Medium format

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jameshobson

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Looking to buy a medium format film camera, any recommendations looking to spend around £300 been looking at the mamiya c330
 
New to film photography I want to give medium format a go, I am looking at a mamiya rb67 s, is this a good camera and how much would you say it's worth, any other recommendations would be great and sample shots of what it capable of thanks for reading and responding :)
 
Yes.. the RB67 Pro S is a great camera :D

There are several of us on the forum using this camera, and you can pick up a complete kit (body, waist-level finder, lens and back) for not very much these days. There are always plenty listed on Ebay, and most of the secondhand dealers advertising in the back of Amatuer Photographer have the RB67 range in stock.
 
ok thanks for the response, how much should i be looking at is £200 a good price with 90mm lens ?
 
Looking at the prices on Ebay at the moment, £200-500 gets a basic start-up kit with a bit of variation on the lens supplied (90mm or 127mm are the usual starter lens) and one or two backs (watch for kits supplied with 220 backs, they're of very limited use).

London Camera Exchange have a complete kit with 90mm for £499, but you could probably put together a kit cheaper than than from dealers in AP.

Just make sure you get everything you need:
  • Body (with viewfinder glass)
  • Waist-level viewfinder (or prism, WLF is cheaper)
  • 120 film back (one will get you started, two or more allows switching between films)
  • Lens (try and get a 90mm C lens, the C is a series designation and they are better built with better coatings than the non-C series, the KL are better still but whether it's worth the premium over the C is an argument for another time)

Anything else is optional, but can be nice to have. The shutter release is a standard screw thread so easy to source cheaply, a Polaroid back is very nice to have but not essential. Macro extension tubes are useful and relatively easy to find. There are also teleconverter lenses (x2 for the RB, and a x1.4 for the RZ that can be adapted for the RB), haven't tried these yet although I've bid on a couple.

The 90mm C lens is good, personally I prefer the extra length of the 180mm C lens - but focal length is a personal preference.
 
great, thanks very much for this advice you have helped me out alot here :)
 
Might prove expensive advice to have given ;) .. just spotted a tidy looking 50mm C lens on the LCE website for a reasonable price.. :help:
 
For £300 you can get a lot more for your money, my c330 was only £100 but its probably the best camera I own.

What format are you looking to shoot? 6x6? 645? 6x7?
 
The first question is what ratio medium format do you want to shoot. The 3 conventional sizes are:

645/6x4.5
6x6 (square format)
67/6x7

In general, 6x4.5 cameras are smaller and 6x7 cameras are larger, but 6x7 negatives are significantly bigger and capture more image. Once you can decide what format, then you can see what cameras are available. Alternatively if you are set on an SLR, a TLR or a rangefinder/folder...
 
freecom2 said:
The first question is what ratio medium format do you want to shoot. The 3 conventional sizes are:

645/6x4.5
6x6 (square format)
67/6x7
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Just to add - the square 6x6 is probably the largest category with lots more choice of cameras available than in two other categories.
 
OK guys, both threads have been merged.
All the irrelevant stuff has been removed,
lets stay on topic ta :thumbs:
 
kestral said:
Pentax 6x7.:thumbs:
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Just saw this in a local camera shop. Very well used with a few dents, but it has been tested with a roll of film.

pentax_asahi_6x7.jpg


They were asking for £450 for the camera with one lens, plus £150 for tyhe 105mm as well.

I knocked it down to £400 total in store, but couldn't quite go through with it without at least going away to check what the going rate should be.
 
How are the seals and the internals? Whilst those cameras are built like tanks and can take a lot of abuse, that looks like a pretty bad example - although it's difficult to distinguish much from the photo.

Haaaaang on, is this the camera you are talking about? http://www.lcegroup.co.uk/Used/Pentax-Pentax-6x7-+-105mm-f/2.4_39189.html

If so, knocked down to £400?!

Anyway, IMO it is way overpriced. The newer version of the camera, in significantly better cosmetic condition went for £350 on fleabay: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Pentax-67...477760?pt=UK_Film_Cameras&hash=item4ab1144dc0
 
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Agreed ^^

I'm looking at the "similar items" on the same page and thinking the SQ-A seems like a better choice for £399, from the cameras on that page imo
 
joxby said:
Agreed ^^

I'm looking at the "similar items" on the same page and thinking the SQ-A seems like a better choice for £399, from the cameras on that page imo
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But the SQ-A is a predominantly WLF 6x6 SLR, whereas the 6x7/67 is most often a prism eye-level 6x7 SLR. They will be very different to use, thus why I wanted to hone down what format first.
 
Well I can't disagree with a format choice from the off either, but since we don't have that info at the moment and as likely as not the op probably won't have considered format in any great depth, I thought it would be worth mentioning that the value for money is in the SQ imo.
Incidentally, I don't think there will be as much difference in user experience between these two cameras as you think, they both can be used with wlfinders and prisms, only the shape has any significance really, and maybe the extra 10mm of 6x7 film..:shrug:
 
Inherent design differences - the SQ-Ai has a very Hasselblad-esque way of controlling it, based around a basic body design. The 6x7 is very much a "35mm SLR" on steroids, with a shutter speed and film winder lever on the top plate.
 
ones a box, one isn't, put a handle on the box and there is very little difference between them, they are both big SLR's, if you see it differently, that's up to you, I don't.
 
We'll agree to disagree, I think :thumbs:

The SQ-Ai is also more modular with film backs, something I forgot...
 
