Best Rangefinder

DCB

DCB

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First post and I know you all are like...."not this topic again"...but mine is a little different.

What is the best rangefinder film camera for the money?

I have never really used one, except a Konica Rapid Omega 200...what a camera.

Not sure if I would want interchangeable lenses, but it may be nice.

Within the last 2 weeks I have acquired 3 film cameras...love the smell of film.

Thanks for your advice.

Peace
 
Welcome to the forum DCB. Not to be rude, but how is your question different than the usual ?
Do your research, ask some more specific questions
 
I have done research. Just looking for opinions.

I did not ask what the best was.... but best for he money.

Thanks

Peace
 
For me, the best rangefinder for my money is the Zeiss ZI.

Why? Because it's what I already own.
 
Best for who's money ? my means may be different than yours
Do you have a budget ? what are you looking for in a camera ?
 
Leica M6: It has a meter & six framelines from 28mm to 135mm. They are plentiful. They will take Leica, Zeiss, & Voigtlander lenses. With an adapter they will take screw mount lenses.
 
Best bang for the buck is probably not Leica, whether new or old, and I used Leica Ms exclusively for the better part of two decades. There's a lot of old rangefinders out there from Canon and Zeiss, that probably need service (like old Leicas too), but cost peanuts when compared to Leica, and also take really good pictures.

The best value in a modern lens is probably a Voigtlander.
 
Out of all the rangefinders that I have bought, I would say my Canon IVF with Serenar 50/1.8 has the best bang for the buck. But only because I lucked into it for $60. Don't depend on luck like that. If you want my opinion on what are the best budget rangefinders, I would have to go with the Olympus fixed-lens compacts, including the XA and the various models in the Olympus 35 line, they have great build quality and superior engineering. Yashicas can be good buys, if you get a good working example, but they can be finicky, especially the Electro 35 line.
 
digital, epson rd1, can be less than $1000
film, leica iiic, full metal, ltm and a classic leica, can be less than $200
fix lens, yashica lynx 1000 or 14 or canonet, can be less than $50
tlr, yashica or autocord, can be less than $100
folder, mess ikonta uncoupled rf or ercona 6x9 with tessar, can be less than $200
what else..??
 
I have an M3 and an M6 on the way, but a while ago I picked a Canonnet for $30. It was the 1.9 version. The feel does not match my M3 but I was surprised by the photos I was able to take with it.
 
at this stage in 2013, i am quite skeptical of
all-in-one RFs, or RF's requiring batteries to function.
Simply because, right now, a lot of them have reached
the end of their lifecycle, i have had 2 Contax T,
3 Olympus XA, and one Olympus 35 RD die on me.
I would choose the M6 with interchangeable lens.
The M6 requires batteries but only for exposure reading.
Everything else is manual. If money is tight then, I would
consider a Leica IIIc or IIIf, they are around 200-ish and
probably need a cleaning too. Lens is a different issue,
a Russian Jupiter-8 works on the IIIc/f as well as on the
M6 with an adapter. The images are dreamy enough wide
open and sharp when stopped down. Best of all, they are cheap
to own.
 
Since the title of the post has the words "best rangefinder", I have to recommend the Konica IIIA.

The Konica IIIA (and IIIM) are incredible little cameras. The rangefinder is their best feature. First, it is huge and very bright. Second, it is life-size, so you can easily shoot with both eyes open. Third, not only does the viewfinder have parallax correction, the frame lines adjust in size according to the distance from the subject, not even Leica has been able to put this feature in any of their cameras.

As for the rest, the lens is excellent, the winding/cocking lever is out of the way of your eyes, and the shutter is more quiet than any focal plane shutter camera I have (and I think I have pretty much every type).

image-3.jpg
 
Best bang for the buck?

How handy are you?

Many older Japanese fixed lens, leaf shutter rangefinders can be very nice but need at least some service. If you can do this yourself your miles ahead. If you send it to a camera repair service, not so much.
 
Everyone's trying to give you an answer but most are falling into the obvious trap of bias. Everyone has their likes and dislikes and what they believe is important.

Best for the money still leaves the question of "how much money?". Even if it were possible to say that camera-X represents best value for money, it's no use recommending it if it's beyond your budget.

Do your homework, think about what features you need and what you'd like to have. What sort of photography do you like? What format? Film or digital? (from the OP it looks like it's film).

Finally, remember than if you are buying second-hand you need to research what reliability is likely to be and what service will be needed and at what cost.

The best for your money may well be very different from my choice. I'll throw in a suggestion (biased, of course) of a Kiev 4A that's been serviced or is known to work well. Not the widest selection of lenses (especially if you're drawn to very wide-angle lenses) but a good enough selection for what RFs are good at, at a bargain price and good optical quality. Not a huge investment for a starter either.

EDIT: The best RF for your money is the one that a) you can afford, b) has the features you want and need and c) you actually use and get satisfying results from.
 
I would start maybe with a nice Cananet QL-17. Or the Olympus RC. Both have excellent lenses.
.


DCB said:
First post and I know you all are like...."not this topic again"...but mine is a little different.

What is the best rangefinder film camera for the money?

I have never really used one, except a Konica Rapid Omega 200...what a camera.

Not sure if I would want interchangeable lenses, but it may be nice.

Within the last 2 weeks I have acquired 3 film cameras...love the smell of film.

Thanks for your advice.

Peace
Click to expand...
 
DCB said:
First post and I know you all are like...."not this topic again"...but mine is a little different.

What is the best rangefinder film camera for the money?

I have never really used one, except a Konica Rapid Omega 200...what a camera.

Not sure if I would want interchangeable lenses, but it may be nice.

Within the last 2 weeks I have acquired 3 film cameras...love the smell of film.

Thanks for your advice.

Peace
Click to expand...

Hello there,
For the money, I'd say a Bessa R2M, R2A, R3M, R3A, R4M, R4A. The differences between these cameras are merely that the number represents a set of frame lines, and the A or the M represents Automatic Exposure or Manual shutter. The manual shutter is good as it can work without batteries, and the AE means you can shoot in Aperture Priority.

http://www.cameraquest.com/voigtr2ar3a.htm

Sometimes you can get a Zeiss Ikon ZI in a good deal, they are more expensive than Bessas, but also probably a bit nicer built.

If you don't mind something a bit quirky, there is the rare Yasuhara, which is pretty cheap considering it's rarity.

There are medium format range finders too, so they are worth a look, Zeiss Super Ikonta III served me pretty well.
 
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