Bronica SQ

menthel

menthel

Suspended / Banned
Messages
6,732
Name
Jim
Edit My Images
Yes
Right, back to my MF lust. Now thinking square as I quite like it and it is amenable to cropping. I have seen that the SQ series (and the original in particular) are very good value. Thoughts? Reliability? Lens quality? anything else MF SLR that may be better withing size and cost reason?
 
Bronica lenses are ok, not the sharpest though. Im sure once you've seen 6x7 you wont go back ;)
 
I have seen 6x7. I have also seen the size of 6x7 cameras. I think 6x6 is as big as I need negative wise and want camera wise! ;)
 
True true ;) for 6x6 i might be tempted to look at an old blad, sone of the sharpest lenses ever made, hold their value so you wont make a loss if you don't get on with it. A bronica might disappoint if you are used to leica lenses
 
robhooley167 said:
True true ;) for 6x6 i might be tempted to look at an old blad, sone of the sharpest lenses ever made, hold their value so you wont make a loss if you don't get on with it. A bronica might disappoint if you are used to leica lenses
Click to expand...

Reading around the lenses seem to be very well thought of, especially the PS variants. As the camera and lens would cost less than the body only of a hassy it would make sense to me. The leica spending has stopped now unless I can ever afford an M9 or whatever follows as I now have 3 lenses I am happy with. Probably hence the urge to spend on an MF camera!
 
The other thing to consider is, when you move up to medium format, 35mm seems fairly naff. If you have a portable, quick and sharp medium format, you may find that you start to use the leica less. I still use my 35mm bodies because my RB is too unwieldy to take everywhere and use all the time. That may change now i've got a 5D though.
I don't know if this is an issue for you though, if you are happy with the IQ from the leica there might not be much point.
 
robhooley167 said:
The other thing to consider is, when you move up to medium format, 35mm seems fairly naff. If you have a portable, quick and sharp medium format, you may find that you start to use the leica less. I still use my 35mm bodies because my RB is too unwieldy to take everywhere and use all the time. That may change now i've got a 5D though.
I don't know if this is an issue for you though, if you are happy with the IQ from the leica there might not be much point.
Click to expand...

Different form factors I guess. I would use a MF SLR with hand meter and WLF. It would also need to be small as I spend most of my life trailing around after a wife and a 2 1/2 year old! I can't see it replacing the leica. The negatives are good for a 35mm (and I have seen the difference) and its small enough, even with 3 lenses and film not to bother me carrying it round. Unlike my 7D!
 
Mamiya 7? or even 6, Uncle Ken says its the World's best camera.......mmm well good old Uncle Ken. However they are still pretty expensive as are the Voigtlander Bessa III/Fuji G670 but I think one of these 2 will be what I end up with (after the lottery win).

Andy
 
Andysnap said:
Mamiya 7? or even 6, Uncle Ken says its the World's best camera.......mmm well good old Uncle Ken. However they are still pretty expensive as are the Voigtlander Bessa III/Fuji G670 but I think one of these 2 will be what I end up with (after the lottery win).

Andy
Click to expand...

All great cameras but don't fulfil all of my criteria of being relatively small, portable and cheap! ;) One of the new folders would be lovely though!
 
robhooley167 said:
Isnt the fuji monster you've got, the only medium format camera heavier than a RB67? :D
Click to expand...

Can't you get a 6x8 back for the RB anyway?
 
To be honest, the Bronica's (SQAi or the ETRSi) with a standard lens feel no worse than say my 7D and 24-105L in terms of carry-weight to me. I even use the same pouch/case when i'm on walkabout - lowepro toploader 70 iicr. Even with a spare back, a few filters, lighhtmeter and a w/a lens, it's eminently portable to me. Okay - it's not in the same ball-park as your leica (or my Canon G-series digi.) but it's not as if you need a wheeled trolley for it ;)
 
TheBigYin said:
To be honest, the Bronica's (SQAi or the ETRSi) with a standard lens feel no worse than say my 7D and 24-105L in terms of carry-weight to me. I even use the same pouch/case when i'm on walkabout - lowepro toploader 70 iicr. Even with a spare back, a few filters, lighhtmeter and a w/a lens, it's eminently portable to me. Okay - it's not in the same ball-park as your leica (or my Canon G-series digi.) but it's not as if you need a wheeled trolley for it ;)
Click to expand...

Good to know Mark. How do you find the lens quality? From what I have read they are good but a first hand account from someone I can trust would be good too! ;)
 
All of the cameras I mentioned are much smaller and lighter than a Bronica SQ however they are definitely not cheaper.....:D
 
menthel said:
Good to know Mark. How do you find the lens quality? From what I have read they are good but a first hand account from someone I can trust would be good too! ;)
Click to expand...


For my money they're good - the latter ones are a bit better in terms of reliability - after all, they're a old-ish electrical shutter/lens combo - so in a way newer is better - they also have the half-stop detents which the older ones don't iirc. Image quality - well - they're good - but they're not leica glass, and if I had a lot deeper pockets, i'd be thinking of a 'blad instead, purely on the lens quality. But - you'll probably get a entire SQA camera/lens/back for the price of some of the Hassy glass...

Top and bottom of it, I went for a Bron, knowing that the lens IQ is far in advance of what I'd be pushing it to. Pretty much all the stuff recommended by people in this thread is lovely kit, and will do the trick. I ended up with a Bron, partly for sentimental reasons (they earned me a decent second wage shooting weddings BITD and never let me down) and partly because one came up at the right price, in the right condition.
 
