Pocket size 35mm ??

[Steve Roberts]

I'd go for the Olympus 35RC. It has a meter for auto exposure, but doesn't depend on it and can be used fully manually. The lens is very sharp and has bags of contrast. The Petri Color 35 is an interesting camera but winding out the lens to take a shot can get tedious. I have a couple of Retinas which are very compact when folded, though a bit weighty.
Steve

 

[Jon Goodman]

I'll join Steve. The 35RC is what I'd suggest. Also in the viewfinder you'll see both the shutter speed and aperture setting. If you want one which is a bit more automatic...please take a look at the Vivitar 35ES. I have both of these. The 35ES was made I think by Cosina and is a variant of the Minolta 7sii (which is often crazy expensive). The 35ES has a faster lens and a bright viewfinder. One thing you need to keep in mind with the XA is that it is only sort of focusable. That is to say the range of focus is short when compared to others. One small rangefinder I took terrific pictures with was a GAF Memo 35EE. It is either a brother or sister to the Konica C35, and can be bought usually for $15 or less. Spend a bit of time replacing the light seals (they're the exact same design as the C35) and that camera will take amazingly sharp pictures. Good luck. If you are interested, I have a 35ES for sale here and it is working fine.
Jon

 

[Pumalite]

Rollei 35 S or SE. No rangefinder, so it is guess-focus (scale focus), but you have a full range of aperture and shutter settings.

The Minox GT-E is also very good, lighter than the Rollei, but only has aperture control. Shutter is automatic. In other words, it is aperture priority AE. It is also a guess-focus camera, as there is no rangefinder.

Ah, but you have already ruled out the two most pocketable cameras above.

Leica IIIf with collapsible lens. Heavy, bigger than either of the other two. Fits in a coat pocket. Has parallax corrected rangefinder focus. Put a Voightlander VC II meter on it if you want a meter.

+1 Leica IIIf. Lens is magnificent.

 

[Too old to care]

Another vote for the Rollei 35.

 

[dynachrome]

If you can stretch your pocket a little then a minolta Hi-Matic 7SII might be fine. You get a compact RF camera with full manual aperture and shutter speed control as well as a fast and sharp lens.

 

[darkosaric]

Petri color 35 is what you need

http://www.cameraquest.com/petri35.htm

 

[mr rusty]

I used a Rollei 35B for years as my only camera. hardly difficult to use. On smaller F stops the depth of field on the zone focus is wide enough to almost be P&S. certainly the inbuilt match-needle meter was good enough as well. I took 1000s of photos on mine. Just remember to turn it upside down when using the flash or people get strange shadow halos over their heads

recent 35B image (there was a url link here which no longer exists)

 

[Gerry M]

I agree that the image quality from the Rollei 35T or S is top notch. No argument from me. I have owned in the past, and just not what I am looking for now. I've been the Minox route and reliability is a big issue. Maybe one of the Contax T models will come closest. I don't believe the others mentioned would fit the category of being truly pocketable. As I mentioned in my OP, size of an XA really fits my needs. I may need to settle on AE, but only with an analog meter readout and not LED's. As previously mentioned, this may not exist! Thanks to all for your input.
Gerry

 

[thuggins]

The folding Voitlanders are smaller than the Retinas and they fit easily in a pocket. They would be fine for print film where you don't need a meter. But I find an external meter too fiddly for 35mm, so they are not a first choice for slides.

The 35RC is a great camera, either on Auto or Manual. But with the lens and all, it would be a challenge to pocket. But I am really puzzled why you don't think the XA can be used in manual. With the built in meter, aperture and ASA settings, it is very easy to use any manual setting you could want.

 

[Gerry M]

The folding Voitlanders are smaller than the Retinas and they fit easily in a pocket. They would be fine for print film where you don't need a meter. But I find an external meter too fiddly for 35mm, so they are not a first choice for slides.

The 35RC is a great camera, either on Auto or Manual. But with the lens and all, it would be a challenge to pocket. But I am really puzzled why you don't think the XA can be used in manual. With the built in meter, aperture and ASA settings, it is very easy to use any manual setting you could want.

Tim,
I was hoping to go to a higher image quality. My XA does a good job, but not up to Rollie 35 or Minox lens quality. At least in my experience.
Gerry

 

[darinwc]

Ah here we are again answering the same questions. Maybe APUG should have a FAQ?

Honestly, you are getting into the area where a good digital camera will be much better than anything available in film for its class.

To make a camera pocketable with even a 35mm lens some compromises must be made. The XA uses a reverse-retro focus lens. The Rollei and minox use extendable lens barrels that make them less point and click and more prone to mechanical issues.

Other options are the small rangefinders.. Minolta 7Sii, Konica S3, Yashica CC, Olympus 35RC. Great for a coat pocket, easy controls, full manual option, excellent build and image quality. Too large for pants pockets.

Expensive point and shoots: Nikon 35ti, minolta TC, contax T, ricoh gr1.. these have varying degrees of manual control and are very expensive.

Auto point and shoots.. Olympus Stylus Epic, Yashica T4, etc. No manual controls but good spot metering. Excellent optics and lightweight.

My suggestion is the Olympus XA or the Olympus 35RC.

 

[darkosaric]

As previously mentioned, this may not exist!
Gerry

It does exist - it is Petri 35 color

 

[D1v1d]

Olympus RC 35 could fit the bill