Does this camera exist?

How about the Rollei 35b? Pretty common, small, cheap, high quality, and fully manual. It's got a selenium meter that is easy to ignore.
 
SimonSawSunlight said:
aren't there full frame robots? or are they all big mean monsters?

what about folders?
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No, the Robot Royal 36 is about the size as a EP-1 with a 20mm lens attached. the body will be a little deeper though...Take a Leica III and squash the sides in by an inch and add a little height.
I wish I still had mine from the 80's a great performer and built like a tank.

Robot Royal 36, yes, it has RF...But a compact 35 anyway built to high standards...
the Rollie 35 series is the winner for modern compact 35.

3611372887_52704418bb.jpg


LeicaIII-chrome.jpg
 
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FrankS said:
Just a regular screw mount Leica would work. There was one in RF classifieds for $135 but I doubt it is still available.
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Thanks... In that case I'd prefer to use one of my Bessas T... Less weight and fast loading are good reasons... Even my Bessa R4M weighs the same as a Leica III... And even if they're not big, Leicas (lots of shining knobs) make people look at them... Apart, the O and old, previous black ones are slower in general use... I think the camera I want just wasn't made: XA size and weight without AE, but the Rolleis are close... That's my only option...

Thanks!

Cheers,

Juan
 
I had a thought - if goal is to attract less attention, size does not matters. I believe vintage or beat up looking cameras are what people tend to dislook, like - what you can expect from that, oh poor man, he can't afford consumer DSLR. Same idea as with vintage cars - most of people are open to chat with a driver of old Beetle, while new BMW SUV is just another vehicle on street, one from many.
 
btgc said:
I had a thought - if goal is to attract less attention, size does not matters. I believe vintage or beat up looking cameras are what people tend to dislook, like - what you can expect from that, oh poor man, he can't afford consumer DSLR. Same idea as with vintage cars - most of people are open to chat with a driver of old Beetle, while new BMW SUV is just another vehicle on street, one from many.
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I'll drink to that!

Right now, Chilean Pisco.

Cheers,

R.
 
Guys,

I'm a bit amused here, didn't anybody think of Head Bartenders Bessa L?

Just leave the batteries for the lightmeter out, mount any LTM lens you like and shoot from B to 1/2000th to cover almost any aperture. Swing open back.

Happy shooting, Juan!
 
Rollei 35 B or C are good choices, but keep in mind these are just about impossible to use with one hand. Speeds are limited (B and 1/30 to 1/500).

Try out a Minox 35. Yes, it's aperture-priority but most models have a 2x switch and you can play with the ASA dial. Also, there's the Minox 35 photographer's oldest trick: Put the accessory shoe cover in the wrong way around. Camera thinks it's a flash and stays at the fixed flash sync speed of 1/125.

I love those folding Vitos, Solinettes, Contessas, Retinas... but their tiny viewfinders are probably going to drive you nuts, coming from a modern camera.
 
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The Petri Color 35 is very nice - check it out at Cameraquest.
Leave the battery out to disable the meter if you must...

Chris
 
batterytypehah! said:
I love those folding Vitos, Solinettes, Contessas, Retinas... but their tiny viewfinders are probably going to drive you nuts, coming from a modern camera.
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I just bought a Vito II. Sounds like it fits the OP's needs -- only f3.5 though. Having played with an original XA belonging to a friend, I'd say the viewfinders are about as bad. The Vito II viewfinder is small, but beautiful and clear and bright. I found the XA's finder awful, in a funny position, and you might as well consider it scale focus as well, the rangefinder was less than useless, its presence just served to clutter the viewfinder along with the rest of the information they decided to cram inside the finder.

