Looking at a G2 with 45mm kit

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RooX

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I posted a "wanted ad" a day or two ago for my wife, who wants a rangefinder for everyday use.

Well, now she has decided that the G2 is the camera for her. (I can't say I'm disappointed, I have always wanted one).

Anything I should warn her about before I go out to find one? I have a feeling she will by 85% auto focus, but occasionally trying to manual focus. Lots of available light shooting as well.

I think I found a decent deal at KEH on a set, its frustrating looking at their website, as it really doesn't tell you anything about the specific camera, other than the "grade".

If anyone has any other leads on a nice starter kit, fire me off an email or PM.
 
I have always been fascinated with the Contax G series as well and have always wanted to own one. However, there are many of things that can go wrong with these cameras, so before buying be sure you figure out who will service it if something does break on it.

IIRC - factory service is no longer available.
 
BillBlackwell said:
I have always been fascinated with the Contax G series as well and have always wanted to own one. However, there are many of things that can go wrong with these cameras, so before buying be sure you figure out who will service it if something does break on it.

IIRC - factory service is no longer available.
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Just talked with KEH on the shipping and service questions. They will still service it, and have no issue doing so with folks from Canada. They do on the other hand ship with Fedex, which mean for purchasing or repair, us lucky Canadians will get hit with their famous CBC (Crippling brokerage charges) in other words, I will not be buying from KEH. Bringing me back to square one. I'll need to look a bit closer to home I guess, at least for repair.
 
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Get some feedback here on the manual focus]

Get some feedback here on the manual focus]

If your wife is truly interested in 20% of the time using manual focus, get some feedback.

My use of the G1 ( and I suspect the G2 is the same in this respect) the manual focus function of the camera is too fiddly and time consuming for real time usage. I rarely used the manual focus function. It's also easy to bump the focus wheel off focus.
 
Great camera w/ great lenses. My experience is w/ the cheaper, somewhat smaller G1's. They are so inexpensive that just replacing the camera is probably cheaper than repairing them. You might ck Adorama and B&H Photo, since like KEH they may offer some sort of short initial warranty. Not sure how they ship.

I have had good luck buying the G cameras from eBay as well. There's quite a bit of info on these cameras on the web if you look around. I usually went w/ the 45 and 90 lenses as I'm not a wide angle shooter. Incredibly cheap! You can pick up a 90 2.8 for around $125 - $150 USD. Tack sharp, and the 90 is a fantastic portrait lens. As mentioned, the manual focus is fiddley, but it works. Downsides are the squinty viewfinder and AF noise, but you get used to it.

My B&W shots are really nice, and the color can only be compared to Leica glass w/ wonderful saturation. Known issues are the shutters and LCD bleed, but I have only had one camera out of half a dozen that ever had any issues.
 
Yes... I should have said

Yes... I should have said

I always considered my G1 and the three lenses to produce incredible results. My only comment was a nag on the manual focus. The camera came with a separate manual on the focus process where you focus in the patch, lock focus and recompose. Frankly, that was a process that came naturally to me because of many years of SLR use.

The three original lenses ... 28, 45 and 90 were all incredibly good.
But, it's still an autofocus system in my book.

i'd still have the kit, but I am shooting mostly medium and large format with my Fuji rangefinders and a Super Graphic.
 
Thanks for all the info gents. Talked with her a bit more, and she is pretty keen on the auto-focus, I think it is more important to her than the option to manual focus. Noise isnt an issue as she is currently using a Nikon D200 for everything, cant get much louder than that.

I did some reading and that lock focus button does look pretty easy to use, Im sure she will end up using that all of the time.
 
The recompose never posed a real problem

The recompose never posed a real problem

Focusing, locking and recomposing was never a true issue. It was essentially a misconception on the part of persons who expected the camera to act as a rangefinder in the veiwfinder. Contax promptly started issuing a focusing supplemental manual. The target market was the problem... never the camera. The camera did exactly what it was designed to do. At that time, almost every manual for lesser consumer cameras specifically talked about focusing in the patch, locking and recomposing.

I am confident this will NOT pose a problem for your wife, either with a G1, a green sticker G1, or a G2.]
 
RooX said:
Noise isnt an issue as she is currently using a Nikon D200 for everything, cant get much louder than that.
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Maybe. The G system can be pretty darn buzzy.

Manual focus is a real pain with the G2, better than with the G1 by a long stretch, but still a pain. Easiest way is to focus, lock, and recompose.

Ergonomically the G2 is fantastic (besides MF 🙄 ). Nice simple dials and switches. ISO adjustment when not in DX is a bit slow, but a minor quibble.

And the 45 is a top notch lens, as are the 21, 28 & 90.
 
I'd describe it an automatic rangefinder. Its not a Leica M where you can
make all the decisions. All you have to do is choose the lens and then look through the viewfinder and start firing away. That lends the G2 to street
photography and the standard kit will be more than enough for most users.

They do have some great deals on eBay.
 
I prefer the auto-focus on the G2 over the G1. Quicker and more accurate, even in low light.

If your wife is used to a mechanical focus, the manual focus on the G1 or the G2 will underwhelm her. I hardly ever use it. It's awkward at best.

As mentioned above, neither model should be considered a point-and-shoot, though they come close under certain conditions! Great for street photography. I end up using the AEL function quite a lot to avoid over-exposure.

The glass on these cameras is truly superb. That's a fact. Splurge on the Biogon 21/2.8 with viewfinder - it's one of my favorite lenses. Check out: http://images.google.com/imgres?img...firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&sa=N

The only real disadvantage I've found is the lack of frame lines as the viewfinder in both cameras automatically sets itself to the focal length of lens that's mounted. So, ask your wife if it's important to her to have frame lines for composing a shot.

Hope that helps.
 
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