I need a rugged compact RF !

Thanks guys for the insightful answers !!

I've just pulled the trigger on a Olympus XA, BIN €30 ($41.50) on Ebay.fr .
Over here in France, Canonets and the like seem to go for at least €80 ($110) which I find a bit steep for a 35 yr-old camera.

I like the compacity of the XA, and its ease of use.

I've decided that I would test it quite a bit over the next days - and see how it goes.
I might even end up buying another fixed-lens RF before going to Venezuela, as I was thinking it might be a good idea to have my Oly XA loaded with colour 100 ISO film, shot at f:8 or f:11 for landscapes during the day; and have another RF which is good at doing the available-light wide aperture thing, loaded with 400 or 800 ISO B&W film, for more intimate shooting in the evening.
What do you reckon?
What rangefinder has a lens that is fine shooting at f:2,8 ?
I've read the XA is not particularly good at it.

Also, if you guys could tell me what films I should bring with me - C41 only, please. 😛
 
Like others have said, please take a Olympus Stylus Epic fixed lens 35/2.8 (not a zoom variant). Also, if anyone wants to come document me as an anthropological subject contact me. You'll reach me by freeway rather than river and you won't need any vaccinations before or after living me for a week. I charge $1000 per week and you won't need a fast lens cause when I settle in to watch football I don't move much.
 
I've spent alot of time in the tropics/ rain forests in Asia and Africa. Nikonos 5 is good choice/ reliablity wise, plus interchange lens, but not cheap at least a few hundred $ for a body and lens and 35mm lens only F2.5, slightly slow, not great for low light shooting, unless you use fast 800 speed film. other suggestions- Pentax WR 90 zoom very water and spash resistant, many seals, good zoom range 38-90 mm plus lfash and is cheap @ 10-30.00 on ebay, good back up camera. other great waterproof P&S AF cameras- Canon A1, Nikon Sporttouch. Canonets GIIIs can be found very cheap on US ebay for the 5.00 to 60.00 US range...... and they are very sharp at F2.8. I know, I own 5 G IIIs ! Have fun and take lots of bug dope! malaria isn't much fun!!!!
 
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I also think you'd be better off with a Leica; a IIIc, f, or g. The jungle will offer all sorts of opportunities for close-up use of a small extension tube or two. The lenses and filters are very small, generally light and existing light photography is what the Barnacks were all about, even though a flash can be used, as well as a sturdy, twist-lock monopod doing dual duty as a walking stick/anti-monkey device.

Seriously, I think it was here that I read that combat correspondents use to wash the mud and sand off/out of their cameras by flushing them in the john till free of debris. I don't think you'll find a more durable camera for the Amazon environment than that. One slip crossing a stream, one upset boat or slip in deep mud and any of the fixed lens cameras mentioned will be out of action. I don't even think a Leica M would do better and it certainly won't fit in your pocket like a IIIc will with a collapsable 50mm or pancake lens.

And where heat and moisture can wreck your XA or other 'wired' 35mm, a failed handheld meter or flash will not spell the end of your photo taking with the Leica.

I may have it all wrong, but what is the point of taking a camera on such a trip when you handicap yourself with a fixed lens RF? Leica IIIs were/are carried by tough people into the worse environments this world has to offer above wave tops and succeeded when all others failed.

And, on the off chance you do carry a Leica to SA and it gets jungle rot or Pirania bit, send it to me, I'll welcome it for the true road warrior it is, mud, sand, bit marks and all. 😉

Cheers
 
Not having read the whole thread, there is a simple answer to your question. Kiev 4. Pair with Zeiss glass and you have the best of all worlds.

The rest is, really, irrelevant.

William
 
Consider buying 2 waterproof bags, one for your camera gear and one for everything else, make sure they are big enough, have enough volume. You can often find them at outdoor/camping/boating stores or even on ebay. Get the ones made with reinforce plastic When sealed properly, they often float and if your conoe tips over, the bags may save your gear and even you! etc..... Bon Voyage - Michael
 
While keeping gear safe is always a priority, I think it will be a mistake to take a camera that must be kept in a dry-bag while on the move. So many things that are interesting, that attract our attention, are fleeting; light, moments between people and the environment or person to person, won't wait while a camera is fished out of its protective cocoon.

Can you really imagine yourself traveling the Amazon Basin in a canoe and not having a camera out for grab shots of the wildlife on the waters edge and other opportunities for photography.

What about those moments on the trail as your party pauses upon the threshold of an unexpected vista in the sudden silver light of a clearing evening sky?

Do you really feel opportunities like this will wait for you to pull out your kit? Which is more important to you, the experience of the trip and the chance for quality pictures of a lifetime or not risking to buy and use a capable camera on the very real chance that it may be exposed to water and mud? Again I'll put forth the opinion that a Leica III is the camera to take, protected but ready in a simple leather case.

Whatever camera you take should be ready for all these quick captures and needs to be durable in dirty, wet, hot and humid conditions,. Otherwise, take disposables and resign yourself to buying lots of postcards of other peoples work.

Eli
 
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