Mju-II viewfinder too small... alternative P&S?

[antonrussell]

Hello everyone. I've had an Olympus mju-II (fixed focal length 35mm

f2.8) for a few years and I absolutely adore it except in one

respect: I just find the viewfinder window too small for comfort,

especially as I wear glasses. This is now bugging me quite a bit. I'm

thinking of getting a second-hand Yashica T3 as a replacement as they

seem to be going pretty cheap and have exactly the same fixed focal

length and aperture as the mju 2. The main limiting factor is money:

whatever I get I probably can't afford it and will be forced to live

entirely on baked beans for the forseeable future. Does anybody have

any comments or suggestions on the Yashica T3 or alternative P&S's

that fit my budget of approximately $0 and have a nice comfy

viewfinder? Thanks for reading my question.

[Mike Gammill]

I've owned a T3 since 1989. Never had a bit of trouble with it. Sharp lens. One limiting factor: it only has 16 focus zones as compared to the 100+ that most P&S cameras have today. It does have a bigger finder than the Olympus (known as Stylus Epic in the USA). It also has a waist level finder for great candids. The camera uses a 6 volt lithium battery. It is considerably larger than the Olympus. I wear glasses too and have adapted to the small Olypus finder.

[leslie_cheung]

Hexar AFgot a great finder though it's abit on the pricey side.

The bessa R would be another option if you are going into the

$400 -$500 range.

[leslie_cheung]

Also compact fixed lens rf from the 70's usually have better

finders and quite cheap compare to modern day p&s.

[GerrySiegel]

I know of no suitable camera you can get for your stated budget without theft,(a felony in our state). I might suggest paid employment as an alternative to the bean diet. I tried the latter and it made me unpopular in most company,except for the loyalty of my dog...GS PS: The finder on the AF Hexar is a true delight, I agree.

[bacsa]

AS above...try to find a good working fixed-lens rangefinder from the seventies. No autofocus though...

[antonrussell]

Thanks very much for the replies, sarcastic comments about paid employment notwithstanding :)

Especially thanks for recommending the Hexar AF - I'd never heard of it before but it looks amazing and I think I need one! Downside is it doesn't seem to have a built-in flash which I tend to need when I'm taking pictures of my mates down the pub (although as GS rightly points out my bean diet might solve this problem). This also applies to all the seventies rangefinders I've looked at, although they tend to be dead cute I have to admit.

[GerrySiegel]

Anton, I agree about the small viewfinder problem. Olympus does that a lot sadly.Even in their small digital models I might add. I could suggest a Camedia C 4000 for pub shots,digital is getting to be popular,if you can see your way into an investment of about, sterling I don't know,- but USD 250.00 is what my wife paid at COSTCO.com. In a used (cuz discontinued now) small film point and shoot, consider the very smartly styled Leica Mini 3 w good lens (a sleeeper if there ever was one) which I think is a great little model I keep for quick and dirty stuff,fast lens,decent finder,under two hundred greenbacks,and decent flash on board,long life battery. Beyond that,please excuse my cheap snipe about the paying work,- no smiley but that is me much of the time,of course you did say a budget of zippo which doesnt help in the advice department. I think you meant at the same nice price as the Olympus mju,which is an exception in the marketplace. In a fixed lens low light camera,if you can glom onto a Leica Mini 3 you will be happy as a clam..Be well,and cheers,Gerry-lifelong learning-Siegel