How do you use your rangefinder?

How do you use your rangefinder?

  • Family pics and everyday camera

    Votes: 407 58.4%

  • Professional work

    Votes: 77 11.0%

  • Landscape

    Votes: 247 35.4%

  • Street

    Votes: 432 62.0%

  • Don't use rangfinders at all

    Votes: 18 2.6%

  • Sports

    Votes: 15 2.2%
  • Total voters
    697
sjauch said:
I'm glad I read this. It's prompted me to ask what I've been wondering about.

Does anyone use a RF for moving/sports subjects? I cycle a lot and like taking photos during my rides. I've been happy with my iphone but have started carrying a point & shoot to use b&w film. Unfortunately the advance on it seems to be dying. Since there aren't any new p&s cameras I've been thinking about a RF to use, the Voigtlander R2M with a pancake lens.

Can anyone comment if this would be silly to attempt to shoot action type photos with a RF?

I haven't scanned negs yet but there are some ideas of the types of photos on my flickr: www.flickr.com/photos/ironsightimages

Thanks.
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Wow. Something I really know about. I shot bicycle and motor racing with an M3 for a long time.
Here's the trick: Shoot with both eyes open. With an M3 the frameline will be floating in your field of vision with the RF patch. Now action sports are NO PROBLEM. The world has a frame line and you can see everything that's going on.
But it only works with an M3 and its life size viewfinder. I know it isn't really one to one but it still works.
It will liberate you. Try it.
As for traveling:
Put a 50mm 2.8 Elmar on your M3 and slip a 90mm Elmar in your pocket next to it. If you have an iphone you have a light meter. The free app works really well and completely agrees with my Gossens. And off you go. I cycled with this very outfit for years. Ride to the races,shoot the races, ride home.
Stick with Leica for durability. In 40 years I've never had a problem with a Leica. Service them once in a while and they'll run forever.
Good luck. I envy you.
 
philcycles said:
Wow. Something I really know about. I shot bicycle and motor racing with an M3 for a long time.
Here's the trick: Shoot with both eyes open. With an M3 the frameline will be floating in your field of vision with the RF patch. Now action sports are NO PROBLEM. The world has a frame line and you can see everything that's going on.
But it only works with an M3 and its life size viewfinder. I know it isn't really one to one but it still works.
It will liberate you. Try it.
As for traveling:
Put a 50mm 2.8 Elmar on your M3 and slip a 90mm Elmar in your pocket next to it. If you have an iphone you have a light meter. The free app works really well and completely agrees with my Gossens. And off you go. I cycled with this very outfit for years. Ride to the races,shoot the races, ride home.
Stick with Leica for durability. In 40 years I've never had a problem with a Leica. Service them once in a while and they'll run forever.
Good luck. I envy you.
Click to expand...

Awesome!! Thanks for the input. I'm still leaning towards the Bessa R3M due to it being new, cheaper and not a collectors item. There's always the chance I'll drop the thing when riding. Also, with its 1:1 finder shooting both eyes open should be good too.

I was thinking a 40mm & 75mm.
 
I usually use a high latitude film and take a few meter readians of what the sun and shade look like, then basically zone focus and the whole thing becomes a point and shoot. It really stops me from missing that moment where I would otherwise have to stretch it out focussing and metering.
 
There are areas of photography where the rangefinder is inherently superior. "Street is obviously such. But I use both Rangefinder and SLR. Ideally each to its strength. But it largely gets down to which I have with me— as long as either can cover what I want.

Yesterday, I used a Nikkormat with 55mm F/2.8 Micro-Nikkor AND an S2 with 21mm. Color-Skopar, both loaded with Ektar 100. I used both cameras equally. And I forsee using that combination extensively this year.
 
John Cox said:
I usually use a high latitude film and take a few meter readians of what the sun and shade look like, then basically zone focus and the whole thing becomes a point and shoot. It really stops me from missing that moment where I would otherwise have to stretch it out focussing and metering.
Click to expand...
Strangely reminiscent of how one would use a Rollei 35S!
 
zeitoun said:
Strangely reminiscent of how one would use a Rollei 35S!
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I don't know. I don't know. When I had an XA, the time lost in focusing caused losing shots. Now I have a T3, that adore. But obviously AF isn't instantaneous. So I wonder if a Rollei 35S would be better at least in outdoor shots. I don't know. I don't know. I'm asking... Can you give me an answer? The lens would be the same (Sonnar 40 indtead of 35 and casually I consider 40mm the ideal focal lenght).
 
Not sure how this topic just reappeared after a couple of months.

If I voted, it probably should be that I don't use an RF now, but I always think that I might yet.

I have used a range of compact, fixed-lens RFs (Olympus 35RC, Vivitar 35ES, and Canonet GIII 17 QL) for travel and for living in other countries. I would say that I have used RFs more for documentation, albeit artistic documentation. They take up little space in the luggage or daypack, they are small and inconspicuous, and they are quick and easy to operate. I got sharp, consistently well exposed slides with these cameras. I think I would find a Leica rather bulky in comparison, however.

Now, I favor TLRs for medium format and old manual-focus SLRs for 135.

- Murray
 
I use my RFs for landscape, portrait, street and travel work, and they're usually my top pick for everyday cameras.
 
Come to think of it, travel photography includes landscape, portrait, street, and the rest!

If my only camera were the Canonet, I could still have a fulfilling experience in photography and I wouldn't feel all that limited.

- Murray
 
I've had a variety of 35mm rangefinders down the years from Zorki to Leica to Bessa and MF Mamiya 7 and Perkeo. However, there's always been something I haven't quite liked or been able to get on with.

My current rangefinders are Fuji XPro1 - nice little snapshooter and capable of great results and a recently acquired Fuji GW690 III which I inted using for street / travel shooting. The Fuji looks like a Fisher-Price "My First Camera" and, hopefully, will make people think it's a bit of a toy. From what I can gather, the lens is excellent and, combined with a 6x9 negative, should be capable of great results.
 
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