"New" Fuji GA645i

Tony-S

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Just received a Fuji GA645i rangefinder from Adorama ("Ex" condition). The camera looks like it's just about new - one small scratch on the top bevel about 1/4" long. It came with soft case, manual and batteries, but no lens cap (52 mm). Compared to my Canon A2E and 5D mark II it feels quite compact and ergonomic. I'm going to run a roll of Ektar through it tomorrow to see how it performs.
 

ulv

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I have Fujica GS645 with 75/3,4 lens which is older brother (or sister ;-)) of Your new camera. Images with its lens are crisp, contrast and very sharp. I think You should be happy with this camera.
 

Fourtoes

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Nice one. I had the GS645s and loved it and always regret selling it. Lens was so sharp.
 

TSSPro

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Let us know how things workout with the camera. I have been looking at them recently and have been very tempting on taking the plunge on one.

Congrats on the new camera, too.
 

Matthew Thompson

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I'm going to keep my GA645 for a LONG time. Compact, easy to use, light and sharp. Really excited to see how the roll of Agfacolor Ultra 50 tha tI'm shooting now comes out. If you can find a Strobe GA, they're really nice to use together. I'm still on the hunt for the Bracket GA.
 
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Tony-S

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I am a real SLR slug. I left the lens cap on for one shot today...

Should get the film back later this afternoon, but I can say the camera handles very nicely. It's a bit clunky to unload, but that might be my inexperience.
 

ContaxRTSFundus

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You should have a lot of fun with your Fuji. I have the GA645Zi and that zoom lens is superb (also the warning when the lens cap is still on can be handy, ahem!). I can never get over how light these 645 cameras are - perfect for people travelling - and of course, they can take 220 film as well as the usual 120.

By the way, I bought a replacement lens hood for my Fuji last week from keh.com and I noticed that they had lens caps for other Fuji 645 models in stock - might be worth checking out as they were not very expensive.

I also managed to get hold of the Fuji GA Strobe which is a useful and reasonably powerful dedicated flash and increases the utility of these cameras. I've just spotted a couple of the GA flash brackets on ebay too. The only problem with the GA645Zi - the price keeps nudging north and that seems to hold good for most the Fuji 645 range.

Enjoy your camera - the GA645i is a gem.
 
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Tony-S

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Well, the first shots came back mostly nice. I have a few where the focus points I thought I hit weren't what I actually hit. I was aware of this issue with this camera, so I tried to be careful with it. I'm sure I'll get used to it.

I checked Keh for hoods and they have them for the GA645Zi, GS645 and GS645S; will any of these work on the GA645i? I also just ordered a 52mm lens cap with the attached string. That should be enough of a reminder for me (I hope).

I'm going to run some B&W film through it next.
 

Matthew Thompson

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The hood's nothing special, it's a screw-in rubber non-collapsible. I'm sure you can find something from Heavystar if you strike out on a Fuji unit.

Ektar 100's next on my list after this roll.
 

robbie p

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You mentioning your Fuji makes me want to get my GA645W out. It's so light, fun and easy to use, and if you can get it stopped down to about 8.0 the lens is really good. I found that wide open that the lens could be slightly disappointing, a bit soft and maybe because the wide lens focus didn't have too many steps it just couldn't get it right, esp close up. It could be down to camera shake too as with compact MF I think you want to use it like a 35mm but they are more prone to shake, especially because the lens is so slow - f4. Overall though, as a landscape, urban or otherwise, it's a super camera when it's a nice sunny day or with some 400 Provia. Don't forget to take spare battery as I found them a little hard to come by and will always fail when you are not near a specialist shop. Plus, use the data record thingy, it prints info on the edge of the film as that way you can see which aperture/speed combo is good, that's why I know.
 
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Tony-S

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robbie p said:
Don't forget to take spare battery as I found them a little hard to come by and will always fail when you are not near a specialist shop.
Click to expand...

Yes, I always carry spare batteries. I haven't seen them in the big box places but I haven't looked for them.

Plus, use the data record thingy, it prints info on the edge of the film as that way you can see which aperture/speed combo is good, that's why I know.
Click to expand...

Hmm. How do you get aperture and shutter speed on the film? I have mine set for date and time, but I must have missed the aperture/film setting.
 

6x6nFla

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Lens Hood And Cap

Good afternoon. I recently purchased a GA645i as well. Just a couple of rolls so far. One thing I did was put a Nikon hn-3 hood and a 72mm lens cap on it. Seems to be a more secure set-up for me.
Hoping you continue to have sucess with yours and looking forward to seeing some photos here.
Wm

 

jvan01

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Press the "DATA" button until you see the aperture/shutter speed appear in the LCD.
 

Leighgion

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I have a GA645 with the 60mm f4. A fine little (for a medium format rig) camera. I do suffer from the forgetting lens cap issue though.

Far as caps and hoods go, unless you're really a stickler for brand matching, just match the filter ring size. Mine is 52mm, and while I do have the original Fuji hood, I'm actually using a Nikon lens cap since it's center-pinch and thus easier to use with the hood than the stock side-pinch Fuji cap.
 
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Tony-S

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OK, rangefinder question: What's the light loss for a linear polarizer? I seem to recall it's 1 stop? Metering is not through the lens with this camera.

jvan01 said:
Press the "DATA" button until you see the aperture/shutter speed appear in the LCD.
Click to expand...

That doesn't do it, nor is it in the manual. All I can set are date and time.
 
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Tony-S

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Boy, I really missed that. I was reading the instructions for the date and time and I missed that illustration on page 19. I think I have it set now. Thanks and sorry for my confusion!
 
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Tony-S

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OK, got a problem with this camera. I just ran my first roll of 220 through it (Fuji 400H) and when I opened the back it was not tightly spooled on the spindle. Had the roll processed and it is fogged along the edges. The camera back was set for 220 film. Any tips from Fuji rangefinder users?
 

sanking

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When you load the film you need to hold it tight as you first advance on the take-up roll. If not it will spool loose on the roll and you will get some edge fogging. I have had the same problem with other MF cameras when loading 220 film.

Sandy King
 

37th Exposure

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Too bad Fuji discontinued the GA's years ago. I have a GA645 and a GA645i. Razor sharp lenses give virtual reality versus a sharp photograph. Very addicting, I just want to run roll after roll through it if I could afford all that film! Probably the easiest to load medium format I've ever owned. Others are Hasselblad 501cm (a real "hassel" to load), Mamiya twin lens, Voigtlander Bessa III. The total exposure counter and the data imprinting are wonderful. Just bring batteries. They don't last nearly as long as the manual states and the camera goes from showing a full charge to dead without warning. Otherwise, about as close to perfection in any camera I've owned.
 
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Tony-S

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Well, bad news for the camera. After having it for about 2 months the shutter release became quite difficult to press. I informed Adorama about the problem (3 month warranty) and they sent me a UPS return shipping at no cost to send the camera back. Unfortunately, the cost of the repair would have been more than they wanted to spend, so they offered to return it to me with $100 return on the cost, or to just refund the entire $499. I decided on the full refund. Kudos to Adorama for their warranty policy.
 
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