Which MF camera would you bring?

Kirks518 · Sep 5, 2015

On a whim, we're taking a little roadtrip tomorrow up to St Augustine, FL. It's the 450 year celebration, and it's only a 3.5 hour drive, so we said why not.

Now the photographer with GAS dilemma starts. I dunno what to bring. I have:

a full RB67 Pro SD kit (6 or 7 lenses)
a full M645 kit (power winder and 6 lenses)
a C220 with 55/80/180 lenses
and a YashicaMat 124G with wide & tele aux lenses (the Yashica aux lenses)

We'll be walking around for a number of hours, and I will also be bringing a (heaven forbid) Canon 50D w/24-105 for the snapshots.

I could go with a 35mm, and share lenses with the 50D, but, well... you know.... gotta go large!

So which would you suggest?

Sirius Glass · Sep 5, 2015

Any of the four choices that you list will be fine. I myself prefer a fifth choice: a Hasselblad 503X with a 50mm, 80mm, 150mm and a 250mm lens accompanied by a Hasselblad 903 SWC, but that is just me. I see that you make a good choice of the 55mm lens with and 80mm lens rather than the 65mm lens with the 80mm lens for the Mamiya, however you would find the 250mm lens more useful than the 180mm lens although the 250mm lens is annoyingly self cocking [which I found was a pain].

Trade in the 50D for another film camera like the F-100 so you can shoot black & white and color 35mm film.

LarryP · Sep 5, 2015

C220 with wide and tele the cannon has everything else and you're on your feet in the heat for hours..

bvy · Sep 5, 2015

The lightest one.

MattKing · Sep 5, 2015

I wouldn't have thought you were old enough to be celebrating your 450th anniversary.

The C220 with 80mm lens.

gone · Sep 5, 2015

As you know Kirk, it's still plenty hot here in Florida. The wife and I went to Ormond by the Sea last week, and we walked around far too much in that heat. Had a good time (tasty food at Betty's Cafe, great ocean views), but it was just too much walking in that humidity even w/ the ocean breeze, so I would bring one camera and make it light.

It's a fun trip for you. Not necessarily a big deal photographic outing in September Florida sun I would guess. So if you have a 35mm camera and one lens, that would be my choice.

Eons ago, when Linda and I first met, we left for a big trip from Hawaii to show her some of the mainland. Practiced traveler that I was at the time, we carried a Konica C35, a sidebag apiece, fanny packs, and light silk jackets that could be wadded up for cold 'frisco nights. We traveled to San Francisco, Reno, Denver, Albuquerque and a few other places, and that was all we carried. For changes of clothes we hit the thrift stores in the cities, wore them until they needed to be washed, dropped them off in the thrift store donation boxes, and bought more there. It really is the only way to travel, and we had a blast w/o having to haul all that crap around w/ us. Very freeing.

Alan Gales · Sep 5, 2015

MattKing said:
I wouldn't have thought you were old enough to be celebrating your 450th anniversary.

The C220 with 80mm lens.

+1

LMNOP · Sep 6, 2015

Square format is great for people watching, and lightweight is a plus. I third the c220 motion.

anfenglin · Sep 6, 2015

Bring the lightest one, the Yashica or the C220. Imagine hauling all that heavy gear around and then you have not much to take pictures of. I always like to bring one camera with one lens, very freeing that. When you bring more gear, you feel like you have to use it, otherwise you brought it in vain.

RalphLambrecht · Sep 6, 2015

Kirks518 said:
On a whim, we're taking a little roadtrip tomorrow up to St Augustine, FL. It's the 450 year celebration, and it's only a 3.5 hour drive, so we said why not.

Now the photographer with GAS dilemma starts. I dunno what to bring. I have:

a full RB67 Pro SD kit (6 or 7 lenses)
a full M645 kit (power winder and 6 lenses)
a C220 with 55/80/180 lenses
and a YashicaMat 124G with wide & tele aux lenses (the Yashica aux lenses)

We'll be walking around for a number of hours, and I will also be bringing a (heaven forbid) Canon 50D w/24-105 for the snapshots.

I could go with a 35mm, and share lenses with the 50D, but, well... you know.... gotta go large!

So which would you suggest?

M645

narsuitus · Sep 6, 2015

Kirks518,

What is your subject matter?

How are you going to display your images?

Kirks518 · Sep 6, 2015

I've decided on the C220, with both lenses. In trying to stay as compact and lightweight as I can, it turns out that the Mamiya with both lenses, the Canon 50D with the 24-105, and 5 rolls of film fit nicely in a small sling bag.

Why the M645 Ralph?

narsuitus - subject matter will be family vacation snaps, street, and probably abstract. Display will be computer only, unless there is a real winner or two. Winners on film will get darkroom printed by my local developer. Size may go as far as 20x30" if it's spectacular (wish me luck there).

