Looking for new film system, need users opinion

Are we missing just one point here? Or was it mentioned? The gear choice for professional use, must be based on professional service still available, fast and close. And it is not so easy with film cameras to find these days. Buying used and tossing once it is broke is not practical solution, IMO. I would first find local service, check if it is still OK and able to survive for another couple of years (more than enough for OP to go back to digital 🙂 ) and asks them which film cameras they could repair, service most easily, cost effectively and fast..

It is very boring, I know, but if OP is into the business and not into the "lens draw" it is only the way to stay in business.

chrism said:
In the dark, behind a locked door with no phone and no interruptions? You say it like it's a bad thing!😉
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I have two turntables to make it less stressful, but volume level needs to be low to avoid putting to much stress on the ceiling, which is also kitchen floor (most busy place in the house). With turntables I'm able to listen music which is long time gone from local stations. Dancing on the ceiling, I have this on LP. 😀
 
Ko.Fe. said:
I have to turntables to make it less stressful, but volume level needs to be low to avoid putting to much stress on the ceiling, which is also kitchen floor (most busy place in the house). With turntables I'm able to listen music which is long time gone from local stations. Dancing on the ceiling, I have this on LP. 😀
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What???

Wrong forum
 
Ko.Fe. said:
Buying used and tossing once it is broke is not practical solution, IMO.
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I guess it depends on one's definition of 'practical.'

In either case, if a primary camera breaks it's replaced with a backup. And some of these cameras are cheap enough it's not much more expense than a few rolls of film to have multiple backups.

Whether the primary camera is tossed or repaired really depends on its value and the repair cost.
 
There are at least a dozen systems that would meet your needs. You just need to try out a few options to find one that fits your hands, eyes, and aesthetic sensibilities.
 
splitimageview said:
I guess it depends on one's definition of 'practical.'

In either case, if a primary camera breaks it's replaced with a backup. And some of these cameras are cheap enough it's not much more expense than a few rolls of film to have multiple backups.

Whether the primary camera is tossed or repaired really depends on its value and the repair cost.
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So, you tossed your main camera and using backup. Now you have to spend time and money to find another working film camera. Which is big gamble these days. Even with square trade warranty, you will not have confidence in use of camera you just purchased used.

Why Winogrand was not tossing his two M4, but keep on servicing them every half-year or so?
 
The older the camera the more likely you'll encounter problems. I'm a long time professional and if I were to go back to film today I'd get anew F6 or as new as I could. My reassign, as I said the older the camera the higher the chance of a catastrophic failure. It might be a lockup that you'd be immediately aware of or it might be a shutter calling problem or any number of problems like overlapping frames that you wouldn't be aware of. I as a professional am not going to take a chance. Failure to deliver a perfect job equates to lost clients and potential lawsuits. No way would I or have I risked my business. I speak from fifty years of experience. I've seen businesses ruined over mistakes.

Screw aesthetics, I want the best performing camera that's the most reliable with the best available support and excellent optics. Remember there's a reason the leicaflex, Olympus, Canon and pentaxes didn't dominate the professional market.

Anyway why did you come to an amateur forum for professional advice. No offense intended to anyone. You want professional advice you ask experienced professionals in the industry.
 
x-ray said:
The older the camera the more likely you'll encounter problems. I'm a long time professional and if I were to go back to film today I'd get anew F6 or as new as I could. My reassign, as I said the older the camera the higher the chance of a catastrophic failure. It might be a lockup that you'd be immediately aware of or it might be a shutter calling problem or any number of problems like overlapping frames that you wouldn't be aware of. I as a professional am not going to take a chance. Failure to deliver a perfect job equates to lost clients and potential lawsuits. No way would I or have I risked my business. I speak from fifty years of experience. I've seen businesses ruined over mistakes.

Screw aesthetics, I want the best performing camera that's the most reliable with the best available support and excellent optics. Remember there's a reason the leicaflex, Olympus, Canon and pentaxes didn't dominate the professional market.

Anyway why did you come to an amateur forum for professional advice. No offense intended to anyone. You want professional advice you ask experienced professionals in the industry.
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I know it is wrong forum for this as well:
I was photographing on local Ford Day and asked long time mechanic how cool is idea to buy old simple truck and maintain it. He looked at me as on malade and told what best car is new car. Sounds, familiar, isn't it?

Well, just like in any trade, buying tool and servicing it make more sense as in buying used tools on Kijiji and tossing it once it needs service.

But yea, we are all wrong here, because non of us here are so called professional. Thanks for giving us score what we deserve on this forum.
Tom A was amateur, AirFroggy Allen is amateur, so are Roger and Frank.
 
If you are shooting weddings

3-4 Canon A2's with used L lenses

But, they are ugly as sin. For a professional camera though, I don't know why this really matters.
 
Hello all,

I see, common to forums, opinions create friction.

Why I asked here is because i know of no professional forum, and i knew that professionals do not use film commonly outside of medium and large format.

Photography is not my main source of business, I am a shirt and trouser maker.

