Max of 1/400 - Limiting?

[Digidurst]

Hi everyone Just for grins and giggles, I was looking at a Mamiya RZ Pro II and in reading the specs at mamiya.com, I learned that it offers a max shutter speed of 1/400. So I'm curious to know if any of you RZ shooters find that limiting? I guess I'm just used to SLRs that offer speeds of 1/1000 or more, ya know? And brace yourself because this might just be a dumb question but what if you wanted to use 3200 speed film with what seems like such a slow camera?

Hey, thanks in advance for satisfying my curiosity!

 

[blansky]

I shoot almost exclusively at between 1/125 and 1/15. Why, because I shoot portraits and thats what I need. In all the different kinds of photography that I've done I've never gone over 1/500 and that includes sports, drag racing etc.

The only people that I could imagine wanting extreme shutter speeds are maybe some kinds of sports photographers.

Even extreme stop action like catching a bullet in mid air is done with high speed flash and not fast shutters.

MIchael

 

[colrehogan]

I know your question was geared for medium format, but have you looked at the shutters on your LF lenses? They probably don't go higher than that either. Does it limit you? Probably not as long as you pick your subjects carefully.

 

[kwmullet]

I regard shutter speeds faster than 1/250 or so as a means of using wider apertures in daylight with film that's faster than you want at the moment.

 

[Digidurst]

I know your question was geared for medium format, but have you looked at the shutters on your LF lenses? They probably don't go higher than that either. Does it limit you? Probably not as long as you pick your subjects carefully.

No, but (LOL) I wouldn't be chasing a moving target with my LF gear either!

Like I said, I was just curious... seemed low at first look. Plus it's always fun to read what folks have to say on subjects like this

 

[Nick Zentena]

And brace yourself because this might just be a dumb question but what if you wanted to use 3200 speed film with what seems like such a slow camera?

If you need 3200 film odds are you don't need faster then 1/400 shutter speed. To me high shutter speeds are more needed when you've got the wrong film in the camera. With backs that's less likely then if you're using a 35mm camera.

BTW you're LF camera maybe lighter then the RZ -))

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

I don't find it that limiting. I do use 1/1000 sec and higher sometimes with 35mm for handheld flight shots of birds with a 400mm lens, but that's not something I do very much of with medium format, just because the lenses aren't long and fast enough, and aren't easy to focus quickly that way (though I am experimenting a bit with MF for birds).

If you need a wide aperture and run out of shutter speed, use slower film or an ND filter. With interchangeable backs, slower film is usually the best option.

Now my 5x7" Press Graflex goes up to 1/1500 sec. I've got to shoot a bicycle race or something and see if I can get that Lartigue effect.

 

[rogueish]

I shoot a RB67 instead of the RZ. Never run into needing faster than 1/400. I have shot everything from PanF upto D3200. Nick's right, with a 250mm lens on the RB it could rival your LF in weight. (OK perhaps not, but I'll bet it's close)

 

[Donald Qualls]

Most of my favorite cameras have slower shutters than your 1/400. My Moskva-5 has 1/250 max, my Wirgin Auta 1/100, my Pony 135 1/300, Reflex II 1/300, both plate cameras 1/200, and I have a number of simpler cameras fixed at "slow".

I don't find it limiting; I routinely shoot ISO 400 films in most of these (though my Speedex Jr. requires me to pull to EI 200 to avoid gross overexposure in full sun). No, I can't shoot at EI 1600 in daylight, except with my Spotmatic -- but I don't need or want to, in general. I suppose I could always put on my 3-stop red filter and pretend it's ND if, for some reason, I were shooting Tri-X for later Diafine treatment. Even if you load Delta 3200, it's really an ISO 800 film that pushes exceptionally well...

 

[Woolliscroft]

I too have an RB67, and for the most part I don't find the 1/400th a problem and love the fact that you can still use flash with it. However, I also do a lot of air photography and there the camera really doesn't cut it. I use a Pentax 67II in the air, but that can only flash sync at 1/30, so as always its horses for courses. As for using 3200 ISO film in bright light with the RZ, no problem: get some ND filters.

David.

 

[Sean Tang]

Certainly not when you're using it with flash, in or out of the studio. With flash photography, the shutter is mainly used to control the ambient continuous light exposure with respect to the flash. Aperture controls flash exposure. The Mamiya RZ has a leaf shutter and leaf shutters in general don't go very fast; the fastest ones are found in the PQS lenses of the Rollei 6008 system- a mere 1/1000s.

And if you absolutely have to use ISO3200 film and continuous light, there are always Neutral Density gels to go over the lens.

As someone said above, stopping extremely fast motion is done by extremely short duration flash with no ambient lighting.

The Mamiya RZ is usually used for studio-type photography as their designers intended where flashes are used and fast shutter speeds unnecessary.

No one camera does it all.

 

[Ole]

Some of my cameras have only 1/25, 1/50, and 1/100. I don't even find that limiting!