Portraits with M7/M7 II

[richard_silfverberg]

Hi,

 

just a quick question to you M7 users out there;

taking the limitations to M7 when it comes to close up photography -

is it possible to use the M7 for portrait photography.

I am initiating a project where I am documenting my family and

friends and their pets.

 

Regards,

Richard

[dave_kemp]

Richard, I am a Mamiya 7 owner and user, and much as I love this camera and its lenses, it would not be my choice for portrait photography. There are better alternatives (like the Pentax 67 or the Mamiya RZ, to mention a couple I like).

[ken schwarz]

The 80mm lens focuses to 1M, and the 150mm lens focuses to 1.8M. This means that both lenses yield the same maximum magnification, although the 150mm lens compresses perspective, of course. The only way to get more magnification is to cut away negative and enlarge the area of interest. 6x7 is so huge that this works out fine for the prints I've done (up to 16x20) using Velvia and Astia.

 

For pet photography, I'd prefer a camera with a waist level finder. Shots from high perspective look amateurish to me, no matter how big the negative is!

[don_karon]

You can't get a very tight head and shoulders portrait (unless you crop the negative, as mentioned above) with the M7. A waist up composition is possible.

 

With the 150mm the depth of field is very shallow at near distances so you must focus carefully. Mamiya recommends focussing from near to far, stopping as soon as it appears in focus, no hunting back and forth. This did help me quite a bit.

[david_adams]

I have enjoyed using the M7 in a (fairly large) studio, with the 150mm lens. You can't get in very close so if you need to, you should consider something different. But other than that, why not? Possible, definitely. Good, maybe. Ideal, no.

[ted_daughety]

I'm not certain that I fully appreciate this criticism. I understand that no rangefinder camera is a good choice for macro work. I understand that portraiture of some faces benefits from the decreasing perspective effect of increased subject to camera distance, possible with longer focal length lenses. Clearly 150mm is the longest in the Mamiya 7 system. Beyond those criticisms, what are people concerned about? The minimum focus of the Pentax 67 165LS is 1.6m, compared with 1.8 for the Mamiya 7 1.8m; is that difference significant? If you want to deal with three times the weight, the min focus of the bellows based Mamiya RZ 150 is 0.8m. If we want a macro lens or a 300 or 400mm lrens or interchangable backs, we would better choose an SLR. However, for an image of 20x24 inches at 1.8m from which one can crop little pieces of face if desired, the Mamiya 7 seems economical of money and weight. OK, I also wish it did it all, but no tools do.

 

Ted Daughety

[steve_vancosin]

Ted, your points are well thought out and generally correct. After all, it is 6X7, so crop a little for those times you need a real tight shot. On the other hand, portraitists that use the P67 system use either the 200 or the 135 macro when they require a head only shot. If forced to use the 165, an extension tube is commonly used (quite impossible with the M67). Hassy users must do the same with their 150 also.