Diary photography

[jibanes]

Isn't photography amazing, holding a picture in your hands, it's like a time machine, a window to the past.

I used to own an Olympus Pen FT, and then a Rollei 35. They were both outstanding cameras, very pocketable and I often got some amazing results, this was great.

Both are now broke beyond repairs, and while I liked those little cameras, I think it's time to move on and get something with AF; my budget is roughly $500.

A few cameras seems to be able to do the job for that amount, I'm thinking:

- Contax T3
- Fujifilm Klass S
- Ricoh GR1s

While only the Klass S is still mass-produced, the others are somewhat available, which one would you think would provide me the best build quality; my requirements are:

- Film, Film, Film.
- Street photography, no flash.
- "long" battery life (meaning more than a few rolls).
- Strong build, I bike/hike/run with my cameras.
- The lens has to be collapsible, and the camera should be pocketable, no leica M or such.
- It should have AF, and obviously a meter; I don't care much about MF.
- I shoot mostly color negatives, 400iso; sometimes B&W at the same speed. A DX reader would be great.


Let me know,
Thanks!

 

[al1966]

I will throw a cat in with your pidgins what about an Olympus Mju1? mine has been quite tough and it can be got for a couple of quid. Though I have to admit I have been tempted by the Ricoh GR series. Isn't there a nice Konica and there is the Nikon 35ti which I heard good things about.

 

[David Hughes]

I'll second that. The trouble with all singing and all dancing electronic marvels comes when they break and you find no one will repair them. The mju I and II come cheap and punch well above their weight. Ditto a lot of others, and some with cult status can be repaired.

Regards, David

 

[OlliL]

If you don't care of MF, go for the mentioned.
If a mju, a Yashica T4, or a Nikon AF600 breaks, just get another one.

You can get quite a lot of them for your budget. 😉

 

[FrankS]

There's a Rollei af35m quality p+s camera.

 

[Greyscale]

I would also add the Canon MC and Pentax PC35 to your short list. And peruse this thread for many other options:

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=102661

 

[jibanes]

Thank you for those options, I agree some cheap mju is a very good alternative, are similar cameras still being manufactured?

Personal note:

After a day or two investigating all the point and shoot options, I'm not surprised Kodak is going out of business, there's really no compelling point and shoot film camera still manufactured besides Fuji's few last standing film cameras (kudos Fuji).

Okay, I understand that the majority of point and shooters (that's 100% minus me) have gone digital, and are ready to spend hundreds (literally) on a digital p&s and a grand on a computer, to view pictures on a cheap lcd monitor with a color rendering that looks like cross processing film; and if they were to print it, it would probably cost them $1/print.

I'm not sure this makes complete sense, but it saddens me to see that other than Fuji, the lomographarians and the (great) impossible project there's really nothing in this field.

Well, I'm not going digital, I will keep looking and hopefully experiment with as many film p&s as I can, feel free to recommend me some to try.

 

[eurekaiv]

The Mju II is awesome. It's tiny and has very responsive AF and shutter for a P&S camera. The Pentax UC-1 is more of the same and costs maybe a bit less. It has a slightly wider FOV and a better viewfinder but has a stop less in the lens. The AF600 has a **** viewfinder (way too small and hard to find) but it's cheap and takes photos just as good as any compact P&S and it's one of the widest of its type at 28mm. The Yashica T4 is at least as good as those but it tends to favor wider apertures (good or bad is up to you) and is more expensive generally. All these cameras suffer from needing to turn OFF the flash anytime you power it on which for someone wishing to not use flash, can get very irritating. My favorite small P&S, with a dedicated flash button to activate the flash, is the Canon SureShot Telemax. It's bigger, noisier and slower but it has a very nice two focal length length lens and they cost $5 on a bad day. The Canon MC would probably fit the bill perfectly but they're kinda hard to find... I know because I've been looking for one myself. 🙂

 

[Greyscale]

The Canon Sure Shot Classic 120 allows you to set a "Custom" profile of your most-used settings, including "flash off". The little Canon MC that I mentioned has a removable flash similar to that of the Olympus XA series.

jibanes, I have used dozens of 35mm point & shoot cameras over the past 26 months. Pretty much all of them will produce good images. Feel free to peruse my collection for examples:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/greyscale3/collections/72157625428641704/

 

[mdarnton]

Another vote for the Olympus. One of the nicest small cameras I've ever had, and sharp, too.

 

[jsrockit]

The Nikon TI35/28 (certain aspects) and Leica CM are not repairable... so avoid those.

Honestly, you picked the ones you should be looking at... everything else that people have listed are a notch below.

 

[Spencer Wells]

Another vote for the Olympus. One of the nicest small cameras I've ever had, and sharp, too.

I'll throw in one more for good measure. While some of the more expensive competitors may have marginally better glass, I find the 35/ 2.8 more than adequate, especially with the 400 speed c41 film I use exclusively with it. It's also more durable than any another other model in that range that I know of, and is weather-proof as well. It's definitely my "diary" camera, it hasn't left my pocket for a year, and I'm still on battery number one after 50+ rolls have been put through it. It just works, and if it's one of the cheaper ones on the used market, all the better.

 

[Greyscale]

Personally, I would choose the Nikon AF600/Lite Touch AF over the Stylus Epic. But only if you like a 28mm lens.

 

[jibanes]

The Canon Sure Shot Classic 120 allows you to set a "Custom" profile of your most-used settings, including "flash off". The little Canon MC that I mentioned has a removable flash similar to that of the Olympus XA series.

jibanes, I have used dozens of 35mm point & shoot cameras over the past 26 months. Pretty much all of them will produce good images. Feel free to peruse my collection for examples:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/greyscale3/collections/72157625428641704/

Very useful, thanks a lot!


Jerome

 

[JoeV]

I find film and processing to be more expensive than many thrift-store point-and-shoot film cameras, which can often be found for only a few dollars apiece. Careful shopping around can net you some gold.

I would also recommend that, after you find your camera(s), to find a good C41 lab in your area besides the usual suspects (I.e. drug stores or big chain retailers that offer mail-out processing). It's worth the extra money to have your film properly processed and carefully handled, and to have your prints made on a machine with fresh chemistry in a clean, orderly lab environment.

~Joe