aureliaaurita
Well-known
what would it be?
from what parts would you create it?
Your absoloute ideal for what it is YOU actually shoot and how you really use a camera and
what do you appreciate / could do without?
Would it be digital or film?
How big?
SLR, DSLR, 4/3rds, Point and Shoot or something entirely of your own invention... (whether you think it would work or not!)
Who would make the lens?
What materials?
What controls?
What options?
so on and so on
from what parts would you create it?
Your absoloute ideal for what it is YOU actually shoot and how you really use a camera and
what do you appreciate / could do without?
Would it be digital or film?
How big?
SLR, DSLR, 4/3rds, Point and Shoot or something entirely of your own invention... (whether you think it would work or not!)
Who would make the lens?
What materials?
What controls?
What options?
so on and so on
aureliaaurita
Well-known
For instance, I like to have something that I can fit in my bag without much thought. That's fast, has a fantastic lens and of good build guality.
It would be a digital camera but I would do away with the preview screen to bring a bit of that film magic back. It's nice not to know what you are shooting sometimes.
I would also do away with an inbuilt / pop up flash- they're always rubbish and completely unnecesary, if you want a flash, buy a proper one.
It would take ricoh lenses and ricoh lenses alone...the temptation would be leica of course but then I would also be tempted to spend all of my deposit for the house on lenses, which would be a bad thing.
The body would be entirely metal with a rubberised grip and the controls a bit 'stiff' if anything, waggly controls and on / off buttons that flick themselves over in the case drive me bonkers.
all I can think of at the moment.
it'd be good to take all ideas and see if we can come to some sort of 'ideal'
I doubt it but perhaps.
It would be a digital camera but I would do away with the preview screen to bring a bit of that film magic back. It's nice not to know what you are shooting sometimes.
I would also do away with an inbuilt / pop up flash- they're always rubbish and completely unnecesary, if you want a flash, buy a proper one.
It would take ricoh lenses and ricoh lenses alone...the temptation would be leica of course but then I would also be tempted to spend all of my deposit for the house on lenses, which would be a bad thing.
The body would be entirely metal with a rubberised grip and the controls a bit 'stiff' if anything, waggly controls and on / off buttons that flick themselves over in the case drive me bonkers.
all I can think of at the moment.
it'd be good to take all ideas and see if we can come to some sort of 'ideal'
I doubt it but perhaps.
Harry S.
Well-known
Ok. This might be amusing.
-Digital FF
-M Mount
-Rangefinder focusing
-AE, TV, M modes
-2.5" LCD
-Simple menus a la Canon or Nikon DSLR
-form, design, materials similar to an Xpan
-two SD card slots
-Digital FF
-M Mount
-Rangefinder focusing
-AE, TV, M modes
-2.5" LCD
-Simple menus a la Canon or Nikon DSLR
-form, design, materials similar to an Xpan
-two SD card slots
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aureliaaurita
Well-known
ooh two sd cards, yes i like that, they would have to be arranged in such a way as to not make the camera bigger though
teo
Well-known
Olympus 35-RC, make it digital full frame.
Stop.
Not even put a monitor, if it can help lower the price...
Stop.
Not even put a monitor, if it can help lower the price...
pvdhaar
Peter
Digital compact with IR autofocus system..
My biggest beef with the current range of digital compacts is that the autofocus hinges on contrast detection, and that makes them slow or incapable of achieving focus at all when the light gets low or the subject lacks contrast. The IR autofocus of cameras like the Hexar-AF could target a black cat in a coal cellar without a hitch.
Know what? Give me a digital Hexar-AF.. that would be my choice.
My biggest beef with the current range of digital compacts is that the autofocus hinges on contrast detection, and that makes them slow or incapable of achieving focus at all when the light gets low or the subject lacks contrast. The IR autofocus of cameras like the Hexar-AF could target a black cat in a coal cellar without a hitch.
Know what? Give me a digital Hexar-AF.. that would be my choice.
Keith
The best camera is one that still works!
It always surprises me how many people's ideal camera, if it's digital, dosn't have an LCD screen ... surely that's one of digital's advantages. I don't have the LCD screen review turned on by default in my M8 but I certainly use it for quickly checking results in difficult conditions before I take a sequence of shots at a particular aperture and shutter speed combination. The possibility of getting home and downloading my SD card to find out that I've badly overexposed a difficultly lit scene and created irrepairably blown highlights seems crazy to me!
