Any medium format people here?

blackwaterstudio · July 7, 2005

I've been thinking about picking up a medium format camera for some time now. I was messing around on B&H and ran across two. I don't know much about MF so any help would be great.

Mamiya 645SE Rapid Pro

Mamiya 645 PRO-TL

The 645SE comes with a 80 f/2.8 lens, the used 645 doesn't.

Khaos · July 7, 2005

Mamiya just came out with a 22mp digital medium format.

blackwaterstudio · July 7, 2005

Khaos wrote:

Mamiya just came out with a 22mp digital medium format.

Just alittle to much for my blood. I want to start cheap but with a good camera.

Khaos · July 7, 2005

jdsphotography wrote:

Just alittle to much for my blood. I want to start cheap but with a good camera.

Yeah, it's the I dream of owning camera.

I know at the Buy and Sell forum at FM, Hasselbad stuff gets sold every now and then.

blackwaterstudio · July 8, 2005

Khaos wrote:

Yeah, it's the I dream of owning camera.

I know at the Buy and Sell forum at FM, Hasselbad stuff gets sold every now and then.

Gonna try to pickup something used.

Anyone here know much about MF that can help me. The results I'm seeing from using velvia fillm is just outstanding.

Michiel de Brieder · July 8, 2005

I'm afraid I can't help you, but I'm tagging this as I'm in the same boat as you

blackwaterstudio · July 8, 2005

Michiel de Brieder wrote:

I'm afraid I can't help you, but I'm tagging this as I'm in the same boat as you

Thanks for the bump

gus · July 8, 2005

A friend of mine shoots with a medium mamiya & all i can add is that its expensive to develop (from what he explains to me) but man...what truly great photos. He did a lightning shot 18 months back that i still think of as i drift to sleep. They are clear & tac sharp.

I hope to contact him soon & get a copy & with his permission ..post it because its from a hill & you can actually see a house roof getting hit from maybe 2000 yards

Gus

blackwaterstudio · July 8, 2005

Humungus wrote:

A friend of mine shoots with a medium mamiya & all i can add is that its expensive to develop (from what he explains to me) but man...what truly great photos. He did a lightning shot 18 months back that i still think of as i drift to sleep. They are clear & tac sharp.

I hope to contact him soon & get a copy & with his permission ..post it because its from a hill & you can actually see a house roof getting hit from maybe 2000 yards

Gus

Very nice, would love to see the print.

robscomputer · July 8, 2005

My friend shoots mostly in medium format with her 645AF. The camera is really nice and the images of that negative are huge.

Since it's amazing with the size of the negatives compared to 35mm I just recently bought my first medium format camera. I picked up a Holga which should be pretty fun for trying out the larger size.

BTW I saw the pricing for B&H and appears to be higher than KEH. You might want to check their site or give the sales team a call. For example, here's a used camera in bargin condition. This means it's visually scratched or has a dent but visual works great.

M645 PRO TL WITH 80 F2.8 N (58), AE PRISM (PRO), 120 PRO BACK, POWER DRIVE II, MEDIUM FORMAT SLR MANUAL FOCUS CAMERA OUTFIT $711.

http://www.keh.com/shop/product.cfm?bid=MS&cid=01&sid=newused&crid=11452111

Also, don't forget to have a flatbed scanner ready for your images!

Rob

msmendel · July 9, 2005

The negative in a 645 camera isn't really that much larger than 35 mm. Most medium format pros will be found using Mamiya's in 6 x 7 format or Hasselblad's in 6 x 6.

Matthew Saville · July 11, 2005

msmendel wrote:

The negative in a 645 camera isn't really that much larger than 35 mm. Most medium format pros will be found using Mamiya's in 6 x 7 format or Hasselblad's in 6 x 6.

Good point. If you're really interested in getting into medium format, I'd reccomend used Hassy equipment for starters. 6x6cm worth of film from a Zeiss lens, now that's a benchmark. You'll be printing 11x14" and 16x20" as if it's a 4x6", "hand-out-to-your-friends" kinda print!

I'm not too sure about Mamiya equipment specs, but you should understand what you're getting into and decide what you want. I know Hasselblad and Fuji Cameras pretty well, but not Mamiya or Pentax etc... You must realize that for starters, you're working with a straight "light box", meaning this camera has no light meter, no batteries for that matter. Some MF cameras however can accecorize in that direction; for Hassy you can buy a special viewfinder with a light meter in it, and for some MF cameras I think you can have backs that auto-advance the film. But for the most part, I hope you already know that you're saying goodbye to built-in light meters and Autofocus...

