1:1 Viewfinder

[tim532]

Hi All,

Looking to buy my very first rangefinder, and was originally looking at a QL17 or similar, but I noticed that most of these do not have 1:1 viewfinders. One of the attractions of the RF to me was a nice big bright viewfinder for framing.

Can anyone tell me what RFs have 1:1 viewfinders?

I tried to search for the answer here, but couldn't find anything..

Thanks,
Tim

 

[rover]

1:1 magnification is not a prerequisite to a nice big bright viewfinder. Currently the Bessa R3a/m are the only production cameras with a 1:1 finder, but the other Bessas, the Leicas and Zeiss Ikon all have wonderful finders.

Older cameras with 1:1 finders, the Canon P, Nikon S2......hm, I forget, I am sure there are others. The point is, 1:1 and wonderful finders do not necessarily go hand in hand.

For a first RF, I think all fixed lens cameras have less than a 1:1 finder. All, being 30+ years old now will have finders that have dimmed with time. For a great bargain camera with a wonderful finder, consider the Bessa R. You can find it in a kit with a very good 35/2.5 lens for a nice price.

Otherwise, shop wise to find a nice Canonet, Himatic, Electro....... in good working order and even if the finder isn't Crystal clear, you will have fun with it I am sure.

 

[Finder]

!:! viewfinder (1x) is saying that the viewfinder image is the same as what your eye would see - there is no magnification either making the image bigger or smaller. Viewfinder brightness has nothing to do with viewfinder magnification.

 

[tim532]

rover, Finder,

Thanks for the clarification! I think I'm so used to my D50 with it's 0.75x magnification and poor viewfinder, that when I saw 0.7x or 0.6x in the specs for the compact RF's I immediately associated with a dim finder.

I've never looked through a RF viewfinder before.. is it safe to assume that a relatively clean 0.7x finder on a used compact 35mm RF will be substantially brighter than the D50?

Tim

 

[rover]

YES!!!!!

Though the image is only .7ish, you are looking directly through the finder optics without any interference, mirror.... The brightness of an SLR finder is also associated with the widest aperture of your mounted lens. An f4 lens will make the finder dimer than an f2 lens. Since you don't look through the lens with a RF, the finder is brighter.

 

[photorat]

Open your eyes

Open your eyes

All that being said, 1:1 has its advantages, not the least of which being able to keep both eyes open when you take a picture! The beauty of rf photography is the very different connection it implies between photographer and subject. After being in a SLR box all his life, the rf photographer suddenly feels himself again part of the reality he is trying to capture and control. He (re)discovers that that project to capture and control reality can never be complete, because the project itself is also part of the same reality. Without trying to be too philosophical, rf photography is in this sense more authentic because you are more aware of your own position within the reality you try to capture. You see around the image, its relation to what is beyond its borders. With a fixed focal length lens, you have to move to compose a picture, etc. You're part of the landscape. You see the ways in which you influence what you shoot and vice versa.

To cut a long story short, a 1:1 finder (like the beautiful, bright finder on my Epson R-D1) seems to enhance this experience, especially if you shoot with both eyes open.

 

[Abbazz]

For a first RF, I think all fixed lens cameras have less than a 1:1 finder. All, being 30+ years old now will have finders that have dimmed with time.

Rover,

The Konica III, III A and III M were superb fixed lens RF cameras with bright 1:1 viewfinders. The finders have aged wonderfully and are still a joy to use today.

There is one for sale in the classifieds section of this site for $175.00. A steal 😉

Cheers,

Abbazz

 

[pvdhaar]

1:1 finders are great.. for normal to long lenses!

With focal lengths shorter than 40mm, the field of view of a 1:1 finder would be so large, that your eye wouldn't able to interpret the entire frame in a single glance.

So if you're shooting with, say a 35mm or shorter, a magnification of ca. 0.72 is much more comfortable. That would allow you to oversee the framelines plus a bit of the context without moving the eye (and more important: your attention) around.

 

[mfogiel]

If what you are after is the best possible viewfinder experience, take a look at the Zeiss Ikon viewfinder - if you won't like this one (it is a 0.74 mag), then it likely will mean rangefinders don't make you tick.

 

[oscroft]

My feeling is that the best all-round VF magnification for general use is around 0.7 (Leica didn't choose 0.72 as a standard for nothing). And for brightness, you can't beat the Voigtlander Bessa VFs - as Rover says, you can get a Bessa-R with 35/2.5 lens for a great price ($399, here)

Best,

 

[tim532]

All,

Thank you very much for the information! This makes my search for my first rangefinder much easier.

This is so eye-opening! 😀

Cheers,
Tim

 

[Finder]

BTW, one reason some cameras go with a lower mag than 1x is that the viewfinder is designed to show frame lines for wide-angle lenses. This becomes difficult (impractical) with 1x viewfinders. But then it works against frame lines for longer lenses, but RF photographers don't use long lenses as much. Naturally, a lens can be too wide for the finder and so accessory finders are available. There are accessory finders for longer focal lengths as well.

 

[Magus]

Post deleted by posters request

 

[john_van_v]

This is something nobody thought of !!

The Voigtlander Kontur View finder-- the un-intuitive one which has no lens opening on the outside. That HAS to be 1:1 by definition, because you look through your open eye while aiming the kontur with your camera eye.

 

[Welsh_Italian]

My Soviet Cosmic 35 has a 1:1 viewfinder. Well, actually, it's just a hole in the body with a piece of glass either side 😉

 

[shadowfox]

For your consideration, I always find the view/range-finder on the Olympus 35 SP (.7x magnification) to brighter than those on its peers (which includes good cameras such as the Canonet QL17 and Yashica Electro 35).

 

[kshapero]

Am I missing something here? Aren't the Bessa R3's 1:1 magnification in the viewfinder?