tom_uk
Established
I've been a long-time SLR user. I previously used EOS 35mm cameras, but currently I use a Nikon D80. I'm purely an amateur, mainly taking landscapes & travel pictures. Ever since I read Brian Bower's 'Leica M Photography' about 10 years ago I have been attracted by the concept of RF photography and indeed for a few years I had a Leica M2 + 50mm Summicron. However I had many problems getting exposure right with this setup, especially when taking slides, so I sold the outfit and returned to SLRs. Even so, the attraction wouldn't go away. I think there's something about the smaller scale of the equipment and the voluntary limitation to just one focal length (at one time) that I like. Interestingly at one time with my Canons I had a typical 'RF' set of primes which I used a lot: 24mm, 35mm, 50mm & 100mm, and with the D80 I use a Nikkor 35mm AFD a lot of the time (near-50mm FoV). Other things that attract me are the use of traditional media, as least as an image-capture method (I'm persuaded of the merits of negatives as a long-term storage mechanism), and the whole 'inconspicuous' thing: I hate going somewhere festooned with kit, which is one reason why I went for the D80 rather than the similar (in output terms) D200 - that was just getting too big!
There are downsides, of course. First as I said above I personally have had difficulties managing exposure calculation with rangefinders, especially where exposure has to be precise. This points me in the direction of colour print & mono film. I have no space for traditional d&p so my mono film would probably have to be chromagenic. And finally my scanning skills aren't too hot either.....
I know that logically there is nothing I could do with an RF camera that I couldn't do with a DSLR (perhaps a small one?) and a prime lens, though once we go there then the the FoV issue arises. Nonetheless there is still something that I feel is missing when using the DSLRs - perhaps a connection to the scene? That said I would miss the immediacy of the DSLR feedback.
And so my thoughts go round and round..... Oh, the reason I'm posting them here is that if I were to do this, I would probably buy a Bessa R2 (A or M) and a ZM Planar 50mm, or perhaps a Bessa 3 (A or M) and the Nokton 40mm. Over the years I've recognised that I like standard(ish) focal lengths: my wide-angle images are too obviously just that.
For what it's worth, here's a selection of some of my stuff on other websites, mostly taken with the DSLRs:
http://photo.net/photos/tom_burke
http://www.travelserver.net/travelpage/aspgallery/view_ad.asp?Ad_ID=2514
There are downsides, of course. First as I said above I personally have had difficulties managing exposure calculation with rangefinders, especially where exposure has to be precise. This points me in the direction of colour print & mono film. I have no space for traditional d&p so my mono film would probably have to be chromagenic. And finally my scanning skills aren't too hot either.....
I know that logically there is nothing I could do with an RF camera that I couldn't do with a DSLR (perhaps a small one?) and a prime lens, though once we go there then the the FoV issue arises. Nonetheless there is still something that I feel is missing when using the DSLRs - perhaps a connection to the scene? That said I would miss the immediacy of the DSLR feedback.
And so my thoughts go round and round..... Oh, the reason I'm posting them here is that if I were to do this, I would probably buy a Bessa R2 (A or M) and a ZM Planar 50mm, or perhaps a Bessa 3 (A or M) and the Nokton 40mm. Over the years I've recognised that I like standard(ish) focal lengths: my wide-angle images are too obviously just that.
For what it's worth, here's a selection of some of my stuff on other websites, mostly taken with the DSLRs:
http://photo.net/photos/tom_burke
http://www.travelserver.net/travelpage/aspgallery/view_ad.asp?Ad_ID=2514
