Best fixed lens RF viewfinder?

[JB-Dancer]

I think the Voigtlander VITO III is one of the best fixed lens rangefinders.The finder and rangefinder spot make it very easy to get sharp focus.

 

[Sniper X]

I voted for the Yashica GSN well,

I voted for the Yashica GSN well,

Not only because I have three and love them, but the Minolta Hi Matic 9 wasn't on the list. Nor was the Petri 7s, which is a great lesser known FLR that does full manual, as does the Hi MAtic 9. Most of the others are all aperture or shutter priority arent they?

 

[randy stewart]

Best viewfinder

Best viewfinder

Konica IIIa has big bright clear amazing 1:1 viewfinder with parallax correction. I don't think that "Konica Hexar" in the listing means this particular Konica.

Along with its metered version, the IIIA has the brightest, clearest, 1:1 lifesize viewfinder ever installed in a rangefinder camera. The several lenses used are excellent for the time and pretty good now. It's a large, heavy beast, which can be used to seriously injure muggers without harm to the camera. The particular cameras listed in the poll are not even close.

 

[scottgee1]

It's a large, heavy beast, which can be used to seriously injure muggers without harm to the camera.

😀
That alone adds it to my GAS list.

Dante Stella wrote a useful article about the Konica III series:
http://www.dantestella.com/technical/koni3.html

 

[Jeremy Z]

Thinking outside the box a bit, don't rule out the Rollei 35 for a great viewfinder:

+/- No focus patch in the middle

+ If you're right eye dominant, your nose goes next to the camera and the camera nestles right into your eye socket

+ Nice & bright; visible frame lines with a bit outside

+ Great magnification

+ No need to have great vision to focus, since it is zone focus. Good judgment is more important than good vision

- Open apertures and close distances are challenging, but I've found that with 400 film, I'm usually shooting between f/8-16 outdoors, until dusk.

 

[Huss]

Thinking outside the box a bit, don't rule out the Rollei 35 for a great viewfinder..

Yes but it is not a rangefinder camera, and that is what this thread is about.
🙂

 

[Jeremy Z]

Yes but it is not a rangefinder camera, and that is what this thread is about.
🙂

That's true. However, I brought it up because if the idea is to have a great viewfinder, (for example for glasses-wearers) this one is world class. (and with the bonus of being in a compact package)

 

[NickTrop]

I dunno. Is it really fair to compare viewfinders of various decades old cameras at this point in time? Wouldn't their clarity be more sample specific than model specific? More dependent upon how they were stored, how they were used, and other factors rather than specific to a model or manufacturer?

 

[splitimageview]

The differences between models are still comparable, in terms of close focus ability, parallax correction (if any), what data is shown in the viewfinder, viewfinder magnification, fill-flash capability, etc.


it’s certainly a great idea to obtain a well-cared for example of the chosen model and then have it serviced by a pro, for the best experience. The cost of the camera and service is not much compared to the cost of a few rolls of film and development/scanning..

 

[jrose125]

The Canon Canonet QL17 GIII is the best fix lens rangefinder I've used, although I have not personally used the 35RC or 35RD.

As a few others have mentioned, The Hexar is quite different from every other camera on the list - all others are "compact rangefinders" which certainly has it's limitations. I have not used the Hexar but I can imagine it blows the others out of the water.

 

[muf]

I really like the viewfinder on my Vitomatic iia. Large bright 1:1. Also, the finder on my Hexar AF is beautiful. However, the clearest has to be my Bessa R. It is simply stunning. The rangefinder patch is ridiculously clear.

 

[Pál_K]

From that list, I have only these:

Olympus 35 RC
Olympus XA
Minolta 7sII
Canon QL17 GIII

and a Yashica Lynx 14E

I chose the Olympus 35RC because it shows both the selected shutter speed and aperture in the viewfinder. Things like that hypnotize and seduce me and maybe aren't that great for concentrating on the photo.

The QL17 GIII and 7sII are pretty sweet as well.

The Lynx's viewfinder shows the world with a blue-green cast; that is how the cat sees the world.

 

[Pál_K]

... I believe the "Other IIs" was created to solve the "Other II" RF flare problems.

The "SE" was available in lizard and orangutang.

Don't forget that the SE added a hot shoe and a ready indicator, but dropped the self-timer.