Desirable Rangefinder's

T

TimeShot

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Lets develop a list of 35mm and Medium format rangefinder cameras. A list of the 'Have to own models' or 'what most people would like to own'.
Please don't list a cameras that would be virtually impossible to own.

I'll start by listing the Yashica 35CC. I've read several articles about the camera and it seems a desirable / prized camera. I own this and other Yashica's and actually prefer a different camera, but it sounds like the 35cc Electro is the camera most people would like to own.

What camera's would you place on the 'Desirable Rangefinder' list?
 
1. Voigtlander Bessa II. Any lens. Oh someone, send me one with the APO Lanthar lens. :)

2. Rolleiflex 2.8F

3. Any Leica M, but:
- meterless: M4
- metered: M5
- digital: M9


.....Vick
 
What I'd really like is a nice clean Olympus Pen W. It is not really a rangerfinder but scale focusing viewfinder type camera. But, with a 25mm lens scale focusing is workable.
 
Medium Format:

Plaubel Makina 67 (superb camera love it)
Voigtländer/Fuji Bessa 667 (Dual Format and not that small but great lens)

35mm:

Leica M5, M2 & M3 (Love the Viewfinder of those three, the M3 is the classic that started modern RF photography)

Zeiss Contax II (My favourite rangefinder super quiet shutter, Leicas are louder, super long rangefinder base and superb lenses what's not to like)

Dominik
 
I'm surprised that someone has not taken you to task about the apostrophe (not needed when pluralizing) in your title. So, let me be the first!

Medium format:

Any of the Zeiss Super Ikontas (I've tried A, B, C - all very nice). The BX has a selenium meter built in. Henry Scherer has replacement selenium cells, and put a new one into mine. That makes it the fastest to shoot with out of the A, B, C. The IV also has a meter, but I have no experience with it.

35mm meterless:

Aires III or IIIL. These have a sharp 6-element double Gauss 45mm f/1.9 lens with rangefinder coupling to 20 inches. Mine is accurate at 20 inches even wide open. Really remarkable. You can pick these up for about $20, but they usually need service after decades of neglect.

Leica IIF - light, no frills, has flash synch

Leica IIIG - the last of the breed, with parallax compensating lines for 50/90mm

Metered:

Zeiss Contessa - tiny, very pocketable. Nice Tessar lens 45mm f/2.8. It has a tiny selenium meter built in. Henry Scherer still has replacement selenium cells, and put a new one into mine.

Leica M7 - only auto-exposure film M Leica ever made. Thus, the fastest to shoot with out of all of them.
 
Robert Lai said:
I'm surprised that someone has not taken you to task about the apostrophe (not needed when pluralizing) in your title. So, let me be the first!

Medium format:

Any of the Zeiss Super Ikontas (I've tried A, B, C - all very nice). The BX has a selenium meter built in. Henry Scherer has replacement selenium cells, and put a new one into mine. That makes it the fastest to shoot with out of the A, B, C. The IV also has a meter, but I have no experience with it.

35mm meterless:

Aires III or IIIL. These have a sharp 6-element double Gauss 45mm f/1.9 lens with rangefinder coupling to 20 inches. Mine is accurate at 20 inches even wide open. Really remarkable. You can pick these up for about $20, but they usually need service after decades of neglect.

Leica IIF - light, no frills, has flash synch

Leica IIIG - the last of the breed, with parallax compensating lines for 50/90mm

Metered:

Zeiss Contessa - tiny, very pocketable. Nice Tessar lens 45mm f/2.8. It has a tiny selenium meter built in. Henry Scherer still has replacement selenium cells, and put a new one into mine.

Leica M7 - only auto-exposure film M Leica ever made. Thus, the fastest to shoot with out of all of them.
Click to expand...

... should there not be a conjunction between the B and C in that Ikonta's' list?
 
A Fuji GSW690III. If I could find a 6x9 projector and afford a Coolscan 9000, I'd shoot nothing but Provia in 6x9 for the rest of my life. Maybe a GW690III for when the GSW690III is too wide. But aside from that, that's it.

Until then, I'll be using my M6, G mount lenses converted and Provia in 35mm scanning on my Coolscan 4000.
 
Xpan II with all three lenses, and the soon(hopefully) Plustec 120 medium format scanner to be launched.

Would that not be wonderful ?


Eugene
 
Olympus 35-S II the 4.2cm 1.8 version (Have)
Olympus 35 SP (Have)
Nikon SP Black (In my wildest dreams)
Canon P
 
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