Dedicated Lens & Camera

[Michael I.]

I have a friend who's idea of a photography walk is two bodies(nikon slr and rf or two nikons),3-4 lenses, diferent films,flash,tripod. He fumbles with filters and hoods and brushes A LOT. Once when we were going to take pics I made him leave everything except one body and a 35/2 lens. He still thanks me.

 

[FrankS]

The 2 cameras/2 lens system works for me. Instead of changing lenses between 35 and 50, I just pull that lens (with camera attached) out of my bag.

If it's a photography for sure kind of day, then a 90mm Elmar and CV25mm lens come along for the ride. There is not much that can't be photographed with this set up.

 

[grizzz]

For me the 25/L combo is great and that lens has never come off of that body. I have an R and 35/50/75 lenses. When I need the diffferent FL I have to switch them on this body but the 25/L combo is just great to walk aroung the city with.

 

[bmicklea]

I'm really wishing for a second body because like most on the thread I don't really want to change lenses very often. I think the most important thing for me has been trying to figure out what my "normal" focal length is. For most people it's either 35 or 50 and right now I'm leaning toward 35.

So in my normal walkaround kit I'll have either the 35 or the 21 mounted and the other in the bag with my 90 (which hasn't seen a ton of use yet). For me that covers it. It probably seems like a weird combination but like Barrett said it's all about how you see.

I only change lenses if I have to because I can't get the POV I'm looking for with the lens that's on the camera at the time or can't move around enough to make the shot work. Interestingly once I take the picture I'll often shoot the rest of the roll with the "new" lens. It is amazing what you can do with a little walking forward and backward.

 

[Ken Ford]

I still think a Ic or If with a RW and a C-V 25 would be a killer streetshooter!

 

[mtbbrian]

Even though I have three lenes, 25 f/4, 35 f2.5 and 75 f/2.5, my plan is to keep the 35 as the main lens and use the others as needed.
Film wise, I mainly use Tri-X but I do want to use some color too.
I have a few rolls of Fujichrome and Kodak Portra that I want to see how the CV lenes work with color.
Brian

 

[ClaremontPhoto]

Normal for me seems to be 40mm and I've got cameras with this lens. What I need/want next is about 21mm or 25mm with a camera to suit. I guess that means a Voigtlander R4.

 

[Roma]

R3A with a 40mm Nokton here.
So far this is it after shooting mostly SLR with primes. I'm just not sure I'll be able to resist the upcoming R4 with something wide, but maybe I will. I do like how simple my life is now though.

 

[mike goldberg]

Hello again,

Change begins with a shift in consciousness. In RF, it just may be that less is more. What then, will my gear list look like, and how will I carry it?
Wait a minute... there is no list!

I passed through the Souk again today. The Bessa T was around my neck with the CV 25/4. I went in with the attitude, "I am going to finish this roll with the 25/4.” The 35/2.8 was nestled comfortably in the small, grey padded bag slung over my back.

A 2nd body, the Bessa R or M2 will have a 50 on it. That's it. In the 'old days,' it would have been 2 Nikons and 4-5 primes. Last year, time and again, I carried the Elmarit 90/2.8, and did NOT use it in the alleys & streets of Jerusalem.

How would I integrate the CV 75/2.5 Heliar into my two bodies package? I don't know yet. I saw a picture of a guy's cat here in RFF. With a nice bokeh from the cats back, over to the left side of the frame... the cat's head and face on the lower right, were so sharp, you could count the hairs!

Form follows function, and I feel good things happening.
Cheers, mike

 

[maddoc]

one camera ...

one camera ...

... one lens .... Everytime, I go out with a small camera bag and two bodies, two lens, I find myself more thinking about the "best" camera / lens combination than about photography. So for me the "less is more" solution works best. One camera, one lens some rolls of films (M6) or only R-D1s and one lens. The only exception is the very convenient Leica lens-holder, which carries a second lens mounted to the bottom of the Leica.

