Bessa L for low light

[argofoto]

I just purchased my Bessa L at photo village in manhattan, and man was that awkward to get to walking by the address a couple of times before being told its on the 8th floor! SO i got the Bessa L and 15 mm and case for around 450, which I think is amazing coming from a DSLR photographer (Minolta). I always wanted a super ultra wide for experimental photos and here and there amazing shots, but I was wondering if the L works good for low light.
Since the L is technically not a rangerfinder, as said on cameraquest, does it still retain the speed advantage over SLR's? For instance, would I be able to use this at 1/15 with a steady hand? Also, would the L work with a 50mm super fast lens, such as the Canon 50mm f1.2? Or perhaps a 35mm super fast, which I think is f1.7

 

[Spyderman]

There is no mirror, so: yes, it is possible to handhold slower shutter speeds than on a SLR. Basically that is the reason: no mirror = no slap.

The use of fast 50 or even 35 is IMHO impossible, as there is no rangefinder to fous the lens. Only guess-focus, so its best for wideangles between 12 and 35. The 35 can be a bit of a problem and you need to stop it down to get some DOF.

In fact any lens would work if you can guess the distance... but for something longer you better get a Bessa R.

 

[pvdhaar]

Scale focussing up till 50mm is possible, which can be seen as scale focused cameras with focal lengths of up to 50mm have existed. One of the last in this genre was the Minox35 (discontinued 2003 or thereabouts), with a 2.8 maximum aperture lens.

But as we're making bigger and bigger enlargements than in the past, the focal lengths that work as we expect have gotten shorter and shorter. The limit seems to be a 25/4 nowadays..

 

[cbass]

Yes, you can get acceptably sharp photos -- for small enlargement sizes -- at 1/15. I managed to capture some decent hand-held shots at 1/15 (and even 1/8) using 200 speed film with the L & 15/4.5. Samples shown below.

I haven't treid to scale focus a 35 or 50 lens on the L, but I personally would not try it with anything longer than a 35/2.8 or thereabouts.

The L is a fun camera; I bought mine as a back-up body and it quickly became my primary film camera. The CV 25/4 is another excellent lens that pairs well with the L body.

 

[argofoto]

hey cbass, that book store reminds me of one down in the village, i think on st marks street.
ok so it seems 50mm is out of the question, i want something simple without taking so many risks, the reason i got the L.
What is the fastest lens the L can take then, which I am assuming would be on a 35mm?

 

[Trius]

What about adding a Bessa T as an inexpensive body for longer lenses? Basically same as a Bessa L but with M mount, a 1.5x rangefinder (no built-in viewfinder), better build quality.

 

[argofoto]

yeah, i might for for a bessa T but i hear they have a lot of bad rep when compared to the bessa r's.
anyway, for now while i get used to the system before spending more money, i'll take some daytime shots with the 15mm.
i'm shooting for the 35mm, probably the f1.7 since it is screw and half the price of the f1.2, i think the f1.7 should be good enough for what i want to shoot, which would be practicing band photography at local venues.
with 1600 film i think i could stop down the aperture (i'm guessing 1 stop should be enough? i'm not sure) and have good exposures.
would be cool if someone has tried this, the bessa L with 35mm f1.7

 

[JohnM]

With the 35/1.7, I think you're really at the outside of what the camera can do. Perhaps it's just me, but I think it would be extremely difficult to get good results trying to photograph a band in low light with that combo.

Again, this is my opinion, but I think the better path with the Bessa L is not faster lenses, but longer exposures and wide lenses. (i.e. tripod.) That does not lend itself to band photography.

 

[cbass]

hey cbass, that book store reminds me of one down in the village, i think on st marks street.

My buddy and I used to cruise through the Village over to St. Marks Place when I lived in Weehawken, NJ. We'd often end up walking as far as the Strand or over to Union Square. Fun times. 🙂 I wish I'd had my camera with me...

The bookstore in the photo is actually the famous Shakespeare & Company Bookstore in Paris. I took that shot from the hip as I walked in the door and got lucky with the exposure. If you've ever been there you know how cramped that store is, but the 15mm perspective really opened it up. The reason I attached that photo is because despite the perspective distortion the overall sharpness of the lens is very good. Toward the edges of the frame you can actually read the titles of some of the books. Check the "live for humanity" engraved on the step near the bottom of the frame. Good edge-to-edge sharpness is a trait of every CV lens that I own (15/4.5, 25/4 and 35/2.5).

I'm going to agree with JohnM when it comes to fast 35mm lenses on the L. I'd go for the T body if you want to shoot the 35/1.7. You can still scale focus with the T but you'll also be able to use the excellent magnified RF for times when you need critical focus shooting wide open in low light. The T body will also serve you well if you decide to expand your array of lenses to include fast telephotos such as the CV 75/2.5 or even the Leica 75mm.

 

[argofoto]

thanks for the tips, however I would like to see if someone has used the combo and can tell me their results? or if there is somewhere on the web where someone has done this.

 

[pvdhaar]

What about adding a Bessa T as an inexpensive body for longer lenses? Basically same as a Bessa L but with M mount, a 1.5x rangefinder (no built-in viewfinder), better build quality.

The T body may be inexpensive, but you have to factor external finders and at least one LTM-M adapter into the equation. That doesn't mean it makes no sense to get a T. You can get a lot of mileage out of a zoom finder for instance..

 

[argofoto]

true,
im thinking instead then of the bessa r
its LTM, and has 4 framelines, on the top of my head i think they are 35 or 40, 50, 75, and 90.
i am not really interested in longer lenses since i might as well use my minolta film or dslr backup with my tele lenses on a tripod.
the cost of wide open lenses is staggering for slr's

i had an interesting experience last night. im a college student and this was late, me and my friends smuggled in a friend through the gate, whose patrolman was being a jerk.
so the plan was we put our friend outside the gate inside my friend's trunk so he would drive out then drive back in, they dont inspect the trunk. i had my dslr out in the parking lot where he was going to offload her, lol, and was trying to use the scale focus ring on the lens (17mm-35mm with 1.5x mag factor, an almost 300 dollar lens) with manual setting. well i properly guessed the distance, off by a little, but it was really out of focus!!!!!
i had to go to autofocus which involved the on-camera flash to blink 5 times to acquire its target, i got a cool photo (with too much work),
but it made me realize how cool the Bessa L is ! then again i havent seen the bessa photos yet, but the scale focus ring on the slr lens was very tight, in close distance it had tenths of a foot, much more than the 15mm f/4.5.



I think I am going to develop my first roll soon, see how they come out, then get the 35mm f1.7.
if it doesnt work on the L i'll get the T or R (if it can be found at a reasonable price).
but if i get the R i think i save a hundred bucks or so on a accessory viewfinder which i'd need on the T?

 

[Spyderman]

You should make it clear for your self first - what you really want.

Bessa L - Scale focus only (which probably means NO long lenses). Must buy additional viewfinders.

Bessa R - Nice VF with 35, 50, 75 and 90 framelines, the whole VF can be used to aproximate 28. Wider with external finders. Fast wide lenses can be used - because you can focus with the R, not just guess the distance.

Bessa T - Very precise RF (good for long fast lenses). Must buy external viewfinders.

I would recommend the R. The built in viewfinder is very very good, and you can't lose it 😉 like external finders. It is also paralax corrected. If you want to start with the Ultron 35/1.7, the R body is the best companion for it...

Long live Bessa R! 😀