Bessa R Review

Bessa R Review

  • *

    Votes: 5 1.5%

  • **

    Votes: 6 1.8%

  • ***

    Votes: 60 17.8%

  • ****

    Votes: 155 45.9%

  • *****

    Votes: 112 33.1%
  • Total voters
    338
I've been tempted to go digital AND start a PAW.

The digital is on hold as I just can't get used to all those fiddly buttons, tons of menus, and IMO hardly ergonomic designs. Plus I don't have hundreds of dollars to spare (I just got a 220 euro bill for the CLA of my M2). And because I feel much more comfortable nowadays with RF cameras than with SLR's, I'm definitely waiting for the R-D1 coming to Europe and/or dropping in price.

I didn't start a PAW (yet) because I'm just too frikkin lazy to do any HTML/ upload/ any internet related work. It simply bores the heck out of my skull. For now I'll stick with shooting (almost) every day, and especially in the weekends, without having the films developed immediately, scan them, tweak them in PSP, and post them. I like my shots to marinade for a while. The wait makes me more critical of my work but the shots I like seem more tasty. :)

Besides, I don't know if I could limit myself to selecting just 1(!) shot from the 5-7 rolls I shoot per week. I would more likely end up with 1 shot per roll for the PAW, making it more a Photo A Roll than a Photo A Week. :)
Selecting 1 shot from a roll is getting more and more dificult since I started shooting RF. It seems that the number of keepers is increasing steadily. In my SLR days I did some nice work, and checking them out now and then I find some really nice shots, but still it seems the average number of keepers is lower than those shot with RF. I'm still as trigger happy as I was in my SLR days but perhaps the all manual RF has made me more aware of what I'm doing.

Anyway, philosophy aside, though I'm interested in both, for me for now both digital and a PAW are long term projects.
 
It must be my age, but I really like the R. It is light, compact, and easy to use. I began serious photography with a Yashica SLR, 60's model, and it was HEAVY. I have several Minolta SLRs and other metal rangefinders, including a neat Leica IIIC, but when I go out I take the R and the Color-Skopar 28mm or Jupiter 8/3 and am a happy camper. The whole kit weighs very little and the photos are superb. I gave it a 5 and best yet I would buy it again. The plastic used is not a drawback. Look on ebay at the number of classic Leicas that have dents and dings. I treat my cameras respectfully, and I am not casting aspersion on others, and therefore I expect they won't be dented. Weight is critical and the R is ideal.
 
I just got my Bessa R yesterday and it is working wonders. Ive yet to finish my first propper roll of film tho. But I might run another one over the weekend and see what I get from both. The camera is lighter than the R2 than thought it would. Weight is not much of a problem as I have the side grip which adds a little bit. When the film is in propperly it winds smoothly and the light meter works a charm :) They are on special down here in Australia, so I got mine for A$875 (lense and body). I dont like the chrome colours, so I got it in black. Very nice :)
 
Love at first sight. The Bessa R is a nice machine.

Speaking of love, how about the dancing screaming arm waving brown thing up there. I kinda like that. Where do you guys find all those interesting things?

Welcome to the group chug.
 
welcome oh great brown moving one!

seems our compliment from oz grows weekly.

i too have an r with a couple of lenses. small, light easy to use...what's not to like?

joe
 
The brown moving thing is a Domokun. Some sort of Japanse TV thing I think, found it on some avatar webpages :)

Cheers for the welcome!
 
A comment about plastic bodied cameras and their durability. I don't like them either. Having said that, the two Maxxum 7000 AF bodies I bought new in 1985 were working as good as new last month when I sold the system. Gave one body w/50/1.8 to my daughter in Chicago, who says it works just fine. There was something about AF I never liked. Too quick, too easy. Somehow - at least in my case - it circumvented the thoughtful, creative, composition process.

That's probably an illogical statement vulnerable to attack, but that's how I felt.

Ted
 
Ted,
I haven't had any trouble with plastic bodied cameras either. I find them to be a modern version of the all metal ones I still have. I like the light weight and the fact they don't ding so easily. However, they don't have the same feel the all metal ones do. OT, I find I use my af Minolta most frequently when I shoot pictures of my young grandsons. They move too fast for me to try to focus and adjust the lens correctly. I've been taking pictures since the 50's and this might account for my slowing down a bit with age. For the more static photos I use these wonderful rangefinders and other "slower" focusing cameras. No flames here. ;)
 
You know.. I handed my bessa to my wife followed by the FED 2. She said she felt the FED 2 was too heavy.

I love them both. They both feel solid compared to my Canon G2 digital thingie, which gets scarred easily.

The Bessa is just plain fun to carry around with a J8 or Industar 61 attached. I put it in the sling bag I had for the G2 and it goes where I do. I have yet to go downtown with it. It is very inconspicuos compared to all my cameras. Even the FED.

I am very happy with the R and how well it mates with my Russian lenses. See below.
 