My photography, I suppose would be more from and art standpoint, so if that is film and slow paced then that is what they pay for, if they want otherwise then I am not for them.

I agree that having reliable/serviceable equipment is important for a fulltime working professional, I suppose then ill refer to my self as an amateur. Sometimes people are disarmed by enchanting looking cameras, for instance a linhoff technika press 23 looks like a vintage luxury sports car is being aimed at you. People react differently. Not to say its completely different, but aiming large dslrs at people, your either getting their scared face, their ego face, or a blank face, so you must wrestle their ego away from them.

With that said, after looking at Roland's pictures i purchased a 50 1.2 ltm for my canon P. I like the look, ill worry about the rest as it comes. I have a argus c4r/geiss that I play with as well.
 
Ko.Fe. said:
I know it is wrong forum for this as well:
I was photographing on local Ford Day and asked long time mechanic how cool is idea to buy old simple truck and maintain it. He looked at me as on malade and told what best car is new car. Sounds, familiar, isn't it?

Well, just like in any trade, buying tool and servicing it make more sense as in buying used tools on Kijiji and tossing it once it needs service.

But yea, we are all wrong here, because non of us here are so called professional. Thanks for giving us score what we deserve on this forum.
Tom A was amateur, AirFroggy Allen is amateur, so are Roger and Frank.
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Don't take it so bad it's no disgrace. But I still don't se the logic in going to a group with little to no professional experience. I'm not trying to be snotty about it just don't understand the thinking.
 
x-ray said:
Screw aesthetics, I want the best performing camera that's the most reliable with the best available support and excellent optics.
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All professional photographers do not approach their profession the same way. I knew a professional photojournalist at a competing paper who stopped using Rolleiflex TLR cameras because she claimed they required too much expensive maintenance. Instead, she began using the less expensive Yashica TLR cameras and when they broke she just discarded them and bought a new one.
 
The Nikon F4 is the most compatible and most durable AF camera out there with the best meter. After that you could go Nikon FA. Extraordinary metering and fully auto exposure if you want it but in a manual body. The pro cameras are pro for a reason. They work well and continue to do so. I owned a Contax RX then an AX back when the company was still around. 28 days into my AX ownership and the NIGHT BEFORE I was supposed to shoot the 60th anniversary gathering of the Nurses of Pearl Harbor, the camera died. Nothing brought it back. I took it back to the shop near Seattle where I got it and the Contax rep was there. He asked what he could do to keep me as a customer and I said I wanted a Nikon F3, F4 and a whole bunch of lenses plus a bunch of cash. I traded in all my Contax gear and could not have been happier due to reliability. The Contax lenses were great but they do no good if the camera won't work. Been shooting Nikon film cameras since. They never let me down, ever. The only Nikon to ever hiccup on me was a digital D2H that wouldn't turn on when it was too hot outside. Meaning, I was in Kuwait in August, 2004 kind of too hot.

Nice gear is nice to shoot with but only if it works. With the Canon F1, F1n and New F1 you could have a camera that will last you another 20 years but remember that the only spare parts are available within other cameras, so start collecting bodies. The best lenses for the FD mount aren't your garden variety SSC lenses either. You'll want some of the spectacular L series lenses like the 24mm f/1.4, a lens that has never seen an equal in any mount from any manufacturer. It's just special. No, I don't have one, nor do I have the funds to get one.
Contax is completely out of business so good luck there if you have any problems.

Leica is an option. Find a nice M6, M4-P or M4, get a 50mm Dual Range Summicron and have fun. 28mm is an exploration within Leica. SO MANY options from so many manufacturers.
Your Canon 50mm f/1.2 can be a fickle beast, so be careful. Clean it well and have fun. Get a real hood for it and don't skimp on the filters. Careful with that 55mm filter thread on the lens.
The Nikon F2 is just about the most perfect SLR ever made, in my opinion. Non-metered or any of the metered options. With the 55mm micro, you can easily make close-up photos like the one you posted.
Really, everyone has their own opinions and preferences. Mine are for reliability and good image quality. I don't care how I look when shooting and I don't care how the camera looks when sitting on a shelf or in a bag. That's why I shoot with Mamiya 6 and 4x5. The Mamiya looks silly and the view camera looks like a quaint throwback with me out in a park or wherever, with a large black t shirt draped over my head as a dark cloth.
It's about the final image so I pick the tools to make the image, not my personal image, i don't care about that when working.

Phil Forrest
 
Phil_F_NM said:
It's about the final image so I pick the tools to make the image, not my personal image, i don't care about that when working.

Phil Forrest
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Agreed!

I like how the images look from the zeiss 35 1.4 they even look different from the Hollywood. The contax s2 is not much cheaper then the canon or Nikon. With that said, I have heard there are unfortunately cheaply made adapters from c/y to fd mount. So then I could get the canon body. But again the contax are a bit quieter, so I hear.

I've played with a m3 and m5, I would go with the m5 if I could find one freshly clad or above 134sn.

I may still go with a Leica then a medium format, I think resale would be better down the road with a Hasselblad 500cm?
 
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