$1000 budget

thanks for all of the advice. i'm intrigued by the plaubel, but need to do more research on exactly what the last post was centered on.

in any case, let's keep this conversation going!

chad
 
wlewisiii said:
Frankly, your best bet is to put that $1,000 in a bank for 6 months while you consider very carefully what you want to do photographically.

William - I don't know whether to call you a genius or a heretic. 😀

To actually recommend a sane, reasoned approach in the midst of all of us gearheads who want to spend his money vicariously ASAP makes you a bigger man than me. 😡

Robert
 
Honus said:
William - I don't know whether to call you a genius or a heretic. 😀

To actually recommend a sane, reasoned approach in the midst of all of us gearheads who want to spend his money vicariously ASAP makes you a bigger man than me. 😡

Robert

Heh. It's far easier for me to say that to him than to do it myself.

:angel:

If _I_ had a grand to blow I'd be prowling Kevin Li's website looking for the optimium number of Canon LTM lenses to buy... and probably one of those da*n accessory shoe adaptors for the Canon 7... :bang: :bang: :bang:

😀

William
 
I like Kevin's site i've done quite a bit of business with him. very prompt with email replies.
 
Hi Chad,

Congratulations on winning the contest. You've had lots of great suggestions from the guys here and you have many options. Bottom line is what type of photography you want to do as that will to some extent drive your direction. If its candid/street/lowlight then its probably 35mm. For $1000 you can go down the classic route - user M plus possibly a couple of older lenses, Canon P/7 plus lenses etc - but you'll be buying into an older system that may require some $ spent on maintenance. You can buy more modern - Bessa X and possibly a couple of lenses new or near new or Hexar RF plus 50 Hexanon well under your budget and you have automation and build quality. If you're less concerned about lowlight and portability then by all means look at MF - even 645 negs are huge compared to 35mm. Personally I'd look at the Mamiya 6 or the Bronica RF 645. The Mamiya has more glass available, but its a much older camera. The Bronica can still be bought new, but you're really limited to 65 and 45mm lenses (40 and 28 in 35mm terms) as the 100mm (60 in 35) is really hard to find. I looked at the Fujis, Mamiyas, Plaubel and Bronica before going for the Bronica - the ergonomics and size are very, very good.

A long winded way of recommending:

35mm

Classic - user M2/M3/M4 plus one or two early lenses or CV lenses

Modern - Bessa X plus any early L glass or CV glass or if you want automation and M build quality - Hexar RF

MF - Bronica RF645 + 65mm

Yes, I do have a bias (check my cameras below), but based on research and fitting my needs.

Ultimately, don't rush your decision. If you make the right one you'll have something that will support your photography for years.
 
You should buy the Bronica if you want MF RF. It's as plain as that. Here is why:

Fuji 645 : plasticky cameras. Pocketable more than the others (except Plaubel). Light-weight. AF on some of the newer models. Cheaper - about 1/2 the cost of most other MF RFs.

Fuji 67,69 - big negs, nice lenses, heavy, big cameras, no interchangeable lenses - not a good thing. Gotta buy anothe camera if you want another lens. Not a reasonable option unless you don't mind shooting with one focal length all the time.

Plaubel Makina 67 - beautifully made, wonderful Nikon glass, FAST glass for MF RF standards at f/2.8. Well built. Simple design. Collapsible into a very flat - most pocketable of all AND big negs. Hard to find. Expensive. NO METER. That was enough for me to give it a no vote. But that is because I have no skills with eyeballing exposures.

Mamiya 6 - collapsible lens . . . not really that useful, and doesn't get as flat as the Plaubel. Cheapy feeling build. A number of annoying mechanical things that one must wrestle with : changing lenses requires operating the shutter curtain manually. Must collapse and open the camera (unless you keep it out - in which case having that collapsing function makes little sense). Not much smaller than the Mamiya 6x7 cameras - might as well get the bigger negative.

