I absolutely love my ZI

[back alley]

it feels as solid.
it does not feel as heavy.
there is a difference in weight from the m3.

batterys are easy to find. i have spares in all my bags so i never have to worry about dead batteries.

joe

 

[triplefinger]

ZI Lenses

ZI Lenses

Just to get in my 2 cents... I have held the ZI and plan to buy one, it feels great. I did however bbuy the 50mm and the 35mm both are amazing! I have done tests against my summicron 50/2, elmar-m 50/2.8, elmar 50/3.5 and a couple russian 50s. the handing is great and the 35 against a summaron 3.5 and a jupiter 12 is no contest.

that said, I'm a big fan.

and yes, popflash is very good.

 

[arthury]

And, don't forget to leave us a pointer to all of your ZM images. Where are they? We'd like to savor them.

 

[grantray]

Mine are mixed in with some older AE-1 shots on my personal site, which is the little yellow link "homebase" posted with my sig. The majority of the snapshots and night shots are Zeiss, (with some AE-1 and Leica D2 work mixed in), while the Peru images are strictly AE-1.

World class images? No, just a personal perspective...

-grant

 

[Huck Finn]

do you feel any nervousness about it being battery dependant ?

I'm not at all nervous about it being battery dependant. I just carry a spare battery. Almost every modern SLR - film as well as digital - is battery dependant. That doesn't stop pros from using them in the most rigorous conditions.

 

[Tom Diaz]

I think it says something that ZI owners that are also Leica owners/users aren't caling the ZI their "backup."

Yup. I own a Voigtlander R2A, a Leica M6TTL, a Konica Hexar AF, and a Zeiss Ikon. Lately the cameras getting the biggest workouts are the Hexar and the ZI.

The ZI feels great, operates with buttery smoothness, is quiet, focuses well with my high-speed 50mm and 90mm lenses, and is all auto. As much as I love my beautiful M6TTL, it is not getting too much use lately.

On trips I take two cameras. They do get dropped and broken, and batteries fail, so I want to insure myself against that. I think on a long trip I might want a mechanical shutter camera as a backup--either my M6 or maybe the new Voigtlander R2M, which is said to have a somewhat quieter shutter than the R2A.

 

[Palaeoboy]

"I own a Voigtlander R2A, a Leica M6TTL, a Konica Hexar AF, and a Zeiss Ikon"

Wow no brand loyalty with you Tom, you have a go with everything! You may want to get a Minolta CLE so you have a set of all M brands LOL

I never did quite understand the preoccupation with Leica devotes not wanting battery dependence. My only M that I had owned long tem was an M3. One holidays however I happened to go shooting with a friend with and M7 while I used my CLE. He put in fresh batteries half way through the trip and my CLE still had the same batteries for the past year. He said he has to change them at least every 6 months, while the CLE goes on for years. I think I spend much more power constantly using the bettery check wondering if the batteries will ever fail. Not to mention the M7 uses twice as many batteries. The M6TTL chews batteries similar to the M7 apparently. So after that, I can sympathize why some Leica M users like to have a mechanical camera handy but when you think about it by digital standards the battery life of an M7 would be considered incredibly long lasting. How long do M5 users get out of a battery compared to a M7/M6TTL, maybe thats for a new thread.

 

[Tom Diaz]

"I own a Voigtlander R2A, a Leica M6TTL, a Konica Hexar AF, and a Zeiss Ikon"

Wow no brand loyalty with you Tom, you have a go with everything! You may want to get a Minolta CLE so you have a set of all M brands LOL

I never did quite understand the preoccupation with Leica devotes not wanting battery dependence. My only M that I had owned long tem was an M3. One holidays however I happened to go shooting with a friend with and M7 while I used my CLE. He put in fresh batteries half way through the trip and my CLE still had the same batteries for the past year. He said he has to change them at least every 6 months, while the CLE goes on for years. I think I spend much more power constantly using the bettery check wondering if the batteries will ever fail. Not to mention the M7 uses twice as many batteries. The M6TTL chews batteries similar to the M7 apparently. So after that, I can sympathize why some Leica M users like to have a mechanical camera handy but when you think about it by digital standards the battery life of an M7 would be considered incredibly long lasting. How long do M5 users get out of a battery compared to a M7/M6TTL, maybe thats for a new thread.