Of course, the Vito II weighs twice as much and is a thumb's-width wider or so. And while it slips into your pocket just as well as the XA (no protrusions, lens bundled up inside the case), it's a little more complicated to quickly fold the thing out and get it ready for use. No meter though... use 1600ISO or whatever you like.
 
btgc said:
I had a thought - if goal is to attract less attention, size does not matters. I believe vintage or beat up looking cameras are what people tend to dislook, like - what you can expect from that, oh poor man, he can't afford consumer DSLR. Same idea as with vintage cars - most of people are open to chat with a driver of old Beetle, while new BMW SUV is just another vehicle on street, one from many.
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You must be kidding! If I'm shooting in a dangerous place, and I don't want the criminals, prostitutes and junkies find out I'm shooting because I don't want to be robbed or killed, of course size is one of the things that matters the most!

I can't go there with my Hasselblad and my 4X5 and tripod... I need a very, very small camera, and a very easy to hide one... And black ones are better for that reason in those cases, and especially the ones that have no long lenses, but flat ones or near invisible ones, like the one on the XA...


Cheers,

Juan
 
CLE-RF said:
Guys,

I'm a bit amused here, didn't anybody think of Head Bartenders Bessa L?

Just leave the batteries for the lightmeter out, mount any LTM lens you like and shoot from B to 1/2000th to cover almost any aperture. Swing open back.

Happy shooting, Juan!
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You're right. By now the best option is the one I've been using: my Bessas with the flat 28.

Cheers,

Juan
 
xwhatsit said:
I just bought a Vito II. Sounds like it fits the OP's needs -- only f3.5 though. Having played with an original XA belonging to a friend, I'd say the viewfinders are about as bad. The Vito II viewfinder is small, but beautiful and clear and bright. I found the XA's finder awful, in a funny position, and you might as well consider it scale focus as well, the rangefinder was less than useless, its presence just served to clutter the viewfinder along with the rest of the information they decided to cram inside the finder.
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I have no experience with Oly XAs but both the Rollei and the Minox have very nice, uncluttered finders for their tiny size. Just no comparison to any of those vintage folders I mentioned. They don't even have brightlines.
 
Juan Valdenebro said:
You must be kidding! If I'm shooting in a dangerous place, and I don't want the criminals, prostitutes and junkies find out I'm shooting because I don't want to be robbed or killed, of course size is one of the things that matters the most!

I can't go there with my Hasselblad and my 4X5 and tripod... I need a very, very small camera, and a very easy to hide one... And black ones are better for that reason in those cases, and especially the ones that have no long lenses, but flat ones or near invisible ones, like the one on the XA...


Cheers,

Juan
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Actually, if what you are looking for is a small camera that it black and stealthy, there is none better in low light, even complete darkness than the original Konica Hexar, black with silent mode. It will focus faster than you can think, properly meter and take a photo before you know you even took the photo.
Just a bit bigger than a Rollei 35, but so, so amazing. These days, they are almost as cheap as the Rollei since both are cult cameras. $400USD will get you a good copy of either camera.

Phil Forrest
 
I know this doesn't fit the bill, but I just had to post it. :)

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I'm looking for the smallest/flattest 28/3.5 in LTM to pair with a Barnack for a preset pocket cam...with a Voigt 28/35 minifinder.
 
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batterytypehah! said:
I have no experience with Oly XAs but both the Rollei and the Minox have very nice, uncluttered finders for their tiny size. Just no comparison to any of those vintage folders I mentioned. They don't even have brightlines.
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I haven't tried those, I passed up a Rollei B35 for $15, that was silly. I know this forum loves the XA but I find it horrible to use in practice. For most people here all that matters is the end-result, but I get most of my kicks out of the process (does that make me some sort of impoverished budget newbie gearhead?) -- and shooting the XA feels like using a toy camera. No fun at all for me. Tiny little plastic focus lever thing with no feedback, awful finder, frustrating auto-exposure with batteries etc. Two rolls was enough for me, I gave it back to my friend.

Brightlines, big whoop, I quite like the finder on my friend's Leica IIIf for example. No worries about brightline flare or the brightlines disappearing entirely in low light; a `peephole' finder is crude but very effective. To avoid the above problems with brightlines, Yashica has put tinted glass on my Minister and Lynxes. Which means they're a bit dimmer than a `peephole'.
 
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