LeicaFoReVer
Addicted to Rangefinders
Great images and great colors. Thanks for posting. Which film did you use?
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Any Rollei SL35 & SL350 lovers out there?
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x-ray
Veteran
They were substantial cameras. I almost always used them on a tripod or studio stand.
x-ray
Veteran
My 3003's were a tossup with my M9.
Really why choose the SL35/350 with all the other choices out there. The attraction to the 3003 was the system. Interchangeable magazines, polaroid back, waist level and eve level finders, screens and built in motor along with Zeiss lenses were a big draw to me. It was the perfect match with my SL66's and perfect for commercial photography.
NeonKnight
Established
Thanks. Because of the camera's reliability issues I mainly used it to take snapshots with experimental films:
Ektar
Lomography redscale
Lomography 800
Ektar
Lomography redscale
Lomography 800
I've appreciated your contributions to this thread. The 2000/3003 system is one that is seldom discussed and its less than perfect reliability is well known. But the specifications and lens line up it offered were positively mouth watering, and I have certainly wondered just what they were really like in use. Such a great pity the camera bodies were not better made, because it was a truly unique system. Certainly all of the features were present, to some extent, in other types of cameras (Praktina, Contarex, for instance) but nothing else combined them all together as comprehensively as Rollei, or integrated them as well.
What is interesting is that in spite of the well known reliability issues, they are far from the cheapest type of used 35mm camera on eBay with asking prices up to the 1000 mark sometimes.
Cheers
Brett
x-ray
Veteran
It is ashamed they didn't build them better. Its been so long I can't remember if I had electronic problems of not. I must not have or the mechanical problems overshadowed all others. Scratching magazines and motor issues were enough of a headache though.
I've owned a few dogs over nearly sixty years. The 3003's, M9 and Leicaflex SL and MOT were very problematic one way or another.
I had a fantastic system of Zeiss glass, 16 FE, 18, 25, 35, 50, 60, 85, 135, 200 and a Rollei 400 and mid range Zoom. The 35, 50 and 85 were f1.4. I had quite a few magazines, battery trays and polaroid back. It was so nice on jobs to have B&W in one magazine, color transparency in another and sometimes color neg. some jobs like catalog fashion work would be all transparencies so I'd load all with E6 film. I'd do the same on magazine shoots. When they worked they were fantastic. I even had the SCA module for my Metz 45CT4.
It wasn't asthough they broke down on every job. The magazines needed relived at Rollei service every few months. About once or twice a year the body would have to go in for repairs. It was always one of the gears in the transport stripping the teeth off. Unfortunately they just got to be so much of a problem I had to switch systems. I wound up buying 2 F4's and a comparable system of Lenses.
In comparison to my previous system which was 3 F2's and comparable lenses and the system purchased after the Rolleis, I had one of my F2 motirs require replacement of a rewind gear and one of the F4's had to have the meter calibrated. To give you an idea of how much film I shot through them, I shot one job for the Tennessee Valley Authority and delivered 600 rolls of film in the end. I rarely shot that much on a single job, but went through 100-300 rolls of 35 a month. One year my E6 lab bill exceeded $100,000. I was doing a huge amount of catalog fashion, magazine shoots and around 10 major annual reports a year plus other clients work. Most of this went through my Rollei SL66's and 35 system.
I don't remember the price but they were quite expensive as were the lenses.
I've owned a few dogs over nearly sixty years. The 3003's, M9 and Leicaflex SL and MOT were very problematic one way or another.
I had a fantastic system of Zeiss glass, 16 FE, 18, 25, 35, 50, 60, 85, 135, 200 and a Rollei 400 and mid range Zoom. The 35, 50 and 85 were f1.4. I had quite a few magazines, battery trays and polaroid back. It was so nice on jobs to have B&W in one magazine, color transparency in another and sometimes color neg. some jobs like catalog fashion work would be all transparencies so I'd load all with E6 film. I'd do the same on magazine shoots. When they worked they were fantastic. I even had the SCA module for my Metz 45CT4.
It wasn't asthough they broke down on every job. The magazines needed relived at Rollei service every few months. About once or twice a year the body would have to go in for repairs. It was always one of the gears in the transport stripping the teeth off. Unfortunately they just got to be so much of a problem I had to switch systems. I wound up buying 2 F4's and a comparable system of Lenses.