Richard Black said:
Ted,
I haven't had any trouble with plastic bodied cameras either. I find them to be a modern version of the all metal ones I still have. I like the light weight and the fact they don't ding so easily. However, they don't have the same feel the all metal ones do. OT, I find I use my af Minolta most frequently when I shoot pictures of my young grandsons. They move too fast for me to try to focus and adjust the lens correctly. I've been taking pictures since the 50's and this might account for my slowing down a bit with age. For the more static photos I use these wonderful rangefinders and other "slower" focusing cameras. No flames here. ;)
Click to expand...


Like you I started shooting in the fifties. The older I get, the harder it is to shoot at slow shutter speeds with the modern, lightweight cameras. Then there's the focus. I still prefer manual focus......but I have a two-year-old granddaughter. By the time I get her tuned in with a manual focus camera, she's off to another point of the compass. That's the primary reason my collection includes Nikon F100. It has enough weight for me to hold it steady at slower speeds while the AF gets things sharp.

I've got nothing against the plastic cameras. They just don't suit my tastes. Besides, a whack violent enough to make a noticible dent in a 1950s or '60s rf quite likekly give the electronic brains in modern plastic rangefinders a concussion--even if things look fine on the exterior.
 
This is a really an old thread. Thank you Lars, where ever you are.

The C/V Bessa line up is definitely not a mass market succcess and never was supposed to be. They do fill a void in a photo market that has become an electronic wonderland. I'm sure at some future point of time, budding amateaur photographers will be wishing that more were made.

I have a black Bessa R. With regards to the build quality, it's 1980's heritage really shows through. I personally don't mind the plastic top and bottom covers, but the twisty rear door is not a confidence booster. It makes me wonder what other second and third tier compromises were made.

Still the Bessa R has made its mark in a niche that more or less disappeared decades ago. If nothing else, the Bessa R and to a lesser degree the Bessa T paved the way for the R2, R2a, R3a and RD-1. Let's hope that sales stay up so that Cosina is able to keep building them.
 
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San Diego Bob:

I am pleased that you are pleased with those Russian lenses. I just got on attaboy a Jupiter 8 from ruscamera. Should be here in another week. It was described as "mint." I figured it was cheaper than a Nokton. Now I've got the cs35/2.5, cs25/4 (bought an "L" to go with it) and a russian 50/2.0. If I like the J-8 I might take a chance on a longer russian lens, but I don't know, at this point, which are the good ones.

Ted
 
In 2 weeks or so I will have a Jupiter 9. Already ordered a lens hood for it this morning I have been following another thread under the bessa forums about the 9 with a Bessa. The combo seems to have a few adherants at RFF.

I hope to go downtown with it and capture the faces of everyday people and street performers. It won't be quite as inconspicuous as the current J8 Bessa combo. But I will be able to get a close in and personal feel from a shot with the medium length tele.
 
Andrew: I know this thread is old, but for some reason I was perusing it just now and noticed your comment about the twisty rear door. As I happened to be between rolls, I checked the door. Mine seems not at all twisty. Maybe I'm not "doing the twist" right?

Ted
 
Bessa R First Impressions

Bessa R First Impressions

My Bessa R arrived from CameraQuest yesterday. Delivery from California to Boston took only three business days. Mr. Gandy is serious about shipping quickly...many thanks to him!

I have not had time to shoot my test roll yet so what follows are my initial "out of the box" impressions. Please bear in mind that this is the first new camera I have ever bought and my other RFs are well-used FSU cams, an Argus C-3 and a Japanese fixed-lens.

The Bessa is heavier than I thought it would be. Weight with lens compares with my FED-2. The two cameras are also similar in size, with the Bessa being a bit taller and the FED being a bit wider (see photos). The Bessa does NOT give the impression that it is flimsy or built from sub-standard materials. The plastic top and bottom plates seem plenty sturdy, as does the plastic film door. The Bessa is much better built than the Minolta HTsi SLR I once owned but probably not as robust as my 1979 Minolta XG-9 SLR. Still, the build quality of the Bessa does not give me pause.

The Bessa controls all work fluidly. Film advance is very nice and the shutter has a discernible two-stage release (meter, release). Frame selector switch is also very well done and fits nicely in the shadow of the hot shoe. The rewind lever is easy to manipulate once it is extracted from its nesting groove (easier to do if you hold the camera uspide down). One thing I have not seen mentioned anywhere is that the rewind axle has a tiny red dot on its end cap. This dot will rotate to show you if the film is properly tensioned. Nice touch. My only complaints in the controls area are that the self-timer lever feels a bit cheesy and the shutter speed dial is tough to turn using only a fingertip. I'm sure I'll adapt to the latter. Overall, the camera fits the hand well and is easy to hold one-handed thanks the little thumb grip on the film door.

To my ears the shutter is fairly quiet compared to my other cameras. Louder than my Hi-Matic RF but much quieter than my SLR. I guess it's about the same as the FED-2, meaning it's fairly quiet. I would not hesitate to use the Bessa in an environment such as a museum or church. My 6 month-old nephew is coming for a visit next month; I will see if the shutter sound is capable of waking him.

