Which Russian rangefinders are the most ergonomic?

eli griggs · Jan 21, 2021

I like the Fed 3b best of that line and suggest you also consider the Minolta Himatic 9, which is even better than the 7/7s.

Canon's ql 17 is very good and my first real 35mm was a Petri Color 35E, which took very nice photographs and fit into a pocket with ease.

We are spoilt for choice, so pick the one with features you will use and want, then for ease of use and then, looks.

It's your candy box so all the choices are your's alone.

Cheers.

Lee Rust · Jan 22, 2021

I have a Fed 1 that really feels nice in my hand. It's identical to a Leica II in form and function and total cost shipped from Ukraine was only $55. The built-in viewfinder is very squinty, but a nice bright shoe-mounted finder for less than $100 will fix that. Zone focus works fine for wide angle lenses so the separate rangefinder is only really needed for close-ups.

eli griggs · Jan 22, 2021

Lee Rust said:
I have a Fed 1 that really feels nice in my hand. It's identical to a Leica II in form and function and total cost shipped from Ukraine was only $55. The built-in viewfinder is very squinty, but a nice bright shoe-mounted finder for less than $100 will fix that. Zone focus works fine for wide angle lenses so the separate rangefinder is only really needed for close-ups.

I usually wear the FSU Turret finder with this camera, as I almost never simply carry just one lens on it.

That also allows me to avoid the scratches on my eyeglasses from the lower built in finder.

Cheers.

Lee Rust · Jan 30, 2021

Eli, your comment inspired me to pick up one of those turret finders. Very nice! I especially like the cross-hairs in the frame and the parallax correction feature.

eli griggs · Jan 30, 2021

Lee Rust said:
Eli, your comment inspired me to pick up one of those turret finders. Very nice! I especially like the cross-hairs in the frame and the parallax correction feature.

Glad to hear.

Viewfinders are expensive and these are great to have on hand.

Cheers.

Steve York · Feb 13, 2021

Canon 7, old Kiev II -- lot bang for the buck

Which Russian rangefinders are the most ergonomic?

eli griggs

Lee Rust

eli griggs

Lee Rust

eli griggs

Steve York

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