projector
 
I have a complete Bronica RF 645 kit including the somewhat elusive 100mm/4.5 lens. There has been quite a bit of discussion about this camera on RFF and elsewhere, mostly very positive. Can't compare to other modern MF negs but I'm very happy with the quality. It is extremely easy and fast to use, great ergonomics.

As for price, bodies and 65mm lens kits are typically around $850, the 45mm lens around $450, 100mm lens varies a lot but lately has been in the $650 - $750 range. Even in RFF classifieds these systems do not seem to sell quickly, but for these prices you are getting extremely good picture taking tools.

Regards,

Steve
 
The RF645 is a very nice camera. Relatively small and light and a joy to use. 16 shots from a roll of 120, great metering and relatively inexpensive. However, portrait orientation and limited lens range. Amateur Photography did a comparison against the Mamiya 7 when the RF645 first came out and it compared very well.
 
Well, the lenses do seem limited, but the truth is you don't really need more. You've got a whole range of focal lengths (from wide to short tele). On my M8 I use a 15mm, 28mm, 50mm and 90mm lenses only and I don't need anything else. I think that limit Bronica lenses wouldn't limit my creativity 😉
 
One nice aspect is 16 shots on a roll. Usually I group in four shots at a time, then change a bit. That way I cut later to four shot strips, which works better for me on the oil mounting for the scanner. Most 6x4.5 cameras will be 15 or 16 shots per 120 roll of film (double if you want to use 220 film).

In getting the RF645 I wanted a camera with a more vertical orientation. I don't find it any problem to turn on the side for landscape orientation, and focus is easy to achieve in that manner; though realistically I don't do many landscape orientation shots with this camera. The finder is quite nice and easy to use for quick focusing and composition.

The RF645 has been my back-up camera for about one year now, since I mainly shoot large format for my work. However, I recently did a location shoot using only the RF645 and the 65mm, leaving the other two cameras and multiple lenses in the bag. After that I have now become more interested in getting a 45mm to round out the kit. I am still not sure about getting the 100mm, since it does not quit fit into what and how I usually work.

The flash set-up could be nicer, and I think the metering could be better, but that is only because I am very picky about these aspects. Normally everything I shoot is metered on a Sekonic L-358, so I ignore in camera metering and set to my handheld meter instead.

Using a polarizer is a bit odd, though I worked around that by getting an aluminum step-up ring and a large linear polarizer, and simply machined the step-up ring to give me a look through segment that I can view through the viewfinder. This is an issue with any rangefinder, though it can be solved. Bronica did sell a rangefinder kit, which had a filter mount over the viewfinder, and a number matched polarizer on the lens. Personally I would rather stick to my polarizer set-up than try to find one of these.

I have wanted one for many years, and only just got mine last year. It is probably the one camera that I find really gets out of my way and works with me, more than any other camera I use. While I still will work with large format, this Bronica RF645 is a compelling reason to shoot rollfilm. I doubt I will ever sell my RF645.
 
Seems like a nice system. It's rarity may be the problem for me... I've looked around yesterday but couldn't find it. Any ideas where to look for it?
 
If you do decide to buy one, keep in mind that if the serial number on the camera starts with a 1, it has frame lines for the more common 100mm lens.
If it starts with a 0 , then it has frame line for the 135mm lens.
Its a great system, I would never sell mine.
 
Tamron US still offers the service. I spent less than $100 (yeah, you see it right) for a complete CLA, rf adjustement, rf window replacement (coating damage due to accidentally scratched by keychain), and so on. THe turn around time was less than a week.
I had the complete system back then but i am a sucker for faster lenses so I went with contax 645 system in the end.
Great system overall, great finder, great lenses. The metering system is tricky as mentioned. The 45, 65 lenses with body usually go very cheap (less than 1000$) but the 100mm,135mm can be very expensive due to the rarity.
 
RF645 is a nice camera. The vertical orientation works for me. The Mamiya 7ii provides better quality images, but then again, why not carry a 4x5"? So, the RF645 is a good compromise. Shooting 120 hurts less when developing at home and getting 16 vs. the 10 shots with the Mamiya. The shutter is noisier than the Mamiya, but overall the Bronica is small and provides an image quality superior to 35mm. The only limitation with both of these cameras is the slow lenses and limited depth of field of a larger image format for a given aperture. Lastly, who know what the repair situation will be when Tamron no longer repairs these cameras.
 
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