If you're really gutsy, just run down to your local rental place and plunk down the $100 or so to rent an MF camera. They'll probably be willing to give you a crash course in how to use the camera, if you're intuitive enough to catch on quickly. Just don't try to rent a 4x5 camera and expect them to teach you how to use THAT, lol

But definitely, look into used Hasselblad equipment. 645 format is not exactly worth all the hassle these days, what with the awesome stuff we can get by panning and stitching with our DSLR's.

And like you said JDS, buy yourself some Velvia! Don't worry about processing, the cost will be worth it once you get the hang of it. When you shoot film you tend to be more methodical and for some reason things tend to turn out right a lot better. I just returned from an incredible vacation that I suppose I should post about someday and I shot 6 rolls of 35mm slide along with 25 or so rolls of medium format film, in a Fuji 6x9 camera and a Noblex 6x12 panoramic camera! I absolutely drooled when I got the film back, and processing was worth every cent of the $150...

-Matt-

KA0TVO · July 11, 2005

Several ways to begin the medium format on the semi cheap side. The Holga, but its more of a "art' camera, lots of creative light leaks

,the Lomo, a Russian medium format that does well for about 35.00 on ebay shiped. Actually not bad quality. Then the usd Yashika twin lens cameras. Great quality and can be found for 30-40.00 depending on quality. I have an old F model and it still produces knock out photos. Last but not least are the Mamiya universal cameras.I Have one of these , big, heavy, and impressive. These still can be found at a bargan price.

However, the newer Mamiya"s or Bronica's are hard to beat.

blackwaterstudio · July 11, 2005

Thanks guys, I think I'll start looking for a 6x6 or 6x7 then since I seem to be able to do the same thing with my 20D as the 645 can.

I've been messing around on www.keh.com and have found quite a few Mamiya RB67 PRO-SD's with lens. From reading the reviews this seems to be a great camera and will except different MF film backs.

topspringer · July 15, 2005

jdsphotography wrote:

Thanks guys, I think I'll start looking for a 6x6 or 6x7 then since I seem to be able to do the same thing with my 20D as the 645 can.

I've been messing around on www.keh.com and have found quite a few Mamiya RB67 PRO-SD's with lens. From reading the reviews this seems to be a great camera and will except different MF film backs.

Have just bought the components to a great Mamiya RZ67 Pro II outfit at some ridiculously low prices via various Ebay auctions. It's a cool camera, but bear in mind it has NO TTL flash metering and no autofocusing, and is very heavy. If you can get past these disadvantages then you will appreciate the ultra sharpness of the lenses and large transparencies. It's not for fast action work, nor is it great for long lens telephoto shots like 35mm, but then it is basically a studio camera after all. A flash/spot/ambiant light meter will be a necessity, as well as a polaroid back .
Mearle

patch29 · July 15, 2005

What is your goal? I know you mentioned Velvia, but are you going to print or scan this film, etc?

Don't let 645 deter you, Hasselblad has recently moved towards 645 from 66 with the H1 system. If you print 8x10 you are essentially cropping a 66 to 645. The newer 645 cameras tend to be more like a 35mm SLR, 67 and 68 camera tend to be very large and usually tripod bound. Some of the medium format systems will be more compatible with digital backs than others, so factor that in. I would definitely look used on FM, RG, etc. That is where you should find your best deals. A lot of users just want to get out of their systems to go digital. Systems can get expensive quickly, so putting more money into your Canon system might not be a bad idea, a 1Ds mkII will make some very impressive prints and you don't have to find a lab that can handle medium format film. This has actually become a problem here in Atlanta for shooting 4x5 film, a lot of labs have stopped processing it, or film at all. This is one of the largest changes over the last year. I can only imagine the trend will continue.

I owned an extensive Hasselblad system for years and loved working with it. I miss its simplicity, same with the Sinar 4x5 and the controls it offers. Some of the larger medium format cameras offer the ability for the lenses to tilt and shift which can add to your creativity. I always enjoyed shooting with a Fuji 680 system, but it is a big camera.

Higgmeister · July 15, 2005

Just borrowed a 4x5 view from a cousin
My wife and I went to Tennessee last week for a family reunion. One of her cousins was heavily into photography for awhile and amassed some nice cameras. It's a wood field 4x5 view with two lenses and a very bright screen. I'm looking forward to using this, but need to get a larger tripod first and find out where in my local area I can get the film developed and scanned.

I've been looking at trying this out, but couldn't justify the cost to see if I like it. If things go well, I guess there's a dark room in my future. I have quite a bit of B&W darkroom experience, but that's many years past.

Looking forward to it,
Chris

Any medium format people here?

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