paul_.

Sad news...

The PM folds, the Fuji 670/690 doesn't. I used to carry my PM in a little camera bag made for a point and shoot plus film, or in my jacket pocket. No other 6x7 you can find will compete with that. As for ergonomics, you'll get used to holding the flat body. No comfy grip but plenty of surface to grab.

Maddav: I've used several of these cameras and owned two. The first example I owned (670II, but same lens) was the sharpest, but they are all pretty good (I'm writing this because yes, there is a little variation between individual cameras). Check your rangefinder first by shooting a yard/meter ruler at f/3.5 and make sure the focus is right. You can also tape a piece of ground glass to the film rails, but checking on film is easier. As for film flatness, the Fujis don't have that problem as long as you put a little light friction on the roll as you start it (see your instruction book). Full-frame enlargements printed big (20x24+) will be noticeably better than any 35mm neg, even made with a Leitz or Zeiss.

Nigel: As many others recommended, see more of Struth's work. His recent exhibition in Los Angeles was excellent (or did you pick this one as a straw man, easy to attack??) Brian: You clearly know little of the "art world" you so unfortunately attempt to describe. A "literal" "handful" of artists and critics? Count up the artists who have been shown at major US museums alone in the past decade, add in all the other working artists in the country, including art department faculty at US colleges... that's only a fraction, yet far more than a "handful." Please actually have something to say before wasting space here.

Intellectual padding? Hardly. The Bechers are innovative in two important ways: First, they were using photography in an attempt to reclaim Germany from its (then) recent fascist history. By documenting (in the same way a sculpture would be documented) pre-nazi industrial architecture they wanted to underscore the fact that there was a "modern" Germany before (and separate from) fascist ideology. 2) They worked to show that photography could be mobilized for art as documentary, without mimicking painting (though they were not the only early post-war photographers to do so). Spend some time with their published work, and with the work of the many students they mentored (Struth, Ruff, Hofer, Gursky). They are absolutely foundational in the artworld of post-war photography.

You're not wrong at all. The only reason to conceal a serial # is if the seller suspects (or knows) that the item is stolen. As someone who's HAD gear stolen, I would definitely want the serial #. Ignore the above comments on a false claim of stolen gear. If there wasn't a police report filed prior to the date of the claim, no court in the country will do a thing )in fact it's quite hard to get the police or a court to do anything even WITH a report, including serial #s).

Interesting problem and good fix! How did you figure to try setting the guasian noise to monochromatic? One comment: Although this was certainly the most pain-free way to handle 800+ shots, a good lens and fine-grained film would have given you better prints (although you would have to add the hassle of film scans if you wanted digital output). A sharp 35mm neg. will print well to 11x14 or a little more. Your 10D will give equal sharpness to about 9x12, in my experience. I haven't used an EOS 1Ds, but that should exceed most 35mm negs. in resolution.

Wayne: Your lens serial number should begin with "RR" and it's coated. Window light reflected in the lens should have a blue tint.

You didn't say whether you were going to do mostly location work or would put together a small studio at home. The RZ is faster than the RB but it's still huge with the prism finder and NOT as fast as you may need for location work with the waist-level finder. Something like the Contax 645 will let you work quickly on location and think about what you're doing more than the camera. Magazines, brochures and books are the one place where 645 really shines: you get enough extra film to look noticeably better than 35mm. 6x7 is great for larger prints but the trouble isn't worth it if you won't often make an image that will be reproduced larger than 11x14. I use an RZ in the field, and it's doable, but I'm also printing much larger than you will probably need to. A used Hasselblad 501c w/prism or the Contax mentioned above should be very productive for you.

Also check out Superior Precision Camera in the LA area: 562/866-9092.

The Koni Omega is not a solution, since it's about the same size and weight as your Pentax.

Well that all depends on how close you're focusing. If you use the 80mm at f/5.6 and your focusing at 1 meter then being a couple of inches off is a problem. It also depends on how far off the rangefinder is. When I got my M7 and 80mm, infinity in the rangefinder was a full 2mm before the mark on the lens, and focusing on a small point (eyes, say) at 3-4 feet, wide open, yeilded sloppy results. I adjusted the rangefinder for infinity and fixed the annoying vertical misadjustment and the difference in low light, at f/4-5.6, is huge.

Short answer: At shutter speeds lower than 125, yes. To address a couple of the above comments, the M7 80mm is noticeably LESS contrasty than the current Zeiss 80mm, IMO (David: are you comparing the M7 80mm to an older Zeiss lens?) And the Koni Omega, while having a quiet leaf shutter, is attached to a heavy camera, making handholding a pain. The old KO lenses (especially in the later Mamiya years) are indeed sharp, but far more flare prone (and of noticeably lower contrast) than either the current Zeiss or Mamiya lenses.

My RZ 110 is one of the sharpest med. format lenses I've ever used, and one of only two lenses on 2 1/4 that other photographic artists (and one gallerist who knows her stuff) have mistaken for 4x5. The 65mm I have is almost as good. The RZ is way ahead of the RB in any situation (and this is from someone who used a well-maintained RB from an art school photo check-out for years.) Get the RZ, WL finder, 120 back and grip. There are plenty of good deals on used gear, just don't buy a beat-up one. If you want something really clean, check the Japanese used camera dealers on eb*y (like 'interphoto').

