A Canonet 17ql, Japan or Taiwanese built, Japanese builds can be priced at a premium.
It an excellent, fast, fixed 40mm lens, with a leaf shutter, and it's a mechanical plus, when wanted, controlled by its meter, on automatic, when flipped on, but, this camera is great even without a working meter.
Warning, don't fool with the mechanical self timer, so many old analog cameras have issues with these jamming and the Canonet is prone to do the same.
The electric eye for the meter is inside the lense's filter coverage so metered screens will not need any P.S. math work.
Cheers.
I second the vote for Canonet QL17 GIII
. . . If you can’t afford a Leica M2 with Summicron, then the QL17 is my next best recommendation.
I don’t call the lens excellent but it is very good slight softness but not so bad as to ruin pictures.
I never noticed even slight softness in my Summicron when compared to almost all other lenses. Decades ago I had the opportunity to do quick, but fairly critical, testing for sharpness of maybe 20 mostly Leica and Nikon lenses. My Summicron was one of the very best, in a class with the Micro-Nikkor 55mm f.3.5 and a 50mm EL-Nikkor.
The Retina IIIC has a large viewfinder, and the Retinas generally are really good rangefinder cameras and come with either Schneider or Rodenstock 50mm lenses (some earlier ones I think used Kodak Ektar also). I have the IIIc, and like it a lot (with the 50mm f2 Rodenstock Heligon), but for a really large viewfinder you would want then IIIC or IIC. Of course this is 50mm, not 35 or 40mm. You can get a screw in 35mm element (relpaces part of the 50mm, which screws out), but I do not think you can close the cover and it is not fast (I think there may be f4 and f5.6 versions).
Oh not the Summicron!
I meant if you can’t afford the best, the Canonet QL17 GIII is a good value even if the lens is slightly soft.
Leica M2 with 35mm 2.8 Summaron. Might as well start where you will end up
Dear all
I am mainly a 6x6 TLR user though I also occasionally still use my 35mm SLRs.
I'm finding I'm enjoying a lot the quiet TLR experience and the fact that I can easily get sharp shots at 1/15th of a second with my TLRs, something I've rarely been able to do with my SLRs.
I would like a similarly quiet, simple experience in 35mm and I'm tempted by the world of 35mm rangefinders, which I know nothing about.
Which robust, compact and reliable rangefinder would you recommend? The choice is bewildering.
Two features I'm after:
Budget is not a concern if it has the features I'm after. It will be my one and only rangefinder for the foreseeable future.
- I only want to use it with one lens. Ideally a 35 or 40mm, which should be reasonably compact and good quality at f/2.8 and smaller apertures. Nothing really heavy, huge, ultrabright, etc.
- I am after a bright, huge viewfinder. My Olympus OM2n has spoiled me in this respect. I heard some rangefinders have viewfinders with 1X magnification. That would be wonderful, though anything in the .8-1x range would do I guess? Of course, the viewfinder should be well matched to the lens you'll be recommending to use. Ideally, I'd like to keep composing with both my eyes open, just like I do with my TLRs.
- I am not particularly concerned about mechanical/electronic. Some electronics (eg cell battery to power meter) acceptable, though fully mechanical without meter is also ok.
Thank you in advance for any recommendations.
If you can find one the Konica IIIa is a truly excellent fixed lens rangefinder camera. No meter, but hand held meters are readily available, or small meters to fit an accessory shoe. The IIIa has a superlative viewfinder. One to one viewing, parallax corrected, and the frame adjusts to the changing coverage as the focus distance changes. No Leica does this. Add a truly excellent f1.8 lens, front panel film advance - no problems for left eye viewers - rugged construction and the IIIa is a winner. See what Dante Stella says: https://www.dantestella.com/technical/koni3.html
You have gotten me down a rabbit hole I wasn't expecting. This looks like a stellar camera.
Dear all
I am mainly a 6x6 TLR user though I also occasionally still use my 35mm SLRs.
I'm finding I'm enjoying a lot the quiet TLR experience and the fact that I can easily get sharp shots at 1/15th of a second with my TLRs, something I've rarely been able to do with my SLRs.
I would like a similarly quiet, simple experience in 35mm and I'm tempted by the world of 35mm rangefinders, which I know nothing about.
Which robust, compact and reliable rangefinder would you recommend? The choice is bewildering.
Two features I'm after:
Budget is not a concern if it has the features I'm after. It will be my one and only rangefinder for the foreseeable future.
- I only want to use it with one lens. Ideally a 35 or 40mm, which should be reasonably compact and good quality at f/2.8 and smaller apertures. Nothing really heavy, huge, ultrabright, etc.
- I am after a bright, huge viewfinder. My Olympus OM2n has spoiled me in this respect. I heard some rangefinders have viewfinders with 1X magnification. That would be wonderful, though anything in the .8-1x range would do I guess? Of course, the viewfinder should be well matched to the lens you'll be recommending to use. Ideally, I'd like to keep composing with both my eyes open, just like I do with my TLRs.
- I am not particularly concerned about mechanical/electronic. Some electronics (eg cell battery to power meter) acceptable, though fully mechanical without meter is also ok.
Thank you in advance for any recommendations.
You can't lose with a Fujica Compact Deluxe... Sadly, they are very rare. Mine is in fantastic shape, has a really good 45mm lens, and an onboard light meter. If you find one, it will be about $300. Another good choice is the Canon P range finder. You can find one with an accessory light meter. The Canon has a 39mm screw mount lens which lets you use all old Leica lenses along with a wide assortment of LTM (Leica Thread Mount) lenses from Leica, Nikon, Canon, and others. The Fujica is a fixe 45mm lens. You can get the Canon P for about $350 with a really good Canon 50mm 1.4 lens. I would recommend that 50 1.4 above just about anything else. It is a superb lens.
I have about seven rangefinders: Leica M6, Voightlander Bessa, Canon P, Contax IIIa, Canonet GIII, Fujica, and a couple others. I would say that the Canonet GIII is the most pleasant, lightest, and least bulky camera of the lot. Sadly, the shutter (I have two of these cameras) just doesn't stand the test of time.As nice a camera as they may be, I've always found the Canonets remarkably bulky; similar to the Konica S2 etc. A small SLR is barely smaller, modern ones may weigh as little or even less, and in my experience are just as easy to hold still. I used to have a QL25 for a while, but I got rid of it because of the issues mentioned; its bulk and lack of any other appeal condemned it to a closet in my ownership anyway.
... and for good reason.No mention of the Argus C3.
And there are decent hand-held meters that probably everyone on this forum already owns. I'm talking about the Android and iOS light meter apps.Agreed re the Canon P. I have one with the 50mm, the 35mm, and the 100mm. My example needs a little TLC, as the slow speeds need exercise before they work reliably. I would suggest that the coupled light meter that Canon offered is probably on its last legs, since selenium cell meters all too often die a slow death.
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