Mamiya 7 - generally thought to have the sharpest lenses in the world. 43mm wonder wide angle lens. Bigger than some, but smaller than the Fuji 67 and 69. Nice, smooth, quick focusing. Nice big negative. Nice VF - but not as nice as the Bronica - smaller focusing patch as well. EXPENSIVE. Multiple times as much as any of the others mentioned here. Buying a wide - normal - long kit would cost you upwards of $4000 . .probably closer to $5000. The Bronica . . . maybe $2000 at most. Probably about $1600. Gotta change film a whole lot more often with the Mamiya- a pain when shooting street stuff.

Bronica RF645 - built the best of all. Perfect selection of focal lengths for MF RF : 45, 65, and 100 which translates to 27, 40, and 60 in 35mm. A little wide for some, but just right if you are a street shooter or pretty much anyone but those seeking to shoot headshots and macro still life work. Low cost, considering its amazing value - $850 for the body and 65mm lens at KEH. $430 for the 45mm, cheaper on the auction site. The lenses are nearly free of distortion. The 45mm is amazingly sharp, zero vignetting at any aperture, and straight lines are straight. See my website in the street photography gallery for examples - all taken through the 45mm but three. Focusing is stiff . . . I like it, though, because it saves me from clumsy focusing. It holds focus nicely when your hands are not as nimble as they could be. Compact. SMaller footprint than my Nikon D70+50mm. Smaller than any of the Mamiyas, Fuji 67 and 69. Best metering I've ever experienced. I shot more than 500 pictures with mine so far, and have had not a single imperfect exposure. Not one. And some very tricky lighting. The 45mm is useable without the external viewfinder. . . and all three lenses are coupled - unlike the Mamiya where the superwide 43 and the long 210 are not.

One big thing. . . the Mamiya will be easier to service in the distant future, though Tamron in New York has serviced mine (funny VF noises) and they intend to stay at it for another 10 years.
 
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I am surprised nobody has mentioned a vacation yet. How about a wild spring break week and a couple box cameras to document it?
 
yeah, there you go. Road trip + decent P&S might create the most lasting value. . .

Heck, for $1500 you could spend a week in Europe if you find a good deal through a travel site. UNless you ARE in Europe, in which case, in some other place.
 
shutterflower said:
Plaubel Makina 67 - beautifully made, wonderful Nikon glass, FAST glass for MF RF standards at f/2.8. Well built. Simple design. Collapsible into a very flat - most pocketable of all AND big negs. Hard to find. Expensive. NO METER. That was enough for me to give it a no vote. But that is because I have no skills with eyeballing exposures.

Both mine have meters! 😛
 
Simon Larby said:
Both mine have meters! 😛


oh. Ok then. My mistake. I thought I read that it didn't have a meter. . . .. I really didn't know but for what I have read about it from internet sources. And many or most internet sources are sketchy at best.

So, if that is the case, the PLaubel is really hard to put behind the Bronica. The bronica has 3 lenses to choose from against the one on the plaubel. But, it has slower glass than the plaubal by 1 stop. THe plaubel is more compact - alot more - and has a 2x larger negative. . .nearly. Sexier than the Bronica, I'd say.

If you could find a PLaubel Makina for under $1000, that would be really cool.
 
Plaubels on Ebay when i looked last week were going for $1600 US upwards.
The best of the bunch is the 67W which has a Nikkor 55/4 lens (similar to a 28 on a 35mm).
But these command top prices.
Martin Parr uses one. That's an endorsement in itself.
if you found one less than $1000 i think it would need a CLA.
 
Stu W said:
M3-M3-M3-M3-M3-M3 or an M3

It's easier to save up or make yourself to buy a lens than a camera body (at least for me)!

Get the M3, be happy with a Elmar 50mm f/3.5; the good lense will come after this.
 
There is a Crown Graphic for sale right now in the Classifieds. It and a 23 roll film back will provide hours of fun and entertainement and you will have close to $700 left over for film and a tripod for the beast.
 
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