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Medium Format Suggestions?

grundigger

grundigger

Well-Known Member
I'll probably use a MF camera for landscapes. On a tripod. I like film (I already have Sigma Merrill, Canon, and Ricoh digital stuff). I scan 135/120 on an Epson flatbed and print on a Canon PIXMA PRO-100.

I've owned TLRs from Ricoh and Minolta, a Rolleiflex 6006, and a Fujifilm GW670III; I no longer own any of those cameras. I'm thinking about maybe getting a Hasselblad 500CM with a slightly wider than "normal" 80mm lens. I'm also thinking about the possibility of getting another Fujifilm rangefinder, but a GSW 690 instead of the hard-to-find 670. I want one camera, so I'm not getting a bunch of different cameras, just trying to see what some of you like to use. I also prefer one lens, since my use will be limited to landscapes.

I'm open to other suggestions, even LF, though LF is just a tad too fiddly and deliberate for my tastes.
 
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I have some Makita power tools, but I'm pretty sure you meant Mamiya. :)

You know, over on the old apug.org (now photrio.com) forums, the Mamiya 645 is often considered to be the best bang for the buck, including some fine lenses. Hmm, you might have swayed me. I'm guessing I can find a good Mamiya setup for 1/5 to 1/10 the price of a Hasselblad. And I doubt there would be a huge practical difference in what I'd be displaying on walls.

I'd say 45mm on a 645 would be wide enough for me. By my reckoning, that's about a 30mm equivalent for 135 film format.

Thanks for a great suggestion!
 
I had a Mamiya 645 with a stable of lenses many years ago. It really was a great setup! If I were to get back into it today, I would look for a body that can accept a digital back - just in case . . .
 
I have a Hasselblad and a Yashica 124G. The Yashica is the definition of value. Stunning negatives from that camera. Hasselblad, too, but....$$$$$$$$$.
 
Thanks, Ray, for another good suggestion. I never had a Yashica 124G, but I owned a Minolta Autocord and a Ricoh TLR. The Ricoh had a fantastic lens. I was actually motivated to buy it (<$100) when I saw this Toshihiro Oshima photo on Flickr. This shot really hooked me:

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Here's Oshima's Flickr page.

The Ricoh literally fell apart on me. The gears that link the taking and composing lens fell off the camera. After some internet sleuthing, I just realized that those exposed gears should have had a protective shroud covering them. NOW I know.
 
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I use a Graflex Crown Graphic. It takes 4x5 sheet film. I also have a120 roll film back for medium format work. Solid camera.
 
I always lusted after the MF panoramic cameras, like the Fuji GX617. But they are still selling for way more than I would spend on a film camera.
 
500 c/m is a great camera. You can get a different viewfinder than the standard 'look down' one, and they swap in seconds. Whatever you do, get the nicer accute matte screen, it's like night and day vs the older type. Also a no tool 5 second swap.

There's a 50mm that's good, there's a 40mm, never saw one though. For normal, I have an older chrome 80mm, and that's really nice.

There's a 6x6 back (common - A12) and a 6x4.5 back (easy to find - A16). There's also a superslide back if you like obsolete formats, and some that load 220 film, which you can't get anymore anyway. The 'A ' backs are 'automatic' - load the film, crank until it stops, shoot. The older regular backs are out there and work too (notice a theme? :) )

Older lenses have a self timer, newer ones don't. get one of them littlescrew in ones off ebay and use that. Of course...it takes a cable release.

One word of warning - everyone notices the thing. Especially in Europe. You'll have plenty of conversations...
 
I have a bunch of medium format cameras, if you want portable hunt out a Fuji GF670 (Also known as the Voigtlander Bessa II. You can shoot 6x6 or 6x7 with it. If you want solid reliability and over engineering, and outstanding glass, the 'blad is the one.
 
Yeah, the GF670 looks like a winner. I had a GW670 rangefinder, but it was tough for me to focus--not nearly as easy as a Leica M6 or those '70s Japanese fixed-lens rangefinders. But I've read that the GF670 is easy to handle and easy to focus. Too bad about their prices now, starting in the low $2000s!

Right now, it looks like Yashica and/or Hasselblad. I'll be in Tokyo for a week in early July, so I'm going to check out some used camera stores in Shinjuku.
 
Another interesting choice might be the Koni-Omega 200 (or Rapid M, they are essentially the same camera). Rangefinder, 120 film, 6 x 7 format, interchangeable film backs which allow for changing film types at any time, even in mid-roll, without disturbing anything. Choice of 4 leaf-shutter lenses, Hexanon glass will take the Pepsi Challenge against any other brand out there. Has a unique pressure plate which keeps the film perfectly flat, and makes for images with breathtaking edge-to-edge detail. Shot a roll of Velvia (50) landscapes, and showed the slides to a friend. He was not happy that he had just spent a lot of dough on a new Contax 645 rig, and he liked the images from my 35 year-old setup better than his own.

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I love the square format myself--I use Rollei TLR and SL66--but I shoot a lot of photos which are more abstracts than scenics. Shooting primarily landscapes, to me the availability, selection of lenses for landscape (105, 90, 75, 55, 45) and current prices suggest the Pentax 67. Since you will be on a tripod you don't need a handle or prism, using the waist level finder instead, so entry price could be quite reasonable.
 
Zenza Bronica MF with interchangable lens is an underdog hence the low price. I'd say 500CM is generally a good pick with many lens choices, also availability of viewfinder for wide lens.
 
One camera? I can't even comprehend the concept. I've had a few Yashica 124 TLRs and they're great cameras. The lens is good, but not the equal of some others. I always wanted a Minolta Autocord CdS III, but it was way out of my price range. I've also had several Mamiya TLRs, currently a C330 and a few lenses. Again, I can't comprehend living with just one lens. The later Mamiya lenses are great, but the early chrome shutter ones aren't as good. They're also subject to fungus. Whatever Mamiya used for the inner elements is like candy to the bugs. I consider the Mamiya TLRs a bit fiddly in terms of lens changing and operation. Now, if you want something not quite as fiddly as 4x5, you can get a really nice 2x3 Century Graphic. Nice neg size for landscapes and much easier to carry than its full sized brothers. https://graflex.org/speed-graphic/century-graphic.html Put a roll film back on it.
 
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