rangefinder which one?

[shep_sherwood]

I once owned a Yashica rangefinder. I now own a Nikon N70 which I

hate. I would like to go back to a rangefinder but the investment in

a Leica is quite an expense. Konica, Contax, Leica M6, Leica M3 Bessa

R. Which one? I enjoy a manual camera. Shepardsherwood@hotmail.com

[warrenlewis]

Bessa R2. Light weight, sturdy, great lenses and will not empty a bankaccount. I have found that I'm using it much more than either Nikon F100 of F3. www.cameraquest.com Arrived quickly and Stephen was willing to answer my 1001 questions.....Warren

[marbing]

If you want an all manual camera then the Contax may not be what you are looking for. I have the G2 and like it quite a bit but it doesn't sound like it is for you. The Zeiss lenses are wonderful however.

[myrra]

Also Konica Hexar is not mechanical camera, although it is manual focus - and the price is almost where M6 is. Two years ago I was in making the same decision and I've chosen Contax G1. Haven't regreted it since, but G1 is almost strictly elektronic camera. Also the lens selection is limited.

Try to hold and compare Bessa R, older Leica M3 and maybe that Contax. Both Leitz and Contax (and maybe Voigtlaender LTM) systems offer very fine lenses, body is more a matter of taste.

 

Myrra

[al_kaplan1]

I'd suggest going with the Bessa R2. The Voigtlander lenses are very good, and you can also use Leica lenses, plus Konica M, Minolta CL and CLE, some special edition Pentax, a plethora of Canon and Nikon glass from the 50's and 60's, Angenieux, Komura, several brands of Russian and Eastern European lenses - hell, about everybody has made lenses that fit Leica at some point. The Bessa is a great way to slide sideways into the Leica system. Then you just might run into a bargain Leica body or lens at a yard sale. It's happened to me.

[eli_zwillinger]

If you don't need interchangeable lenses, you could try a Canon G3 QL17

[rsriram]

I second Eli's recommendation - try a Canonet QL17 GIII if you don't need interchangeable lenses. They should be available for around US$50-60. It has a very sharp 40/1.7 lens. It has many features even the $$$ Leica doesn't have - flash sync upto 1/500s, PC sync socket, auto exposure (shutter priority) etc.

[awahlster]

I'll add a third vote for the Canonet G-III QL-17 I use one every day carring it in my truck at work. An awesome fast camera with an excellent lens. The photo included was shot at approx 9:30-10:00 am looking East South East about a month and a half ago out side Silverton, OR just above the 45th parallel. No filter using auto exposure approx. 1/125sec and Kodak Supra 400 film. As you can see even in this 100dpi scan of a 4X6 1hour print it does a pretty good job. I had about 15 seconds to get this shot as I had to leave my 54500 GVW dump truck on the road (luckily a country road)to get the shot before the light moved out of the Pampus Grass.

 

Mark W.

[awahlster]

I'll add a third vote for the Canonet G-III QL-17 I use one every day carring it in my truck at work. An awesome fast camera with an excellent lens. The photo included was shot at approx 9:30-10:00 am looking East South East about a month and a half ago out side Silverton, OR just above the 45th parallel. No filter using auto exposure approx. 1/125sec and Kodak Supra 400 film. As you can see even in this 100dpi scan of a 4X6 1hour print it does a pretty good job. I had about 15 seconds to get this shot as I had to leave my 54500 GVW dump truck on the road (luckily a country road)to get the shot before the light moved out of the Pampus Grass.

 

To see the photo go to:

 

http://www.deadzoom.com/member/awahlster/Pampus3web.jpg

 

Mark W.

[mike_elek]

Shep,

 

Wow -- you do have quite a few options.

 

If you want to buy new, the Cosina Voigtlander Bessa-R and R2 cameras are pretty nice. The R2 is a better camera, I believe. However, the price might be higher than you want to pay right now.

 

Another possibility is to find a used Leica thread mount (LTM) camera. These cameras, fitted with a 50mm lens, often run about $400 or so in the online auction world. I own a IIIf. The major annoyance is separate windows for focusing and composing your photo. The M series are much better.

 

The postwar Zeiss-Ikon IIa is a really nice camera, although you'll need a separate meter (same as the earlier Leicas). The lenses are really nice -- especially the postwar Zeiss-Opton and Carl Zeiss glass.

 

The downside with the Leicas and Zeiss-Ikons is that they often need a general cleaning, lubrication and adjustment to get them into top shape. Sometimes they don't, but you have to go into it expecting that they will need a CLA.

 

From the 1960s-1970s, there are a quite a few fixed-lens rangefinders from Canon, Minolta, Olympus, Konica and others. I just did some work on an Olympus SP rangefinder, and it's really a nice camera. I also own 1950s-era Konica I and III rangefinders -- no interchangeable lens but excellent (though heavy) cameras. The Konicas usually can be found for less than $200.