Jeff Ascough under NDA for new Rangefinder

[dcsang]

Jeff is not a shill (to the best of my knowledge 🙂 )

I'm sure either Leica or Canon has approached him for something or other.

He voiced his opinion quite loudly regarding the M8 when he tried to incorporate it into his wedding work. Who knows, maybe Leica wanted to appease him and have done something else wrt the M series.

Anyway, I'm sure we'll all find out what it is soon enough.
And once we do, we can all bemoan about what it is NOT and that it's far too expensive and how we're going to wait for the NEXT iteration to come along and why some OTHER company could do it better if they'd only listen to us... and ONLY us.. 😀

Cheers,
Dave

 

[aizan]

i'm thinking sony, epson, carl zeiss, nikon, canon, in that order.

 

[Tim Gray]

This was posted on fredmiranda:

1.) Week 2 with the new stealth camera. I am under NDA at the moment as to who makes it but I can tell you that it is a brand new rangefinder.

2.) I am using the standard 35 1.2 lens but there are two others on the way to test.

3.) Ok - I can't tell you everything but it is full frame, magnesium alloy electronic shutter, and the AF is very good

4.) I have some testing to do tomorrow and then I will ask to see if I can blog about it. I doubt I will be able to use images.

I obviously don't vouch for the validity of the info. Just sayin' 😀

 

[Pickett Wilson]

O.K. It's an AF camera? That kills the RF part.

 

[Jamie123]

Whoever makes it, the winning combo would be a $2,500 FF digital RF that takes M lenses. Anything else is just DOA.

Bollocks. Sure, this would probably be a hot seller but that doesn't mean that anything else is ''just DOA''.

 

[Tim Gray]

O.K. It's an AF camera? That kills the RF part.

I obviously have no idea what it is, but I could imagine an RF camera that also had AF.

 

[Pickett Wilson]

Or maybe it's just an early April fools joke. An "AF" "RF" sounds a little fishy. And a magnesium alloy shutter? Forget about it!

 

[furcafe]

I will start complaining now that this unnamed camera is still more expensive than an equivalent full-frame dSLR body, doesn't take my Leica lenses, & because it's autofocus, it's not a real RF & therefore crap. 😉

Perhaps Pickett Wilson is correct that it's the lead up to an April Fools joke.

Jeff is not a shill (to the best of my knowledge 🙂 )

I'm sure either Leica or Canon has approached him for something or other.

He voiced his opinion quite loudly regarding the M8 when he tried to incorporate it into his wedding work. Who knows, maybe Leica wanted to appease him and have done something else wrt the M series.

Anyway, I'm sure we'll all find out what it is soon enough.
And once we do, we can all bemoan about what it is NOT and that it's far too expensive and how we're going to wait for the NEXT iteration to come along and why some OTHER company could do it better if they'd only listen to us... and ONLY us.. 😀

Cheers,
Dave

 

[Tim Gray]

While the information is interesting, there's too little to be excited about OR skeptical about. I'm sure we'll find out one way or another eventually. I'll wait until then to pass judgement.

 

[kevin m]

While the information is interesting, there's too little to be excited about OR skeptical about. I'm sure we'll find out one way or another eventually. I'll wait until then to pass judgement.

I'm sorry, a comment this sensible simply has no place on the RFF. 😛

 

[sevo]

"Full frame" and "standard 35mm lens" don't match up. Three lenses so far means it is a new mount or a mount for which this manufacturer has not had lenses so far - which means that about the only way it might be a camera with some legacy rangefinder mount would be a Leica with Contax mount or Nikon with Leica mount. Neither is likely... 🙂

My guess: April Fool's Day preparations, or yet another EVIL APS-C in the making.

 

[GoneSavage]

Sony's got everything it takes: CMOS technology in full frame, Hexar technology from Konica (-Minolta), a connection with Zeiss for lenses.

True, except perhaps for the hexar bit. As far as I know, Sony only ever acquired Minolta's SLR devision. I don't think they own any hexar technology to implement!

Though it sure would be nice if they did...

 

[filmfan]

I am more excited about the mention of a 35mm f/1.2 being tested

 

[btgc]

May I ask what is "Hexar Technology"? I've read Hexars are good cameras, but do they employ whole different technology, other than others use to make cameras?

 

[squirrel$$$bandit]

It sounds to me like a live-view compact with a new mount and an APS-C sensor--there's nothing out there now with a "standard" 35/1.2 on it.

A camera with both a rangefinder and autofocus seems possible to me, unlikely as it might be.

I'm eager to know what this is!

 

[dcsang]

April Fools is completely possible.

It certainly wouldn't be the first time people were fooled into believing something . . . 😀

Cheers,
Dave

 

[percepts]

So who makes a 35 1.2 lens? Voightlander Nokton I beleive. So put it in an AF barrel and there's your answer.

But then again don't forget that Fuji only recently exited the RF market and maybe they've decided to make a smaller digital version of the Fuji GA645ZI or maybe even just drop a sensor straight into the old GA645ZI body.

Anyone taking bets?

 

[Peter S]

A little bit too close to April 1st for my taste, but I hope I am wrong. The 35 1.2 part makes it interesting. I have one that I love to use on my M6, but it is huge and almost belongs to SLR country. Hope teardrops will not be falling on my keyboard April 1st.

 

[mrisney]

So who makes a 35 1.2 lens? Voightlander Nokton I beleive. So put it in an AF barrel and there's your answer.

But then again don't forget that Fuji only recently exited the RF market and maybe they've decided to make a smaller digital version of the Fuji GA645ZI or maybe even just drop a sensor straight into the old GA645ZI body.

Anyone taking bets?

I bet Fuji. And in Europe, it's being tested and marketed under Hassleblad. The XPan is really a Fuji TX-2 after all. And 'Blad lenses are now Fujinon. I could envision Fuji marketing - watching the M9 roll out, after the S2 and thought to themselves, we could get that market.

 

[Renzsu]

AF.. is that even possible with an M-mount?
35mm f/1.2 sounds a hell of a lot like a Nokton, yet I can't see CV creating a digital camera.
Can't see the M43's group making a rangefinder, they're too busy chasing eachother with slightly different camera models). That leaves Sony / Canon / Nikon.. none of each I can see making a rangefinder.
My curiosity is peaked 🙂 (yet prepared for an April Fools joke.. though that would be very lame).. somehow I still think Epson could be behind this.