Experience with a Fuji GS645S? Looking for a travel camera.

I have the GS645, GS645S and GA645Wi. When traveling, I almost always take the GS645 … it is so compact - it fits with all my other gear. If I really want "wide" then I take the GA645Wi. My GS645S usually sits at home - I'm afraid it is too fragile for travel and it isn't my widest option. They all have great image quality, so you can't go wrong there. I did have to buy 2 GS645 cameras (returned the first) to get one with working bellows (even though the first one claimed to have brand new ones). Of course if ease of use is the top priority, you can't beat the GA cameras. My GA645Wi is basically a MF point-and-shoot (in auto mode). Also, it gives me 16 shots per roll instead of the 15 from the GS models.

Isn't trying to figure out which camera to acquire fun?

MTGseattle said:

Isn't trying to figure out which camera to acquire fun?

Click to expand...

Yes, until reality kicks in. I was looking at a Mamiya 6 after a friend of mine mentioned that he still had the 50 and 150mm lenses. So I looked at a body and 75mm lens on Ebay and to get a good one without fungus I was looking $4,000 CAD. A bit too rich for me.

Craig said:

Yes, until reality kicks in. I was looking at a Mamiya 6 after a friend of mine mentioned that he still had the 50 and 150mm lenses. So I looked at a body and 75mm lens on Ebay and to get a good one without fungus I was looking $4,000 CAD. A bit too rich for me.

Click to expand...

That price is outrageous. Should be able to find a body with 75 for around $2000.

This one

brian steinberger said:

That price is outrageous. Should be able to find a body with 75 for around $2000.

This one

Click to expand...

Are you thinking USD or CAD? Right now the cheapest body +75mm lens on Ebay is $3000 CAD.

The one you linked to is $3500 CAD

Sorry, didn’t realize you were in Canada. Missed the CAD in your previous post.

Yes, and with the Canadian dollar fallen recently relative to the USD, that makes things more expensive. If the Japanese sellers listed in Yen, it would actually be a better deal for me.

Shipping is odd too, The Japanese sellers can typically ship for $50-60 and it's a 2 day courier service. From the US, it's almost always $150 or more. I have no idea why shipping out of the US is so expensive.

I've had (and have) a lot of medium format cameras including the Fuji ones. The smallest, lightest medium format camera is a Rolleicord or Rollieflex. If you want a 645 try to find a late model Zeiss Super Ikonta in good condition with a Tessar lens.

Craig said:

Yes, and with the Canadian dollar fallen recently relative to the USD, that makes things more expensive. If the Japanese sellers listed in Yen, it would actually be a better deal for me.

Shipping is odd too, The Japanese sellers can typically ship for $50-60 and it's a 2 day courier service. From the US, it's almost always $150 or more. I have no idea why shipping out of the US is so expensive.

Click to expand...

I can ship to SE Asia USPS for around $40. Only the most inexpensive stuff (under $50) goes to Canada for that amount. Shipping to costs to Canada by USPS, UPS, or FedEx is ridiculous. Not to mention trying to get insurance after the Canadian post office runs over your camera with a truck. Japanese sellers can ship to the US using courier services and you get hit hard with the courier dunning you for "custom inspection" fees. Anything less then $800 comes into the US is duty free. DT might change that because Chinese companies like TEMU take maximum advantage of that.

I’ve used all three of the GS variants. The folder was the one with the most trouble. The non rangefinder one was a bit too wide at the time. The one with the roll bar was a great camera that too nice sharp photos. I was just looking at them again for summer travel but decided against only because I have a Rolleiflex old standard that I’d like to be my only medium format camera this trip. I’m getting to that point I dont like carrying a bunch of cameras while on vacation—small kit keep it simple.

Generally, I have never liked rangefinders and find them awkward to use. However, I loved the GS645S in spite of its design. Absolutely one of the sharpest lenses I have ever used. It was a great travel camera, making a number of trips including Germany, Hawaii and Iceland.

Although their form factor and the quality of the lenses has been praised, these cameras received criticism for their fragility. One day, I was working in a very cramped space and had the camera on a short tripod, perhaps three feet tall. While moving around, I knocked it over. The meter died. A few pieces broke off. Everything else seemed to work, but I don’t trust the rangefinder.

This is only my experience: YMMV

I'm thinking of one of these Fuji 645's as a travel camera
-----

Have you considered the GA645zi ? I just received mine back from Poland for a ribbon cable replacement and it is a nice size (like a Nikon F5 with a 50mm), although that now approaches the size of my GW690 (which you also have a variant of)... so perhaps too big (or not small enough) for your needs. I have owned the GS645, but that was a long while back (20+ years), but worried about durability for travel and replaced it with a Pentax 645N - yes, very different beast, but my original 645N body just keeps working after all this time.

One of the things I have come to like about the (very new to me) GA645zi vertical/portrait native orientation is when I go to a horizontal composition, the camera body is vertically aligned and my right eye has a good, unimpeded peripheral view (left is looking through the rangefinder) which is nice when composing. The zoom range (four steps, not continuous) is nice 55mm, 65mm, 75mm and 90mm. A pop up flash is a very handy option.

Yes, more expensive than a GS645S, much less expensive than a Mamiya 6 with lens, however, these are now serviceable again (ribbon cable).

I had though of the GA645zi, but I was a bit frightened off by the ribbon cable repair.

How do you find the AF? I had heard it was a bit hit or miss, so I was leaning toward a manual focus camera.

Craig said:

I had though of the GA645zi, but I was a bit frightened off by the ribbon cable repair.

How do you find the AF? I had heard it was a bit hit or miss, so I was leaning toward a manual focus camera.

Click to expand...

Too early to tell re: autofocus at the moment (need to process film), however... the viewfinder has a distance scale on the right side that tells you how far it has focused so a little common sense you can verify that yes, my dog (the subject that I'd like in focus) is about two meters away, I halfway depress the shutter release button... however the camera's viewfinder display is telling me that it is focused at 5 meters... now I know that something is amiss and I lift my finger off the release and try again. Similarly with a close up subject, the display will flash the box next to the 1 meter mark (the closest the camera can focus), telling me I am too close. Easy enough for me and actually reassuringly helpful.

The cable repair was great, but I sent from the USA to Poland before all these new tariffs and so I paid nothing in terms of taxes on it coming back to the USA. No idea how this would affect the total price and how much the tax would be.

A quick size reference:

Fuji GA645zi (with hood) is smaller than Pentax 645N with FA 75mm (no hood).

Fuji GA645zi has less depth but is taller than Minolta Autocord with hood for waist level down and lens with hood attached, laying on its side.

Fuji GA645zi is a little wider than Nikon D7500 with 16-80mm zoom (at shortest length) is long.

Fuji GA645zi fits inside of a Fuji GX680 with no lens and bellows compressed. Just kidding I sold off all my GX680 gear a while back, although the bodies would have feasted on the GA645zi.

After doing these size comparisons, I am actually amazed at how relatively small the GA645zi is.