Since I only recently entered the rangefinder world, I bought lots of stuff that might be interesting and experimented a lot. Sure it's fun but I found out what suits my style best and that is avoiding to many things. So I will replace the Biogon 25mm with a 28mm f/2.0 (no need for a external viewfinder and I want the extra stop), sell the CV 35mm f/2.5 P II (since I received the Summilux 35mm) and search for a 50mm 'lux (which will replace the Nokton 1.5) . This three lens / two body setup should fit into my bag for traveling and for the daily use I keep the one lens / one body solution.

Reagards,

Gabor

 

[jamxo]

At the moment I'm shooting with a R2a and 35mm Ultron 1.7 all the time. I have a Jupiter - 8 but it just sits on my desk. Eventually im considering buying one of the little 35mm pancakes, to have on the camera 24/7 (making it far more light and compact) and then busting out the Ultron when I need the speed. Does that sound crazy?

 

[Mr Ho]

This thread reminds me of a photo I was admiring today of Larry Burrows - a famous photojournalist for Life magazine during the Vietnam war - that hangs in the Foreign Correspondents' Club in Hong Kong. Burrows died in Laos in 1971. The photo is of him, obviously in the thick of things unpleasant on the battlefield, with no less than 5 Leicas hanging around his neck, each one with a different focal length lens attached. I guess when the bullets are flying, there's no time to switch lenses or load film lest a "killer" image be lost. Google him and you'll see some of his famous works.

 

[Way]

This thread reminds me of a photo I was admiring today of Larry Burrows - a famous photojournalist for Life magazine during the Vietnam war - that hangs in the Foreign Correspondents' Club in Hong Kong. Burrows died in Laos in 1971. The photo is of him, obviously in the thick of things unpleasant on the battlefield, with no less than 5 Leicas hanging around his neck, each one with a different focal length lens attached. I guess when the bullets are flying, there's no time to switch lenses or load film lest a "killer" image be lost. Google him and you'll see some of his famous works.

Thanks so much for the info on Larry Burrows. I am currently reading up on Robert Capa and am amazed at the dedication and courage of these wartime photo journalists.

Here is a something I found while Googling Larry Burrow's name. This article was about his last assignment in 1971 when his helicopter was shot down and he was killed:

"Among items found by a U.S. MIA search team that excavated the Laos crash site in March 1998, 27 years after the fact, were several pieces of 35-millimeter film, various lenses and the battered remnant of a Leica M3 - the only artifact with a serial number that could be traced.

Company records showed it was bought in London on July 8, 1960. The purchaser was not listed, but Larry Burrows was the only one of the four who was in London at that time.

Leica officials believe, as do we, that it is one of the cameras seen in many photographs of Burrows himself. It is the nearest thing to proof of identity that was found at the crash site."

The complete article is here: http://www.digitaljournalist.org/issue0302/rpyle.html

 

[Mr Ho]

You're welcome, Way.

Wow! What a posting. The website gave me goose-pimples (or chicken-flesh, as the Chinese say).

I reckon that most of us are weekend warriors armed with our RFers, but looking at that photo of Burrows made me think how tough, courageous and determined he must have been to capture his images. On the same wall at the FCC are portraits and photos by three other photojournalists, including Capa. Of course, being in HK, the subject matter tends to revolve around Vietnam, which was abundant in harrowing images.

The fact that only film, lens scraps and the remnants of a Leica 3 remained is amazing, along with the trace back to the UK. Totally Sherlock-Holmesian!

 

[glynjones]

I'm a fairly recent covert to RF's - the impulse buy of an R3A being one of the best things I've ever done

I find that I'm using my 50mm most of the time - and this is the default lens on the camera when I go out.

