Oly RD, Minolta 7sII, Konica S3, Yashica CC

No one speaking up for the RD? I haven't owned or used one, but I'd love to. For me it would be the RD or the Konica. I don't find the viewfinder on my GIII to be that great. It's not as good as my RC, and certainly not as good as my 35SP.

And ... why aren't you considering the 35SP? In low light the spot metering can be a serious advantage. Yes, it's a bit larger, but the controls are very easy to use compared to many of the smaller cameras. And available in black.
 
Must it be small? You want to shoot in low light with a fixed lens rangefinder. For that, the Lynx 14e IC is my first choice. 100% manual, no auto anything. Fast f1.4 lens. Big hunk-o-camera though. Tthis is the best option as it has the fastest lens. There are none faster. Have this one too. Always shoot it. Might be my all time fixed lens fave. Lens characteristic - usable at 1.4 - surprising at 2.0, sharp 2.8-4.0 working aps. Like all the fast ones, seems to me, sharpness levels off at 5.6 little to no gain beyond that. Sharper at wider aps than standard speed lenses. Plenty sharp and a fine lens. Big camera but you get used to it.
 
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Yeah, I've looked seriously at the Lynx. I still may pick one up, as they're dirt cheap on the 'bay.

I think when it comes down to it, I'd rather have a smaller camera than half a stop, but it's an agonizing choice. How does the 1.4 feel versus 1.7 or 1.8? Do you notice that it makes a big difference when you're shooting?

After all my fussing, I did wind up buying a Canonet QL-17 GIII just now on the 'bay for $50 shipped. I'm probably still going to get a 7sII (or similar), but I want to have something to compare it to.

Ha, yeah right. And so the GAS begins... :)
 
Hey Ben...

Nice to see that you made it to RFF. You're gonna love this place and you think you had GAS before...oh boy you're in for a ride!

Anyway my suggestion is to find an inexpensive Canon on ebay or here on RFF. That's how I started and look where it got me...a big hole in my pocketbook. The GIII is a really well made camera but just be sure when you buy one that the shutter isn't stuck and ask a ton of questions to the seller...like how you asked me :).

Or if you don't want to go that route get the 7sii that's for sale here that rover pointed out. That's about the going price for the silver body.


agi
 
Hey agi -- first eBay, then Flickr, now RFF. Do you have a photo.net account? LOL :)

I sort of impulse-bought my GIII (item 200099519888), so we'll see how it works out... I'm curious to see how good the RF is. I only have two RFs right now: a Mamiya 7 and a Olympus XA. I know the RF on the GIII is somewhere between those, but uh... that's a pretty big gray area. :)

And I'm not sure I could get a silver 7sII, because I would always look at it and wish it was black. And of course, it's not the camera's fault, so that wouldn't be fair. :)
 
You said low light. Low light = Yashica. Their electronic shutter that went down below 30s was unprecendented in those days. I too, prefer the aperture priority of this camera to the shutter priority of everything else.

With f/1.8 and ISO 400, there is little you can't do. ESPECIALLY with those low shutter speeds and good bracing habits. (which you will occasionally need, even with a camera that goes up to ISO 800)

The 1/250s top shutter speed isn't bad, unless you're shooting slides. With print film, you can overexpose a LOT (2-3 stops) and still have great printable images.

As far as build quality, Minolta just isn't in the big leagues like the other ones you mention.

In most situations, the 35mm will be much more handy than the 38-45mm of the others.

Buy a Yashica for its unique feature set. Then, buy something with full manual later to round out the collection. That is the beauty of FLRs.

The Yashica shutter is really magically good compared to the others. The others are no slouches, but Yashica just decimated everyone with their electronic shutter. I bet they tend to not get out of adjustment as easily either...

Ah, I see you got a GIII. Nice camera; I have one. (doesn't everyone?) But the low light capability pales in comparison to Yashica. Also the shutter release is a bit unrefined compared to Yashica. But it is more capable overall due to manual exposure capability.
 
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Hi guys. I'm new here, but not to these cameras. I have the 7SII and Canonets (17 and 28).
The Minolta is all metal. I don't see any plastic in the lens barrel, it's aluminum.
The Minolta is noticeably smaller.
My Minolta is sharper than my Canonet (your mileage may vary). I have been tossing my Minolta in the (messy) trunk of my car without a case for ten years now. I feel bad for all the rough treatment, and not having a case for it, but it's been tough as nails.
I tried an RC recently, and it just felt cheaper and less solid, although the pictures were pretty good.
Dean
 
Actually, I suppose a bit of an update is in order... 2 weeks ago I wrote:
bensyverson said:
I'm trying to avoid getting more than one of these FLRF, because I can already see how it could get addictive.
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Well, that was a big fat failure. I have five now. ;)

I got a pretty cheap QL-17 GIII, partially so I could have the "gold standard" to compare another FLRF to.

Then I bought a black 7sII. It's far and away the prettiest camera I own. I love it.

Then I bought a beater 7sII to have on-hand for travel. I figure I'd rather lose the beater than my black tie 7sII.

Then I lost my mind and bought two Yashica CC's. I'm a huge aperture priority fan, so I wanted to see how the CC would work out. They're still in the mail...

I'll post another update once I've had a chance to tinker with the whole brood...
 
Ben

The Yashica is a very nice camera.

I too would also recommend the Vivitar 35ES - wonderful lens and similar to the 7Sii, except they are underrated and inexpensive.

Enjoy using them all and lets see some photos.
 
For what it's worth, I am a big fan of Olympus 35 SP.

The meter works even in manual mode. I find this to be very useful because it helps me to get to the ballpark of the correct exposure quicker. I never used the Programmed AE mode.

And a sharp, SHARP lens! sharper than a CLA'd Canonet GIII QL17 and Konica S3.
 
shadowfox said:
For what it's worth, I am a big fan of Olympus 35 SP.
Click to expand...

That's how I feel too. The 35SP is an extraordinary camera. I love its metered manual exposure mode, which is very intuitive and fast once you understand it. Couple that with spot metering, and I'm in heaven. Then add a stunning lens, and a pretty good viewfinder, and I wonder why I bother with anything else. Actually, lately everything else lies languishing whilst the 35SP gets all the love.
 
I've been waiting for an Oly SP on ebay, but with my limited budget and occasional inattention of auctions, so far I haven't been able to pick one up. I do like very much its performance from what I can see from others' photos.
 
bensyverson said:
Then I bought a black 7sII. It's far and away the prettiest camera I own. I love it.

Then I bought a beater 7sII to have on-hand for travel. I figure I'd rather lose the beater than my black tie 7sII.

Then I lost my mind and bought two Yashica CC's. I'm a huge aperture priority fan, so I wanted to see how the CC would work out. They're still in the mail...
Click to expand...

A BLACK 7SII? wow, u lucky bum!!! that with 2 (TWO) CCs.... oh man!!! :angel:
 
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