calling out to epson RD-1 users.

Roastchestnuts

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I recently bought a epson rd-1 from keh for a good deal and I am wondering if any of you still use this camera? I love the look of ccd cameras and especially like using the other two ccd rangfinders - the m8 and m9. In my never ending quest to find a digital camera that satifies my want for shooting film I decided to give the epson a try. What sold me on this camera was not the advance lever but the images I was seeing on fliker and instagram coming from the camera. they were blowing me away! Anyways I would love to hear your experiences from this camera. and share your favorite photo from it. Would also love to hear what lenses you use on it. I am planning to use my nikkor 3.5cm f2.5 adapted with a amedeo adapter, my nikkor 3.5cm f1.8 (Rear element housing modified) and my trusty leica 50mm f2.8 elmar - m. future me wants to get a 35mm summicron and a 28mm cron. I have had both and loved the v1 28mm cron and the v4 35mm cron.
 
Don't want to rain on the parade, but the Epson R-D1 and I didn't get along at all. Back in the day, I sent the one I bought back within a week and ordered a Leica M9. I just found it more clumsy in use than charming... Truth be told, I wasn't all that fond of the M9 either. Slow working, not very responsive. Things got much better for me with the M-P 240, M-D 262, and now M10-R/M10-M.

Personally, I've never seen much difference to tell of between CCD and CMOS sensors. I only capture raw and I find that what I get out of the raw conversion is next to identical between them. I still have one CCD camera (Olympus E-1) which I regard as my all time favorite DSLR: it produces lovely results, but again I only capture raw files. Modern raw converters have given it clean results up to ISO 3200 whereas back in the day anything over ISO 400-800 was just too noisy to work with. It produced photos that obtained recognition for me in three exhibitions over the years, printed to a 20x24 inch size despite the 5Mpixel resolution. Just a great camera.

I'm sure I'll get a lot of flak for my opinions in this regard. 😉

G
 
Don't want to rain on the parade, but the Epson R-D1 and I didn't get along at all. Back in the day, I sent the one I bought back within a week and ordered a Leica M9. I just found it more clumsy in use than charming... Truth be told, I wasn't all that fond of the M9 either. Slow working, not very responsive. Things got much better for me with the M-P 240, M-D 262, and now M10-R/M10-M.

Personally, I've never seen much difference to tell of between CCD and CMOS sensors. I only capture raw and I find that what I get out of the raw conversion is next to identical between them. I still have one CCD camera (Olympus E-1) which I regard as my all time favorite DSLR: it produces lovely results, but again I only capture raw files. Modern raw converters have given it clean results up to ISO 3200 whereas back in the day anything over ISO 400-800 was just too noisy to work with. It produced photos that obtained recognition for me in three exhibitions over the years, printed to a 20x24 inch size despite the 5Mpixel resolution. Just a great camera.

I'm sure I'll get a lot of flak for my opinions in this regard. 😉

G
I respect your thoughts and opinions on it and I appreciate you sharing. I have owned all the cameras you are speaking of except the md262 and m10r. I also owned in the past a few film ms M6ttl m7 m4-2, ma, m4 m2, m3 (the only film m I have kept over the years is the m3), Nikon s3 millennium black paint (my heirloom camera) and a voigtlander r2m. owned a m10p as well. But my favorite digitals were the m8.2 and m9 actually. never liked the output of the others. the m10M was majorly impressive but being my only digital it was hard to live with just black and white. Id like to own another one day. I like the fresnel windows for the frame lines on the m8 and m9 more than I like the leds and forwhatever reason I like the look of the images more. I would like to try the m262. I have a friend with one and the battery life was majorly amazing! prob very similar to the mp240 I had though. I get bored with cameras and sell and trade too much clearly. I wish I could have kept all the cameras I mentioned haha. The Rd-1 seems like a fun one to get back into digital M stuff though. its not going to be my main camera by any means but a fun one to take out and shoot instead of a film camera. save on film.
 
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Not sure what kinda deal you got from KEH but if I didn't buy mine for $200 I probably wouldn't own one! I do really like mine and use it mostly for trips, the shutter sounds is a bit annoying that metallic ping! I use 28 Elmarit V3, 35 Summitux Pre Asph, 50 Elmar M and believe it or not an Industar 69! My most used setting is iso 1600 B&W jpeg with raw just in case I want color/ larger image.

28 Elmarit M V3
EPSN8578.jpeg
Industar 69
EPSN8652.JPG
 
I received the camera yesterday at about noon and the memory cards (I had to order 2gb cards) at about 330pm. Giving me just enough time to go out and shoot some with the rd-1. I am really impressed with the build quality. feels like a tougher Bessa. I had owned a r2m and liked that camera. sold it on ebay and the buyer returned it and said it was broken (was not) and then I used that camera for a few years along side my m6 untill I got ride of both cameras for a digital camera unfortunately. anyways my thoughts - its comparable to a leica m8 but also very different. I really like the finder and the advance lever. The shutter is quieter and actually sounds like a film camera in my opinion. well the m8 does but it sounds more like a film canon point and shoot from the 1980s verses a leica m. The files are 6mp. I think I can work with that. they are a little small for sure. I obvious I need to shoot it more to fully wrap my head around it. It in my opinion is the most unique digital that works well that I have ever shot. It shouldn't exist but does. I think alot of people say this but it is ahead of its time I think. I think a sharper 28mm or 18mm is in my future though. the 3.5cm f1.8 is not the sharpest lens. Whitagram-Image 93.JPG28FA8A0E-2490-4512-8434-2926C1225880.JPEGA739AA25-3D78-474C-8753-97EA75623862.JPEG1381D534-88C9-4D00-B26E-FEAF4C52ABC3.JPEG
 
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Not sure what kinda deal you got from KEH but if I didn't buy mine for $200 I probably wouldn't own one! I do really like mine and use it mostly for trips, the shutter sounds is a bit annoying that metallic ping! I use 28 Elmarit V3, 35 Summitux Pre Asph, 50 Elmar M and believe it or not an Industar 69! My most used setting is iso 1600 B&W jpeg with raw just in case I want color/ larger image.

28 Elmarit M V3
View attachment 4887508
Industar 69
View attachment 4887505
Thanks for sharing! yeah I payed too much probibly but - 1400$. cheeper than most but not that cheep. I also purchased a 3 year extended warranty. Not sure what that covers but should help if it breaks. It was why i ended up going for this. It was in bargin grade but the only thing wrong with it is the paint has come off the power switch slightly.

How do you like the elmarit v3? I am in between that lens, the ziess 18mm f4 (seems like it will be a 28mm on the rd1) and the 24mm elmarit f2.8
 
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