One of the great things though about rangefinders is the small lenses - so its no trouble at all to chuck them in a bag. I carry all five of mine around in a lowepro orion trekker - the whole outfit sits nicely in the bottom, leaving me room for other bits and bobs in the rest. Its not particularly heavy either

So although I'm rarely wanting to swap lenses, when I find myself in a situation where I need one, they're always to hand

I'm also amazed at how much more I enjoy using this set up, and particularly the lack of a zoom. On my SLR I was always zooming in and out, with my feet stuck to the floor - now I just walk around a bit - so much better

 

[iml]

Normal for me seems to be 40mm and I've got cameras with this lens.

50mm has been my normal lens for years, with an occasional switch to 35mm, but recently I've been using an Olympus 35RC and the 42mm FOV seems just about right for everything apart from the occasional super-wide shot (for which I have a CV 21), so a CV 40/1.4 may well end up as my standard lens I think.

Ian

 

[didotcicero]

Bessa R and 35/2.5 Color Skopar most of the time and 50/1.5 Nokton when there's less light.

 

[ruben]

In the same way you can loose valuable shots for being troubled with which camera or which lens make them, you can loose them by not having the necessary focal length lens. You loose shots when you are sleeping, you loose shots every day and for a lot of reasons, we have to conciliate ourselves with this fact.

For a street photographer there is no much need of several lenses. For a news photographer, not to speak about a war photographer, there is.

A street photographer cannot sport around plenty of gear, otherwise all people around would be running away to the other side of the road. On the other hand a war photographer sporting a sigle rf camera and a single lens, most of the chance are he will be shot by mistake. True, the other way around is true no less: war photographers sometimes are shot on purpose, their gear helping to localize them.

Since Mike nor any of us has to come back to the editorial board with The Picture of the Day, we all can do whatever we like, enjoying the main rule of life and photography, that there are not fixed rules in either case. My two cents is that if you want to roam around with two bodies, better they be exactly the same type and then you won't feel any confusion at all.

On the other hand all the votes in favour of the single lens make me happy for having bought fixed lens rangefinders, alongside system ones. Lately I too tend towards the single lens approach, although no one camera. But that's just because I am after street pics. Why two cameras alike ? For wider ISO coverage.

Cheers,
Ruben

 

[mike goldberg]

Hi All,

Ruben and I have chatted around this one a lot.
It has taken me the 10 months I've been active in RFF, to revise my thinking.
And here is the first step in acquiring new habits:
What old thought forms are bouncing around in my head.
Remember, that I came from the world of PJ before auto-focus.
So, then it was 2 Nikons, 4-5 lenses, a flash, etc., etc.

Yes, it's taken several months to become a 'happy camper' with RF.
If my M2 is sitting on the shelf... why buy a Bessa? To use Rubens words,
"RF is now my main shooter." I'm pleased to say, the equation, so to speak is NOT fixed.

These days, I'm carrying the Bessa T, Leitz 35/2.8 with Superior 200, and the Olympus 35 RC with Kodak 400 C41. And as time goes on, there may be changes. For example the J8 53/2 is so good... why not just go out with the Kiev 4a and the one lens, once in a while?

Well, spring has sprung [in Israel, at least], and the process of Discovery is delightful 😉
Cheers, mike

 

[Bryan Lee]

You're welcome, Way.

Wow! What a posting. The website gave me goose-pimples (or chicken-flesh, as the Chinese say).

I reckon that most of us are weekend warriors armed with our RFers, but looking at that photo of Burrows made me think how tough, courageous and determined he must have been to capture his images. On the same wall at the FCC are portraits and photos by three other photojournalists, including Capa. Of course, being in HK, the subject matter tends to revolve around Vietnam, which was abundant in harrowing images.

The fact that only film, lens scraps and the remnants of a Leica 3 remained is amazing, along with the trace back to the UK. Totally Sherlock-Holmesian!

See if you can find a copy of the book "Lost over Laos" , you will not put it down or loan it out. I consider it the most hardcore photography story ever written into a book.

There is also the seperate story of Dana Stone and Sean Flynn, Dana's brother would survive Vietnam only to be killed as a nurse in Afganistan and in the end became a even stranger story than Danas and Seans capture and executions in Cambodia.