The banal 'which camera should i buy'

[Little Prince]

Thanks Huck. So RF misalignment may be the reason for some people's complaints. There seem to be various instances of this on the web. There is one for sale on ebay right now and the owner admits to having a misalignment problem. Now I dont know anything about misalignment, but I'll assume it's an easy fix.

Rover, I now fully understand your point about 35 framelines and 40mm.

It's officially down to R2A/CLE/Hexar RF.

While we're on the subject, I suppose I can focus the 40 Nokton and 35 Ultron on the R2A without problems? I mean baselength-wise, this is the worst of the three. Also, would any of these lenses (or the 28 Nokton) unbalance the CLE or block its finders in any way?

One more question for CLE owners. I have seen two webpages on this camera, one of which says it has manual metering with 1-stop increments in shutter speed and the other says no metered manual. Which is correct?

Folks. it looks like I'm going to be an intern for the summer so maybe I can afford to buy the Hexar. But then I'm thinking if I were to spend anything extra should it not be on a lens? Thanks. I need to scour the web for average prices of these cameras.

 

[rover]

The Ultron is a gem to use. I really liked it.

Check here for the limits of rangefinder baselengths.

The 40/1.4 may be pushing it with an R2a. I don't know that as a fact, but check.

http://www.imx.nl/photosite/leica/technics/rfaccuracy.html

 

[RObert Budding]

THis thread is mis-titled. It should read, "Which camera should I buy next."

Robert

 

[Little Prince]

I had browsed through that page earlier Rover. I think there's some discrepancy somewhere. Going by Erwin Puts' calculations, you need only 25mm effective baselength to focus the 50/1 Noctilux accurately (based on his point distance discrimination table). Which means both the R2A and the CLE (at least the latter with around 28mm EBL) can focus the Noctilux. Stephen Gandy at Cameraquest 's Bessa T intro page however says that with the T, for the first time an inexpensive M-mount camera can focus the Noctilux. Isn't something wrong? I suspect 25mm is not sufficient to focus the Noctilux. Of course I'm only speculating (and I don't mean to get a Noctilux), but it appears that the table on Erwin Puts page is a little optimistic.
Any thoughts?

 

[Little Prince]

Robert, sorry, I don't understand. I'm a little slow sometimes.

 

[Huck Finn]

LP, the effective base length (EBL) necessary to focus a lens depends on several factors. Two of these are the focal length & the maximum aperture. A third factor is the degree of precision required. In his book, "Leica Lens Compendium," Erwin Puts gives two different EBLs for each lens. The second, more conservative number would put the Noctilux out of the range of the R2A & the CLE (32.5 instead of 25). He recommends the more conservative estimate for slides or when really big enlargements are planned. Even using these more conservative numbers, there should be no problem focusing either the 35 Ultron or the 40 Nokton on any of the cameras you are considering. This is because of the increased depth of field on lenses wider than 50.

Another factor in deciding focusing requirements is the ease of focusing desired. A longer base line will always make it easier & quicker for any lens to clearly snap into focus.

Beyond this is the issue of tolerances. Even if a rangefinder is theoretically capable of focusing a given lens, every individual camera rangefinder is not perfect & varies a little around its targeted specificationss. With a longer base line, these variances will be less significant than they will be on a camera with a shorter base line.

Huck

 

[Little Prince]

Makes sense Huck. I feel more confident about what I'm doing now.

 

[rbiemer]

I'll also straight away betray my deepest desire 😀 , the CLE.

😀 .

I think you answered your own question. 😀 All the gear you mention is good but if the CLE is what stirs your heart then my suggestions is to find a good one and go for it!
Rob

 

[Doug]

One more question for CLE owners. I have seen two webpages on this camera, one of which says it has manual metering with 1-stop increments in shutter speed and the other says no metered manual. Which is correct?

The CLE is a wonderful little camera, long a favorite. Its manual metering (which some claim it doesn't have!) works like this: Move the shutter speed dial to the A position. Point camera at the subject and note the shutter speed next to the lit diode. Using that as a guide, move the shutter speed dial to whatever shutter speed you judge is best. That's it. Some would still deny this constitutes manual metering. 😀

Alternately, in the viewfinder, rotate the aperture dial until the diode next to the shutter speed you want is lit, then set the shutter speed dial to that speed.

Frankly, I just leave it on Auto. Sometimes I use the exposure compensation settings. Rarely, I choose a manual shutter speed based on readings I see in the diode readout (this as a way around the lack of AE lock) or from a separate incident meter.

 

[Little Prince]

Yes Doug, I thought of that workaround too. Maybe it'll slow down operation a little, but what the hell. One can't be too picky. I think I'll stay away from a separate meter for this camera. I have a handheld spotmeter (pentax digital) but don't bother with it except when I take the 6x6, which is the same as saying, very rarely.
So its like this. I'll get the CLE if I get a good deal. Otherwise I'll opt for the R2A. After all if I can have a new camera for about the same price as an old one with the same capabilities (or worse) it's a reason to think. Hexars do seem to be rare and still a little expensive. Although I do wish they didn't have electronic film advance and so many framelines. Thanks all. I am going to post a WTB right away.