stephen_mcateer

@Moto-Uno Thanks Peter. The Mamiya 7 is even more expensive than the 6 — I see examples of the 7ii from Japan for £4000+. I think the 6x7 format appeals to more people than 6x6, which maybe explains the price difference. I may get another 6 if I have the spare cash and one appears on eBay at the right price.

@orsetto Thanks for that. I'll keep what you say in mind if I decide to get a 6 at some point down the road. I like rangefinders and I prefer the 6x6 aspect ratio. Just a shame they're so expensive, though I suppose they're only going to go up in price. I did like the pictures I got from the 6s I owned before, though I found the metering to be off — I've read that the 6 uses an average metering pattern, whereas the 7 is spot. The ones I had before both came with a 75mm lens. It was very sharp / had good contrast but I think next time I would maybe go for a 50mm. Anyway, thanks again for the insights. Cheers.

@arthur_gottschalk Thanks Arthur. I've put this idea on the back burner for now but I may return to it. I wasn't aware of the advance problem till I made the original post here — something to look out for if I change my mind.

@orsetto Thanks very much for that detailed reply. Just the information I was looking for. (Thanks for the history of the development and marketing of the 6 & 7 too.) I think, on balance, and after reading your comments about the fragility of the film advance and the rangefinder / lens matching problems, I am going to leave it for now. As I said, I have owned a couple of these cameras in the past, and while I got some reasonable pictures with them, I never really took to them the same way as I did my Rollei and Hasselblad. Cheers.

@robert_bowring Thanks Robert. I don't think I gave the two cameras I owned enough time to get used to them — I only put maybe three or four rolls though each. The pictures I did take came out well though. 6x6 is my favourite format and I think the only other recent 6x6 rangefinder is the Fuji one that also does 6x7. (I've read that rangefinder accuracy can be a problem with those cameras though.) I think I'll sell off some of my excess camera gear first, then look for another 6. Cheers.

I have owned a couple of these cameras over the years but never really got along with them for whatever reason. However, I'm thinking about trying again, mainly because the lenses are outstanding as I recall; also they're good for low light without a tripod. The only question I have is: how robust are these cameras? I've read elsewhere that they can be a bit fragile and some parts are no longer available. Thanks for any info.

@AJG Thanks. Hadn't thought of that.

@Niels - NHSN Just FYI Niels, here is a picture of the refurbished strap. Price was so reasonable I can hardly believe it. And the workmanship is excellent.

@ajg Thanks for that. I see some reasonably-priced LED studio lights on Amazon which might fit the bill.

I'm looking for a light that produces sharply-defined shadows on small / medium-sized products. Preferably nothing too expensive. *I would prefer a constant light to a strobe.* I'm attaching an example of the look I hope to achieve. Can anyone tell me what sort of light I'm looking for? Thanks.

Thanks Robert. I've only put one roll through it since the CLA, so I'll see how it is next roll and take it from there. It's not a huge problem, I just wondered if it was normal.

Yes it does Niels. The shop who did the CLA said they put two rolls through it to test it and it was all okay, but I'm not so sure…

Another Rollei question: this 3.5 F I have — I just had it serviced and the wind-on is much smoother than it was. However, once the roll is finished and I'm winding in the end-paper, there's quite a lot of resistance at the film advance lever. I would have expected it to stay the same or be less. Can someone tell me what is normal for these cameras? Thanks.

Okay thanks for that. The Oleson screen I have doesn't have a tab on it. Hadn't occurred to me that it might be fitted incorrectly. My feeling is it's probably just my eyes but I'll go and look at the Oleson website & see what I can see. Cheers.

Cheers. I shall look into it.

Yes — YouTube videos are one other possibility I've thought about. I've dabbled in video editing — I think I could pick it up well enough without too much difficulty. [I have a Scottish accent, which does not travel well in my experience but I suppose subtitles instead of voice is an option.]

@c_watson1 Thanks C. You're probably right. [I have scanning pretty well sorted-out for myself. For example.] Hmm... need to keep on thinking. Cheers.

I'm looking around for ways to supplement my income in the near-to-mid future [Might be losing my job]. Do we think scanning film with an SLR would be viable as a way to make a small income? I'm not looking to make huge amounts of money.... [I have intermediate Photoshop skills and can build WordPress websites.] I would rather not be digitising thousands of old Kodachromes — I'm thinking more about medium format film 'Scanning' for enthusiasts. Thanks for any insights.

Yes — I was surprised the price was so reasonable. Hopefully they'll do a good job.

@Niels - NHSN I haven't done an infinity test yet but it's on my to-do list. As you say, the picture of the light is in focus, yet the other one isn't — I therefore suspect it's just my wonky eyes that are at fault. i'll know when I get the next roll of film back from the lab I suppose. [Incidentally, I found a saddler and have sent the Rollei strap to him to have the leather replaced. It was only £25.]

Follow-up to the above post: I had the lens of my Rollei cleaned. It seems to be better — the contrast looks better to me, though I've only put one roll of Portra through it. I took a repeat shot of the light below, to compare before and after cleaning. I don't see any flare in the After shot. [Though the exposure wasn't the same, or at least there wasn't as much light in the sky. Not sure how much difference that wouldl make.] Anyway, I'll keep assessing the results I get from this camera. As an aside, 6x6 is my favourite format and I particularly like TLRs, [And the Planar 'Look'] so I think I'll keep this camera. On another note, one picture I took [Below] was pretty badly out of focus, despite taking time when I shot it to make sure it was in focus. I'm not certain if the problem is my eyes, the lens maybe not having been reassembled correctly by the repairer, or the new focus screen I put in it.

I will go now and look into that thanks Niels.

Yes — I'm in the UK and it looks like Gold is ~£50 for 5 rolls of 120, versus ~£80 for Portra 400. (I'm thinking I might try a roll of Portra 160 and see how I get on with it. The slower shutter speeds it would require is what put me off up till now.)

Update: The UpStrap wuoldn't fit so I put the original leather Rollei one back on. It looks to be in reasonable condition. I'll just be careful with it I suppose. [Not sure I would entirely trust a Chinese one, mainly because the scissors clips are an unknown quantity.]

These photographs look fine to me Niels. I don't see any problem, though I would have expected something to show up. (I'm off to check the price of Gold 200 — it has to be cheaper than Portra 400, which is what I've been using lately / £14 per roll.)