For me the perfect camera would be a compact full frame manual focus DSLR without all the whistles and bells that the big two (Canon and Nikon) seem to assume we need. It would be a little bigger than an OM-2 with pretty much the same layout and options ... shutter speed and ISO controls and not much else! I would like the LCD screen to be swiveling and reversable as per Epson RD-1 and it would only shoot in raw format ...
For me the perfect camera would be a compact full frame manual focus DSLR without all the whistles and bells that the big two (Canon and Nikon) seem to assume we need. It would be a little bigger than an OM-2 with pretty much the same layout and options ... shutter speed and ISO controls and not much else! I would like the LCD screen to be swiveling and reversable as per Epson RD-1 and it would only shoot in raw format ...
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Kozhe
Well-known
Here´s my crazy lovely choice:
-Rf with 25-50 framelines
-FF digital
-M mount
-Full manual
-Leica II size
-up to 1/4000
-Metal body (up the irons...)
-Cheap! no more than 450€ /body
Now that´s an impossible crazy dream eh?
-Rf with 25-50 framelines
-FF digital
-M mount
-Full manual
-Leica II size
-up to 1/4000
-Metal body (up the irons...)
-Cheap! no more than 450€ /body
Now that´s an impossible crazy dream eh?
NathanJD
Well-known
A black paint MP with a Full Frame CCD inside it and a M8 esque exposure counter. no fancy screen or buttons on the back the ISO dial would actually change the ISO of that picture and it would only make RAW files. oh, it would also have a film advance lever like the RD-1.
Ronald_H
Don't call me Ron
Hmm.
Keywords are small, inconspicuous, basic with the best available light performance possible and well built.
A marriage between the Panasonic G1 and Olympus E-P1 one would be well received. The AF, ergonomics and screen of the G1, with the form factor and in body IS of the E-P1. No EVF? No. If I look like a tourist, so much the better.
To finish this package, a set of fast primes of course, let's say a 28, a 40 and a 90.
What would be even better is a mirrorless camera like the ones above, based on the Nikon D700 and compatibe with the F-mount. But this probably won't work with a short flange distance. In that case a D300 camera (APS-C) would be better.
That would be damn close my ideal camera.
As a bonus, my ideal mechanical camera: A rangefinder version of the Nikon FM2. Same control layout and spec sheet, framelines for 28, 40 and 90 and new lenses to match those. Hmm, might as well buy a Bessa ;-)
Keywords are small, inconspicuous, basic with the best available light performance possible and well built.
A marriage between the Panasonic G1 and Olympus E-P1 one would be well received. The AF, ergonomics and screen of the G1, with the form factor and in body IS of the E-P1. No EVF? No. If I look like a tourist, so much the better.
To finish this package, a set of fast primes of course, let's say a 28, a 40 and a 90.
What would be even better is a mirrorless camera like the ones above, based on the Nikon D700 and compatibe with the F-mount. But this probably won't work with a short flange distance. In that case a D300 camera (APS-C) would be better.
That would be damn close my ideal camera.
As a bonus, my ideal mechanical camera: A rangefinder version of the Nikon FM2. Same control layout and spec sheet, framelines for 28, 40 and 90 and new lenses to match those. Hmm, might as well buy a Bessa ;-)
NathanJD
Well-known
In that case how about a LCD screen accessory that plugs into a connector ala the LCD display for later OM cameras perhaps? You could keep it in your bag and whip it out for those difficult moments. The size of the screen needn't then be determined by the size of the camera or vice-versa
. Also, it could be used for chimping over a cup of coffee after a day out shooting before you head on home.
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Keith
The best camera is one that still works!
In that case how about a LCD screen accessory that plugs into a connector ala the LCD display for later OM cameras perhaps? You could keep it in your bag and whip it out for those difficult moments. The size of the screen needn't then be determined by the size of the camera or vice-versa
It's funny you should say that! I was thinking earlier of a remote screen that you could keep in your pocket and tether to the camera when you feel the need for review.
I think we're on to something here!
NathanJD
Well-known
are you listening Leica design personnel? take note! hehe
micromontenegro
Well-known
I'm with you in that one. I also have the screen review turned off in my DSLR, but take it away, and you have taken the ONLY advantage of digital Vs film: the capability of quickly assesing if the shot was right or worng! But of course, that is only my opinion.
