Which Bessa is the right for me?

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floris

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I would like to say hello to everyone. I am new to rangefinder cameras and am very happy that I found this forum. I have been shooting with a Nikon FM-10 and a Nikon D-70 the last years. My real interest is filmmaking. My favorite director is Stanly Kubrick and one just has to fall in love with the photographs he produced in his younger years. While I was out buying a new DSLR I was advised to look at rangefinder cameras as I am interested in street photography.

First, I was give a taste of the extraordinary beautiful Leica system but I do not think I can afford to buy a Leica at this moment. And I first one to experience rangefinder cameras and can always pull out the big money for a Leica.

So I think it is going to be a Voigtlaender camera for me. The 1-million dollar question is which one should I buy? I was advised to buy a R4 but I really like metal cameras and not plastic. So what are the main differences between the R, R2, R3 and R4? Are they all made of plastic or is the one better built as the other? Or: what are the differences between the R2M and R4M in terms of build-quality?

And finally, which lenses should I buy... the 50mm/1.5 is a no-brainer. So I would say something like a 21mm and a 90mm but I might be wrong.

Thanks in advance for your feedback/information!
 
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For street photography I'd recommend more compact lenses but its very much down to personal taste. What's you're preferred focal length on your SLR?
The biggest difference in the cameras is that the R is screwmount whereas the others are M-mount. You can use screwmount lenses on M-mount bodies with a (reasonably cheap) adapter. Definitely the newer the camera the better built it is as well. There are other differences in metering method and the A-suffix cameras (R2A, R3A, R4A) offer aperture-priority mode. There is loads of information at Cameraquest (http://www.cameraquest.com) - have a quick read of those pages.
 
Thanks for your answer. I narrowed it down to a R2M and R4M so I am mainly concearned about the differences between those two. The R2M looks to have a metal body while I read that the R4M is made of plastic.

I think I will mainly use 25mm - 50mm - 75mm. If I look in the Stanley Kubrick book, all pictures seem to be made with one lens... a 50mm. So I will probarbly be buying a body with a 50mm lens only in the beginning. I can always extend.

Another thing I really need to know is which film scanner to buy. Is there a main favorite on these forums or are different brands recommended?
 
no bessa since the original r has been plastic.

for your planned lens kit, i would go with the bessa r3a/m. you'll have the best viewfinder for 50 and 75mm lenses, and you would use an external viewfinder for the 25mm, which is much brighter.
 
Based on your lens choice, Bessa R2M, you won't be able to reliably focus a 75mm lens with an R4* and you'll need to use an external finder. R4 series would also struggle with accurate focus wide open on the 50mm.

I use a Nikon Coolscan 4000ED, the big advantage is that you can get a roll-film adapter for it so you can batch scan an entire 36 shot roll in one go.

However, if you're buying a scanner and a body you could just buy an Epson R-D1 for about the same total price and save yourself the time you'd spend on scanning. Uses the same sensor as the D70, has the same crop as well...
 
So the R3M is a better option then? Or maybe a Zeiss Ikon... I do not want to go digital. I really like the film look better... pictures are more lively. And I do not want to manually add grain to pictures.... against my nature. I want to capture a picture and leave it like I captured it... no editing, no processing...

When I would go digital, it would be M8. But I really think film works best for me.
 
floris said:
So the R3M is a better option then? Or maybe a Zeiss Ikon... I do not want to go digital. I really like the film look better... pictures are more lively. And I do not want to manually add grain to pictures.... against my nature. I want to capture a picture and leave it like I captured it... no editing, no processing...

When I would go digital, it would be M8. But I really think film works best for me.
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Hi floris,
Welcome on board!

I have the Hexar RF and I very much enjoy its aperture priority; therefore, if I was you, I would go for the R3A - you can still meter manually but have the additional comfort of aperture priority.

