Earth Camera

[Poptart]

If you could design a camera to meet all your photographic needs, what would the design be like? What features would it include or exclude? (Post a drawing if you like.)

 

[hoot]

My eyes would be the lenses, and my brain the recording medium. Wait, I already have a camera like that. All that needs to be invented is a way to transfer the image to other media.

 

[wlewisiii]

Well, I can't say it would meet all my needs, but I've often dreamed of a modern 6x6 folder. Built to top of the line specs with lot's of brass and steel, kevlar reinforced real leather bellows, TTL metering, possibly AE and a bayonette mount lens board. The lenses would have to have the shutter in them (leaf, probably top of 1/500th, 1/1000 with full sync would be nice) and linkage to the RF from the helical. A range of 35, 50, 80, 110, 150, 240 at f/2.0 would be nice. Plus a 75/2.8 T* Tessar designed such that it could fold with it mounted... 😀 And heck, as long as we're dreaming how about a 50 - 150/f2.8 zoom as well? Motorized film handling like the Fuji GA645Zi would be nice, but with a manual wind on lever that folds away if you'd rather let the moter do the job. It would need to be able to function as a fully manual unmetered camera with a dead battery.

Then sell it for >$1000 with the 75mm lens...

William

 

[Poptart]

I'd want an SLR with a separate coupled RFDR focusing window for low-light situations. The viewfinders would show shutter speed, aperature, and a color-keyed over/under/correct exposure light--all in fiber optics. The metering would be a choice of matrix or spot, with a spot-metering averaging computer built in. The format would be changable between 24X36mm 35mm film, 24X24mm 35mm film, 1/2 frame 35mm film, and digital recording. The lens would be a compact, macro-focusing 20-200 zoom with a max aperature at 50mm of f1.4 and maxes of f2 at both the extremes. It would also have a built-in 2X multiplier and it would be a tilt/shift design lens but fully automatic with a built in retractable polarizer. The camera would have a silent shutter and motor advance. It would be the size and weight of a Leica CL and it would take 2 AA batteries for power. It would also have an accessory bounce flash/ringlight flash unit that would surround the front lens element. There would be an accessory superwide lens and an extreme mirror tele lens.

 

[dostacos]

I'd want an SLR with a separate coupled RFDR focusing window for low-light situations. The viewfinders would show shutter speed, aperature, and a color-keyed over/under/correct exposure light--all in fiber optics. The metering would be a choice of matrix or spot, with a spot-metering averaging computer built in. The format would be changable between 24X36mm 35mm film, 24X24mm 35mm film, 1/2 frame 35mm film, and digital recording. The lens would be a compact, macro-focusing 20-200 zoom with a max aperature at 50mm of f1.4 and maxes of f2 at both the extremes. It would also have a built-in 2X multiplier and it would be a tilt/shift design lens but fully automatic with a built in retractable polarizer. The camera would have a silent shutter and motor advance. It would be the size and weight of a Leica CL and it would take 2 AA batteries for power. It would also have an accessory bounce flash/ringlight flash unit that would surround the front lens element. There would be an accessory superwide lens and an extreme mirror tele lens.

what he said but with removable backs, so I can load color, B&W, DIGITAL......

 

[DougK]

Let's see, being completely honest about "need" vs. "want"... medium format (6x6) SLR, waist-level viewfinder, and a fast, fixed 80mm macro lens with a leaf shutter. That set-up would allow me to capture just about everything I care to point a camera at. I don't need interchangable backs (although they are nice), a meter (convenient but not mandatory), or interchangable lenses (I like wide-angles for RF photography but normals for everything else). I imagine this camera would look something like a baby Hassy or a TLR that had the top chopped off.

EDIT: Strike the leaf shutter... I almost never shoot with flash and with the mirror flapping around, noise wouldn't be a factor anyway.