Simple camera for low-light shooting

[maciek_stankiewicz]

<p>I am photographing using avaliable light and I have some cameras with fast lenses. Few days ago I wrote here few words about why <strong>2.8 lens </strong>may be better for low light than 1.7 lens (<strong>the DOF and focusing issue when shooting from the hip</strong>).<br />So I started to think about camera that is small, quiet with 2.8 lens that let me freeze the action. Then I bought famous <strong>Olympus Trip 35 </strong>because it's 1/40s shutter speed in manual mode.<br /><strong>So here is the idea:</strong><br /><strong>I will load it with ISO 1600 B&W film and use wide open 2.8 lens and 1/40s shutter to photograph in low light, street, night buses, pubs etc. Looks like 1600, 2.8, 1/40s is a great combination for low light. What do You think? Anyone tried something like this with Olympus Trip? </strong><br /><strong></strong><br /><strong>Regards, M.S.</strong></p>

[User_502260]

<p>Why not use an AF camera? I sometimes like using a Rollei 35 and estimating the focus but I would not like to use it in low light with the lens wide open. You will get a higher percentage of usable shots with an AF camera even with an f/2 or f/1.7 lens than with a zone focus camera at f/2.8. At infinity there won't be as much of a difference but for anything closer there will be.</p>

[maciek_stankiewicz]

<p>I would like to have Konica Hexar AF camera but it's rare and quite expensive... There are many small AF Point&Shoot cameras but <strong>I really need shutter speed set around 1/30</strong>. Olympus Infinity Stylus is a nice small camera and longest shutter speed is 1/15 but lens is f3.5 and have some geometric distortions... <br>

The Canonet 28 with it's 1/30s shutter may be a good choice.<br>

<strong>Any other ideas? Please share Your experience with old P&S and ISO1600 film. </strong></p>

[ridinhome]

<p>I don't know whether the Canonet 28 would be of much help. In low light the camera doesn't meter so the shutter won't fire, unless you put it in manual mode in which case you are restricted to the 1/30 flash sync speed.</p>

[rustys pics]

<p>Get a Canonet QL19 with the 1.9 lens. All manual shutter speeds, super quiet, cheaper and SHARPER than the more prized and pricey Canonet QL17. Or get a Yashica Electro. Even if it suffers from electronic Pad rot (which most do) it will fire manually at 1/30. </p>

[lauren_macintosh]

<p>When doing low light foto's I want the wide'est lens I can get, I have and on my F-1 canon the F-1.4 which can make great molted backgrounds in the fotos if I want More D.F. I go up f-2.8 so I have both worlds covered:</p>

[machts gut]

<p>I would second the idea of an AF camera and there are some on the second hand market that would fit ypur requirement. Olympus mju 2, Nikon RF 35 AF, some Yashica T-Modells, Contax T, T2 or T3, Leica Minilux...</p>

[maciek_stankiewicz]

<p>Thank You all for the esponses! As I said I have some fast lens cameras like Yashica GSN or some SLRs but:<br /><strong>- GSN is too big and shiny</strong><br /><strong>- SLRs are too loud and too big</strong><br /><strong>- I will stop down to f2.8 anyway.</strong><br /><strong>- Small AF cameras usually goes to 1s, 2s which is too long!</strong> I need a small camera with 1/30 or 1/40 shutter. I don't care for metering, in better condition I can stop down the lens to f4, f5.6... It's more like an experiment with 1600film and 2.8 lens.<br />Please Read my post CAREFULLY. I am looking for a small quiet camera that have 2.8 lens and shutter to 1/30 or shutter priority.<br />I already have Olympus Trip 35. It may be a perfect camera for low light work and I will try to use it with 1600 film. I'm not worry about lightmeter because of my experience and B&W film lattitude.<br /><strong>Let me know if You know a small camera that have 2.8 lens and give me 1/30s shutter speed?</strong><br /><strong></strong>Thanks for the responses, M.S.</p>

[chuck_foreman1]

<p>There's plenty of manul cameras that have a 2.8 lens and will do either 1/30-40-50-60 of second! Any of the FSU cameras Zorkis and Kievs and their Mentors as well as many manual 70s RFs I don't know all the models but the Canonet QL17 supports manual mode. The Lnyx 5000/14 may not be to your liking. Zeiss Ikon made lots of consumer cameras such as the Contina/Contessa all had 2.8 lenses also later Voigtlanders also had nice 2.8 lenses in Prontor shutters. If the criteria is manual, 2.8,1/30 there are plenty! In low light I liked the Lynx 5000 because the RF patch is yellow and can be used! The little ZI Contessa delivered nice results but the viewfinder was too small and dark I was better off with a brighter finder! I weas in bars shooting badly lit stages.. YMMV!</p>

 

[User_502260]

<p>You can zone focus just as easily with a camera which has a coupled rangefimder as with one which doesn't. If you can live with 1/30 instead of 1/40 and if you want the ability to set the lens manually to f/2.8 then some other choices might include: Minolta Hi-Matic 7SII, Olympus 35RC, Olympus 35RD, Leica CL, Minolta CLE, Voigtlander Bessa L. The Bessa L will be less noisy than the SLRs it was derived from because there is no mirror slap. You can attach a 35/1.7 lens, set it to f/2.8, set your shutter speed to 1/30 and do your zone focusing. There is no particular advantage to using an f/2.8 lens wide open as opposed to using a faster lens closed down to f/2.8. In most cases the faster lens closed down to f/2.8 will be sharper. </p>

[ridinhome]

