waynechunlee

<p>That is such a beautiful camera, you're very fortunate to have found it. The meter is an interesting find as well. When I was shooting B&W but not able to process my own, I shot Kodak T400CN (C-41 process), but they discontinued that - it worked well for both scanning and traditional B&W prints. Now Kodak sells BW400CN, while Ilford has XP2-Super and I think Fuji discontinued its C-41 B&W film. If it were me, I'd keep it, but I fell in love with rangefinders a long time ago.</p>

<p>Hi, the Bronica RF645 has been mentioned here a couple of times and I had this for about 3 years. It's a very quiet camera and the built in grip is great for street carry. I also really liked the exposure compensation dial on the back. However, I never got used to the "portrait" orientation required for the 645 format, plus the shutter release didn't have the same feedback/feel as some of my other cameras. A problem that I run into with working in the street with medium format is reloading film quickly, although the RF645 is probably the fastest MF camera in this respect (along with the Mamiya RF's) - this was usually a deal-killer for me with street stuff. I haven't had enough experience with other MF RF's to speak to their use, though I've always wanted to get a Mamiya 6 with the wide angle lens for travel. Good luck with your search and let us know how things work out.</p><div></div>

<p>Does anyone have any images of the lens + hood mounted on a body, and in comparison to other lenses like the 17-55 AFS, etc that they'd be willing to post? I haven't seen many images of the lens itself "in context," so to speak. Thanks.</p>

<p>Hi, I've been using the current version of Capture NX for a little over two months, having switched from PS/CS and have been happy with all the functions it provides. That said, I wouldn't say that I'm an expert in using either the Nikon or Adobe offerings. As another poster mentioned, the NX approach is pretty different from PS, but it didn't take me too long to find what I needed and how to do it. Overall, the interface looks a little basic, but that's just cosmetic. </p><div></div>

The Washington Post did an article on AL in October, 2006. I don't get the print edition, but online they had a picture of her in her studio/office/whatever holding what is clearly a Leica M with perhaps the current motor winder and a tabbed Leica lens. A quick search on images.google.com has it as the first image found at the WP web site - subscription may be necessary: http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=annie+leibovitz+washington+post&gbv=2

The square hood on my 35 'cron v4 sits correctly on the lens (with respect to the front element), but the entire front assembly on the lens is wobbly. It doesn't seem to affect my images, even when shot wide open, but I can see it becoming a more serious issue over time. I would agree with what Ronald said about not using the hood to take the lens on and off the body. However, with the hood on, any "bump" probably makes the "wobble" worse anyway. This doesn't appear to be an issue with the other Leica lenses/hoods I have.

Here's how things turned out for me; I wanted to post this in case anyone has a similar problem or similar questions. I shipped the body and lens to Tamron after confirming their process over the phone (Commack, NY; 631-858-8400). They received it on Thursday, March 1st and I called to follow-up the following Monday since I hadn't heard from them. They said that the repair guy was out, but estimated the repair and back-shipping at $95, which I approved and paid. Everything was shipped back on Wednesday, March 7th and arrived back here the next day. A "fresh" box was used to ship the items back. Everything seems to be in good working order - the problem described above appears to be fixed. The warranty for the service is as follows: "Reaipr workmanship and materials are warrantied for 90 days... Warranty covers manufacturing defects in materials and workmanship. This does not include damage due to shock." I appreciate Jeff and Robert's responses.

I have a Bronica RF645 that is need of service. First, I'd like to ask about

any recent experiences with Bronica's/Tamron's service facility in New York,

including turn-around time. Second, whether anyone has had a similar problem

with their rangefinder coupling: Basically when I point the camera down, say 10

degrees or more from horizontal, the lens' distance setting is no longer

coupled to the rangefinder in the body and the RF double-image in the ?patch?

no longer moves as I focus the lens back and forth as it should. Furthermore,

this decoupling continues until I turn the camera body upside-down (top deck

facing the ground, lens pointing horizontal; it's the only solution that I've

found so far) ? i.e., it doesn't ?catch-up? and correct itself after focusing

through the entire range of the lens. I believe the problem is in the body's

rangefinder and not with the lens-to-body coupling as I can see the swing arm

and little wheel move as the lens is focused with back open. Any experiences

with this specifically? Thanks in advance.

