Best pocketable point and shoot

[Huss]

I have noticed that exposure management is more complicated with this Rollei (aka Fuji Klasse) but with some extra features - e.g. in AE or AP mode the slowest speed is 1/2, for slower (1s, 2s etc) the B must be enabled manually (but speeds can be programmed), when T2 manages it all automatically up to 1s and then it goes to auto B mode. I am not sure what is better. On the plus side, the fastest speed here is 1/1000 vs 1/500 in T2 (although only with small aperture, so it does not help much). T2 also has shutter speed information in the VF. The only real benefit vs T2 is size. I did not compare IQ yet. BUT. I only paid for my Rollei 200 EUR and it sells for at least twice as this on the market, so if I don't like it I'll trade it for a lot of film.

200 EUR changes things! T2 is now $700+, often over $1000.

 

[Huss]

Beautiful image Huss. Congratulations!

Thank you Pan!

 

[Jeremy Z]

Have owned Ricoh GR, Contax T, Olympus XA (original, 2 and 4), Rollei 35 and Yashica T4 and a Contax T2.
...
The rest all have flaws that make them much less useable to me. The Olympus lens has really bad flare and not great quality. The Yashica has a lens comparable to T2 but the controls are fiddly and reset themselves every time you switch it off which is annoying. It is lighter and water resistant. ...

A couple points in the Yashica. I hesitate to mention this, as they're already so expensive.

• The T4 was not water resistant, only the T4 Super/T5
• These are all old enough that water resistance will be questionable anyway, as it depends on the integrity of the gaskets, esp. those to the battery door and film door, which are more often used.
• The T4 / T4 Super / T5 will tell you via an LED in the finder will tell you it is going to use flash. You would almost never need to cancel it outdoors, for example.

I'm also looking for a pocketable film camera.

Previously had an Olympus MJU II which is outstanding, but it bothered me that it makes noises when I switch it on and it advances the film. Plus, you have to disable the flash before you shoot because the default mode is auto. I also didn't like that it spools the film leader into the cartridge when rewinding. Plus, every time you think about taking a picture, you have to turn it on, then a motor moves the lens, which is noisy and drains the battery -- even if you end up not taking a picture.

Many of these things are part & parcel to a point & shoot camera. It's what you have to be willing to deal with for full automation. I get your point, though. Every time I finish a roll in a P&S, I'm reminded that a few shots aren't going to come out the way I'd envisioned because of a lack of some override or manual control. Still, as someone said earlier in the thread, one can't directly compare something like a Rollei 35 to a Stylus / mju. The Rollei's got a better lens and full manual control, but is not fast, light and convenient the way a Stylus is. Heck, even the Yashicas with their Zeiss Tessar lenses don't seem to be the equal of the Tessar on the Rollei 35, in terms of across-the-frame sharpness.

The best pocketable film camera I have ever used was a Minox 35. Totally love it! There are several models, most of them outstanding, especially the later models with the multi-coated lens. Tiny camera and total stealth because it makes zero noise. Battery lasts forever. But the problem is reliability: I had to buy 10 of them (all advertised as "mint") until I found one that actually worked. Then I bought one that partially worked (light meter was hit & miss), but a few weeks later that one crapped out as well, another $100 down the drain.

I would say all that trouble and expense kind of removes Minox from the "best" list. 😉

Nabbed a Fuji DL-300 / Cardia Hite for $50. I'm pretty sure that's the cheapest 35mm f/2.8 point & shoot available these days.

Never heard of that camera until now, thanks for putting it on my radar! (along with the Ricoh FF-1 that Huss mentioned earlier)

I am happy with this Olympus Stylus 105

Super-compact + 38-105 is not going to give comparable image quality to any of these prime lensed compacts.

 

[AlwaysOnAuto]

I'll stick with my Canon SD1000's. Small as a pack of cards and does nice 720i video too, along with macro.

 

[Huss]

I'll stick with my Canon SD1000's. Small as a pack of cards and does nice 720i video too, along with macro.

I thought we were talking about film cameras?
If u include digital, my lowly iphone 8 is smaller than the Sd1000 and has better specs. As well as being a phone that I have with me all the time anyway.

 

[Jeremy Z]

I thought we were talking about film cameras?

Me too; this is the Point-N-Shoot 35mm Cameras forum.

As long as the tangent has started though, let me relate this little tale:

I had an SD600 Elph, and it was great. Small sensor, but a decent (if slow) lens. One time, I went to Poland and this was my ONLY camera. I brought an extra battery, a prong adapter for the charger and a Bogen table top tripod. Set the ISO to base (80) and I got some really good images. A little camera like that can be braced on just about anything. I used columns a lot. The Achilles Heel of those is the main power/mode switch. Eventually, they wear out, (without a ton of use) and it cripples the camera.

If u include digital, my lowly iphone 8 is smaller than the Sd1000 and has better specs. As well as being a phone that I have with me all the time anyway.

