Medium format camera which largest 'look down' focusing screen?

skorpiius · Mar 24, 2016

What camera (I'm assuming Med format), would have the largest/most zoomed focusing screen which you look down at?

Basically which camera out there is easiest to focus while looking down, and while hanging on a neck strap rather than holding it up to your face.

Any ideas?

Thanks

Jager · Mar 24, 2016

I'm guessing that if you're going by size of viewfinder alone that would be an RZ or RB. Alas, it's a big camera to be hanging from a neck strap.

I will say that with a Hasselblad, for me, the waist level finder requires two steps... raise the camera to my eye with the magnifier extended, obtain critical focus; then drop back down to waist level with the magnifier returned to finalize composition. I'm guessing the RZ/RB would be similar. You can certainly focus without using the magnifier. But for my starting-to-get-up-there eyes it's a lot harder.

xya · Mar 24, 2016

for me it's a tlr, the mamiya c330. big magnifier, easy to lift, extremely bright screen which doesn't disappear while taking the photo. so you see if your model has been blinking at "the" crucial moment...

wiltw · Mar 24, 2016

Focusing screen size is generally same as frame size. It is (with waist level) not subject to the optics requirements seen for 135 SLR to squeeze shutter speed and other information around the focusing area and the use of negative optics to shrink the apparent size of the focus screen.

Medium format with pentaprism viewfinders have the same issues as 135 for needing negative optics to shrink apparent size of focus area when adding displayed information around the focus area.

Paul in Arizona · Mar 24, 2016

My experience is limited to two Rolleiflex' and two Yashicas.
For a very bright, easy to focus screen the Yashica D and Yashica-12 win hands down. They are bright corner to corner.
I don't have but have looked at YashicaMat and that screen didn't seem as bright.

Slixtiesix · Mar 24, 2016

Fuji GX680 should have a pretty large screen, but then you should forget about hanging it round your neck.

Gerry M · Mar 24, 2016

Pentax 67 with wlf is a bit easier to handle than the RB's. At least for me.

John Koehrer · Mar 24, 2016

Slixtiesix said:
Fuji GX680 should have a pretty large screen, but then you should forget about hanging it round your neck.

Unless you're considering drowning yourself.

Sirius Glass · Mar 24, 2016

The Hasselblad PMs and PMEs will provide a 5 times larger image size. Hasselblad with the WLF have a built in magnifier.

MattKing · Mar 24, 2016

Look up Graflex SLR .

I use my Mamiya C330 with a very short neck strap. The camera sits at chest level, so it is very quick and easy to bring it up to my eye.

When I was younger, and my eyesight was great, I often didn't need to use the flip up magnifier.

Now I can at least compose without using the flip up magnifier.

skorpiius · Mar 24, 2016

I guess I should add, the reason I'm asking is I like using my Yashica LM in this way (not bringing it up to my face) when doing street photography as to not draw attention that I might be making a picture, so I got curious if there was another camera easier to use in this manner. Sounds like the C330 is worth looking at.

MattKing · Mar 24, 2016

skorpiius said:
I guess I should add, the reason I'm asking is I like using my Yashica LM in this way (not bringing it up to my face) when doing street photography as to not draw attention that I might be making a picture, so I got curious if there was another camera easier to use in this manner. Sounds like the C330 is worth looking at.

Try using your camera with a shortened neckstrap first.

ic-racer · Mar 24, 2016

The screen size is just slightly smaller then the negative size on all. The largest I have used with a 'look down' finder is the Horseman VH 6x9 with the reflex finder.
Dead Link Removed

studiocarter · Mar 25, 2016

Gerry M said:
Pentax 67 with wlf is a bit easier to handle than the RB's. At least for me.

Yes. That waist level view finder is truly bright at a distance. It is really cool to walk around looking down into it. The only other way is to take it off and use the camera naked! That's really big.

Alan Gales · Mar 25, 2016

skorpiius said:
What camera (I'm assuming Med format), would have the largest/most zoomed focusing screen which you look down at?

Wrong assumption. How about 4x5 and 5x7 large format?

https://www.graflex.org/articles/series-d/

Barrie B. · Mar 26, 2016

The Hasselblad 500CM with the ' Chimney ' magnifier / viewfinder works well for me both ' hand-held ' and on tripod ( often with Mirror Lock-up ) ,
My chimney has eye focus adjustment and you see the ' full frame ' . Other M/F cameras may also have similar 'Finders '
... Cheers Barrie B.
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studiocarter · Mar 26, 2016

The Pentax 6x7 chimney finder also has a good diopter and it, the whole thing, magnifies the entire view. It is more magnified than the waist level viewfinder. Just saw that. I had to move the 165mm in place of the 90mm to see a difference between the lenses. One viewfinder had to be used with two different lenses as the two different viewfinders sort of canceled out the difference between the two lenses. A 90 under the chimney looks like the 165 under the WLVF

essensebe · Mar 28, 2016

I love the viewfinder of my Mamiya RZ67, it's big and clear.

RattyMouse · Mar 30, 2016

John Koehrer said:
Unless you're considering drowning yourself.

Brutal!

elcabezagrande · Mar 31, 2016

Gowlandflex.

Medium format camera which largest 'look down' focusing screen?

skorpiius

Jager

xya

wiltw

Paul in Arizona

Slixtiesix

Gerry M

John Koehrer

Sirius Glass

MattKing

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skorpiius

MattKing

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ic-racer

studiocarter

Alan Gales

Barrie B.

studiocarter

essensebe

RattyMouse

elcabezagrande

Medium format camera which largest 'look down' focusing screen?

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