Just got a Mamiya 6

Chriscrawfordphoto

Chriscrawfordphoto

Real Men Shoot Film.
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For those who haven't heard, I'm found a teaching job that pays well...making a middle class income for the first time in my life! I decided over the weekend to buy myself a present. I got a Mamiya 6MF with 75mm lens. I'm loving it so far. It suits my work better than my heavy Hasselblad system, which I may retire if I can come up with more $$ for the 50mm and 150mm Mamiya 6 lenses. I think the 75mm f3.5 Mamiya 6 lens is sharper than the Zeiss 80mm CF Planar! Really!

Here's my first shot.

wicker-swing-1.jpg


I shot this Sunday. I reshot it again yesterday (Monday) because the light was softer then, but I haven't got that film developed yet. More photos from this camera coming soon!
 
congrats all around...
I had the 6 as well as the 75/150 combo and loved it...the kamiya lenses are scary sharp and the whole system is fabulous.
frankly, if they made a digital version i think there would be peace in the land...
 
Congratulations and good luck with the job.

Those Mamiya RF lenses are fantastic - and if the six suits your shooting (six-shooter lol) better than the Hassy, I reckon go for it.
 
Chris, congratulations on the job!

I have full Mamiya 6 setup and while the 150 brings the rangefinder to its limit,s it is a great lens for half-body portraits and has beautiful bokeh (contrary to 75). With a little training I nail the focus nearly every time.

The 50 is simply great.

I will go with my family to Romania for a couple of days over Easter and my Mamiya 6 is the only camera I will take along (OK, GRDIII comes too).

Once you get more time with the Mamiya - please let us know how does the metering works for you - for me that is the weakest point as the meter is sensitive to area slightly larger than the view of the 50mm lens and so very hard to use with the longer lenses AND tends to cause underexposure if not adjusted for.

Just be gentle with the film-winder.

Enjoy your new job and new camera!
 
I always ignore the meter and use in manual mode.
+1 on taking care with the film advance lever; slowly does it.
Pete
 
Chris, glad to hear of your new job and your new purchase!! I've been using the Mamiya 6 for about 6 years now and love it! You're correct, the lenses are sharper than Hassy lenses, and are the sharpest lenses in MF along with the Mamiya 7/7II lenses. The 50 and 150 lenses are fantastic and absolutely add them if you can. I find the 50 and 150 to be just a bit sharper than the 75 believe it or not. Enjoy!
 
With regards to the meter.. it is the weak point of the camera, NOT the winding mechanism (which is a bit overrated). Anyway, I use a spot meter with the M6 and only rely on the in-camera meter if it's overcast and I have no sky included in the frame or near the frame. When I can't have a spot meter I always set the ISO dial one stop slower than necessary. So for instance if I want to shoot HP5 at 400 I'll set the dial at 200. For me this works.
 
Great news Chris. A bit of stability and income goes a long way to making life sweeter and less stressful.

Instead of the other lenses, I would probably pick up a spare body or two. You will probably have a film advance failure if you keep the camera long enough and repairs are getting dicey. My 6MF advance went south and I'm trying to decide if it's worth sending it to MAC for repair or to find another body.

They're really wonderful cameras to use and the 50 is very nice 😉 Their long term viability does cause me some worry tbh.

fwiw, I would keep your Hasselblad system though (or retire it until further use as you suggest)
 
Thanks everyone. I've been teaching English in an inner city high school in Fort Wayne. Finally paid off all my past due bills, bought some new shoes (my old ones were literally falling apart), and bought myself a camera. Life's good!
 
Matus said:
Chris, congratulations on the job!

I have full Mamiya 6 setup and while the 150 brings the rangefinder to its limit,s it is a great lens for half-body portraits and has beautiful bokeh (contrary to 75). With a little training I nail the focus nearly every time.

The 50 is simply great.

I will go with my family to Romania for a couple of days over Easter and my Mamiya 6 is the only camera I will take along (OK, GRDIII comes too).

Once you get more time with the Mamiya - please let us know how does the metering works for you - for me that is the weakest point as the meter is sensitive to area slightly larger than the view of the 50mm lens and so very hard to use with the longer lenses AND tends to cause underexposure if not adjusted for.

Just be gentle with the film-winder.

Enjoy your new job and new camera!
Click to expand...

I never use the meter. Like all built in meters, it is useless to me. It matches my handheld spot meter if both are pointed at a solid colored wall, but in real world use, averaging meters like the ones most cameras have are simply fooled by skies and other irregular subjects way too often. 95% of the time, my exposure determined with my spot meter and the zone system is way off what camera meters say, and my film is PERFECTLY exposed my way. I don't even have batteries in my Leica M6 bodies, since all they do is power the useless meter. The Mamiya has an electronic shutter, so I'm stuck with the meter, but I just ignore it.
 
hey chris,

glad to hear the teaching gig is working out. as i mentioned when we spoke, teaching can be hugely rewarding in personal terms...and the bucks can be good depending on the pay and local cost of living. 😃

big congrats on the mamiya6 💥🌟💥!!! as newsgrunt mentioned you might want to get a second body before a second lens...that' s how i did it...one for b&w and one for color...i am thinking of getting a third body to keep loaded with ilford 3200 (at 1600 iso) or to leave an instant film back attached.

some twelve years down the road, driving over-the-road in an -18 wheeler 48 states, and trips to russia and mexico and the " weakness/fragility/failure-prone film advance" has not been an issue. 😃ymmv as does others. 😃

the 50mm has become my daily lens carry lens...and with a 'little' care in focussing the 150mm can yield terrific results...

as you are aware the viewfinder is colossal and the rangefinder patch seems the size of a postage stamp...the meter, i trust as a starting point. with your experience, skill and horse-sense i suspect you will do fine by it. it is much better and much more accurate than it is generally regarded. 😃ymmv.😃

i have some spare 58mm filters (red, yellow, orange, etc ) i would be glad to share with you.

breathe, relax and enjoy.
laugh more, smile more...i do whenever I get near a mirror.😀😛😀
smiling gecko, aka kenneth

p.s. oh yeah...now i gotta sift through more "ft.wayne photos" 😜👿...NOW done with a mamiya6 💥👿💥...JUST GREAT...you make it tough for a fella to just sit on his duff!!! :angel: 😇😇😇😇 :angel:

p.s.s. seriously, enjoy that rascal...you have been and are a terrific inspiration and a great source of photographic knowledge.
 
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