IIIc and the SNapshot-Skopar

[Diggin99]

Quick question...I just saw that the IIIc is supposed to be rangefinder coupled for 35-135mm lenses...so what does that mean if I want to use my Skopar 25/4 with it? I am new to rangefinders so I am still getting used to them!

Nancy

 

[thafred]

Hi Nancy,

The IIIc is rangefinder-coupled no matter what lond or short RF coupled lens you put on it!..I use my 21/4 regularily (35-135 does only refer to the lenses available back then i guess). Your 25/4 isn´t coupled at all so no matter what camera you put it on it won´t focus via RF but you can quickly scale focus the lens (DOF is enormous) and come away with the most spontanious street shots you have ever made (since no Focus searching and blinking Leds distract from composition 😉 .. I love my IIIa for this type of photography

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=44030&cat=5456

All the best,
friedrich

 

[rover]

Nothing, the lens is not coupled but still is very usable on the IIIc, as it is on any RF camera. Because of the large DOF offered by such a wide lens you can zone focus, or guesstimate your distance to your subject and focus by setting the lens prior to raising the camera to your eye, and shoot away. With little practice your shots will overwhelmingly come out in focus.

The RF patch in my IIIc is not too bright so I just screwed my 21mm lens into mine last night and will use it in this fashion.

 

[thafred]

The RF patch in my IIIc is not too bright so I just screwed my 21mm lens into mine last night and will use it in this fashion.

Hi Rover, It helps when you black out the center of the RF window with an edding marker (round window far right when viewed from the front)..my IIIa is very very dim and just usable with this tweak. question: can you change shutter speeds with the 21 VF attached? on the IIIa It blocks lifting the wheel!

oh...regarding the link in my last post...the picture was shot with a 50 not with 21...

 

[Diggin99]

THanks guys!

THanks guys!

Ok good to know...I have used the Skopar on my Bessa L but was not thinking about the lens not being RF coupled! So now I will just use it on my IIIc in the same way I do on my Bessa. Also I have a 35mm elmar 3.5 that I have not tested yet...I am a bit leary of it, I see some grungy stuff inside it on the edge of the glass!

Thanks again!

Nancy

 

[mc_vancouver]

One other useful tip about the 25/4 Voigtlander is the click-stopped focal distances which help in setting a hyperfocal distance and not accidentally changing it when one adjusts aperture or it rubs against your clothes while carrying it. If you shoot at f/8, for instance, and set the lens at the click-stopped focal distance of 3 meters/10 feet, you'll have a DOF from about 1.4 meters/4.5 feet all the way to infinity.

At f/11, from three feet to twenty feet, great for grab shots on the street, when the lens is set to 1.5 meters/5 feet.