Epson RD-1 dilemma

[Manuel Patino]

Hi, I'm totally new to this forum. I shoot mainly with M43 cameras but a friend loves RFs and offered me his RD-1 to buy after he purchased a Leica M9.
I took a few shots with it and I am attracted to this camera. I like how it makes me compose and shoot, and I also like how the pictures come out. Funny thing, focus issues and all, the photos are strangely appealing. Not tack sharp or spectacular, but nice.
Anyway I am wondering if the $900 (includes a 50mm f3.5 Russian lens) he asks might be too much for such a camera given that I could buy something else that might be a smarter choice.
Any advise or comments? I am including some shots I took with it. I will confess that they are developed with Silver Efex Pro...

 

[PatrickCheung]

$900 is a fair price to me, given that the camera is in good condition! My girlfriend got hers for $1100 with three batteries and a memory card. Though that was a few years ago... don't know if they price has dropped/raised in the past years. There was one here for $850 not long ago.

You're not paying for image quality so much as an experience of using a digital rangefinder. If you have the money and are happy with your m43 set up, it'd be a nice toy to play with.

 

[Chris Bail]

$900 is a fair price to me, given that the camera is in good condition! My girlfriend got hers for $1100 with three batteries and a memory card. Though that was a few years ago... don't know if they price has dropped/raised in the past years. There was one here for $850 not long ago.

You're not paying for image quality so much as an experience of using a digital rangefinder. If you have the money and are happy with your m43 set up, it'd be a nice toy to play with.

The one for $850 is still available here. 😀

 

[Manuel Patino]

The one for $850 is still available here. 😀

Can you offer details please?

 

[porktaco]

they're suprisingly nice cameras if you can handle their limitations. the sensor is 6mp, thin by today's standards. it's kinda big. you have to cock the shutter. lacks certain framelines. aside from that, they're wonderful. you can shoot at 1600 with reasonable quality (well, reasonable for a couple years ago... today's night vision cameras are a whole new thing), they're quiet, the controls are great, the colors are fantastic. ergonomics are really good. i took a lot of good photos with mine.

 

[Chris Bail]

Can you offer details please?

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/pho...dr-d1-2c-leica-cl-2c-iiia-and-canon-ltm/cat/3

 

[Darthfeeble]

The one for $850 is pretty well used looking as I recall, you will see them all around $1000, give or take a couple hundred. I think for a decent, not exceptional condition camera $900 is fair. Prices seem to have held steady for the last several years.

 

[PatrickCheung]

Actually, my girlfriend's RD1 was in a similar condition and hers was (as stated before) $1100, and the screen is shakey to boot; it blacked out the day it arrived, bad connection in the swivel. It fixed it self and now we never rotate the screen. So IMO $850-900 is a good price!

I've wanted one for a while actually. I've been rather out of touch with my M8 lately. Alas, I have little spare money, and am looking to potentially venture into making a living off photography later on so I shall invest in the "latest and greatest" when that money becomes availible 🙁 (waiting on the Fuji X system to develop a bit more).

 

[Manuel Patino]

Well, the camera is in very good condition. Everything seems to work. The $900 includes 4 batteries (2 Epson & 2 another brand), 4 SD cards, the box is for a RD-1s, paperwork, charger, etc.
It also includes a good Industar 50f3.5 lens.

 

[Chris Bail]

In my biased opinion, that looks to be a fair price.

 

[Lss]

Sounds like a great price to me. They go for more than that without a lens around here.

 

[Scrambler]

The lens isn't worth very much - certainly $50 would be max (with postage from Russia).

$900 is a fair price - as has been said the usual price is just over $1000, sometimes more or less depending.

The real question is what VALUE it has for you. I have seriously considered the R-D1 and am constantly tempted. While I love the idea, and one day I may own one, it's far more money than the camera's practical value to me. Others would find the value reasonable, which is why the price remains so high.

But then, I'm approaching old fogeydom and am prepared to (on the one hand) develop film for my RFs and (on the other) make do with a non-RF APS-C short-flange camera at a much lower price.

 

[nk12]

Good price for a clean camera. I have been thinking about selling my R-D1s with the CV 40/1.4 lens for just a little over what you got. Mine does not look that clean.

The main different between the R-D1 and the R-D1s is that you can still get the R-D1s serviced/adjusted by the manufacture.

 

[le-alain]

Hope to see more pictures with your new RD1 soon 🙂

 

[Rob-F]

The "not tack sharp" part might just be the Russian lens. It's not a frequent complaint about the R-D1.

 

[RFH]

Silver92: Welcome to RFF.

The RD1 is a great camera, and the price you're offered is reasonable. The RD1 photo thread here on RFF convinced me to buy mine.
The lens has no real $ value, but it's fine for what it is. I have one that performs quite well.

As long as you don't need the camera for demanding pro clients, 6MP is plenty. After all, it yields an A4 print in 300 dpi. If needed, the files can be enlarged 200% without much loss in fine quality. Heck, I have printed 60x80 cm from it that looks very nice.

Of course you can get a lot of other nice modern cameras and more MP for the same $, but if you want a digital rangefinder, this is the cheapest choice.

Any unsharpness you see is due to the lens or shaky hands. With a good Leica M lens it continues to impress me. Even when I have an M9.
Do note that M-mount lenses to fit the body can be on the expensive side, so you need to factor that into the purchase. And there are no zoom RF lenses, so if you want different focal lengths, you need to buy several lenses.

Hope this helps.

 

[ray*j*gun]

I would ck M8 prices even if they are a bit more its a much better camera.

 

[Pablito]

Amazing the premium some folks are willing to pay for "the rangefinder experience."

A Nikon D70, also with 6MP, and similar or identical image quality (my subjective opinion only), can be had for about $125.

 

[f16sunshine]

Amazing the premium some folks are willing to pay for "the rangefinder experience."

A Nikon D70, also with 6MP, and similar or identical image quality (my subjective opinion only), can be had for about $125.

"Digital" Rangefinder experience mind you.
😉

 

[Lss]

Amazing the premium some folks are willing to pay for "the rangefinder experience."

If you don't have any preferences whatsoever, you can save a lot of money. Which you can then spend on more stuff and services you don't prefer. 😀 Consumerism, eh.

IIRC it is the Nikon D70 you mentioned that uses the same sensor as the R-D1. Therefore purely from image quality point of view, it could still be a usable camera for a lot of people. While there are some D70 users around, there are many more advanced DSLR options from Nikon and others that cost about the same or perhaps twice what the D70 now goes for (which is still not that much for many camera shoppers). The same is not true with rangefinders.

The lowest local price for a R-D1 I have seen is now 500€. I think that will buy you a current entry-level DSLR with a kit zoom, if you like those better.