What the best of the smallest RF's for my pocket?

kshapero

kshapero

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Looking for a small manual everything 35mm rangefinder. The smaller the better to keep in my pocket at all times, so I never miss a shot. Any ideas?
 
I carry an Olympus XA when I don't have a larger camera. With the A11 flash it still fits in a pocket, and without a flash attached, it's positiviely tiny. It has a very good 35mm f2.8 lens- so good in fact, that it's very often the only 35mm lens I carry, even when I have a bag. It does have a decent manual focus RF, and manually selected apertures and ISO, but the shutter speed is set via AE only- this is the only control you lose. But I've never had a miss-exposed frame in ten years. I've shot hundreds of rolls in that time on maybe three battery changes. Check out Gandy's cameraquest.com site under classic cameras for a full review of this and a big selection of other candidates. Good luck!
 
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Look for one of the great ones from the 1950's -
Agfa Karat 36 or IV
Kodak Retina IIa
Voigtlander Vitessa L
Zeiss Icon Contessa 35

I've used 3 of these and they are all great cameras. The one I've kept is the ZI so that gives my idea of the best of the bunch. It's tiny and has a glorious 45/2.8 Opton Tessar Red T lens. http://www.cameraquest.com/classics.htm has information on all of them.

Good luck!

William
 
I'm with Frank on this one. If you want a truly pocketable manual 35mm camera, the Rollei 35 S (or other variation) is hard to beat. I have prints on my wall taken with a 35 S about 25 years ago that still give me pleasure.

Robert
 
I think the ultimate all-manual pocket camera is the Rollei 35 (or 35 T or 35 S). It doesn't have a rangefinder, but optical rangefinders are not all that great in a tiny camera anyhow. (I always zone focussed my Olympus XA even though it had a rudimentary RF.) Zone focussing is effortless with the Rollei's DOF scale.

Richard
 
Rollei 35, it is: compact, classic looking, sturdy, with a tack sharp lens. Meter is not so great for low light. I'd like to have a lens cap for it when it's in my pocket, though. Oh, and really nice bokeh.
 

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Olympus XA, 35mm f2.8 lens, shutter preferred metering, clam shell design means no lens cap or case required, sane controls (I own a Rollei 35 too) broader range of shutter speeds than the Rollei, better placement for flash (not on the bottom of the camera as with the Rollei.) Dave.
 
adep said:
Rollei 35, it is: compact, classic looking, sturdy, with a tack sharp lens. Meter is not so great for low light. I'd like to have a lens cap for it when it's in my pocket, though. Oh, and really nice bokeh.
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Check with www.thecamerahunter.com for a lens cap. He has good prices on Rollei 35 accessories and is very dependable. The stock lens cap is a slip-on type and falls off very easily, especially when the camera is in a pocket, so I use a UV filter to protect the lens on one of my Rollei 35s. If I'm concerned about flare, I just remove the filter. So far the UV filter hasn't gotten scratched, and even if it does, I doubt that it would cause any significant deterioration of the image.

Richard
 
I absolutely love my XA. Maybe it would better if it was fully manual, and I've thought about getting a Rollei 35S for that reason, but it's just so nice how well the XA fits in your pocket. I think as a backup camera to keep in your pocket it's tough to beat. All my photos have been sharp and contrasty. And even though I'd like to be able to set the shutter speed, having the light meter in the viewer show you the shutter speed it's going to use more or less allows you to control the shutter speed because you can compensate with the aperture. Also, because it's shutter priority you can get properly exposed photos in very low light by just setting the camera on a table, tapping the very sensative electro-magnetic shutter(which won't give you any camera shake), and letting it stay open for several seconds.

The other big argument for the XA is that you can easily get one for $40 as opposed to the $300 that the rollei 35s go for.
 
If a rangefinder is not essential the Minolta TC-1 can't be beaten.
Lens as good as some of the best M mount lenses and it's truly pocketable.
 
Sorry to go off at a bit of a tangent, but can I ask a question of those who have recommended the XA? Is its lens significantly better than the lens on the XA2? (I ask because I have an XA2, but I don't really like the results).
 
adep said:
Rollei 35, it is: compact, classic looking, sturdy, with a tack sharp lens. Meter is not so great for low light. I'd like to have a lens cap for it when it's in my pocket, though. Oh, and really nice bokeh.
Click to expand...

I see you waving to us there. Did you think you would get away with that?;)
 
The Rollei 35 has terrible ergonomics
that somehow appeal to some.

I recommend the Petri Color 35.

Neither has a rangefinder.
Both are scale focus cameras.

"Excelsior, you fathead!"
-Chris-
 
Rollei 35 or a screwmount Leica if yoou need more lenses. M6 and 50 elmar if your pocket is big.

Lately been fooling with a Canon 610 digi cam. It has a 35/140 zoom lens. I use PTLens to correct the distortion from the zoom. Two clicks, it`s fixed. I hate distortion
 
I don't want to start you on the road to wreck and ruin, but the Contax T is a very fine tiny camera, one costs about as much as 10 or 12 XA's though.
 
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