Bronica RF645
Very light camera
Excellent optics
Not 6x6 or 6x7, but 6x4,5 is acceptable in my opinion
You won't get back heart for shure with that one :)
Good luck finding what you wan't
 
freecom2 said:
But the SQ-A is a predominantly WLF 6x6 SLR, whereas the 6x7/67 is most often a prism eye-level 6x7 SLR. They will be very different to use, thus why I wanted to hone down what format first.
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True but there are some exceptions - Pentacon 6 cameras (German Pentacon Six and Exacta 66 and Soviet Kiev-60/6C and later Arax 60) are predominantly SLR-type (SLR on steroids like Pentax 67 but a lot cheaper) and have TTL prisms with eye-level finders. All are 6x6 square format and take Pentacon Six mount lenses. Those are relatively cheap and plenty of good lenses from the likes of Carl Zeiss Jena or Meyer-Optik Görlitz.
 
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freecom2 said:
We'll agree to disagree, I think :thumbs:

The SQ-Ai is also more modular with film backs, something I forgot...
Click to expand...


Its an SQ-A...

not that I'm disagreeing with you or anything...

:D


now rangefinders on the other hand.........


:coat:
 
Ive got an SQ-A and lovely though it is, it doesnt meter which is a bit annoying. I usually take a reading off my digi camera to get some settings for the Bronica. I think you can get an AE prism for it though, im sure ive seen one for sale somewhere.
 
I'd recommend The Medium Format Manual by Michael Freeman to anyone at the early stages of thinking about medium format systems. You can pick it up very cheap secondhand on Amazon (penny plus postage). It covers a lot of the different systems (but not all) with details on what lenses and accessories are available, and has a good run through the different aspect ratio formats (6x4.5, 6x6, 6x7, panoramic).

Someone here recommended it to me before I bought my RB67 Pro S, and I found it very useful in choosing between the relative merits of different systems.

Another thing I'd recommend.. choose the negative size you want and then select a camera system to deliver it, this is a much more sensible approach than the other way around. And don't expect one camera system to do absolutely everything.
 
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Pentax 6x7 can do studio, landscape, motorsport, 1000th sec electronically controlled focul plane shutter(old ones like the one in the picture are usually knacked).Get a good secondhand exmple of auction site. Very fast lenses for medium format, 165mm f2.8, 300mm f4. 105mm f2.4.If you must have interchangable backs go mamiya 645.Unless its for studio only, forget Hassleblads and RB 6X7. A C330 is frought with all sorts of problems. If you get a Pentax 6x7 dont get it with the meter head unless it is cheap.The non meter head is fine and buy a weston light meter.A lot of the old ones have shutters that are knackerd they do not cross the plane at an even speed and cause one side of the image to expose more than the other.:thumbs:
 
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Lots of recommendations for big 6x7 SLRs, but OP might be actually more suited to a 6x4.5 rangefinder (for instance)... who knows.
 
Whilst Pentax67 is an excellent camera system, if you are still not sure about what format and just want to check what in MF works for you, I'd suggest that you try out with cheaper alternatives. Start with something like Mamiya C220/C330 or Pentacon Six camera (one of the Kiev's or Pentacon 6 itself +80mm f/2.8 lens will get you started quite cheaply) there is plenty of them on eBay and they won't make a dent in your pocket. Shoot a few films to get a feel of it, see what you like and when decided, flog them on eBay and start building/investing in a system you want.
 
Rollie TLR if you can put up with an incredible fixed lens. Just take a look at what the Press guys did with them in the 50's and 60's. A "Cord" will do, but a "Flex" is better. Try and find one you can afford at a dealers with some guarantee. There are lots of knackered ones on the Bay (I should know, I've bought some of them!), and getting a decant CLA done is getting harder.

Mamiya TLR's are too big and that bit heavier. You can change the lens panels but still have the disadvantages of TLR's. If you must have different lenses go for a Bronny. (Unless your lucky and manage to find a CHEEP Mamiya 6 or 7 raingefinder).

Remember, an SLR's added weight and cost is waisted unless you buy and use big, heavy and expensive extra lenses.
 
Stumpy said:
Remember, an SLR's added weight and cost is waisted unless you buy and use big, heavy and expensive extra lenses.
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Well, that and the seeing-through-the-taking-lens thing which you don't get with a TLR, rangefinder or folder. :)
 
Medium format is a land of compromises. Kind of hard to give advice when we don't know what you want to do with the camera.
 
tigger6 said:
Medium format is a land of compromises. Kind of hard to give advice when we don't know what you want to do with the camera.
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+1 on that. The OP's price limitation does narrow the choices down, however.
 
I had the SQa with metered prisim head, it was a dream
 
AlanSmithee said:
+1 on that. The OP's price limitation does narrow the choices down, however.
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Yes, but he still has some choice.. a Yashica 124G? Maybe a 6x4.5 SLR? Bronica, Mamiya? Or a Pentacon SIX? Hard to tell what's best if we don't know the purpose and preferences. Should it have separate backs? SLR? More lenses or a fixed 80?...
 
Alastair said:
I'd recommend The Medium Format Manual by Michael Freeman to anyone at the early stages of thinking about medium format systems. You can pick it up very cheap secondhand on Amazon (penny plus postage). It covers a lot of the different systems (but not all) with details on what lenses and accessories are available, and has a good run through the different aspect ratio formats (6x4.5, 6x6, 6x7, panoramic).

Someone here recommended it to me before I bought my RB67 Pro S, and I found it very useful in choosing between the relative merits of different systems.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the recommendation. I've just got a copy of this excellent book. lt's a detailed look at the various formats, models and techniques with various portfolios. I only have experience of 6x9 via an Ensign Selfix 420 and 6x6 via a Lubitel-2 though have just picked up a lovely Rolleiflex Standard. The book has given me lots of new avenues to explore; 6x7 looks interesting... :-)
 
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