Bronica ETRSi Viewfinder View (WYSIWYG?)

[QuicksilverLight]

Greetings All,


I'm shooting my first roll thru my first and newly acquired Bronica ETRSi system. My question relates to the guide markings on the ground glass. Is the outer most, perforated line the actual cut off point as to what shows up on the print? I'm assuming the solid bars within the perforated line are guides and safe zones. There is a little space beyond the perforated line that I'm curious about.


Thanks in advance!

Link to picture of ground glass.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/qbbv9zf5hm2d1hc/2014-11-01 20.31.08.jpg?dl=0

 

[wiltw]

That is apparently not a stock Bronica screen but an aftermarket one. You should be able to measure the screen directly. A genuine stock Bronica screen measures 39.5mm x 52mm within the groundglass area framed by its metal edges. Marks for 135 format on optional Bronica screen are at 22.5mm height (94% of 24mm frame).

 

[andrew.roos]

Welcome to the Bronica ETRSi, it's a fantastic camera system, and very good value today.

I agree with wiltw, it's definitely an aftermarket screen (which is not necessarily a bad thing, I love my Beattie Intenscreen).

I have two screens, the standard matte and a Beattie Intenscreen with a grid pattern, which I use most of the time. On both screens, the image area with a 6x4.5 back (120 or 220) goes right to the edge of the screen.

The screens for the 135 (35mm film) back have two horizontal lines that demarcate the top and bottom edges of the 35mm frame, as well as two shorter vertical lines that demarcate the sides of the normal (36x24mm) frame. You can see what they look like on p. 34 of the ETRSi manual, which is avaiable at http://www.cameramanuals.org/bronica/bronica_etr_si.pdf. I think the dashed horizontal lines on your screen about 1/4 way from the top and bottom are likely for the 135 back.

Have fun with your new Bronnie!

 

[QuicksilverLight]

Excellent information and much appreciation to you both! Also thank you for the welcome.

 

[MattKrull]

Congrats on the ETRSi. I love mine, and I hope you like yours just as much.

I'm curious, what type of film you are shooting (slide, colour, or b&w)?

The reason I ask, is that I've pretty much stopped caring about how exact the edges of my VF are. I primarily shoot B&W, which I enlarge; so I am always cropping and re-framing at least a bit. With C41 & lap prints, the lab tends to do a bit of cropping (645 doesn't fit a 4x6 or 5x7 print perfectly), and if I want to make a real good print, I'll scan the negative and print out a guide / sample crop of what I want them to print. As long as I capture slightly more than I need, there is no harm.

Slide is the only time the edges really matter, and since I don't project my slides, it is a non issue for me.

It should be pointed out, I'm also a pretty "sloppy" photographer who tends to be happy with the sunny-16 rule as often as not...

 

[QuicksilverLight]

Congrats on the ETRSi. I love mine, and I hope you like yours just as much.

I'm curious, what type of film you are shooting (slide, colour, or b&w)?

The reason I ask, is that I've pretty much stopped caring about how exact the edges of my VF are. I primarily shoot B&W, which I enlarge; so I am always cropping and re-framing at least a bit. With C41 & lap prints, the lab tends to do a bit of cropping (645 doesn't fit a 4x6 or 5x7 print perfectly), and if I want to make a real good print, I'll scan the negative and print out a guide / sample crop of what I want them to print. As long as I capture slightly more than I need, there is no harm.

Slide is the only time the edges really matter, and since I don't project my slides, it is a non issue for me.

It should be pointed out, I'm also a pretty "sloppy" photographer who tends to be happy with the sunny-16 rule as often as not...

Matt,

Thank you for your insights and comments. I haven't shot film in many many years until the last couple of months. All these years my wife and myself have operated a relatively successful wedding photography business. We shoot a digital Canon system, and I have gotten used to the modern, WYSIWYG screens in our cameras.

The camera I drug out of the cabinet first (for my new film venture) was an old YashicaMat 124G. What I found out first when I got my first prints back was the meter was pretty accurate, the focus was good, the Ektar 100 rocked....but I absolutely could not compose worth a flip with the thing.
This prompted the purchase of the Bronica ETRSi. I figured it to be a far more refined outfit that would afford me the ability to shoot a quicker and more precisely composed image. I've always been fascinated with William Eggleston's work as well as Brett Weston. I could be wrong, but I've always figured these two pretty well laid out the shot in the viewfinder......but I could be wrong about this.

I do realize that the 6x4.5 isn't perfect, and I will need shoot accordingly for some cropping in post. It's been really exciting so far having to think about exposure, color and cropping in a totally different way.

Thanks,

Tim