The real strenght of the CLE

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zwarte_kat

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After getting my CLE, I slowly started pimping it up. I got the grip, the flash, and the 90mm rokkor and a 15mm wide with external viewfinder (next to my initial lens the 40mm Rokkor). I put a metal shade on the 40mm, put it all in a little camera bag and walked around and shot photos.

It was nice.

At some point I wanted a second body, and I found a cheap second hand Bessa R3A. I loved it, better AE function, the 1:1 viewfinder, and very nice how you can see what film is inside. It was also a bit bigger and felt good in the hand. I got the 40mm 1.4 nokton and enjoyed the large apperture. I put a grip on the bessa to and got the shade for the nokton.
It seemed like my ideal camera and I stopped using the CLE for a while.

The other day I was looking at it. Should I just sell it? And the Rokkor 40mm too? They weren't cheap to start with, so I could get a nice lens from the money. I tried shooting with it for a bit with the nokton, but it felt lacking compared to the cheaper Bessa.

Then something struck me. I removed the grip, and the the nokton. I took my rokkor 40 and removed the shade. I put the camera back in it's absolute basics, just the cle and rokkor (with a protection filter). It was so tiny, I couldn't believe it how it was resting on the palm of my hand!

This rant is getting long, so all I want to say is: The CLE is great because it's small. I think it's best kept this way, without too many gimmicks.
 
It is indeed small! Sometimes I find myself tempted to buy one of those little Konica Auto S3 or Minolta 7ii, but then I realize I've already got a camera which is comparable in size and it's much more advanced!
The only problem I've got with it is that by mounting the sun shade on my Nokton 40mm, the RF patch is severely dimmed, almost unusable.
I should probably go with the protective filter solution, although I found that a cheap brand one I had on it before caused some spurious and nasty flare in critical conditions.
 
That's not a rant. More a voyage of discovery. What you have discovered is that Minolta's engineers, 27 years ago, knew exactly what they were doing.

I use mine with 'slow', compact lenses and get excellent results. The 'shade' on my 40/2 consists of a 40.5>45 step-up ring, which is just enough to keep my fingers out of the lens.
 
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Except Rokkor 40 & M40, I use Rollei 40 f2.8, although it's a one stop smaller, but the size and outlook are very compact for CLE, even the B/W picture quality will give you surprise.
 
It's not just about camera gear. Even in our lives, we clutter up everything with more stuff. And at the end of the day, we realize how ridiculous and unmanageable everything becomes. Simple is best.
 
zwarte_kat said:
After getting my CLE, I slowly started pimping it up. I got the grip, the flash, and the 90mm rokkor and a 15mm wide with external viewfinder (next to my initial lens the 40mm Rokkor). I put a metal shade on the 40mm, put it all in a little camera bag and walked around and shot photos.

It was nice.

At some point I wanted a second body, and I found a cheap second hand Bessa R3A. I loved it, better AE function, the 1:1 viewfinder, and very nice how you can see what film is inside. It was also a bit bigger and felt good in the hand. I got the 40mm 1.4 nokton and enjoyed the large apperture. I put a grip on the bessa to and got the shade for the nokton.
It seemed like my ideal camera and I stopped using the CLE for a while.

The other day I was looking at it. Should I just sell it? And the Rokkor 40mm too? They weren't cheap to start with, so I could get a nice lens from the money. I tried shooting with it for a bit with the nokton, but it felt lacking compared to the cheaper Bessa.

Then something struck me. I removed the grip, and the the nokton. I took my rokkor 40 and removed the shade. I put the camera back in it's absolute basics, just the cle and rokkor (with a protection filter). It was so tiny, I couldn't believe it how it was resting on the palm of my hand!

This rant is getting long, so all I want to say is: The CLE is great because it's small. I think it's best kept this way, without too many gimmicks.
Click to expand...

Where did you get/buy the grip for the CLE, i am looking for it in Europ/netherlands.

Peter
 
Well done. Reminds me of my M odyssey. M2 and a 50. But I wanted quick loading and crank rewind and a self timer and a 135 frame: bought the M4. Stolen. Replaced with M4-2. But I wanted the built in meter. Traded that for M6. Joined RFF, so rediscover M5. Now I'm always using hand held meter or sunny 16, looking occasionally at the MP in the sales cabinet and quickly realizing that my M2 looks the same but is better. Favourite lens is still 50 and when I do use the 135 I prefer it with the SHOOC external finder. Never needed any other camera than my M2 after all.
 
I keep buying other cameras, including digital, but I keep coming back to the CLE. There is something about it. Maybe it's also the memories, but it's definitely a small big force of pure photography 🙂
 
zwarte_kat said:
I keep buying other cameras, including digital, but I keep coming back to the CLE. There is something about it. Maybe it's also the memories, but it's definitely a small big force of pure photography 🙂
Click to expand...

Me to, i have already bought an Fuji X100, Pentax Me Super and F, Mamiya 135

But like the CLE its still my main camera and make razor sharp pictures with the M rokkor 40 mm 1:2
I now am looking for reasenabel priced Rokkor 28 and 90 mm lenses.

Peter
 
CLE is one of the best travel camera
if u use 15mm or 21mm, just use Hyperfocal distance. use just need to adjust the aperture, then see the vf and shoot. it is very simple and quick for street snap
 
How do you guys transport it during travel? I often move around with a backpack, even on my daily commute, and am locking for something compact and protective. I have the original leather case, but it doesn't seem strong enough to put in a backpack's pocket, especially around the lens. Something like the Fuji X10 or F100 case seems decent. Anybody knows if one of these fit?
 
zwarte_kat said:
How do you guys transport it during travel? I often move around with a backpack, even on my daily commute, and am locking for something compact and protective. I have the original leather case, but it doesn't seem strong enough to put in a backpack's pocket, especially around the lens. Something like the Fuji X10 or F100 case seems decent. Anybody knows if one of these fit?
Click to expand...

I don't use a case.

When I need to transport my camera I usually use a square neoprene cloth with velcro seals to wrap it around the camera. Very light and convenient: you can adapt it to many cameras.

I would attach an image but no matter how small I resize it the system won't allow me to attach it...
 
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