Pentax 645? Nice looking one in Ffordes for £279

Andy
 
Andysnap said:
Pentax 645? Nice looking one in Ffordes for £279

Andy
Click to expand...

More than the SQ and only a little less than the SQ-A. Also, kind of want the basic wlf and handheld meter mf slr thing! ;)
 
menthel said:
Not really. Keep falling in love with rollei cameras but then persuade myself otherwise. ;)
Click to expand...

A meterless 3.5E would be perfect, and have stunning quality whilst being significantly less bulky.
 
Can we just put this inferior lens thing in to context...:)

In the MF World there is Zeiss, and then there is everything else.
To say Bronica glass is inferior by a small degree is kinda true, but then so is everything else, and the likely hood of your average joe being in a position where they would tell the difference is quite small too.
Be assured, everything Bronica is pro gear with pro performance, as is Mamiya, Rollei and most other marques you care to mention.
The variation in quality we see in the 35mm and digital slr market is nowhere near as apparent in the MF sector, there might be the odd duffer kicking around but generally MF glass is top notch across the range.
Never shot any zeiss glass but I can say that I can't see a difference between my Mam 6 50 and my Bronica 50 besides a slight variation in WA distortion, and I put that down to compromises made in the design of rangefinders...:)
 
Sure Zeiss lenses are nice, but in MF the difference is less so than 35mm world in my opinion. Mamiya lenses are awesome, Fuji lenses are even better, as far as I'm aware they make Hasselblads H fit lenses? I may be wrong. But either way, you won't go wrong, the lenses are for most part, pro lenses, and are sharp as you'll ever need.

Don't be afraid of the bulk, I handhold the rz down to 1/15 with 180mm and l-grip. 35mm is great for portability, MF is great for iq, buy the best of each you can, rather than settle for a compromise between the two :) that's my opinion anyways :)
 
I've never had any sort of problems with Bronica lenses; they're sharp wide open, give good contrast and colour temperatures and don't have flare issues. What more could you realistically want? That "Hasselblad look"? I don't even know what that is or means. Don't feel like you have to buy into a 'superior' brand because of the name and reputation alone and remember that Bronica kits have been used by pros just as much as any other MF system. The SQ series will do you well if you want a fairly compact 6x6 option.
 
Mahoneyd187 said:
Can't you get a 6x8 back for the RB anyway?
Click to expand...

Yes.. don't see many of the backs, but some late model RB67 Pro S will take it (they have an "8" on the flap you can see through the back of the body).
 
I am going to have a poke around and see what I can find but the original SQ seems a bargain for what it does...
 
joxby said:
Can we just put this inferior lens thing in to context...:)

In the MF World there is Zeiss, and then there is everything else.
To say Bronica glass is inferior by a small degree is kinda true, but then so is everything else, and the likely hood of your average joe being in a position where they would tell the difference is quite small too.
Be assured, everything Bronica is pro gear with pro performance, as is Mamiya, Rollei and most other marques you care to mention.
The variation in quality we see in the 35mm and digital slr market is nowhere near as apparent in the MF sector, there might be the odd duffer kicking around but generally MF glass is top notch across the range.
Never shot any zeiss glass but I can say that I can't see a difference between my Mam 6 50 and my Bronica 50 besides a slight variation in WA distortion, and I put that down to compromises made in the design of rangefinders...:)
Click to expand...

You're quite right John - pretty much all MF glass is somewhere between very good and superb, relative to typical 35mm stuff of the same vintage. The Bron. glass quality is certainly far in excess of the nut behind the camera in my case, but I freely admit, it's been an awful long time since i shot anything MF other than them, and my memories of 'blad glass may have been a trifle rose tinted due to advancing years, and the fact that I always wanted one and could never actually afford one of my own...
 
I have been using a SQ-Ai for some time now and love it. With a prism finder and a grip it handles just as well as any of the SLR type cameras I have.

Out of interest I campaired some transparancies shot on a Hasselblad ELX with the SQ-Ai both using 80mm lens and to be honest you really could not tell them apart.
 
Unless you shoot with flash a lot I'd be tempted to look at the Bronica EC or S2 series instead of the SQ series. The lenses seem more compact for the same focal length, have closer focusing (from what I've heard) and they're a damned sight better looking when they're sat on a shelf.

As for that *******s about inferior Bronica lenses. They were so inferior Tamron bought Bronica purely for their optical experience.
 
I was thinking of getting a hassleblad 500cm to replace my bronica purely becuase its smaller and lighter. I do a lot of walking and landscapes and the weight loss would defenitly be noticeable. Theyre not prohibitavley expensive, you can get one and a lens for 700-800 now in good nick.
 
essexash said:
I was thinking of getting a hassleblad 500cm to replace my bronica purely becuase its smaller and lighter. I do a lot of walking and landscapes and the weight loss would defenitly be noticeable. Theyre not prohibitavley expensive, you can get one and a lens for 700-800 now in good nick.
Click to expand...

Before parting with all that cash you may want to double check the specs as a standard set up 500c/m actually weighs a bit more than the SQ-B whilst the dimensions are very close. The c/m is 9mm shorter but 12mm wider. :)
 
really? i was looking at 2 in the shop the other day and was suprised how small they looked compared to the B(east) I'll have to do a side by side with one. Im more than happy with the quality of the bronica but would love something lighter :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top