Small, fast 35mm fixed-lens rangefinder

D

dmitrizzle

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Hello! Looking for some wisdom and suggestions.

I own a few Electro 35's, FED5 and QL25 for rangefinders. Electors are my favourite of the bunch but I'm looking for something hopefully smaller as I am about to downsize to just one cam that I'll take with me when I travel extensively.

I'm considering Retina IIIC or IIA as I've heard their viewfinders are better than the rest from the line. IIIC is pricey af for my budget and IIA is a bit slow. Plus I've heard that they're not as practical. Although extremely beautiful.

I'd love to hear any suggestions here. Thank you!
 
The Olympus 35 RC is one of my favorite travel cameras. Meets the small and light criteria; good lens; rangefinder; auto exposure with battery, plus full range of shutter speeds and aperture control should the battery die. Stephen Gandy has a nice writeup on the camera, for reference: https://cameraquest.com/olyrc.htm
 
This is my favorite small 35mm fixed-lens rangefinder.

FeaturedCam.jpg

Kodak Signet 35

You can pick them up for anywhere from $20 to $50, depending on condition.

Best,
-Tim
 
Another vote for the 35RC. If you get one, order a 43.5mm to 43mm step-down filter adapter. (The 43.5mm native size is poorly supported for filters, caps, or hoods.) On mine it does not block the meter window or affect exposure. Neat little camera.
 
Although it has a 40mm lens you might consider a Minoltina S or AL-S . The same camera given different names across the globe. Fast f1.8 40mm lens , RF and reasonably bright VF. I'm astonished how sharp the lens is , excellent contrast
 
Hi,

Olympus XA is high on my list, mostly because of its size and the fact that it takes "normal" batteries but the flash is a bit of a lump but can be left at home etc.

I also like the Konica C35 (not the C35AF) mostly because of the size and tab on the lens. It's a bit bigger than the XA but many would find that an advantage.

Regards, David

PS 35mm film or 35mm focal length?
 
If you like Yashicas, the CC is smaller than the GSN cameras, and it has a 35mm f1.8 lens that is a bit wider and IMHO, nice for travel.

The Retina IIa has a 50mm f2, certainly fast enough for most lighting situations. I folds up quickly into a small package.
 
I sold my Contax T2 and replaced it with the XA. It'd an aperture priority cam that you can over/underexpose using the ISO lever. It's even got a rangefinder. Absolutely tiny too.
 
nukecoke said:
Yashica Electro 35 CC
Click to expand...

I like the CC.
It takes a readily available battery and works nicely.
The lens is sharp even at wide open and 35mm focal length.
The GX is imo a bit more refined in some way.
The 40mm in the GX is just a sharper lens and it also has a normal aperture shape unlike the CC's diamond shape aperture.
I've seen some ugly ghosts in CC images when stopped down from wide open. The aperture seems to reflect onto an interior lens element.
Not always but sometimes (eventually, it could be the wrong time).
 
What do you miss in the Canonet you have? Want a faster lens?
By "travel extensively", do you mean several months at a time? If so, the logistics can make shooting film pretty hard, as romantic as it may be. You don't only need to carry it around (which makes the size of your camera a non-issue in that regard), you also need to get it developed in reasonable time. The reliability of an old camera also becomes a more pressing issue when you're away from home for longer time and don't want to carry a backup...
 
I have a clean Olympus 35RD and it's a lovely bit of kit when it works, but it's also a fickle beast and it's been in for more services than I'd like...

On Portra400

 
Wow guys! Thanks so much for your advice, this is amazing!
.

retinax said:
What do you miss in the Canonet you have? Want a faster lens?
By "travel extensively", do you mean several months at a time? If so, the logistics can make shooting film pretty hard, as romantic as it may be. You don't only need to carry it around (which makes the size of your camera a non-issue in that regard), you also need to get it developed in reasonable time. The reliability of an old camera also becomes a more pressing issue when you're away from home for longer time and don't want to carry a backup...
Click to expand...

By travelling extensively I mean I'm living as an expat and am about to move to another country with some travel in-between. I know labs in most places I'm planning to go to; if not I'll mail the film in. Had some experience getting film through security without having it x-ray'ed. Nothing is foolproof of course.

For QL25: It's a lovely camera with a great lens, but I'd like to have something faster than 2.8(5) - ideally 2.0 and faster. Also, it weighs and is shaped exactly like a brick. I would definitely choose to keep my Electro35 over it, even if it doesn't let me shoot manual.

..

I've looked into Minolta 7sII, they seem to be very few on eBay and for a lot more than what I think they're really worth; I've also read some negative things about the viewfinders on them...

If the camera is auto I also much rather prefer aperture priority, though the other way around isn't a complete deterrent of course.

For Yashicas I figured that the one that would make the best sense is perhaps GL as it's fairly small, got 1.8 glass and 1600ISO limit which is really important because there's simply no way of shooting anything faster on those cameras unless it's always 500 or 30 shutter speed.

GX's are surely pretty though...

.

I'm still considering Retinas, though IIIC is just too pricey for something that might not even be that useable. Which is important since it'll be the only camera that I'll have in my hand for the next eight months or so. Maaaybe IB would do (has larger finder) though it's 2.8, which I could consider seeing how compact and beautiful that camera is.
.
I'm thinking folding 35mm cameras are starting to become a bit of an obsession for me. Looking at Vitessa L's right now...
 
Maybe not the fastest, but my XA has filled that role for me for more than 30 years. It started out as my backpacking camera, and has been on many vacations.

If "fast lens" means something faster than f2, then my New Canonet QL17 might fit that role. It's sorta small and light, and faster.

Scott
 
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