Total gratuitous indulgence- Contax RTS III

[Klainmeister]

....droooooooool

 

[benjiboy]

Congratulations Scott, that's a beautiful camera you have.

 

[Photo-gear]

It is just amazing that Adorama sold it at this price. Although they offer a large selection in film photography gears, I don't know them as offering such great deals.
Congrats!

 

[SafetyBob]

After about two days of surfing and reading about the RTSIII, what an amazing camera. For the past few years I recall a few of you talking about these Contax cameras but had NO idea of exactly how amazing these old cameras were. I do not ever recall even hearing about them let alone seeing one of them in the day.....OK, maybe once in 1988 I saw some guy in London with on at a tourist site, but that's it.

Is it possible to find one today? I assume these were only in the hands of professionals?

Bob E.

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

SafetyBob-

They are around. Easiest places to find them are the big online camera dealers (KEH, B&H, Adorama to name a few) plus Ebay. They were more common outside the US/Canada - they were the cat's meow in the UK, continental Europe, the Middle East and Asia. They were used by pros and amateurs alike. If you are looking for one, the more recent cameras are the ones to look for:-

• 167 MT - the first camera to have auto-bracketing
• RX - in-viewfinder focus confirmation plus depth-of-field scale, body by Porsche Design
• S2/S2b - all-mechanical camera, battery only for meter, the S2b was black with a spot meter, the S2 was satin chrome with center-weighted meter
• ST - a junior RTS III, it had the ceramic pressure plate but no vacuum
• RTS III - big daddy of them all, direct competitor to the Nikon F4, EOS 1N. Top shutter speed 1/8000th, motor drive to 5fps, center or spot metering, TTL OTF flash metering even for non-dedicated strobes, mirror lock-up.
• AX- a great answer to a question too few people ever asked. An auto-focus body that could auto-focus with manual focus lenses (and effectively provide a 5-10mm extension tube in the process) it auto-focused by moving the film plane instead of the lens. Big, clunky brick of a camera which may have more mechanical issues as it ages compared to the others. So far I've not heard of any significant problems, but these cameras are getting to be 15 years old now, and they have both complicated electonics and mechanicals, which few repairmen will know how to work on.
• Aria - the swan song of the RTS line - lightweight, compact, but it still had a motorized film advance, center, spot and Matrix metering, and auto bracketing. Too little, too late.

 

[kanzlr]

Congratulations

I just recently started with Contax after using Rangefinders for quite a while.
When I saw a Contax RTS III in almost like new condition for € 299,-- I could not resist, altough I already bought a 139Q like new, in box, never used for €99 days earlier *g*

Now I already have a cabinet full of wonderful Contax lenses...

 

[SafetyBob]

So that means that once you purchase your first Contax camera (pretty much pick any one of them) you are on the road to a horrible GAS attack that will be relentless for 3....maybe 4 years?

Bob E.

 

[Sirius Glass]

Enjoy!

 

[ct0778]

I just bought a Contax rts iii the other day off of ebay. I've been highly coveting one for a while, since I've discovered its the only Contax SLR with a MLU function.

Its a beauty! My only problem is that I currently suffer from ringing in one of my ears and the camera, when turned on, emits a high pitch - low grunting sound, a whistling or buzzing depending on what I am metering. I've researched the best I can that this is normal, common?- with all RTS iii bodies. Its apparently has something to do with the dc dc converter inside?

To me its funny- that this is the dream camera to use for contax users (I've shot with an Aria, T3, 645 and G2 system for years) and theres this hi pitch sound you have to put up with when making pictures...or is this not the case with all RTS iii users? Can this be fixed? Hope so

 

[MartinP]

This is a rather old thread, just resurrected today, but for the sake of completeness I can confirm that the original RTS also has a mirror-lockup as does the RTSII. I have them sitting here looking at me now

The 139Q is a perfectly sized and shaped camera too, though it doesn't have a mirror-lockup (as required by the poster above) it does have just about everything else one could need and all positioned perfectly.

 

[Sirius Glass]

And exactly why has this thread been resurrected?

 

[benjiboy]

View attachment 52985

Here is the promised photo.

Congratulations Scott it's a first rate camera I hope you have a lot of pleasure using, it's amazing what good prices you can buy pro quality cameras for these days, I too have cameras now that could only dream about 25 years ago that I never thought I would ever own.

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

I just bought a Contax rts iii the other day off of ebay. I've been highly coveting one for a while, since I've discovered its the only Contax SLR with a MLU function.