There are actually plenty of older repair people who will probably do this for you locally. Call around. The going price for a knowledgable CLA on an older shutter is $55-65. If you can't find someone near you, Manny's Camera in LA did a beautiful job on a Synchro-Compur of mine a couple of years ago for about $60.

Well Lex, they practically did invent the format (with 6x7 as an option for the Mamiya Press), and they are certainly the earliest company to put significant resources into the format: the Press, followed by the RB in 1970 (or there about), the RZ and then the M7. Well past mid-century most manufacturers (following Zeiss) stuck to three formats: 6x9, 6x6 and 6x4.5.

Calumet in Hollywood has a good selection of film, and they're close to A&I (on Highland) which processes for practically everybody (including Hockney).

Adrian: The answer also depends on the WAY you work. Do you want a relatively light camera? Do you move around a lot? Do you do candid / environmental work with your subjects? The RZ w/grip works for me handheld, and the camera has a lot of flexibility (the bellows for closeups is the biggest diff.). A 501cm w/80 is smaller, lighter and I never needed a grip, but it won't do as much as easily. You might want to decide if a prism finder is important to you. If it is, the one on the RZ is seriously huge, the Hasselblad is smaller. I dumped the 501 for a late model RZ (not ProII, but the differences are minimal) mostly because I was cropping the square a lot, but I also have a med. format rangefinder so I'm not asking the RZ to be everything. It seems used prices are good right now on both. (If you decide on a 500-series, I found the gliding mirror on the newer cameras to be a little less jarring).

Far more working artists develop good relationships with 1 or two gallery owners who believe in their work and will not only show them but will network for them, arrange private showings/meetings with collectors, etc.

If you have a Pressman D 4x5 you know it's something special, sort of

what a Graflex would be if it grew partly into a Linhof Technika:

finely machined aluminum body, close tolerances, solidly-built etc.

The problem with these is that to upgrade to a modern lens you will

find your rangefinder is off. The excellent Graflex.org has

instructions for adjusting the Kalart Rangefinder, but information on

the (better, IMO) Bolex Vue-Focus Rangefinder is nearly impossible to

find. After a bit of looking I have found the manual, which includes

adjusting the rangefinder for the original lens, readjusting for a

new lens, and also info on the focusing light. I've owned and used a

Pressman D for six years, and now I can finally use the rangefinder

with my 135mm Sironar-N. If you are in a similar situation, I'll

mail you a xerox of the manual for $4. Just Paypal me. It tells

which screws NOT to mess with, has diagrams, etc. I hope this will

help other Pressman users. Just be warned: you'll have to work at

the adjusting process a bit (infinity, 6 feet, infinity again, etc.),

and it may not work for very short or long lenses. Eyeballing it I'm

guessing 90mm-210mm may be the range of the brass focus linkage. I

CAN say that at f/16 the original 127mm Ektar has been spot on for

handheld work, so theoretically the rangefinder should be capable of

fair accuracy, and it's a heck of a lot easier than finding Tech

III/IV cams that work with new lenses.

Does anyone know a source for this manual online? I found the IV,

but not the III.

 

Thanks.

Scott: You can read between the lines of the above answers and get this, but few respondents separated the two models. The RZ is has been one of the (if not THE--I think it's used more than Hasselblad now) most used professional med. format cameras of the past two decades, but the introduction of the RZ helped relegate the RB mostly to hobbyists and college photo labs. The RZ is heavy, but the extra pound + of the RB is TOO heavy for a lot of people (a friend of mine who weighs about 110# uses her RZ handheld, and finds it easier to handle without the grip. I use the grip.)

This looks interesting, but I've used a 110/120 and they're not exactly small (but they do fold!) The thing with the smaller press cameras, like the Crown, is that they're cheap, even for ones not much older than the Polaroids, and by simply replacing the lens with a better model you still get to use the rangefinder (assuming you get a 135 version). They, too, fold up pretty small, but heavier. Who knows, you may want a bit of rise or swing one day...

Jay must have had a bad one. I've used five extensively over the past 8 years (3 690s and 2 670s) with none of those problems, and this is certainly not a heavy camera by 6x7 standards (try an RB!) Yes the shutter should be serviced, but I got it straight from the head of the med. format repair division at Fuji not to worry when the counter hits 500 unless there are problems (like frame spacing). I know a couple of people who were able to wait until 1K and then got the film transport and shutter done at the same time. As far as being discontinued, I first heard this rumor ten years ago. Only in the last year did I hear it from someone who probably actually knows what he's talking about, so it may be true. Still, there are plenty available new and used, and Fuji NJ will service the model II and III (many critical parts are the same). Also check out the GW680III: just like the other two but 6x8. They are Japanese market only but available in the US used.

If you're shooting color there's no contest, the Fuji will win every time, BUT, you can't fold it up and put it in your jacket pocket. (Some people may like that old time low contrast color look, though.) The real problem is that so many of the old folders are not in great shape. I've had a couple of nice ones, but many with problems I couldn't easily fix. A top of the line one (Bessa II, SIc, Ventura 69 w/the good lens) with good bellows, true struts, clean single-coated lens and an adjusted rangefinder is fun and will make a good neg. And BTW, the Fujis are still available and will be repairable for some time, EXCEPT the G/GL you mention.