Best fixed lens RF viewfinder?

Best fixed lens RF viewfinder?

  • Olympus 35SP

    Votes: 81 7.4%

  • Olympus 35RC

    Votes: 56 5.1%

  • Olympus 35RD

    Votes: 20 1.8%

  • Olympus XA

    Votes: 53 4.9%

  • Minolta 7s

    Votes: 30 2.8%

  • Minolta 7sII

    Votes: 40 3.7%

  • Canon QL17 GIII

    Votes: 206 18.9%

  • Konica Hexar fixed lens

    Votes: 201 18.5%

  • Konica S3

    Votes: 46 4.2%

  • Yashica GSN

    Votes: 162 14.9%

  • Other

    Votes: 193 17.7%
  • Total voters
    1,088
Petri Color 35

Petri Color 35

The distance scale in the viewfinder of the Petri Color 35 is
*much* easier to read than the average rangefinder patch.

Add to this match needle manual exposure set by controls
conveniently placed close together on the top deck, snazzy
retractable lens and truly pocketable size. It's a real winner!

Chris
 
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Best fixed lens RF viewfinder

Best fixed lens RF viewfinder

I can't attest to the validity of what has just been written about any but 2 of the aforementioned fixed lens RF cameras.
I used the Minolta hi-matic 7, the Canon ql 17 g111 and while the Canon has features I like. .. The best [for myself and many others] for brightness of VF, ease of focus as well as its uncanny accurate metering especially in very low light situations and quietness of shutter is the one camera that screams out by it's very ommission from this assessment and that's a pity. I can't imagine encountering brand snobbery from this august panel of photograhers. nooo.
 
Guess it was just a combimtion of the frustration of 7 hour computer crash, the late hour and my normal cranky disposition. I just read my reply and it was too barbed. My apologies to all.
Hmmmm now it's telling me tht my message is too short too post.
I may have to return when my all of my crankiness for the morning has been worked out in private. a few more cups of coffee will help.
geezer
 
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Actually gang my preference is the Yashica 35 gsn. I did like the minolta hi-matic size and weight. The rokkor lens is no slouch either. The Canon ql17 g111 is nice with a great little lens and fits easily into a vest pocket but it's too small for my hands. I do like its little peg that aids in focus..
However, the size, weight, amazing metering, the quick focus ability, the quiet shutter all bring me to the 35gsn. For a fixed lens RF it's my personal favorite.
I can be a scant 4 feet away from a scene in a cafe or an outside event [even at night] shoot and no one hears a thing...often that scene required a long exposure. It has never disappointed me yet.
All of the camera's listed are good cameras and each has it's following..mine just happens to be the gsn.
I do own a nikon fe that i'll never part with but, still and yet, i carry the gsn almoct everywhere I go.
 
The gsn is not ommitted from the list. It is right there, rightfully there.
I also like it very much. I had two but i sold one to a forum member - it's so reliable that i realized one is enough🙂
So...
Now you really confused me.
What ommission were you talking about??
 
Looking at the numbers, I bet more people have the Canonet GIII QL17 than any other. We can only really vote for the ones we've experienced, right?

From this list, I've got a GIII, an XA, and a Yashica GS. (w/o the N)

If you have both, you know that the viewfinder on the Yashica simply puts the Canon's to shame. Canon includes apertures, but they're hard to see half the time. They're both parallax-corrected.

Yes, the XA is amazingly good for being so small. But the bigger, older models are probably going to have the best viewfinders in general. (think 1960s) You have already discovered this with your Olympus SP vs. the RC.

The newer ones are more compact, but the older ones generally have faster lenses and bigger, better viewfinders. (not to mention better build quality)

In the 1970s, rangefinders had become the point & shoot equivalents of today, since SLRs were taking the world by storm as the serious cameras.
 
Jeremy,
That was an oversight on my part. All part of the 8 or 9 hour computer crash frustration and other sundried irritations, the early hour etc. Those are no excuse for the rudeness I displayed [for which I have apologised] After having made my comments I scrolled to the top, read the list and was duly chagrined.
Can I just put it off to advanced age?
geezer aka dennis
 
I'm with Stephen. Another vote for the Konica IIIM. And the 50/1.8 Hexanon ain't no slouch, either. Now if I could only find the half-frame mask.:bang:
 
Don't know if this is a valid comparison. The "best" viewfinder/rangefinder is on the camera that was serviced/cleaned. I have a bunch of these things (Lynx 14, Konica Auto S3, Yashica CC, GSN) and find them all fine in this regard. Of these, however, if I had to rate them, it seems the CC is the "best" followed closely by the Auto S3, the GSN, then the Lynx but have no trouble whatsoever with any of them, it's really splitting hairs.
 
Vivitar 35ES...
Sharp f/1.7 lens, beautiful black (enamel, laquer?) brass body, very satisfying viewfinder (at least, when cleaned up), And... Ive seen them sell as low as $20 in awesome condition. Though, would more realistically count on finding one for around $50.
Its everything I wanted from my leica CM; rangefinder focusing, manual film advance/quiet(er) operation, even faster lens-- and for 1/12th the price. Really, if it had full manual operation and slightly more sensitive metering, it would be the perfect/ultimate pocket cam. in my opinion.
 
This is a tough poll because it's doubtful that everyone has all these cameras - obviously, to compare and the "serviceability" of the VF probably has more to do with the condition of the camera than differences between the models.

First off, a cleaning goes a long, long, long, way. All my FLRFs have been professionally CLA'd . They are all just fine, the extent to which I really don't know why folks say its worth it spend the money on pricier cameras because the finders are brighter or easier to focus. I can focus any of these cameras in near darkness with very little effort. Bighter would be nice, I suppose, but it's really not an issue. If I had to rate the cameras I own, though:

Electro CC/Konica S3 tied for first
Electro GSN - very, very close second
Lynx 14e IC - third but bright enough/not a problem.
 
black_box said:
Vivitar 35ES...
Sharp f/1.7 lens, beautiful black (enamel, laquer?) brass body, very satisfying viewfinder (at least, when cleaned up), And... Ive seen them sell as low as $20 in awesome condition. Though, would more realistically count on finding one for around $50.
Its everything I wanted from my leica CM; rangefinder focusing, manual film advance/quiet(er) operation, even faster lens-- and for 1/12th the price. Really, if it had full manual operation and slightly more sensitive metering, it would be the perfect/ultimate pocket cam. in my opinion.
Click to expand...

Black box - spot on. The 35ES is excellent - especially the lens. I have wondered about the metering. The vf needle sometimes seems slow, but the exposures are good.
 
I have a lot of these cameras and find the Minolta Hi-matic 7s, Olympus SPn and Konica Auto S and Auto S2 all have great viewfinders. But suprisingly the clearest and best viewfinder I have is a Petri Racer. Super clear and bright, strong rangefinder patch, good space around the framelines (great for those of us who wear glasses) but alas no parallax compensation. 😀 It takes great photos too!
 
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