The Bessa You Are Dreaming About

[mfogiel]

The Bessa I dream about, is going to be one, which balances better with "average" weight and bulk lenses - the R3 and R4 I use have the annoying backward tilt, which disappears only with lenses as big as 35 Nokton or 90 Elmarit or similar.
Generally speaking, I find the downward tilt acceptable, even desirable if the weather is wet, while the backward tilt makes me feel I look like an idiot, and moreover makes me worry for all the dirt and splashes that can get into my lenses. I hope Mr Kobayashi will take note.

 

[Tom A]

Two specific things have kept me from buying a Bessa:

- Unreliable shutter. I've seen many, many references to people who have had jammed shutters on their Bessa. This mystifies me, as metal focal plane shutters have been around for decades, you'd think all the bugs would be worked out by now.

- Hard to adjust rangefinder. I don't expect rangefinder mechanisms to stay calibrated forever, but it would be nice if the owner could calibrate it him/herself when it goes out of whack. I'm thinking that the "interface" to calibration could be more user friendly, like maybe a removable cap, with some clearly visible adjustment screws and a good manual to accompany it.

Sometimes we forget that for every Bessa where the user is having a problem, there are 1000's of them that keep working! The maon problem with jamming the shutter on a Bessa is that you start advancing before the shutter ha cycled through. I have a whole sleuw of Bessa's, every model and the only one that has given me trouble was a bessa L where I was shooting at 1 second and did not wait for the shutter to close before attempting to rewind. Occasionally the cameras 'lock" when you have loaded it and try to do the first advance. All you have to do is put your finger on the sprocket gear and 'wiggle" it back and forth and that usually helps.
As for adjusting the rangefinder. It is much easier on a Bessa than on a Leica. You can do it with the lens in place and without having to remove the film. Un-clip the spring in the shoe and remove the shoe (three screws) and you will find two screw visible through the top. One is a slotted screw and one is a philips type screw. These are the adjustment screws. be careful not to turn them too much though as even a small tweak will shift the finder patch considerably. You can do this with the lens in place and the camera on a tripod. You want problems, get a Hexar RF where the finder goes out of whack if you wave it around and you have to remove a plug on the top and try to find the small screw without shoving the screw driver into the delicate rangefinder mechanism!

 

[ruben]

Ho Tom, if you just were involved in the FSU forum with nice Zeiss things to say...

Great post,
Ruben

 

[einolu]

the bessa r, love the thing, a true marvel of engineering, a study in minimalism. i have been using one for more than 2 years without a problem. i should probably get another while i can still get them new. i dont need another version,

 

[wlewisiii]

i´d like to see a 6x9 Folder again from Voigtländer ;-) put a 2.8 / 100 heliar or 4/50 Color skopar on the puppy, use modern bellows materials and please couple the RF to the focusing mechanism.....that´s the Bessa I´d want Mr. K to build! a light portable foldable camera that beat´s the hell out of any DSLR :-D

I've often thought that would be a great product for them. But I'd rather it be 6x6 (or multiformat) with a lever wind on and auto-counter (coupled to the shutter cocking mechanism, too, please :bang: ). 120 & 220 as well. Plus interchangable lenses, like Avotius suggests. Say in 43mm, 80mm & 155mm & all at least f2.8 (equiv to 28, 50 & 100 in 35mm cameras.) Perhaps he can get Zeiss to design a Biogon and two Sonnars? :angel:

William

 

[einolu]

I've often thought that would be a great product for them. But I'd rather it be 6x6 (or multiformat) with a lever wind on and auto-counter (coupled to the shutter cocking mechanism, too, please :bang: ). 120 & 220 as well. Plus interchangable lenses, like Avotius suggests. Say in 43mm, 80mm & 155mm & all at least f2.8 (equiv to 28, 50 & 100 in 35mm cameras.) Perhaps he can get Zeiss to design a Biogon and two Sonnars? :angel:

William

Just get a Mamiya 7

 

[wlewisiii]

Same reason I don't have a Leica M7 - A Bessa costs much less. So too would a Mr. K folder 😀 Besides I want a proper folder with a flip open front 😀 😀 😀

Seriously, the Mamiya is a great camera, but I'll own one about the same time I can affort a new Linhof or Leica. It's be nice to get a cheap MF option out there.

William

 

[BrianPhotog]

As for adjusting the rangefinder. It is much easier on a Bessa than on a Leica. You can do it with the lens in place and without having to remove the film. Un-clip the spring in the shoe and remove the shoe (three screws) and you will find two screw visible through the top. One is a slotted screw and one is a philips type screw. These are the adjustment screws. be careful not to turn them too much though as even a small tweak will shift the finder patch considerably. You can do this with the lens in place and the camera on a tripod. You want problems, get a Hexar RF where the finder goes out of whack if you wave it around and you have to remove a plug on the top and try to find the small screw without shoving the screw driver into the delicate rangefinder mechanism!

I was going to say something on his comment, too. I'm not aware of a camera with an RF calibration mechanism the way it seems he is describing it. From what I gather, he wants something like what's on my Minolta Flashmeter IV, where you just open the battery door and turn a dial with +/- markings.

I could be wrong, but I haven't seen anything like that on a rangefinder before...

 

[einolu]

woah, i just noticed that the new bessas dont have selftimes!? my r does... (though i wish it didnt)

 

[james brickwood]

An R2m:

- With 28mm framlines [why didn't they do this in the first place, the M6 has them].
Drop the 75 or 90mm if they have to!
- Strap lugs on the side of the body
- Ability to meter past 1/15th second at 1600ISO

I had to send mine back after only having it for four weeks becuase my shots sometimes overlapped. Though the distributers seem to be great and are willing to replace it.

For the price of the thing it is a great camera.