How's the zoom on your iPhone? Interchangeable media?

 

[Archiver]

I thought we were talking about film cameras?
If u include digital, my lowly iphone 8 is smaller than the Sd1000 and has better specs. As well as being a phone that I have with me all the time anyway.

Camera phones are a completely different story. My Samsung Note 8 takes better images (generally) than my veritable antique Canon S45 and S70 cameras from 2002 and 2004 respectively. Video capabilities are way better than anything in point and shoot cameras until about 2011 oe 2012. It has 25mm and 50mm lens equivalents. But a phone is always clunky to hold, exposure adjustment is wack, and the bigger the phone, the more conspicuous it becomes.

 

[Abbazz]

I thought we were talking about film cameras?
If u include digital, my lowly iphone 8 is smaller than the Sd1000 and has better specs. As well as being a phone that I have with me all the time anyway.

The large screen on the iPhone 8 doesn't fit with my idea of a point-and-shoot. Considering the way it operates, I see it more like an instant view camera.

I think the DxO One in standalone mode is the nearest thing to a digital point-and-shoot spray-and-pray camera.

Cheers!

Abbazz

 

[Jeremy Z]

Camera phones are a completely different story. My Samsung Note 8 takes better images (generally) than my veritable antique Canon S45 and S70 cameras from 2002 and 2004 respectively. Video capabilities are way better than anything in point and shoot cameras until about 2011 oe 2012. It has 25mm and 50mm lens equivalents. But a phone is always clunky to hold, exposure adjustment is wack, and the bigger the phone, the more conspicuous it becomes.

You make a lot of good points, but that bolded one... I would say that NO phone is considered conspicuous any more. When a fellow is holding the phone at belly level and looking at it, no one bats an eye. If s/he holds it up to see the screen, that's when it might start to become conspicuous.

 

[David Hughes]

You make a lot of good points, but that bolded one... I would say that NO phone is considered conspicuous any more. When a fellow is holding the phone at belly level and looking at it, no one bats an eye. If s/he holds it up to see the screen, that's when it might start to become conspicuous.

True; I was watching someone - ages ago - filming by switching it on and sticking the phone in his shirt pocket with the lens at the top and unobstructed.


Regards, David

 

[giganova]

Leica Mini / II / III and its equivalents, the Minolta Riva Mono / Pico and Panasonic C-625? Nobody has mentioned them but they seem to be tiny.

 

[Huss]

Nikon LightTouch AF600, Fuji C200

 

[ACullen]

I’ve used the XA,XA2 XA4, Rollei35s , Pentax Espio Mini and most recently a Contax T. Only the Pentax is a full P&S but the others (Rollei35s excluded) are close enough to the definition to count.

Of these the Contax T is undoubtedly the best. I don’t find the barn door a hinderance. The lens is cracking and certainly better wide open than the XA. I gave my XA2 to my 20 year old son and he loves it.

 

[analoged]

For me original Olympus Stylus, and Pentax Espio Mini, I can take either from my pocket, turn them on and take a shot with my right hand. Both lenses are great as well!

 

[nightfly]

XA lens is not in same league as Contax/Yashica/Ricoh.

It flare's and vignettes like mad. I've had the XA/XA2/XA4. They are probably the best design but worst imaging. That said if it works for you, it's super convenient.

 

[RObert Budding]

P&S camera prices have been crazy since hipsters started buying them. The good news is that they will likely never figure out purely mechanical cameras that lack light meters!

 

[Huss]

P&S camera prices have been crazy since hipsters started buying them.

Not true at all. You can get so many different P&S cameras for next to nothing.

The only ones that have gone crazy are from Contax, and maybe one or two other trendy at the moment models.

 

[Hari]

My Olympus Epic Stylist 35mm/2.8 was great for years.
But it's shutter quit and beyond repair. I went back to
a Leica II, the original p&s. The older XAs are nice.

 

[aizan]

Guess what? The Fuji DL-300 just bricked. Motorwind is totally dead.

That’s two bricks out of four. Not the best batting average. 🧱

🙄

 

[Jeremy Z]

Guess what? The Fuji DL-300 just bricked. Motorwind is totally dead.

That’s two bricks out of four. Not the best batting average. ��

🙄

Point & shoot cameras were not generally made to last decades. When they went plastic, electronic and motorized is when they started to decline, in my opinion.

For my part, I have a Nikon "One Touch" L35AF3 that is in excellent condition and returns great images.

I also have an Olympus mju, which works great, but the triplet lens isn't sharp at the corners. Some people actually LIKE this. Don't get me wrong, it's a LOT better than lomo, but won't compete with a 4-element lens.

I think part of the reason these are so popular is that they can rarely be repaired; they're so fiddly and not really made to be taken apart and re-assembled. Was this the period in time where products (esp. electronic ones) started to be so disposable?

A simple rangefinder, even if only equipped with auto exposure, is a better bet, in terms of reliability. On the other hand, I've found that rangefinders get inaccurate more than AF does.