Homima
Newbie
Cheap and easy: Close-Ups with Mamiya M7 Rangefinder Camera
For many years, I own a Mamiya 7 rangefinder camera with 43, 65 and 150 mm lenses. I use this camera for traveling, hiking, mountineering.
The lightweight construction and the sharpness of the pictures are stunning. Several years I was used to carry a Linhof 5x7" field camera, which is heavy and bulky. But the M7 is the best camera I ever owned (for my personal opinion, and I owned a lot of cameras, but sold them almost all).
For my point of view, the M7 has two big disadvantages: longest focal lens is 150mm (210mm is available but usesless, due to no focusing possibility) and no close-up (until now). The close-up kit of Mamiya is usesless for me: I dont want to buy a 80mm lens, the focussing frame will chase any animals, the magnification is poor and the price is ...
But, the solution is surprisingly cheap and easy.
Keep in mind: a rangefinder camera is a rangefinder camera is a rangefinder camera! Focusing will never be as easy as with SLR cameras or with ground glass.
My solution with amazingly results is: close-up lenses and a tool, your grandfather already had used: a contameter. I purchased two close-up lenses: Canon 500D (2-Diopter, focal distance: 50cm, 130Euro) and Nikon 6T (2.9 Diopter, focal distance 32 cm, 70Euro), both are achromatic lenses, but very cheap and a contameter (10Euro at ebay). Important: dont try to use non-achromatic close-up-lenses, the results will be very poor.
The highest magnification with diopter lenses is reached in combination with long focal lenses, i.e. 150mm of Mamiya.
A contameter (originally sold with Contax-Cameras, but were also produced by Zeiss Ikon and Kodak) is a rangefinder system. The unit, mounted on the hot-shoe of the camera, is shifting up and down when the distance is changed. To use such a contameter with Mamiya M7 (or other RF-cameras) you have to calibrate the system with following steps:
Mount closeup-lens on 150mm lens. Put a ground-glass on where usually the film is. Open shutter. Twist focus ring of the lens on shortest possible distance (i.e. 1.8m). Move the camera slowly towards an object until a sharp picture can be seen on the ground glass. Check with a good loupe! Then "focus" the contameter. Make a mark on the scale of the contameter. Then check the picture (upper, lower, left, right border) on the ground glass with the frame of the contameter. Mark the frame with tape.
Repeat calibration with other distances (1.8m, 4.0m and infinity is more then sufficient) if required.
To make a photo you have to proceed with following steps:
Focus lens on a calibrated distance (i.e. 1.8m or infinity). Also "focus" the contameter on the calibrated 1.8-(or infinity) mark. Then move camera slowly towards the object, while watching the rangefinder of the contamter. If the two cut-view pictures in the contameter are congruent, you have reached the correct position. Compose the picture with help of the taped frame of the contameter. Use smallest possible aperture. Shoot.
The only tricky thing is the calibration. The rest is easy-going.
Some data (using 150mm lens with Canon 500D:
The magnification is between 1:3.4 to 1:2.4
Focal distance is 500mm. Focused on infinity, object-width is 23.4 cm (landscape format).
Depth of field: 25mm at f32; 3mm at f4.5
For many years, I own a Mamiya 7 rangefinder camera with 43, 65 and 150 mm lenses. I use this camera for traveling, hiking, mountineering.
The lightweight construction and the sharpness of the pictures are stunning. Several years I was used to carry a Linhof 5x7" field camera, which is heavy and bulky. But the M7 is the best camera I ever owned (for my personal opinion, and I owned a lot of cameras, but sold them almost all).
For my point of view, the M7 has two big disadvantages: longest focal lens is 150mm (210mm is available but usesless, due to no focusing possibility) and no close-up (until now). The close-up kit of Mamiya is usesless for me: I dont want to buy a 80mm lens, the focussing frame will chase any animals, the magnification is poor and the price is ...
But, the solution is surprisingly cheap and easy.
Keep in mind: a rangefinder camera is a rangefinder camera is a rangefinder camera! Focusing will never be as easy as with SLR cameras or with ground glass.
My solution with amazingly results is: close-up lenses and a tool, your grandfather already had used: a contameter. I purchased two close-up lenses: Canon 500D (2-Diopter, focal distance: 50cm, 130Euro) and Nikon 6T (2.9 Diopter, focal distance 32 cm, 70Euro), both are achromatic lenses, but very cheap and a contameter (10Euro at ebay). Important: dont try to use non-achromatic close-up-lenses, the results will be very poor.
The highest magnification with diopter lenses is reached in combination with long focal lenses, i.e. 150mm of Mamiya.
A contameter (originally sold with Contax-Cameras, but were also produced by Zeiss Ikon and Kodak) is a rangefinder system. The unit, mounted on the hot-shoe of the camera, is shifting up and down when the distance is changed. To use such a contameter with Mamiya M7 (or other RF-cameras) you have to calibrate the system with following steps:
Mount closeup-lens on 150mm lens. Put a ground-glass on where usually the film is. Open shutter. Twist focus ring of the lens on shortest possible distance (i.e. 1.8m). Move the camera slowly towards an object until a sharp picture can be seen on the ground glass. Check with a good loupe! Then "focus" the contameter. Make a mark on the scale of the contameter. Then check the picture (upper, lower, left, right border) on the ground glass with the frame of the contameter. Mark the frame with tape.
Repeat calibration with other distances (1.8m, 4.0m and infinity is more then sufficient) if required.
To make a photo you have to proceed with following steps:
Focus lens on a calibrated distance (i.e. 1.8m or infinity). Also "focus" the contameter on the calibrated 1.8-(or infinity) mark. Then move camera slowly towards the object, while watching the rangefinder of the contamter. If the two cut-view pictures in the contameter are congruent, you have reached the correct position. Compose the picture with help of the taped frame of the contameter. Use smallest possible aperture. Shoot.
The only tricky thing is the calibration. The rest is easy-going.
Some data (using 150mm lens with Canon 500D:
The magnification is between 1:3.4 to 1:2.4
Focal distance is 500mm. Focused on infinity, object-width is 23.4 cm (landscape format).
Depth of field: 25mm at f32; 3mm at f4.5
