A problem I hope all of you get to have at least once!

[rbiemer]

Folks,
Thanks for all your advice! I have decided to get the Bessar+35 combo and a 21mm lens from CameraQuest(Stephen Gandy). And some other misceleanious bits and pieces(filters,tripod,camera bag,more film )
I've got good 50mm lenses and a good 85mm--which will work on the Bessa--so I think I'm good to go gear-wise.
The Leicas that were suggested are all amazingly good cameras but they just didn't call to me(not quite sure why--maybe a bit of reverse snobbery?). And I would be consantly worried about theft/loss.
The best part is that I am spending less than my budget so I will have some money in the bank for the next lens/camera/obsession that comes along! Or, if I actually do get some time off, a plane/train ticket!
Rob 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

 

[rover]

Good going, sounds like a wise decision. I am sure that from reading all of our praise of the Bessa R you know to expect a good experience.

 

[rbiemer]

Good going, sounds like a wise decision. I am sure that from reading all of our praise of the Bessa R you know to expect a good experience.

The R ain't going to make my photos any better but I will enjoy taking 'em a little more!
Besides, it was either camera gear or beer and hookers and I've seen the hookers in my town 🙄
Now I get to bug the crap out of the daytime bartender where I work:"Any package come for me today?" 😀
I'll borrow dad's digiwhatever so I can post some "camera&coffe" pix.
Rpb

 

[Kin Lau]

The Leicas that were suggested are all amazingly good cameras but they just didn't call to me(not quite sure why--maybe a bit of reverse snobbery?). And I would be consantly worried about theft/loss.

Actually, that is a major consideration. The more you pay for a camera/anything, the more it hurts everytime there's a nick, scratch, and you're constantly worried about it being stolen etc. Of course, that's why so many of us love FSU RF's.

 

[Stephanie Brim]

If I had 2,000 dollars right now, I'd pay off my dual G4 Mac, sell it, buy the Powerbook I've been wanting, get a scanner, and finally get my Leica M2 and a 35mm Summicron. Why the 35? Because I have the Canon P with a 50 already and I really need something wider at the moment.

If I didn't have to worry about bills my kit would be as follows: Leica M2, 35 and 90mm Summicrons, and a scanner. I'd probably have to come up with a bit of money to complete this kit because of wanting the faster 90, but I'd do it anyway because it would get more use than a slower one.

 

[XAos]

Great, now take some of the money you saved and enroll in a statistics class at the local community college and learn why you should stop now while you're ahead. Unless you've been hit by lightning multiple times in your life already. 🙂

 

[rbiemer]

Great, now take some of the money you saved and enroll in a statistics class at the local community college and learn why you should stop now while you're ahead. Unless you've been hit by lightning multiple times in your life already. 🙂

Can't remember who said it but,"Lotteries are taxes for poeple who can't do math."
I still throw a dollar a week at it. I do have enough math to know I can't buy enough tickets to change my odds so one ticket is enough.
And I will be staying under cover during the next few thunderstorms.
Rob

 

[rbiemer]

Hot diggety! My Bessa R came today! It's my day off this week and I was running some errands and decided on a whim to stop by work(where I have all my stuff sent to) and bother the bartender. No one had checked the mailbox til I did. And the delivery attempt notice was here! I run down the block to the Post Office and the box is now sitting on my coffe table!
Mr. Gandy is a pleasure to deal with! Good on the phone--and I shudder to think what time it was when I called him--and emailed me on Sunday to let me know the box went out Saturday.
joe, don't read this sentence, the R took TWO days!
Now I'm going to read the manual and then head out into the evening light!
Be glad you can't see this middleaged white guy doing(badly) the happy dance!
Hope to have something worth sharing in a week or so.
Rob 😀 😀 😀

 

[Sonnar Brian]

Congratulations on the camera. I have a mental image, derived from your avatar, of the happy dance. You should be happy.

When Nina used to buy lottery tickets, I always told her to call the winner and ask for her dollar back. Never happened.

 

[rover]

Can't wait to hear the good word after your first "date" with Bessa.

 

[back alley]

glad to hear it arrived and that it only took 2 days.

meanwhile, i'm waiting on a 2 hoods, a yashicamat, a filter....😉

joe

 

[dostacos]

Suddenly I have a fairly large pile of extra $! I won abit from the NY lottery. This is the real deal and the money is in my bank acct. Not enought to retire on--or even buy a car--but enough to put me in a gear dilema.
I have been using(and enjoying) the FSU cameras in large part because of the low cost.
I can now look at some other choices. New Leica is still out of reach if I want more than one lens.
I want to stick with LTM lenses as I think that mount will give me the most options.
My preference is not bottom loaders--are all of the Leica screwmount cameras bottom loading?
The later Canons are appealing as well--almost too many choices.
The Bessa L and the R are both tempting--I do like wide angles and have not many choices that will work on the FSU stuff I have now.
I can make a case for all of these for myself but I don't know enough about all the other(non-FSU) cameras to make an informed decision.
Any help will be much appreciated folks!
Rob

bessa R with 35/2.5 $299.00
15/4.5 helliar with viewfinder $345.00
21/4.0 Color-Skopar couplrd $329.00
28/3.5 Color-Skopar $285.00
50/1.5 Nokton $329.00
75/2.5 Color-Heliar $295.00
total $1,882.00

with a couple a bucks for film .......

 

[rbiemer]

OK, first impressions:
The viewfinder is a wonder! Big, bright and easy to focus! Shutter noise is about the same as all of my FSU cameras. Noticable but not annoying.
I am using the good Jupiter-9 that I own and it feels "right" on this baestie, BUT, the Russian rear lens cap does NOT fit on the CV lenses. The deep cap for the J-12 lens would fit but I need to keep that cap for the J-12 so I'm glad that I got an extra cap.
The red LED for the meter readouts shines through the frosted window from the front of the camera. Not a problem but different than what I'm used to.
I'm about halfway through a 36 exposure roll of Tri-X now and since it is now raining steadily(has been for the last two days :bang: after a long dry summer) it will take me a few more days to finish this roll and some more time after that before I get something worth posting...
When I get a camera bag figured out, my kit will be: Bessa R, Zorki 3m, and assorted lenses--21mm CV, 35mm CV, 50mm J-8, 85mm J-9.
As of now, I seriously don't want/need any more gear. I'm not saying I won't buy any more cameras but I certainly don't need anymore. I am sure I will come across something cool and irresistable but whatever that is it will be just for kicks.
Rob