Best regards,
Uwe
 
I would suggest the R4M, with 21/25/28/35/50 frame lines.
I would go for 21/25/35 lenses [jump on the 35/1.7 before they are sold out] good wide angle kit, with some low light

you could also go with the 28/1.9 also no longer made]

the 50/1.5 is also a very good lens I don't have issues with focusing the 50 on my R4M.

why no 75or 90? well you can use your Nikon's for distance work. [I have both the 75 & the 90 and rarely use either]

having said that, a R3M with 21/40/75 WOULD hit your request on the button and most here that have the 40 love it
 
I would also say, take the R3A first with a 40 or 50 lens, and work from there. Choose a compact lens - even better, try it on the camera before buying.

Buy the best scanner you can afford - this will make you really appreciate film, especially b&w, else you will be disappointed with the quality. I've heard Minolta 5400 is best, but you can get it only second hand. If you can afford it, buy Nikon Coolscan 9000 - it scans 35mm pretty well, but will let you scan up to 6x9, and in my experience, if you like film, you will want to shoot MF sooner or later.
 
50mm is the most important for me. I like the normal focal length and slight variations on it.... so 25/50/75 still sounds right for me. Street photography and some portraits is what I am mainly concearned with.

The Nikon Coolscan 9000 is a bit too expensive. I was looking at the Coolscan 5000. I don't think I will ever switch to medium format. My passion lies with filmmaking and I want to practice by making a lot of photographs. That's much easier then dragging around a videocamera all the time. That's also the reason why I do not want an A version... manual focus is all I need. I want to practice focussing and I want to force myself to every form of automation.

Still, thank you all for all your support!

How big are the differences between the Bessa and the Zeiss Ikon?
 
floris said:
50mm is the most important for me. I like the normal focal length and slight variations on it.... so 25/50/75 still sounds right for me. Street photography and some portraits is what I am mainly concearned with.

The Nikon Coolscan 9000 is a bit too expensive. I was looking at the Coolscan 5000. I don't think I will ever switch to medium format. My passion lies with filmmaking and I want to practice by making a lot of photographs. That's much easier then dragging around a videocamera all the time. That's also the reason why I do not want an A version... manual focus is all I need. I want to practice focussing and I want to force myself to every form of automation.

Still, thank you all for all your support!

How big are the differences between the Bessa and the Zeiss Ikon?
Click to expand...
Well,
First of all, I think there is a misunderstanding: the "A" does not stand for autofocus, but for aperture priority. All Bessas have manual focus, the advantage of the R*A is that you preselect the aperture for the desired depth of field and the camera then sets the correct shutter speed.

I can't tell you anything about the Zeiss Ikon except that it's more expensive than the Bessas and that it has a longer rangefinder base.
From your above specs I would suggest that even the Bessa R will fulfil all your requirements:
  • You want no automation, so no R*A.
  • With your choice of lenses, you would need an acessory viewfinder on all Bessas, either on the wide or on the long end. The Bessa R has frames for the 50 and 75mm lens.
So, my idea would be the Bessa R + 25/4.0 + viewfinder from Stephen @ $449,- (+ the $1 case), either the 50/1.5 Nokton or (on a budget) a Jupiter-8 from a reliable source, and the 75/2.5 @ $295.

Best regards,
Uwe

Edit: I got a Bessa R from Stephen (cameraquest) and it feels much better than I expected after reading many comments about plastic here. I also second Dan's advice about the 35/2.5.
 
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mfogiel said:
I would also say, take the R3A first with a 40 or 50 lens, and work from there.
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Thirded. The 1:1 finder really makes a huge difference. You can use a 21 with an external finder and guess focusing without much of an issue, a 75 or 90 is more of a hassle IME.

2c, /J
 
5000ED will do the job, but it isn't a great improvement over the 4000ED which tends to be cheaper. Does a great job of scanning B&W negs although bear in mind you can't use the ICE stuff with B&W film (none of the hardware dust removal stuff on any scanner works with B&W film).
 
Based on what I've read so far, I'd suggest a Bessa-R with a 50 Nokton, and a good scanner, and spend the rest for now on film. Use that for a while, then add whatever you are so inclined.
 
you really should experience the 1to1 finders on the bessa 2/3, as Kubrick might have said "eyes (both) wide open". Bigger , brighter with the 50mm and 40mm -- or the 90mm for that matter.
 
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