In comparison to my previous system which was 3 F2's and comparable lenses and the system purchased after the Rolleis, I had one of my F2 motirs require replacement of a rewind gear and one of the F4's had to have the meter calibrated. To give you an idea of how much film I shot through them, I shot one job for the Tennessee Valley Authority and delivered 600 rolls of film in the end. I rarely shot that much on a single job, but went through 100-300 rolls of 35 a month. One year my E6 lab bill exceeded $100,000. I was doing a huge amount of catalog fashion, magazine shoots and around 10 major annual reports a year plus other clients work. Most of this went through my Rollei SL66's and 35 system.
I don't remember the price but they were quite expensive as were the lenses.
LeicaFoReVer
Addicted to Rangefinders
Guys this thread is about SL35/SL350 systems 🙂
What kind of reliability issues are expecting me? Could you please elaborate?
why I bought? Because I like to try different systems and I liked the look of the bodies. When I investigated about them, people are saying that the reliability issues are mostly with Singapore made bodies so I bought german made ones.
What kind of reliability issues are expecting me? Could you please elaborate?
why I bought? Because I like to try different systems and I liked the look of the bodies. When I investigated about them, people are saying that the reliability issues are mostly with Singapore made bodies so I bought german made ones.
sevo
Fokutorendaburando
Well, I had a stuck shutter and failed meter, in three years of very casual use. I escaped stripping the gears, which also is common. Once fixed, each problem did not return - which is more than I can say about the 3003 (which was just as unreliable after a repair as before).
capitalK
Warrior Poet :P
My parents had a fire at their house last Monday. The fire damage was isolated to the kitchen, my everything in the house is smoke damaged and will have to be replaced. Renovations will take up to six months, the contractors said.
Yesterday, I walked through the house to get the one thing I didn't want to lose: my dad's Rolleiflex SL35.
This is the camera my dad gave me when he purchased his Nikon F4s in the early 90s. I would have been about 13 or 14.
To me, this camera is more than metal and glass, it represents my father passing down his love of photography to me. On this camera, I learned exposure and composition and it resulted in countless hours in the darkroom.
My father has dementia now. He wouldn't know what end to look in if he wanted to take a photo. A few years ago I asked him for it back, but he told me he lent it to someone, though he couldn't remember who. I thought I would never see it again.
My memories of those lessons lives on and I am so happy to now have the camera in my possession, even if it smells pretty smoky.
Getting back to the camera, I am surprised at how bright the viewfinder is and the controls feel very comfortable—like riding a bike. Unfortunately, I think this will be a showpiece for now, but I am thinking of maybe investing in a body that is in better shape to continue to use the Zeiss glass he loved so much.
Looking forward to using the Zeiss Planar 50mm f/1.4 and Sonnar 135mm f/2.8 lenses again.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BivNSQxnDe5/
Yesterday, I walked through the house to get the one thing I didn't want to lose: my dad's Rolleiflex SL35.
This is the camera my dad gave me when he purchased his Nikon F4s in the early 90s. I would have been about 13 or 14.
To me, this camera is more than metal and glass, it represents my father passing down his love of photography to me. On this camera, I learned exposure and composition and it resulted in countless hours in the darkroom.
My father has dementia now. He wouldn't know what end to look in if he wanted to take a photo. A few years ago I asked him for it back, but he told me he lent it to someone, though he couldn't remember who. I thought I would never see it again.
My memories of those lessons lives on and I am so happy to now have the camera in my possession, even if it smells pretty smoky.
Getting back to the camera, I am surprised at how bright the viewfinder is and the controls feel very comfortable—like riding a bike. Unfortunately, I think this will be a showpiece for now, but I am thinking of maybe investing in a body that is in better shape to continue to use the Zeiss glass he loved so much.
Looking forward to using the Zeiss Planar 50mm f/1.4 and Sonnar 135mm f/2.8 lenses again.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BivNSQxnDe5/
Greyscale
Veteran
Mine looks new, but is only half alive, which means that it is useful only as a decorative item. The HFT Rollei Planar is a lovely thing, and at least fits my SL35.
santino
FSU gear head
I like the camera but it seems to be prone to defects. I still have the 50 planar and german 35 distagon but no working body (wish I had one). Lovely system.
mpaniagua
Newby photographer
Really like the camera, one of my favorites. Sadly, like they said, is prone to failures. I had to got through 4 of them to get to my current one, which has been working nice for some time.
Love the Zeiss glasses, specially 50 f1.8,80 f/1.4 and 80 f/4.
Regards
Marcelo
Love the Zeiss glasses, specially 50 f1.8,80 f/1.4 and 80 f/4.
Regards
Marcelo