On topic: I'd take the Rollei 35, and I'd give it a rangefinder and LTM. Also, a modern shutter and a zooming viewfinder. I don't care if the RF base is very short- I just want it for wide angles.
BTW, the newest Minox has a remote LCD screen
Matus
Well-known
MF 645 rangefinder (film):
- long enough baseline for lenses like 60/2.0 and 120/2.8
- collapsible lenses (like Mamiya 6) - 25mm, 35mm, 45mm, 65mm, 120mm and maybe 200mm (?)
- focusing down to 0.5m (25, 35, 45) and 0.7m (65, m120), 1.2 (200)
- AE, M
- AE lock,
- TTL spot and centerweighted
- TTL flash
- 120 & 220 film
- nice sturdy body
- easy to hold in both vertical and horizontal orientation
- ..
- ..
- made by: Voigtlaender/Cosina/Fuji/Mamiya/Bronica (oh well ...)
- body + 65/2.0 lens < $2000
I know it will never happen, but I could stop deciding between R3A and RF645 ... Actually if there was a 35mm lens for the RF645 and the lenses would focuse a bit closer it would be easier for me ...
- long enough baseline for lenses like 60/2.0 and 120/2.8
- collapsible lenses (like Mamiya 6) - 25mm, 35mm, 45mm, 65mm, 120mm and maybe 200mm (?)
- focusing down to 0.5m (25, 35, 45) and 0.7m (65, m120), 1.2 (200)
- AE, M
- AE lock,
- TTL spot and centerweighted
- TTL flash
- 120 & 220 film
- nice sturdy body
- easy to hold in both vertical and horizontal orientation
- ..
- ..
- made by: Voigtlaender/Cosina/Fuji/Mamiya/Bronica (oh well ...)
- body + 65/2.0 lens < $2000
I know it will never happen, but I could stop deciding between R3A and RF645 ... Actually if there was a 35mm lens for the RF645 and the lenses would focuse a bit closer it would be easier for me ...
Disaster_Area
Gadget Monger
If I where designing a film camera:
- Take the Olympus XA
- make it all metal/magnesium/aluminum whatever
- make the button a little harder to push, and give it a half-press for exposure lock
- give it a perfectly round aperture instead of the square blades it has
- mark the f-stops on the distance scale
- give it a 50-6400 iso range and improve the meter if possible
- give it over/under exposure lights on the top like the GSN
Unlike most "dream" camera's I don't think this is out of the range of possibility now.. or even back then... the XA was just about making the best camera for the lowest possible price.
- Take the Olympus XA
- make it all metal/magnesium/aluminum whatever
- make the button a little harder to push, and give it a half-press for exposure lock
- give it a perfectly round aperture instead of the square blades it has
- mark the f-stops on the distance scale
- give it a 50-6400 iso range and improve the meter if possible
- give it over/under exposure lights on the top like the GSN
Unlike most "dream" camera's I don't think this is out of the range of possibility now.. or even back then... the XA was just about making the best camera for the lowest possible price.
Disaster_Area
Gadget Monger
oh... and if possible... give it a cold shoe for mounting a veiwfinder or small flash and give it a normal sync socket instead of the proprietary flash contacts...
and wrap it all up in a nice weatherproof/waterproof package..
and wrap it all up in a nice weatherproof/waterproof package..
NathanJD
Well-known
I have to disagree, to me the advantage of not having to purchase, load, unload, develop and scan or print a roll of film outweighs the advantage of immediate assessment of what you have taken alone. Add to that the advantage of being able to use your camera continuously up to 100's of shots without needing to change storage medium (be it a film cassette or an SD card) and then being able to reuse that storage device over and again without having to procure another, i feel that for me personally these advantages come before the LCD screen which is followed closely by the advantage of EXIF data.
micromontenegro
Well-known
Well, I must agree the buying, developing and scanning/printing film is a PITA sometimes.
flessas
Member
An Olympus E-P1 with:
-EVF
-Rangefinder focusing
-Cosina Voigländer lenses specialy designed for m4/3
- and a mechanical speed dialer
-EVF
-Rangefinder focusing
-Cosina Voigländer lenses specialy designed for m4/3
- and a mechanical speed dialer
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