simon_baker2

<p>You are welcome Gary,</p> <p>BTW.... my 1st <em>' point a) '</em> should be 'shutter speed ring' not aperture ring ... sorry about that.</p> <p>Kind regards,</p> <p>Simon</p>

<p>Hello Gary,</p> <p>The 202FA is a 'GREAT' camera! It has been 'frowned upon' over the years by some people for reasons such as:-</p> <p>a) No aperture ring<br> b) Not able to use the leaf shutter of Cf/Cfi/Cfe lenses, can only use on the 'F' setting <br> c) No auto-bracketing<br> d) Top shutter speed 1/1000<br> e) Others ... just cant think of them right now.</p> <p>BUT ..... actually from my point of view those points do not bother me because ......</p> <p>a) The 202FA has the same wonderful metering of the much loved 203FE<br> b) You CAN use it in manual mode..... controlling the shutter speed via the blue 'up/down' buttons on the side of the camera<br> c) 1/1000 is not limiting to me, leaf-shutter 'blad lenses top-out at 1/500<br> d) I have never used 'auto bracketing' on any camera, so I am not bothered by the lack of it</p> <p>OK the inability to use the leaf shutters in the 500 series lenses could be a drawback on occasion but if you need a high sync speed then a 500 series is the way to go or like myself ensure that you have leaf-shuttered lenses for use with the 202 then you could get a 500 series body to use with the same lenses.</p> <p>Another great thing about the 202FA is the price .... due o the lack of 'love' for it one can be bought for a lot less than a 203FE;-)</p> <p>With regard to film backs I cannot give advice on 'instant film backs' as I have never used one, you can use the same regular backs as used on a 500 series such as an A12/24 A16/32, the only 'limitation' is that you would need to remember to set the film speed on the body as such backs do not have the data-bus connections of an 'E' back. You would need to do this for the meter to be accurate.</p> <p>So in short, it's a great camera which can be bought at a great price and gives access to some of the finest lenses available and a fast array of accessories.</p> <p>Kind regards, Simon</p>

<p>Thank you for your replies, yes I do feel that the 100mm is 'the one' to go with. Of course as I already have the three lenses I quoted, it would be easy to use just one for a month or two, then another and finally the third and see which one liberates my photography and which constricts it, therefore this is what I will likely do. If I actually had no lens yet and could only afford one I think it would be the 100mm, it is after all rather special. So I guess I have answered my own question, then again it wasn't really a question to myself, I'm leaning towards the 100mm anyway, I'm just curious as to which 'one' of the three lenses other folk would choose.</p> <p>Kind regards, Simon</p>

<p>I've dug my 'blad out of it's "hibernation" ( have been using my Leica M6 mostly over the past few years ) for it needs to be used or otherwise sold. I have a 202FA along with three lenses, namely 65mm Cfi, 100mm Cfi and 150mm FE and want to challenge myself by using just one of those lenses on a regular basis. I know which I am 'leaning towards' but am interested in the opinion of others.<br> The 65 maybe the most universal, the 100 could be used as a slightly longer 'standard' , the least obvious is the 150 FE then again I enjoy shooting tight portraits so is it really less obvious?<br> Personally I'm leaning towards the 100mm Cfi, sensible choice?</p> <p>Kind regards, Simon</p>