Ha! Don't think I have not considered a CLE or a Leica CL. I love good stuff and don't mind buying it used. I have resisted the CL and CLE because they're so old, and if I want an RF with a short rangefinder base I can always buy a nice new Voigtlander.

Actually I agree with your second point and do not obsess too much about batteries failing. I am more obsessive about just having a second body with me for extra convenience and in case one breaks. Given my present habits I might very well take the ZI and the R2A on a long trip, just with extra batteries.

By the way, another of the Hexar's strong points, getting back to the original topic here, is its surprisingly low power consumption, considering that it is a motor-driven autofocus autoexposure camera.

 

[Mazurka]

I never did quite understand the preoccupation with Leica devotes not wanting battery dependence.

Like the ERC, flash, UV filter, etc, it's just one of the taboos of the religion. 😉

The M6TTL chews batteries similar to the M7 apparently.

Since the TTL's shutter is completely mechanical, that's hard to believe -- unless the shutter dial is not turned to the OFF positioin in both cameras when not in use.

 

[Palaeoboy]

"Since the TTL's shutter is completely mechanical, that's hard to believe -- unless the shutter dial is not turned to the OFF positioin in both cameras when not in use"

Not really it just means that its the meter thats consuming the majority of power in both cameras rather than the electronic shutter in the M7

 

[Mazurka]

"Since the TTL's shutter is completely mechanical, that's hard to believe -- unless the shutter dial is not turned to the OFF positioin in both cameras when not in use"

Not really it just means that its the meter thats consuming the majority of power in both cameras rather than the electronic shutter in the M7

And how does the meter consume all that power if the TTL's shutter dial is at the OFF position?

This behaviour with the M6TTL is well documented even before the M7 came out. I always turn mine off when not in use and have not experienced short battery life.

 

[marbrink]

How's the film loading with the ZI? The film loading on the M6 TTL was one of the biggest reasons I sold it. I just didn't like it.

 

[back alley]

film loading is much the same as any camera with a swing back, easy.

 

[Way]

Oddly, I have a more difficult time loading/unloading the ZI than my MP. The ZI's rewind
lever always seems to flip close on me when I need it open and it's a little tricky to open.
Also the swing back tends to unbalance the camera to the right. Regardless, it's still my
favorite camera.

 

[MCTuomey]

Greetings and congrats to all the happy ZI owners. I'm wondering - is it true that the ZI's 50mm framelines come up when you mount a 75mm lens? I don't see any R2x-like manual frameline selector on the camera ... being a frequent user of a couple of nice 75s I don't think I could contemplate a body that isn't compatible with them.

 

[grantray]

Yep. 50 lines come up when you mount a 75. Hence the reason I'm saving for an older 85/2 as well as adapter.

-grant

 

[sf]

I also love my ZI. Very easy to use and comfortable. Like I've posted before, my MP
is not getting used as much anymore! All my glass works great on it; the feel of the
shutter release makes it easy to handhold very slow shutter speeds. Great camera!

you say all your glass works well on it. Are you saying the Leica glass fits the ZI somehow? An adapter?

I'm curious, because some day, I intend to buy a really nice 35mm camera. I've only ever owned medium format, so the three cameras I consider are the Leica M7, MP, and the new ZI.

All you out there, what about the ZI do you like better than the Leicas, and what do you prefer on the Leica?

 

[grantray]

The ZI is a M mount body, George. The only adapter you need is for older screw-mount lenses. Regarding which body is best, that will be personal. They are all three outstanding.

-grant

 

[leafy]

I don't think *ALL* M-mount lenses can be used on the ZI though. Judging from the photos on CameraQuest site, the internal of the ZI looks a lot like the Bessa line, so there will probably some lenses that won't fit. The Summicron 50/2 DR won't fit on my Bessa-T, for example. Maybe someone can clear that part up a bit?

 

[Avotius]

a little while ago a guy from england was at our school and he had a ZI, I asked him about it and he said despite that he does like the easier to see through veiwfinder (not the light meter read out though...he hates that) he said that in then end when he uses it he just has the lingering feeling that its just not a Leica and he thinks his old m4 was a much more together camera.