View finder

[shayallen]

I am New to RFF and just got a Leica M7 and am about to also get a Voigtlander 21/4... Is it necessary for me to get the 21mm view finder right away or can I get buy without one? I will be mostly shooting scenic landscapes and street stuff. Thanks for your thoughts

 

[payasam]

Welcome to RFF, Shay. You will need a 21mm V/F if you want accurate framing. For landscape work, though, unless you shoot slide film, the 28mm frame lines may be a good enough guide.

 

[Spyderman]

I disagree with Payasam. For street work, you could possibly get by without an external finder, but if you want good composition for landscapes, an external finder is a must unless you want to end up with surprises around the edges of your pictures...

 

[bobewest]

Hi

I bought a CV21 F4 a few months ago for my Leica standard and got a viewfinder with it

Regards

Bob

 

[mr_phillip]

If you buy the screw-mount version of the 21/4 you'll get the finder with the lens (you'll need a simple screw-to-bayonet adapter too). The VM mount version doesn't come with a finder.

Personally I don't see the point in trying to make do without the finder - you'll be composing with the force and are pretty certain to end up cropping most of your images down to get rid of all the things you didn't mean to include in shot. And cropping means that you'll loose the benefit of all that high-res quality that you're paying for.

 

[chris00nj]

The difference between a 21mm view and any M7 frameline is going to be quite significant. It's not "close" like using the 35mm lines for the 40mm or 90mm framelines for a 100mm lens.

Cameraquest sells new VC 21mm finders for $128.

 

[mr_phillip]

BTW, you might want to check out this eBay auction.

 

[peter_n]

For street you can get by without the finder but having one can be really useful, you've no idea how much near empty space there can be with that lens. I would think you would need the finder for landscape work where you want to be a bit more precise with your framing.

 

[ellisson]

Best deal is to buy the CV 21/4 screwmount version, which includes the viewfinder together with the lens. You''ll need the M-adapter, but you can get these new for about 50-60 USD or used for less.