OT: Top 5 most fun cameras

[bob_eskridge]

I have Leica M6, Hasselblad and many other cameras but am trying to cut down my collection to the ones I really enjoy using.

 

1) Voigtlander L Great little camera! My new travel camera. Lightweight, small and you have to do everything for it - even guess focus. My new favorite.

 

2) 4X5 B&J Press stretched to 5X7 - A work in progress. Can't wait to get it completed. Hand held 5X7 shots when needed will be easy.

 

3) Nikon F2 Great workhorse. (Got two.)

 

4) 9X12 Ihagee folder. Converted to interchangeable lenses (90 and 135) and with rangefinder/scale focus will make 4X5 (really 9X12) sheet film travel photography a real possiblity.

 

5) Nikon FM My old standby for over 20 years. A part of the family!

[karl_keung]

Contarex (Bulleye), might put even M3 to shame, weight 950 gram when without lens

alone. A total of 32,000 units were produced.

 

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[karl_keung]

<b><h2>The first model of Contarex, it was refered to as simply "The Contarex". It has

somehow picked up the name "Bullseye", in reference to the round Selenium meter cell

above the lens. This is the easiest model of Contarex to find today, as 32,000 were built.

Fit and finish on these, as on all of the Contarex line, is impeccable.

The Bullseye was available from 1959-66. After 1964, they feature a few changes, the

most important being the interchangeablity of focusing screens, and the data strip, for

recording data onto the film as you expose it. Both versions are code 10.2401.

Nearly all of the Contarex Bullseyes were finished in chrome. A small handful were finished

in black paint, reportedly over the chrome finish.</h2></b>

 

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[leica ron]

1. Leica M6 Classic

 

2. Mamiya 7ii

 

3. Linhof Technikardan 45S

 

4. Nikon F100

 

5. Konica Hexar AF

 

 

My boss lent me his Nikon D1X to shoot at a wedding we were doing (he shot film), could be my first digital camera (wash my mouth with soap and water) ...

[eliot_rosen1]

I haven't used as many different cameras as some of the others, but I would say

 

1) Leica M7 (ease of use because of AE); and

 

2) Leica M4-P (I like its build quality and feel).

 

I've used NIKON (Nikkormat FTN) and Pentax (Spotmatic, that's pretty old), but I like the feel of Leica and the soft shutter. They were all very good cameras though, can't criticize any of them.

[work-page]

And the number one camera is of course the Zenit EM SLR.

 

The shutter/mirror slap is so bad that it makes a tripod collapse. Nevertheless, it's so basic that you can bang it around and nothing breaks (there's nothing to break inside of course). Feels like it could run for twenty years on a set of batteries (which it doesn't use as the lightmeter runs on .... light). I actually made some of my best pictures with such a beast.

[dean_g]

1) Canon 10D. Makes a truly nice shutter sound, great to hold, lots of lenses and settings to play with. Great image quality.

 

2) Olympus Stylus Epic. Always there, a masterpiece of modern camera design in your pocket. Sadly, was stolen last year.

 

3) Ricoh Caplio GX. Handling like no other pocket digicam, a worthy replacement for #2.

 

4) Polaroid SX-70. A brilliant industrial design, almost a work of art in itself. Time zero manipulation is a blast. Too bad the film is so expensive. Just sold my near mint light brown leather covered example.

 

5) Ricoh VI TLR. 3 element lens not the greatest, and I can't quite makeout what's on the ground glass. But it's the camera my father had in, and brought back from, the Korean War. It's what tweaked my first interest in photography. Still works, and many pics of my kids growing up in the 70's and 80's were done with it.

[Ian Taylor]

pinhole, Holga, Speed Graphic, Xpan

[r_quan]

1. Leica Digilux 2 by far my number one!

2. Panasonic DMC-FZ20 or FZ3 : 12X opt stabilized good chip and cheap

3. Rolleiflex 2.8F or Mamiya C330S (which focuses easier than Rollei)

4. Olympus XA4 or Pen FV : cute Maitani designed gems

5. Leica M7 : more fun than my other M's because AE & smooth shutter

[donald_brewster]

Oh man. Decisions, decisions. 1) Rolleiflex TLR; 2) Mamiya 7II; 3) Leica M4P; 5) Contarex Bullseye. I also love my Deardorff and Leica R7, but those are more working tools.

