Dwayneb9584
Well-known
Hey all, which body would you all perfer R4a or R4a. I recently purchased a R4a but decided that I may not have a need for the Auto exposure option. I also like that the M version is fully mechanical. Which would you all perfer to work with?
dazedgonebye
Veteran
Simple question. Do you want auto exposure or not?
Never had any problems with my R3A, so the mechanics of it hasn't entered in for me, and I like AE.
Never had any problems with my R3A, so the mechanics of it hasn't entered in for me, and I like AE.
Phantomas
Well-known
R*A with a battery that lasts forever.
thegman
Veteran
I'd get the R4A as I'm pretty much 100% in aperture priority, and of course you can use it in manual if you like. If you're really worried about being dependent on batteries, or really like the black paint finish of the R4M, then get the manual version.
I'd prefer the M, but wouldn't care if I had the A. Are you really thinking of selling the A to get the M because of a relatively cheap battery? The A can still be used in manual mode. 
damien.murphy
Damien
An R4 has been on my mind for a while, as a nice compliment to my M3. I reckon with the AE and the wide field of view you'd be forever dialling in exposure compensation, with wide angles ensuring a good portion of sky in many of your pics.
Juan Valdenebro
Truth is beauty
Being for wider shooting, R4's AE can be easily fooled by the usual sky present in lots of wideangle shots... But taking care of it and using AE lock is easy... In general I use my R4M for manual work and my R3A for AE situations... Both cameras are great, especially when you carry both...
Cheers,
Juan
Cheers,
Juan
Dwayneb9584
Well-known
Yea I realized the AE can come in handy in certain situations for me. I decided to keep this one. I guess I just wanted an M because of it's mechanics and simplicity. Not having to worry about batteries or anything.
fuwen
Well-known
To me the R4A is as simple as R4M. I am using the M just because when I wanted a R4 the M came along the way first.
2 LR44 batteries to me is really no big deal. And with A you have the advantage to see the shutter speed used in the view finder.
2 LR44 batteries to me is really no big deal. And with A you have the advantage to see the shutter speed used in the view finder.
Dwayneb9584
Well-known
That's true too. My whole thing is that I trained myself to use Manual settings since I started photography. Even with my Canon DSLR's I never used AE because I always composed images with manual functions. I also like that he R4M is fully mechanical and simple.
The A isn't really any less simple... it's just not as mechanical.
kshapero
South Florida Man
The A makes things quicker but the M is more intimate because you are more aware of your desicions with the aperture and speed. Also the black paint on the M is nicer.
ruby.monkey
Veteran
An A is an M with added capabilities. Unless one is absolutely determined to be battery-independent or manual-only, the A would seem to be the obvious choice.
sojournerphoto
Veteran
Doesn't matter
jpberger
Established
I'm with Juan on this one insofar as it's easier to get bogus light meter readings with a wide angle lens,then again the exposure compensation on the ra cameras is so easy to use that it's not a deal breaker if you know what you are doing. I occasionally use my 15mm and 24mm lenses on my r3a and it works fine. The other thing is that the ae cameras are not great for long exposures so If you do a lot of night shooting the mechanical camera is an advantage.
jiri
Newbie
I bought R4A which I prefered because of that shutter "OFF" switch (not presented on R4M) - otherwise I use almost exclusively manual shutter speed mode (not A).
BTW my question for R4M owners - is there any way how to prevent accidental exposure or light meeter drain when R4M is with cocked shutter in the bag ?
BTW my question for R4M owners - is there any way how to prevent accidental exposure or light meeter drain when R4M is with cocked shutter in the bag ?
Lss
Well-known
I don't use that switch on my R2A anymore. If there is enough pressure on the shutter button (which can easily happen e.g. in your bag if you carry more than one camera) the mechanism may break. This happened to my camera and it needed service, but it sure won't happen again.
Brian Levy
Established
Will you be shooting in situations where a battery may be a critical component such as very cold weather? If so, the all mechanical camera can be the better option. A spare set of batteries in the kit is so little weight that an electronic shutter should not be inofitself a deal breaker.
On the other side of the table of course is that an all mechanical camera will be more serviceable probably over the decades than a battery dependent camera. And, since I went through the mercury battery withdrawal syndrome, there is always the issue of what happens if the batteries are withdrawn from the market. One reason why now if I look at a battery dependent device the battery type is near the top of my list.
On the other side of the table of course is that an all mechanical camera will be more serviceable probably over the decades than a battery dependent camera. And, since I went through the mercury battery withdrawal syndrome, there is always the issue of what happens if the batteries are withdrawn from the market. One reason why now if I look at a battery dependent device the battery type is near the top of my list.
Dwayneb9584
Well-known
I thought I updated this thread but realized I didn't. I actually found a mint Zeiss Ikon that fits my needs. Had it for a few weeks now and it's awesome.