Hi-end classic SLR with a 40. Nearly unlimited budget. What are my options?

[nickthetasmaniac]

That LTM lens is beautiful... my friend Cal (Calzone on RFF) has one and it was very cool. I'm sure the Pentax version is a lot cheaper...and also more pancake-ish.

Both of these things are true 🙂

The LTM version sells for 2-3x the price of the K-mount (and is obviously much harder to find), and yes, the K is very close to being a true pancake (but not close enough to have horrible pancake ergonomics).

 

[p.giannakis]

Hi Svinao,

You state you are looking for a 40-45mm lens which i cannot recommend as i have not tried any. I can suggest things only based on my experience.

As others said already, the OM3 does not have aperture priority - the OM4 or the OM2 have. I have both of them and they are both fine. I like my OM2n a tiny bit more but the OM4 sees a lot of use too. Personaly, i think the OM4 is more handsome.

I have the Zuiko 35 f/2 but i am not a big fun of it. A bit large for zuiko and nothing exciting. It is a good lens but almost any other Zuiko i used is better. Here is a pic taken with the OM4 and the 35f/2

Personaly, the silvernose 50 f/1.4 is a fantastic lens for b&w, i use it with a lens hood as it tends to flare.

I think it is my favourite 50mm lens - it is not the sharpest (all my nikkon lenses are sharper i think) but i like how it rends the image. Here is a pic taken with the OM4 with the 50 f/1.4 at f2.

You said budget is not an issue but you don't have to pay a lot of money to get a vary reliable camera/good lens combination. This F90x and the 35 f/2 have cost me £170 in total.

Also for less than £100 you can get somethinkg like this. A Pentax ME with the Pentax-M 35 f/2.8 which is a tiny package for SLR.

Once you sort out the jumping exposure problem (any CLA will do that, it is just durt under the ASA dial) it will give you loads of years of good service. Obviously if you can find an LX, that will be even better. Here is a picture taken with the ME and the 35 f/2.8

Good luck with your quest.

 

[ediz7531]

Here's another vote for the Pentax M 40 f/2.8. Very underrated lens, sharp and contrasty. Pair it with an LX, or an MX (although the two photos below were taken with an ME body 🙂).

Bay Area, CA by EI, on Flickr

Joshua Tree, 5/18 by EI, on Flickr


I've owned the Voigtlander Ultron on a Nikon body. Was not impressed with the level of distortion. I guess it could be sample variation.

 

[E.M]

I've been using Nikon F series since '73 and stick with that, kept all my cameras. I want to have an new F6 in the future, because of the warranty and new electronics. Would be a killer combo with a D850 , one for color, the other black and white.

 

[E.M]

sorry I forgot you want a classic slr, in that case I'd prefer an F2 with DE-1 finder or an meterless F. But I just think an F6 is the highest
-end.

 

[splitimageview]

I've owned the Voigtlander Ultron on a Nikon body. Was not impressed with the level of distortion. I guess it could be sample variation.

Never really noticed distortion on mine, it does have a bit of barrel, but it's pretty minor and easy to correct.

 

[Huss]

Wanting a 40mm knocks out all the Leica SLR's but there you are...


If I was rich I'd get either the R5 and send it to Leica to restore to the original specification or else an R8 plus, of course, 3 or 4 lenses.


Regards, David

I have two R-Es (which are the R5 but only with Aperture and Manual modes) which work perfectly, nothing needed. Why would you send a camera to be restored if they work fine?
The ultimate is the R9 but as I pointed out before, and you reiterated, no 40mm lenses. I do love mine w/28, 50 and zooms. It really is the ultimate mf 35mm film SLR.

 

[splitimageview]

IF I were to dive into R, I'd get the 35-70 zoom and R5 (or R-E), or the 35 Summicron-R.

 

[raid]

Didn't Japan stop all international mail out?

 

[Deleted member 65559]

Didn't Japan stop all international mail out?

Only to countries which have stopped taking mail from Japan. There is a list.... Canada and the USA aren't on it.

 

[raid]

Only to countries which have stopped taking mail from Japan. There is a list.... Canada and the USA aren't on it.

Thanks. I did not this fact. So we can order stuff from Japan.

 

[Huss]

I've owned the Voigtlander Ultron on a Nikon body. Was not impressed with the level of distortion. I guess it could be sample variation.

Must be sample variation, mine is excellent.

 

[Huss]

Yeah the Pentax 40 2.8 is a superb lens. Here on my MX w/ Fuji C200:







Definitely high end in quality of images, but not in price.

 

[Huss]

 

[David Hughes]

I have two R-Es (which are the R5 but only with Aperture and Manual modes) which work perfectly, nothing needed. Why would you send a camera to be restored if they work fine?
The ultimate is the R9 but as I pointed out before, and you reiterated, no 40mm lenses. I do love mine w/28, 50 and zooms. It really is the ultimate mf 35mm film SLR.

Well, it (my R5) was working OK but then started eating batteries. I took it into Leica and they sent it and the lens to Germany for an estimate and the answer came to about UKP 860 and listed a lot of things I had never suspected for both the lens and the camera body. And they charged 45 pounds (nearly 70 US dollars then) for the estimate.

Nearly 300 pounds was asked for the lens to be sorted out. Here is a photo taken with it just before the camera and lens went to Leica.

So I figure that they need thoroughly checking first as what looks OK to me obviously isn't.


Regards, David

 

[rulnacco]

I'm a Nikon user (I've used four of their digital bodies, and I still have an F4 and two FEs). I agree with many of the posters above--if you decide to go Nikon, the FM3a is very likely the way to go. I've been wanting one for ages; I love the form factor of the FM/FE series, and the FM3a has the best feature set, including that it's hybrid between mechanical and electronic, and it's got the best focusing screen of the series (in fact, I've pimped out both of my FEs with FM3a screens).

I was riding my bike around shut down Orlando last evening shooting my black FE with the 35/F2.0 AIS Nikkor on it. An FM3a with an Ultron would be a really sweet combination, absolutlely. (And you could always add some of Nikon's legendary manual focus optics to the kit: the 28/2.0, the 105/2.5, the 180/2.8--I've got the autofocus version of that, but it works like a dream on the FE.)

 

[Ko.Fe.]

Question for remaining users, not collectors. If any...
I see Pentax, Olympus and Minolta cameras in this thread.
Are they still good for everyday use?
Or they are once in a while cameras now? How about service?

 

[CharlesDAMorgan]

My Pentax MX got returned with electrical drain, my Olympus OM2n has occasional issues with the meter sticking (but works perfectly with the off the film exposure) and I've not had a single issue with either my Minolta XD7 or X500, but the latter X series do have capacitor issues that are a simple fix (I am told).

If I had to choose another system to Nikon or Leica, I'd go late Minolta MF cameras, cheap and inexpensive lenses for the quality.

 

[Ccoppola82]

If I had to I could very easily make do with my spotmatic F and the 28 3.5, 35 3.5 (Tiny and sharp) and the 50 1.4 Takumars. I just prefer the framing from the rangefinders.

 

[David Hughes]

My Pentax MX got returned with electrical drain, my Olympus OM2n has occasional issues with the meter sticking (but works perfectly with the off the film exposure) and I've not had a single issue with either my Minolta XD7 or X500, but the latter X series do have capacitor issues that are a simple fix (I am told)...

Took one of mine in for repair and the technician sniffed it and said it wasn't the condenser. Rang the next day and said it was one of the older ones without the problem and was easily fixed. It was an X-300 from memory.



Regards, David