[phil_wilson]

1 - MINOX GT Amazing fun , once you master guessed distance . Great for quick, quiet photos; rich lens colours; sturdy build and then some; But my shutters gone (cheap repair 60pound) Eventually small digi would replace in all but Infra-Red and film-only circumstances (espiona?e)

 

2 - CONTAX RX ..With the reversing ring and 50 1.4 Planar great fun to roam all out on macro. the workhorse , pure pleasure when working fast or slow. Add a super-crisp n bright Yashica angle-finder put it on the tripod for cloud-watching.. smashing

 

3 - AGFA 110 special - i got it Christmas 1985 age 9 in Holland ... I loved pressing than big orange button!! but the button eventually dented , melted and caved in. FUN OVER!

 

4 - POLOROiD SX-70 I agree - instant fun oorijinal stylee, With everybody coming out marvelous looking (doesn't it all look a bit Leica ???!)

 

5 - KIEV iiia 1956 with 50mm Jupiter F2 - Is this the look of the original Zeiss designed lenses? !Wow! heavenly photos But the fun up there with "the best" as I find the rangefinder to be better than Leica M3 AND Bessa R which is 1/4 at most the brightness (I've seen two examples ) It is wicked to use along with the dial focusing and cold chrome . I am sure my kiev is part Contax III with the super-wide baseline rangefinder of that camera- but I think the shutter is more longer-lasting (ie no leather strips) I have just aquired an 85mm Jupiter 1963 F2 chrome .... sonnar copy? quite rare and a joy to use on farm land - no need for camera case - this baby takes snow falls in it's stride.

[grant_.]

all and any are fun for me...

[jsbc]

903 swc

Rolleiflex

Leica M7

Nikon FM (my first camera)

I don't have it but I think the 20D will be a lot of fun.

[mark_sage]

My idea of "fun to use" has a lot to do with lens quality; I find it much more satisfying to

shoot when I know I'll like the results when I make prints. I also don't like holding plastic.

 

1. Rolleflex TLR's - put people at ease, quiet, great results handheld, great conversation

starter. Best outdoors. 2. Leica M's - satisfying to use, great optics. Compatibility with

Russian LTM lenses does add an extra dimension of fun. 3. Leicaflex SL2 - best 35mm slr

viewfinder ever? Looking through Leica glass with the big, clear viewfinder is my idea of

fun. Probably the best SLR mirror/shutter ever; no shake (the slight kick is on the return),

very solid to handhold (if you have big hands), sexy (and fairly quiet) shutter sound. The

older lenses are an incredible value compared to M series. 4. Kowa 6 MM - body shape

and ease/speed of mirror prerelease make this a great MF SLR to shoot handheld and the

lenses are really excellent at the middle and smaller apertures. Vivid "3-D" viewing screen

makes composing fun. Not the most reliable, but cheap and easy to repair. 5. Leica

Minilux w/40mm - fast M-quality glass on a well-made point and shoot. It's always with

me and I often end up shooting at night when I'm walking back from somewhere. Great

for bars and parties or any time an M seems too serious or too much of a commitment to

carry.

 

The X-Pan looks like it would be fun, too, but I haven't used one.

[elliott_doland]

(Talbert McMullin)

 

1. Olympus 35RD--Lightweight, sharp and contrasty lens (and fast), good rangefinder, quiet as a mouse, and plenty of manual controls.

2. Hasselblad C--Total manual control! Simple design but difficult to use (when compared with other cameras). Using one is like stepping back in time. Feels like a rock in your hands. Outstanding lenses.

3. Nikon FM--Another manual-only beauty. Somewhat simpler to use than Hasselblad C but focusing and metering are quick enough for street shots.

4. Nikon FE2--Curious mixture of manual and automatic exposure. Like the FM but with plenty of bells and whistles.

5. Rolleiflex T TLR--There is nothing like the feel of the aircraft-grade aluminum body in your hands. Like the Hassy, takes you back in time without the versatility (or the weight and complexity). Just the fact that you use one in this day and age draws plenty of curious onlookers.

[peteradownunder]

Leica M7 cos it was my first leica. Leica BPMP cos it is the second sexiest camera ever made and Leica M8 cos it is digi. All of them using either a 28 cron or a 50 cron /lux.<p> Mamiya 7 and Xpan for their magnificent 43 and 45 lenses.<p> H1 for MF digi until I swap for Rollei soon. <p> and my favourite camera today the Alpa with 24mm and 45 digi spec Schneider lenses.