Tri-X is my main film: Usually EI=250, occasionally at 1600, processed in Rodinal and Diafine, respectively. You said to forget about developer, but it's a big deal for me. I could probably use it exclusively, but sometimes I'll shoot TMX, TMZ, FP4 or Plus-X. I like its look and versatility. I hope Kodak doesn't kill it off.<div></div>

I only shoot 35mm nowadays, but have shot MF and LF in the past. The main thing keeping me from shooting LF these days is that I don't have, or have access to, an enlarger to take 4x5. I have three enlargers which cover 35mm to 6x6 (or 6x7 in one case), but I'm not about to buy another one to get me up to 4x5. I used to have access to big huge Omega's, but no longer. :(

I agree: Bean. Here's a repost which I hope you all don't mind.<div></div>

I hope this has been helpful. Like Rick, I didn't know what to expect with the DIY approach.<div></div>

Now you just have to lift the lever off.<div></div>

There's this wafer that I think functions like a washer to keep tension on the bezel and lever...<div></div>

As described above, then continue by hand...<div></div>

From: https://www.micro-tools.com/store/productdetails/LF-KIT-C.aspx<div></div>

I wanted to do just the opposite: I have an M4-P that I bought from a forum member, it had the M3-style lever that I didn't like (and scratched my glasses since I'm left-eyed), so I bought a set of tools from the link above, and fortunately had the original lever from that same M4-P. Here's what I did... although I'm starting with the "finished" camera with the standard lever.<div></div>

This scan doesn't do justice to the negative and I'm not one to fuss with the digital darkroom too much, but here's a one-third crop from a negative with a wider range of tones and textures compared to my first post.<div></div>

Hi Trevor - I had the PII for about a year; I don't have the Classic, but a friend of mine has it and I've shot with it more than once. I never did a side-by-side comparison, but I wonder which is actually shorter/smaller. I don't think I can tell a difference between the negatives from the two lenses, but again, I didn't do a 1:1 comparison. Anyway, the hood on the PII actually makes it much larger and I found it necessary to keep my fingers from messing with the aperture setting. I thought both the Classic and PII were built relatively well, but liked the handling of the PII more. I don't know how to describe the quality of the images produced, perhaps "clinical" is appropriate, judge for yourself though. I sold the PII because I got a 35/2 v4 'cron.<div></div>

I will be traveling to Taipei next month and have 60 rolls of Kodak

Tri-X with me. I'll be rating the film between 250 and 1600 (I

process my own film and if you haven't seen Tri-X @1600 in Diafine,

it's absolutely astounding). From a previous post, it sounds like I

can ask for hand-inspection going out of CKS International airport

back to the States. But will they still do hand-inspection if

it's "400" speed film? <p>If I don't get hand-inspection, and they go

ahead and zap the film, has any one had any experience on how the

film might turn out? Should I be worried enough to Fed-Ex my film

back to the States (if that's even an option assuming they don't also

x-ray stuff)? I also realize that I'm going to have to convince the

TSA folks to inspect my film going out of O'Hare - I've only

occasionally run into trouble getting that.

Didier, these are excellent. I'm curious as to how you metered the scene, however. I suppose you may have shot in this venue before, and so may have some knowledge of the lighting. But what was your strategy for an initial exposure value given that you shot with an M3? Handheld meter? Metering before the session started...? Thanks.

Don, excellent photos here and on your site. Interesting content too. Do you use a 90 and/or a 75 for your telephoto shots (I can't tell what lens that is on your red M-body)?

<div></div>

The lighting in those galleries is still kind of dim - I'm not sure why they do this as these photos are not in any danger of fading anytime soon. They just have these ceiling mounted mini-spots that light the images in the gallery. That said, I've never had a problem viewing the photos myself - after adjusting to the lighting, but can easily see how someone else might. The cafeteria moved to the rear of the AIC, along Columbus Drive - lower level. The food is still good.

It may not be as in-depth as the Chim Seymour exhibit currently at

the Corcoran, but the Art Institute of Chicago recently opened an

exhibit on concerned photography in its basement galleries (where

most of the photo exhibits are held). This exhibition includes work

from Bourke-White, Walker Evans, Salgado, Capa, Bruce Davidson,

Gilles Peress, and others. Aside from the fact that many of the

images were captured with Leicas, these are really phenomenal: e.g.,

Salgado's "Workers", Peress' images from Northern Ireland, at least

one WWII image from Capa. The downside is that we only see a handful

of images from any historical period, subject, or photographer.

Still, it's definately worth a look if you are in the area. The

exhibit closes June 11th.

 

http://www.artic.edu/aic/exhibitions/concerned.html