Can I use a VC 25 mm without viewfinder?

[fernandez_diez]

I would like to use a ZM with a 25 mm VC but I think the widest frameline is 28 mm.
I don,t have the viewfinder
I think that there i not problem but I prefer consult this question .
Regards

 

[Austerby]

Yes, of course, but it'll be easier with one. I often use my ZM 25mm on my 0.58 MP without the external viewfinder - just use the whole frame, as I also do when using a 35mm on my M3. You may well make some mistakes in your framing compared to using an external viewfinder but in most cases you'll be fine, particularly as you may crop photos anyway when printing. Just watch out for foreground objects and items at the edges of the frame.

 

[pvdhaar]

FWIW, the CV25 brightline finder has very conservative framelines. More like 28mm when compared to the built-in finder of the Hexar-RF.. So, it's not like you'll gain a whole lot more framing precision when going with an external CV25 brightline finder.

 

[kshapero]

I use my ZM 25mm w/o an external VF on my ZI. No problems and I wear glasses.

 

[back alley]

yes you can but be aware that there is more photo at the top & bottom of the frame than on the sides.

 

[fernandez_diez]

thank you very much for your views.

 

[Benjamin Marks]

I was going to add: point and shoot. The older version of the 25 was not RF coupled. So you would modify this to zone-focus, point and shoot.

 

[uhligfd]

If you were to shoot from the hip and were good at it: you would not need a viewfinder.

A viewfinder is only a crutch, but often I like it. And I feel a need for one to make just sure about the frame ... So get it if the finder you have is not right for you!

 

[lmd91343]

I just bought a Voigtlander 25 VF for my Canon 7 and my 25mm lens. Its widest built-in frame-lines are 35. It drives me nuts "guesstimating" from the 35 frame-lines or using my DIY VF based on a door viewer and a drafting tape mask.

 

[Tom A]

You can use the same trick with the ZI as I use with my M2's. If you put a piece black tape over the rangefinder illumination window (the "corrugated" glass next to the viewfinder) the frame lines dissappears and then by using all of the visible part of the viewfinder (out to the edges) you can approximate the 25 view without any confusing frame lines.
Shooting with rangefinder cameras is not an exact science anyway - the frame lines are only approximations as the angle changes depending on the focus distance.
On the M2's I frequently use the 28mm lenses that way. Works fine and in the ZI or M's it doesnt affect the focussing patch either. If your 25mm is a P mount and has couple focussing, you can still use it. The ZI has even wider view than the M2 so the 25 wo®ks fine. I often use the 25f2.8 ZM that way.