Mamiya 645 Pro - Different Grips?

Hello All

So I've been thinking about buying a Mamiya 645 Pro. I currently own a 645e and though I love the lenses (the 80mm f/1.9 rocks my world) I absolutely hate the body. It seriously feels like if I squeeze it too hard it is going to break apart on me.

So I'm thinking an "upgrade" to a 645 Pro or Pro TL is going to be a great solution for me. Interchangeable backs and a better feeling body will make a world of difference and it seems I can get a body with a couple backs and an AE prism for a few hundred dollars. Totally worth it in my mind.

I have two questions though:

1) When the 645 pro fires the shutter, does the mirror slap up and down right away like a 35mm SLR or does it just go up like a Mamiya RZ67 or RB67 until the shutter is re-cocked? The reason I ask is that I've always thought it to be much better when the mirror just goes up and the viewfinder goes dark until I advance the film. Much less vibration in the camera that way. Not a deal killer either way, but I'm just curious.

2) I've noticed there are two different power winders. One seems to be much shorter and more compact, while the other sticks out from the side of the camera pretty far. Is there any advantage to the bigger one? I've searched high and low and haven't found much information on-line. I would probably prefer the more compact version as I have fairly small hands but features and functionality will dictate that decision a bit.

Thank you for the help!!

The bigger grip has four options; start/on/off/bc weres the smaller grip only has the shutter-button, I suppose the bigger grip is a little bit more comfortable perhaps. However B.C (battery check) is available on the body too.



When you shoot, the mirror flaps back, unless you use the "mirror-up" option.

EDIT: I see now also that this imaged larger grip also has the option to screw a simple wire on the shutter-release which is not possible without it! The body has the option to attach a wire but it is electrical and "mamiya special" connection.

arealitystudios said:

Hello All

So I've been thinking about buying a Mamiya 645 Pro. I currently own a 645e and though I love the lenses (the 80mm f/1.9 rocks my world) I absolutely hate the body. It seriously feels like if I squeeze it too hard it is going to break apart on me.

So I'm thinking an "upgrade" to a 645 Pro or Pro TL is going to be a great solution for me. Interchangeable backs and a better feeling body will make a world of difference and it seems I can get a body with a couple backs and an AE prism for a few hundred dollars. Totally worth it in my mind.

I have two questions though:

1) When the 645 pro fires the shutter, does the mirror slap up and down right away like a 35mm SLR or does it just go up like a Mamiya RZ67 or RB67 until the shutter is re-cocked? The reason I ask is that I've always thought it to be much better when the mirror just goes up and the viewfinder goes dark until I advance the film. Much less vibration in the camera that way. Not a deal killer either way, but I'm just curious.

2) I've noticed there are two different power winders. One seems to be much shorter and more compact, while the other sticks out from the side of the camera pretty far. Is there any advantage to the bigger one? I've searched high and low and haven't found much information on-line. I would probably prefer the more compact version as I have fairly small hands but features and functionality will dictate that decision a bit.

Thank you for the help!!

Click to expand...

I have and use a 645 Pro. My first entry into the system was actually its predecessor, the 645 Super. Some of the accessories that I have for the Pro were actually the versions made for the Super. Examples are my AE Prism N and the Power Winder N I have but rarely use.

When the Pro Tl came out, there were two Power Winders for it. The WG401 that was available for the Pro and the smaller WG402 that used different batteries. The Power Winder N also works, so there are actually three options. The Power Winder N and (I believe) the WG401 use AA batteries.

The cameras do have instant return mirrors. I prefer that, because it minimizes the viewfinder blackout time.

Along with my manual wind crank I also prefer the left hand grips with the electronic release and hot shoe. If you are looking for one of those, you will need to get the right Terminal adapter. The one for the Super is the Connector N, the one for the Pro is the Terminal Adapter RA401 and the one for the Pro Tl is the RA402. The Connector N and the RA401 are not interchangeable. I'm not sure whether or not you can use the RA402 on the Pro. Each of them have the additional advantage of making it possible to use mechanical shutter cable release. There are a couple of other accessories that also make that possible.

The major differences between the Super and the Pro are:
1) the Super has a backup manual shutter speed of 1/60 that works even if there isn't a working battery in the camera. The Pro does not offer that;
2) the Pro has a self-timer function. The Super does not offer that;
3) the Super had problems with durability with respect to the advance gearing - especially when used with a power winder. The Pro and Pro Tl have strengthened gearing.

The major differences between the Pro and the Pro Tl are:
1) the Pro Tl is newer;
2) there are some slight changes in the appearance between the cameras; and
3) the Pro Tl added capacity for TTl flash metering with a small number of flashes.

I find this Index on Mike Butkus' website to be very helpful: http://www.butkus.org/chinon/mamiya/mamiya_lenses_accessories/mamiya_lenses_accessories.htm

I vaguely recall that the smaller grip cannot be used with the leaf shutter lenses. ( not sure on this) I chose the small grip wg402 as it is more compact, lighter and supposedly more quiet. It uses a C2R5 battery. The lithium version lasts a long time. I have fairly big hands and still liked the feel of this grip

Only one of the two grips offers automatic shutter cocking with the last version of the leaf shutter lenses (providing you have the correct connector).

If you are prepared to cock the shutter manually, all the different leaf shutter lenses will work fine with all the winders.

The gear destroyer has been off my Super for years after reading several posts across Google about that subject. The amount I use it the crank works fine.