Ko.Fe. · Sep 6, 2015

I stopped wasted my time with digital cropper time ago even for snapshots and for events like this I won't bother with any digital at all anymore. Dinking digitally and trying to get on film by same time never worked for me.
If I want MF, I'll just take Yashica and two rolls maximum. It makes it very easy. Take pictures with it which are worth of the print only. Snapshots are for mobile phones.

Richard S. (rich815) · Sep 6, 2015

Ko.Fe. said:
I stopped wasted my time with digital cropper time ago even for snapshots and for events like this I won't bother with any digital at all anymore. Dinking digitally and trying to get on film by same time never worked for me.
If I want MF, I'll just take Yashica and two rolls maximum. It makes it very easy. Take pictures with it which are worth of the print only. Snapshots are for mobile phones.

Yup me too. Sometimes I only take my Sony NEX-6 if I'm sure I'll only be shooting color (I rarely shoot color film these days) and maybe want to take some serious video but I'll never take both a digital camera and a serious film camera on a day outing especially if on-the-go with friends or family members. Funny thing is when I do take the Sony it's usually with an adapter and use old Leica, Nikon, M42, or Contax glass!

Alan Gales · Sep 6, 2015

Kirks518 said:
Why the M645 Ralph?

He just wants to be different!

Sirius Glass · Sep 6, 2015

LMNOP said:
Square format is great for people watching, and lightweight is a plus. I third the c220 motion.

Hasselblad advertized that square is the perfect format. Plus one does not need to tilt the camera on its side.

frank · Sep 6, 2015

These days, I take both digital and film. Digital is for colour and happy snaps. The real camera is in case I come across something that's film-worthy. (Seinfeld reference: sponge-worthy)

Sirius Glass · Sep 6, 2015

frank said:
These days, I take both digital and film. Digital is for colour and happy snaps. The real camera is in case I come across something that's film-worthy. (Seinfeld reference: sponge-worthy)

I use multiple film backs for that I can shoot MF with both black & white and color film. I do the same thing for 4"x5" photography. 35mm is more work because I have to carry two cameras to shoot both types of film.

Kirks518 · Sep 6, 2015

So to echo Frank and Alan, on the first walk, I only brought with me the C220, with the 80mm. I should have brought the 55mm, the streets here are tight! The digital lighthouses, but I have a feeling it won't, unless I run out of film. I brought 2 rolls 220 velvia 50, and 2 rolls 120 arista b&w. Shot the first roll of 220 in 3 hours.

Sirius Glass · Sep 6, 2015

Wide angle lenses seem to be better for street photography.

Poisson Du Jour · Sep 6, 2015

a full RB67 Pro SD kit (6 or 7 lenses)...

6 or 7 lenses!!? You should be able to make do very easily with 2, or 3 tops.

Sirius Glass · Sep 6, 2015

Poisson Du Jour said:
a full RB67 Pro SD kit (6 or 7 lenses)...

6 or 7 lenses!!? You should be able to make do very easily with 2, or 3 tops.

Carrying that many lenses is part of his physical fitness program.

Richard S. (rich815) · Sep 7, 2015

Kirks518 said:
So to echo Frank and Alan, on the first walk, I only brought with me the C220, with the 80mm. I should have brought the 55mm, the streets here are tight! The digital lighthouses, but I have a feeling it won't, unless I run out of film. I brought 2 rolls 220 velvia 50, and 2 rolls 120 arista b&w. Shot the first roll of 220 in 3 hours.

Cool. Share some results later please.

Alan Gales · Sep 7, 2015

Kirks518 said:
So to echo Frank and Alan, on the first walk, I only brought with me the C220, with the 80mm. I should have brought the 55mm, the streets here are tight! The digital lighthouses, but I have a feeling it won't, unless I run out of film. I brought 2 rolls 220 velvia 50, and 2 rolls 120 arista b&w. Shot the first roll of 220 in 3 hours.

Hmmm, sorry about that. I've been to quite a few places in Florida but I have never been to St. Augustine. Usually a normal focal length is great for street photography. Think Henry Cartier-Bresson with his Leica 35mm equipped with 50mm lens.

narsuitus · Sep 8, 2015

Kirks518 said:
I've decided on the C220, with both lenses. In trying to stay as compact and lightweight as I can, it turns out that the Mamiya with both lenses, the Canon 50D with the 24-105, and 5 rolls of film fit nicely in a small sling bag.

Good decision!

I sometimes travel with a medium format rangefinder and a compact digital camera.

The digital serves as a tourist camera and as a light meter for my medium format which, like your C220, does not have a built-in light meter.

Film Rangefinder and Digital Compact by Narsuitus, on Flickr

Which MF camera would you bring?

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