Bill Pierce
Well-known
How the times have changed. In January of 2009 Michael Reichmann wrote a piece in the Luminous Landscape that talked about the advantages of the rangefinder camera. Reichmann is one of the most intelligent and thoughtful writers on the web, and, when he wrote the article, it was on target. But how the times have changed in just a little over six years. Here are the advantages he listed then as rangefinder advantages.
Light weight, low bulk, small size
Small Lenses
Quiet Operation
Slow Shutter Speeds (no mirror slap)
Seeing Outside The Frame.
Rangefinder Accuracy
The Intimidation Factor
Finally, and for many people possibly most importantly, an RF camera dictates a different way of seeing. With an SLR we see the potential photograph on the groundglass. It looks something like the picture we’re going to get. That’s one of this type of camera’s great appeals. With an RF camera though we are looking through the viewfinder at the subject.
Sounds a lot like he is describing one of the many small mirrorless cameras on the market today. Indeed, in the last years the Luminous Landscape has reviewed and posted the pictures from a number of mirrorless cameras. We can’t ignore the difference between TTL viewing and the bright line finder of rangefinder cameras. To some it is not important, to others it is. Fuji has a number of small digitals with both TTL and bright line finders, cameras that let you use whichever finder is appropriate. Accessory bright line finders from Leitz and Voigtlander are available to fit almost any cameras. But the expense of these options is going to prevent some folks from taking advantage of them. If this is a negative on a scorecard for mirrorless cameras, the focusing accuracy of live view is an advantage. (Some cameras increase the speed of auto focusing by combining live view with phase detect.)
There was a long time when my primary cameras were rangefinders. I used them for all the reasons that Michael Reichmann lists. But today, outside of the studio, I use mirrorless for the most part. (My DSLRs are still better for quickly moving football players and running dogs.) My rangefinders are seeing very little use, and I was not tempted to purchase the Leica M-P “Correspondent” created in collaboration with rock star Lenny Kravitz even though I spent most of my life as a correspondent. http://www.shutterbug.com/content/l...edition-m-p-“correspondent”-set-lenny-kravitz
I know most folks came to the Rangefinder Forum because of an interest in rangefinder cameras. Am I the only one who no longer is much of a rangefinder photographer? I’d love to know what you think and what you’re doing these days. And, of course, what you think of Leitz and the pre aged Kravitzcam.
Light weight, low bulk, small size
Small Lenses
Quiet Operation
Slow Shutter Speeds (no mirror slap)
Seeing Outside The Frame.
Rangefinder Accuracy
The Intimidation Factor
Finally, and for many people possibly most importantly, an RF camera dictates a different way of seeing. With an SLR we see the potential photograph on the groundglass. It looks something like the picture we’re going to get. That’s one of this type of camera’s great appeals. With an RF camera though we are looking through the viewfinder at the subject.
Sounds a lot like he is describing one of the many small mirrorless cameras on the market today. Indeed, in the last years the Luminous Landscape has reviewed and posted the pictures from a number of mirrorless cameras. We can’t ignore the difference between TTL viewing and the bright line finder of rangefinder cameras. To some it is not important, to others it is. Fuji has a number of small digitals with both TTL and bright line finders, cameras that let you use whichever finder is appropriate. Accessory bright line finders from Leitz and Voigtlander are available to fit almost any cameras. But the expense of these options is going to prevent some folks from taking advantage of them. If this is a negative on a scorecard for mirrorless cameras, the focusing accuracy of live view is an advantage. (Some cameras increase the speed of auto focusing by combining live view with phase detect.)
There was a long time when my primary cameras were rangefinders. I used them for all the reasons that Michael Reichmann lists. But today, outside of the studio, I use mirrorless for the most part. (My DSLRs are still better for quickly moving football players and running dogs.) My rangefinders are seeing very little use, and I was not tempted to purchase the Leica M-P “Correspondent” created in collaboration with rock star Lenny Kravitz even though I spent most of my life as a correspondent. http://www.shutterbug.com/content/l...edition-m-p-“correspondent”-set-lenny-kravitz
I know most folks came to the Rangefinder Forum because of an interest in rangefinder cameras. Am I the only one who no longer is much of a rangefinder photographer? I’d love to know what you think and what you’re doing these days. And, of course, what you think of Leitz and the pre aged Kravitzcam.