Oh, that viewfinder...HOLY SMOKES! The Bessa RF/VF window is by far the brightest I've ever seen. I cannot stress this enough. It absolutely blows away any other RF/VF I've used. It's very, very easy to focus quickly. I wear glasses and the 35mm framelines are about 95% visible to me. The 50mm framelines are a full-on revelation and I can't wait to put my J-8 on the Bessa. The meter indicators are very bright and easily visible, too. The VF/RF alone is probably worth the price of the camera!

I also bought the 35/2.5 Classic and the lens is really well done. It has a very quality "feel" to it and the fit & finish are excellent. Very short throw (45 degrees?) from close-focus to infinity. The focus lever is easy to use. Half-stops from 2.5 to 22 and a 10-blade (?) aperture. This lens gives me every reason to expect good results. Also, the metal lens cap is really well executed and is a nice touch. I hope I don't lose it!

So far, I'm very pleased with my decision to buy the Bessa. Of course, the proof is in the pictures so I'll be back with an update after I've finished the test roll. If you are hesitating about buying a Bessa because of build-quality doubts, rest assured that you are worrying for nothing.

Enclosed a couple of pics showing the Bessa and the FED-2 for general size comparison.
 
I voted on this poll some time ago, back after I had received my R but before I had really used it. It's been five months now, so maybe I can make some comments...

Likes: Size and weight; quiet shutter (not as quiet as a new MP, but quiet enough); excellent metering; the viewfinder is so bright; and it's a durable camera (see ** below). I also like that it has strap lugs. Most cameras made today do have lugs, but because I've got so many oldies that don't have strap lugs, it seems like a luxury.

Dislikes: Plastic back door*, and plastic top**; VF baselength is too short to effectively focus a 13.5cm lens past 50ft; shutter speed dial is a little stiff for one-finger action.

* Plastic door: I have no problems with it currently, but I'm afraid that one day I'll drop the camera with the door open, and that it will break clean in half... Just an irrational fear, funtionally the door is excellent.

** Plastic top: I had no problems with it until I wiped out on my skateboard with the R around my neck (see Road Rash). I went down fast and hard, and the R went for a bit of a flight, followed by a good tumble. Best I can figure, she hit the concrete on one side, broke the neck strap, and went flying in the opposite direction, coming to rest on a nice section of grass. In the process, of course there was some scratching and denting. Underneath the black paint is a brassy/silver paint, and underneath that is that ugly 'white-ish plastic' colour. Ech! I suppose I could paint over it...

One reason I bought the R was that I wanted a compact travel kit with interchangeable lenses, something that was smaller and lighter than my Yashica SLRs (and zoom lenses) were. It was a good decision; it goes everywhere with me now, and it's going to be seeing a lot of the world with me soon...
 
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BJ Bignell said:
** Plastic top: I had no problems with it until I wiped out on my skateboard with the R around my neck (see Road Rash). I went down fast and hard, and the R went for a bit of a flight, followed by a good tumble. Best I can figure, she hit the concrete on one side, broke the neck strap, and went flying in the opposite direction, coming to rest on a nice section of grass. In the process, of course there was some scratching and denting. Underneath the black paint is a brassy/silver paint, and underneath that is that ugly 'white-ish plastic' colour. Ech! I suppose I could paint over it...
Click to expand...

I don't think Mr Kobayashi intended the R to be wipe-out proof. :p

As it is,most cameras won't stand well up to a wipe-out on concrete. I would be saddened if my R came to land like that but I would be seriously bummed (financially) if it happened to my Eos 300D, which was a lot more expensive than my R and J8 together.

I don't know how my M2 would hold out, though. Probably it would take a little less damage but the resulting CLA would cost me dearly. In the end a new R might be cheaper.
 
First Roll of Film

First Roll of Film

Put the first roll of Kodak C-41 B&W through the Bessa R on on Saturday -- a windy, raw day in Plymouth, MA. The camera is an enjoyable user. Here are my quick impressions.

The Bessa is very easy to focus. The bright RF/VF make it easy to focus quickly and the short throw on the CV 35/2.5 make the camera a fast performer. I didn't "miss the focus" at all in my test roll.

The 35mm framelines may be a bit wider than 35mm. I got a couple of things in my prints that I meant to exclude. The framelines are really easy to see, though. I wear glasses so this is a big plus. YMMV.

The camera back gets slippery if it gets wet. Bear this in mind if you shoot in the rain like I did.

The meter is accurate. You can fool it if you try but it generally nails the exposure.

It's easy to shoot vertically with the Bessa. The RF patch stays visible as do the framelines.

I've atatched a couple of images below. Love the camera so far. I'll shoot some color film next and see how that goes. I'm looking forward to using the Bessa for a long, long time!
 
Your results are looking very very good, Chris! It's great that you're so pleased with the gear.
 
cbass,
Your shots are clear and sharp. Did you use a filter on the 35mm? It appears that the leaves are white.
 
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