<p>Maciek - ok I think I get what you want now. Couple of things though - many of the classic rangefinders don't allow you to set an ASA greater than 400 or 800. So you're pretty much stuck with shooting in non-metered manual mode unless you pick a slower film. In which case a Canonet 28 would work (given that you seem to be wedded to 1/30s). Seems like a Konica Auto S3 might fit your bill, other than the fact that it only takes an ASA range up to 800. Or if you are willing to compromise on size, why not get a Konica Auto S2 - fantastic Hexanon F1.8 lens (which you could always just stop down to F2.8), metered manual, and although it's not super compact, it isn't super large by todays DSLR standards (I use a 5D with battery grip which is a heft combo). Plus, it has a nifty feature where you can see the meter on top of the camera - perfect for shooting from the hip. Focusing is a breeze on the Auto S2. IIRC the Auto S2 only goes up to ASA 400, but that's not a problem since you have full manual control.</p>

[alex macphee]

<p>Just a note of caution on the Yashica Electro, even though you've discounted it ; this camera does not default to 1/30th in the absence of a battery, it defaults to 1/500th. Moreover, in all three of my copies, the diaphragm does not appear correctly formed at any aperture, although they are fine with a working battery.</p>

<p>The Olympus 35RC also fits most of your bill, with shutter speeds 15-500, shutter priority, although the maximum film speed for the meter is 800, not 1600. The lens is outstanding, and it's more versatile than the Trip.</p>

[jady]

<p>Have you considered the Minox sub-miniature cameras?</p>

[david_carroll4]

<p>If you're intent on a (relatively) fast shutter speed (1/30-1/60) and a f/2.8 aperture with ISO 1600 film, are you planning on just shooting at these settings and letting the exposure fall as it lies? In that case, a manual camera will do the trick, right? Why not a black OM-1 with a 35/2.8 or 28/2.8? There's your small unobtrusive camera, good VF when you need it, meter going to ISO1600, assuming you want to use the meter, and since you're shooting "from the hip", you can zone focus and leave the mirror locked up, which will further cut the noise of an already pretty quiet camera.</p>

[paul_park2]

<p><blockquote>In that case, a manual camera will do the trick, right? Why not a black OM-1 with a 35/2.8 or 28/2.8? There's your small unobtrusive camera, good VF when you need it, meter going to ISO1600, assuming you want to use the meter, and since you're shooting "from the hip", you can zone focus and leave the mirror locked up, which will further cut the noise of an already pretty quiet camera.</blockquote></p>

<p>Great idea. Depending on the size of your pockets, I imagine a combination of Olympus OM-1n and 40mm pancake lens to be very pocketable. But very expensive too:)</p>

[david_carroll4]

<p>Sad but true - I never understood the crazy prices commanded by "pancake" lenses - a bit wider than standard, but not wide-angles by any means, usually pretty mediocre max aperture (f/2-2.8) for a near-standard lens. Sure, they're compact, but how does that justify the prices? Are they particularly rare?</p>

[Mike Gammill]

What about an OM-1 with the Zuiko 35 mm f2.8? If you're shooting from the hip you can lock up the mirror for less noise.

[matt_blomqvist]

<p>Olympus Trip is a nice camera - I have one and use it a lot - but I'm not sure how you'd shoot it with ASA1600. Its meter goes only to ASA400. Of course you could set the lens manually to f/2.8 but how do you know which one of the two shutter speeds available the Trip will use? By the way, it's not very quiet camera either. I wouldn't use it in the night bus. Maybe the Olympus XA but not the Trip.<br>

I think you need something like a Kodak Retina II with f/2.8 lens.</p>

 

[matt_blomqvist]

<p>Well, as an afterthought the Rollei 35S might fit the bill too. The meter goes up to 1600, it's ve-ry small, very quiet and the lens is legendary. </p>

[maciek_stankiewicz]

<p>Thank You all for interesting responses!<br />Right now I will use Olympus Trip @ 2.8 with ISO 1600 (1/40s non-metered) and eventually stop it down for a brighter scene. Olympus XA is more quiet but in low light may select longer shutter speeds which I'm trying to avoid. I will look at my workplace to find Kodak Retina, we have those somewhere...</p><div></div>

[yog_sothoth]

<p>Honestly, I would get an Olympus stylus epic. They are tiny, have nice lenses, and can meter at high ISOs. It is not manual, but you will have a hard time doing better.</p>

[anirbanbanerjee]

<p>I'd second Stephen C.'s suggestion. An Olympus Stylus Epic DLX matches your requirements perfectly, except that it's auto everything. Additionally, it's "weatherproof" and can reside in my sweaty shirt pockets all day long.</p>

[vasudevan_navneeth]

<p>I think you should try the FSU, Fed's and Zorkis combined with probably Jupiter lens. Small in size and excellent optis</p>

[maciek_stankiewicz]

<p> I am allergic to Russian cameras, especially Zenit and crappy copies of Minox 35, Olympus XA, Konica C35EF and Minolta 16...</p>

[jeff_guthrie]

<p>Try the Yashica Electro CC. With aperture-priority auto exposure, it is about as simple in operation as you can get. The biggest plus about the CC is it's 35/1.8 lens, which is really nice for low-light shooting. Unfortunately, it can only run film up to ASA 800, but it has a maximum exposure time of 16 seconds.</p>

<p>The CC is also very compact, it can be easily carried in a coat pocket. I also like how silent it's operation is. The rangefinder system is also very good in low-light situations.</p>

<p>There is a nearly identical camera called the CCN. It is pretty much the same as the CC, with the exception being a maximum shutter speed of 8 seconds. These cameras are simply jewels, they are beautifully made and styled. They are a little pricey and hard to find, but they do come up on eBay from time to time.</p>