Lots of 15mm R3a Photos

[pthurst]

This is what happens when you shoot excessively with a 15mm Super Wide angle lense on the good 'ol Bessa....

Yup the lense isn't rangefinder coupled but the lightmeter obviously still works so its still pretty easy to use.


***RFF 15mm Gallery (Bessa R3a)***


Hope you like the pics and your comments or questions are certainly welcome

Enjoy the forums!

 

[captainslack]

Nice work!!! Did you scale focus all those or use an accessory viewfinder?

 

[nihraguk]

paul: i like all of your shots, but my favourite is 'the croft'. excellent work, you've really gone and done something with the 15mm lens.

 

[pthurst]

I bought the lense from Robert White photography (top class service for the UK BTW) and I' was chuffed to find a 'hotshoe' viewfinder in the box 🙂

I presume the term you mentioned could loosely be translated as 'guessing' or is it more technical than that?

 

[JoeFriday]

about once a week I see photos like yours that convince me I need that lens.. after about 4 days I start to talk myself out of it.. I'll have a couple days of a firm belief that it wouldn't get used often enough to justify the cost.. and then unfailingly, I come across more photos and the process starts over.. thanks a lot

and I even dreamed a few nights ago that I was taking photos with it

 

[joeyjoe]

I've been meaning to shoot some really wide-angle stuff for a while now, nice to see what kind of stuff you can get out of it.l

 

[Stephan]

Weird, the shots i like the most always seem to be really wide angle shots of big stuff 🙂 I think i need a good really wide angle lens...

 

[pthurst]

the 15mm is an amazingly fun lense to use. some people are critical of wide angle lenses on the R3a, voicing concerns of vignetting but in most cases, I have been absolutely delighted with the results.

A lense like the 15mm or 21mm can offer quirky results from f4 up till 5.6ish but will 'shine' at f8 upwards so load iso400 as a minimum and get shooting.

Another little feature relates to DISTORTION in relation to DISTANCE from the camera. The further the object is away. the light from it hits the outside of the lense which is more curved and hey presto! it 'bends' more on the finished picture, so by placing different things at different points of depth in the frame, you can really get some great pictures.

To anyone who may be thinking of going wide, I'd really encourage you to jump in.... Wide angle lenses cost sooo much more in the SLR market so for a reasonable price, pick up the 15mm or even the 12mm, bang it on your rangefinder and stop dreaming.... Get shooting 🙂


Enjoy the forums!

Paul

 

[BrianPhotog]

I do the same on my R2. Only the 15mm Heliar. Saying "Yup the lense isn't rangefinder coupled but the lightmeter obviously still works so its still pretty easy to use." is the understatement of the year...at f8 you've got a zone of focus from .5m to infinity 😀

 

[Doug]

Very nice, Paul! A fine demonstration of what can be done with a super-wide, and a message that mine needs some exercise! It's said that the 15mm Heliar is at its best, optically, at f/5.6 but we probably wouldn't notice much if any degradation from diffraction at f/8.

Nice work!!! Did you scale focus all those or use an accessory viewfinder?

The answer to both would be "yes", Cap'n! Not an accessory rangefinder, surely, but certainly the accessory viewfinder that comes with the lens.

 

[Theo-Prof]

Great shots Paul. I especially like the B/W one of the old house. Do you generally do digital b&w or wet darkroom? I have no room for a b&w darkroom now and miss it terribly.

I just ordered one of these lenses on Tuesday. I just checked the tracking number and it is on the truck. I should have it within hours.

Kevin

 

[pthurst]

I get my photo's on C-41 colour film and CD then with the help of iphoto, B&W them.

You'll have great fun with the lens and don't forget to post some pics 🙂

Enjoy the forums!

Paul

 

[DHu]

Nice shots Paul. I wish I knew how to use the 15mm Heliar so skillfully.

The 15mm must be gaining popularity these days, I 've been seeing a lot of its shots lately.

 

[pthurst]

***UPDATE***

For anyone who may care to take a look, I have added a few more shots from todays visit to Yorkshire.

I mainly went to take a look at 'Limestone Pavements' which although are naturally formed, are quite rare, especially outside the UK. and Yorkshire has some of the best examples of them in the world.

I've also included one or two more pictures of the 'Old Croft'

***CLICK HERE FOR THE GALLERY***

Your comments are welcome as always.

Enjoy the forums!

Paul

 

[hoot]

and I even dreamed a few nights ago that I was taking photos with it

No kidding; I dreamed I was shooting a Bessa R3a and a 28mm, except that through some weird magic, the 28mm framelines showed up in the (internal) viewfinder. Oh boy. I wished I'd never wake up.

Congrats on your lovely lens, Paul. You're making good use of it.