shooter

[ron klein]

I am considering the purchase of an "all around shooter" to cary with me daiy. I have several very fine cameras ( Mamya 7 and Xpan II) but I am nervous leaving them in the car or risking loosing or damaging them on everyday travel. I am considring a Bessa T with a 28 or 35 lens. The faster the better without geting too expensive. Any suggestions?
I love the retro look. I think a wide angle with its good depth of field would be ideal for use with the external viewer.

 

[kmack]

I don't have a T but my R has been a great carry around camera. The T will give you a greater range of lenses that you can use (M and screw mount with an adaptor) but the viewfinder on the R is hard to beat no need for a finder (one less thing to carry/lose). If you are going to shoot wides the longer base on the T is not going to be that much of an advantage. If you are going to be using finders and nothing but wides then the L may be an even more cost effective choice.

 

[Dougg]

Welcome, Ron! I hear your concern for your good gear, but I'll suggest you figure out a reasonable way to protect it or carry it routinely. Getting a lesser kit just feeds that common malady called Gear Acquisition Syndrome. 🙂 And why compromise on the quality you paid for in getting the better gear?

This issue puts me in mind of a police officer buddy years ago whose hobby was restoring his cherry 1955 (I think) Chevy pickup. He even swapped the cab for one with a rarer arrangement of rear windows. After a while it was too nice (and valuable) to drive and risk getting dinged up. So he got an old beater VW beetle for everyday. But he could not leave well enough alone, and it was embarrassing to be seen driving it... So he did some body work, fixed this, rebuilt that, until it was a really cherry little classic VW bug.... and too nice to drive and risk getting dinged in the KMart parking lot! Now he had a problem, 'cause he still needed an everyday driver...

 

[RML]

Hey, you're not supposed to leave them in the car! That's not carrying them around daily!

If you want wide angle anyway, you might want to go for a Bessa L with either the CV 25/4 or (a bit more extreme) the CV 15/4.5.

The T is nice but you could get an R2 for less, I reckon.

 

[pvdhaar]

In contrast to the above three posters, I'd say the Bessa-T would make an excellent choice. The rangefinder magnification (1.5x) makes focussing very easy. The built-in diopter is a wonderfull addition. You can cherry pick the finder every which way you want (from zoom to turret to duals to singles). The T is the cheapest M-mount camera available ($185 at Cameraquest). What more do you want?

Yes, its rangefinder accuracy seems overkill for wide angle lenses, but that doesn't hurt, does it? Scale focussing is good if you can stop the aperture down to allow for errors, but it's no good indoors. Especially at 35mm, when wide open and in the 1m-3m range, focus guessing errors do show.

 

[ron klein]

thanks for the responses. Any further comments on build quality of the T versus L

 

[simonankor]

I'm with Peter, the T is a great choice. I have an R and a T, 50mm on the R and 35mm on the T.

The T is my preferred of the two, because I find it easier (less distracting?) to work with stopped-down and scale-focused - and the magnified rangefinder is rather nice for faster longer lenses.

 

[Talisker]

The T is cetainly easier to use with external finders than the R series due to the meter readout on the back of the camera. The T has better build quality than the L, although I've never handled an L myself. The T would also give more flexibility than the L, as it will be better able to cope when you have a GAS attack and want more lenses!

My only worry in using the T as an everyday shooter would be that the separate viewfinder is something else to fall off and lose. As a result of such paranoia my R2 get much more use than my T, which I bought first.

 

[Dougg]

I have both an L and a T, and have considered that the T is a great replacement for the L! Except if the price difference overrides everything, I'd always choose the T, as it is everything the L is and better. I do like the external meter diodes on both. But the L has always bugged me in requiring the film wind lever to be in the stand-off position for the shutter to operate. I've lost shots because of that, as (being left-eyed) my head pushes the lever in and locks the shutter. I'd sell the L in an instant except that the price is now so low it's not worth the effort to take the loss.

 

[ron klein]

Went to photo village this morning and purchased the T (chrome) with a 35 mm 1.7 ultron lens (chrome) and finder (also chrome). I am absolutely enthralled with it. The build is fine. Much better than I expected for the price. The lens is quite smooth and the meter can easily be seen while using the view finder. It also looks great. Its love at first sight. We were meant to be. I have already decided to ditch my x pan II and use the mamiya for panoramics.

 

[ClaremontPhoto]

You are one happy (and lucky) man. Enjoy.

 

[Dougg]

Sounds like a great kit, Ron! Unusual and elegant; expect curious glances from others... Congratulations, and enjoy!

 

[pcfranchina]

...and you escaped Photo Village without spending more then that? WOW That place makes me wanna spend. Have fun and enjoy!