bessa t with 135mm

[ralgo]

i have a noctilux and a tele-elmar which are difficult to focus on .72 leicas; the one in low light and the other 'cos the image is tooooo small. i use glasses.

the t has greater magnification than, seemingly, all other rangefinders at ± 1,5 x

so, am i to gain an advantage in focusing and visibility with the t?

thanx,
b.

 

[arbib]

Yes, the magnified image will increase your focus accuracy.

I have a Hektor I use with my R2, Works fine, but it is 4.5 wide open.
I also have a 85/2 (just got it) that I have taken some available light at F/2 and F2.8 from 4-7 feet. I will see how I did when it is processed..I also use the 85/2 with flash at F/11 (400 ISO Film) because the R2 has a 90* Frame Line. The Hektor is my Outdoor Long Lens. Very Nice Boken and quite sharp from F/5.6 and smaller.

There is thread here somewhere that has an example of a 85/2 or 135 wide open on a short base RF. The head shots were OK. a Tad soft. But it was a head shot, so it worked fine. Other subjects may need to use F/4 or smaller at close range though.

 

[erikhaugsby]

Focusing should be improved as the Effective Base Length (real base length * magnification) is 80.55mm, versus the Leica EBL of 49.32mm.
Magnification will be increased, but as there are no framelines it will be very difficult if not impossible to judge the FOV of any lens; this is why you should use external finders which should themselves provide a high magnification and accurate view.

 

[ralgo]

thanx ........... i have 135 and 50 viewfinders, the problem is focussing with the leica rangefinder and no magnification.

b.

 

[rover]

Another benefit, I did some comparisons, M3, Canon with variable mag viewfinder and Bessa T, it seems to me that the T viewfinder view is pretty close to that of a 135mm lens.

 

[Nando]

I've had very good luck focusing my 135/f4,5 Hektor. The most trouble I had was framing. I used it with a Leitz VIOOH and TEWE multifinders at first. I found that the parallax compensation was good on the VIOOH but the 135mm setting cropped too much and I had to adjust for it. The frame was also very small. I got a TEWE 35-200mm finder, which I found better for framing since it magnifies the image but its parallax compensation was difficult to dial in. I find the mechanisms for setting parallax a clumsy on both finders but the TEWE is harder to set accurately. I ended up buying a dedicated Leitz SHOOC 135 finder that works great and gives a very bright image. Frame lines are more accurate than the multifinders and the parallax compensation is easier and quicker to set by turning a ring around the finder. On the multifinders, the whole vf would move up and down but on the SHOOC, just the framelines move.

If you get a T for the 135mm, don't waste your time with multifinders like me. I'm glad that you already have the SHOOC finder. Still you have to remember to compensate for parallax. I still sometimes forget.

I'm not sure how you would take to the rf in the T. It's pretty squinty. I don't uses glasses but most glass-wearers that tried out my camera didn't like it too much. With the 1.5x magnification, I find that the rf more or less approximates the view of a 200mm lens than a 135mm.

The Bessa-T is a great little camera and I found it to be an ideal companion for my 0.72x MP. Great value for the money too.

 

[pvdhaar]

The great thing about the T is that you can choose the finder to match your taste (although you may have to look around to find the one you're after). I've got a zoom finder that magnifies and masks, giving an almost SLR like impression, but if your tastes are different, you may favour a fixed 135 finder with floating framelines.

Using the T's RF as an approximation of the frame is iffy at best. You have to move your eye around to see a demarcation of the edges, but even then they're not well defined. I guess that's why some people consider the RF to have a 135mm Field Of View, others a 200 FOV, and still others again a 300mm FOV..

 

[mike goldberg]

Glad to discover this thread!
I'm just getting used to my new T, and like it a lot.
I'm wondering if anyone has experience in using
the FSU turret VF on a T?
Thanks, mike

 

[Nando]

I had a FSU turret finder but I sold it when I got the TEWE finder. I found that it was rather too bulky and a bit too tall. I also wanted something for my 75mm Heliar and the closest setting it had was 85mm. It had a 28mm setting that my VIOOH and TEWE doesn't have but I don't have a 28mm rf lens (yet). The Russian turret finder was also a great conversation piece. I must say that I found the view from the Russian turret finder to be great. It was an improvement over the VIOOH's view that crops down as the focal length gets longer. Although a variable vf is more economical and maybe more practical, I still prefer dedicated finders for each focal length. I like the big bright view and it also suits my shooting style as I don't normally carry extra lenses with me.