Its a beauty! My only problem is that I currently suffer from ringing in one of my ears and the camera, when turned on, emits a high pitch - low grunting sound, a whistling or buzzing depending on what I am metering. I've researched the best I can that this is normal, common?- with all RTS iii bodies. Its apparently has something to do with the dc dc converter inside?

To me its funny- that this is the dream camera to use for contax users (I've shot with an Aria, T3, 645 and G2 system for years) and theres this hi pitch sound you have to put up with when making pictures...or is this not the case with all RTS iii users? Can this be fixed? Hope so

I've never noticed any particular sound from my camera. I can go play with it a bit and see if I have a similar experience, but I don't recall ever hearing something like that when using the camera.

 

[elekm]

I have a Contax RTS II, and it makes no unusual sounds when turned on.

As far as why this thread was revived, I suppose it's because someone wanted to add to the discussion.

 

[Jeff L]

My RTS 3 hums ( kinda like a hum). The surroundings have to be very quiet, and I have to sometimes listen for it to hear it. I believe it's normal. It never bothered me.

 

[Richard S. (rich815)]

I have a RTS, RTSII, RX and AX. (All gotten really really cheap) And I want to try an RTSIII. Am I nuts? Does the vacuum back really make a difference?

 

[Jeff L]

I have a RTS, RTSII, RX and AX. (All gotten really really cheap) And I want to try an RTSIII. Am I nuts? Does the vacuum back really make a difference?

Not nuts- the RTS3 is magic IMO. When have we ever had the chance to have equipment this good for so little money?
I'd gladly give some of this up for healthy film sales and camera stores with stocked with darkroom supplies.
Not too sure if the vacuum back makes a difference or not - all the marketing and ads from that era said it did...

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

I can't quantitatively prove that it makes a difference, but in looking at my images I PERCIEVE that it does. They just look a little bit sharper across the entire image area.

 

[E. von Hoegh]

I have a RTS, RTSII, RX and AX. (All gotten really really cheap) And I want to try an RTSIII. Am I nuts? Does the vacuum back really make a difference?

Yes. No. Sometimes. Maybe.

If you want the very last bit of performance from a lens, yes - BUT. Everything else must be up to snuff as well, you'll need a world-class lens to start with and if you're using the lens at smaller than say f:5.6 to f:8, you might not see the difference due to a combination of DOF and diffraction. A substantial tripod, the right film, etc. and I bet it can make a huge difference when everything is working together and you're making a large print from the negative. I'd like one just to experiment with... (goes googling to see what a spare back for an F costs...)

 

[EdoNork]

About the RTS III humm...

Vacuum mechanism?

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

Edo - the RTS III has a film-plane vacuum that kicks in just prior to exposure to hold the film perfectly flat across the entire frame. It's quite ingenious. If you look at the pressure plate on one, you'll see 9 (I think- might be 12) small holes spaced across the plate. These holes provide suction. This was also an optional feature in the 220 back for the Contax 645 camera, where it makes more sense given the larger film size and the greater likelihood of film curvature at the film plane.

 

[E. von Hoegh]

I was thinking about converting a back for a Nikon F to a vacuum back. It's pretty easily doable, you'd need to make a new pressure plate with a nipple protruding through a grommet the back, vacuum could be supplied by a small battery operated pump connected with a hose. You aren't reall using a high vacuum, just reducing the pressure behind the film enough that the atmosphere will hold it flat against the pressure plate. A few cm of Hg differential should be enough.
35mm film tends to bulge away from the plate in the middle, it's hard to measure just how much, but it's noticeable.

Yet another project to add to the list.

 

[benjiboy]

I've only bought two cameras in more than twenty five years, but was sorely tempted recently by another
Canon F1, the second version of the original one which looked in pristine condition that was a very reasonable price, although I confess I already have three Canon F1N AE bodys I managed to control myself because I want to be a practical photographer not a collector even though my wife offered to buy it for me because "enough is a feast".

 

[EdoNork]

Edo - the RTS III has a film-plane vacuum...

Yes, I know.
I was guessing if a defective vacuum mechanism was sucking continuously, hence the "hummm" of the camera. I don't know if it is posible.

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

Yes, I know.
I was guessing if a defective vacuum mechanism was sucking continuously, hence the "hummm" of the camera. I don't know if it is posible.

Oh- that's what you meant by hum. If the vacuum were working constantly, your batteries wouldn't last very long at all.