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The New One

Posted by
MadScientist (Düsseldorf, Germany) on 17 August 2009 in Miscellaneous.

Usually acquiring a new camera means - at least to me - reading product tests, browsing photographer's forums, talking with fellow photographers, studying brochures, fighting trepidation in view of the prices, sleeping over it (one, two, several times), and finally buying the object of desire (often with a guilty conscience). You can see: my wife and me are no impulse buyers. With books perhaps, but definitely not with technical devices.

The idea of investing into an analog camera first came to my wife, and here and then we pressed our noses against the windows of camera dealers, looking for a nice analog second-hand camera. We soon agreed upon 35mm cameras that they are nice, but that medium format would be even nicer. We looked at second-hand market prices and decided to wait a while.

Until last week. It wasn't just luck, it was pure fluke that we've won this auction. At a price that you don't want to know, it was close to theft. And then there was this shift lens, second-hand of course, at a third of the market price. A shift lens that is so important if you want to get serious about architecture photography.

We did it. Mamiya RZ67, Sekor-Z 110mm lens, Sekor-Z 70mm shift lens. We will have to learn a lot, but as soon as we will have some representable shots, you will be the first to know.

Linerberry from Sumner, Christchurch, New Zealand

Oooo the envy is ooozing out of me!!! This is a wonderful image of the tools of the trade. Its a complicated business and I am only at the very beginning of a huge learning curve!!!
Great work ms!

17 Aug 2009 5:40am

@Linerberry: Great that you're back again, LB! This camera is indeed quite exciting, I'm very curious about the shots it produces.

David from Spain

Nice camera :-)

17 Aug 2009 6:44am

@David: You bet! :o)

E.B from VOUZIERS, France

Une très belle boite a coucou :)

17 Aug 2009 9:51am

@E.B: That's a term I had to look up! :-D Merci beaucoup, E.B.!

Japanalia from Yokohama, Japan

Of course I'm not that far gone into the trade and most probably I'll never be! But....I can feel your excitement and joy for acquiring such treasures and can only look forward to see the results!

17 Aug 2009 10:36am

@Japanalia: Me too, me too! :-D

Ronnie 2¢ from Atlantic Shores, United Kingdom

Ahhhh . . you are making me think FP4 120 and blowing dust off my beloved M645. It is a thrill just to hear the ‘clop’ of that wonderful shutter but the beauty here will be that shift lens !! Super purchase.

17 Aug 2009 11:45am

@Ronnie 2¢: I hope that digital backs will be affordable in a few years (they are still well beyond $10.000). Imagine a digital camera with a really HUGE sensor and with the old lenses... Could revive the market for analogue quality cameras again.

MARIANA from Waterloo, Canada

wow.. all these stuff really deserve that fantastically crisp and bright shot !!! Bravo !

17 Aug 2009 2:55pm

@MARIANA: I hope you don't mind my untidy desk! :-)

António Pires from Lisbon, Portugal

All that equipment is well beyond what I need. Still, maybe as a matter of background, I keep staring at it.
I'm looking forward to see your photos.

17 Aug 2009 3:06pm

@António Pires: Thanks, António! I'll give it a slow start, this beast needs practice. :)

Tracey from Maryland, United States

Congrats! What fun you are going to have with it!

17 Aug 2009 6:12pm

@Tracey: Oh yes! :-D

Ted from South Wales, United Kingdom

What can it do or do better then?

17 Aug 2009 9:09pm

@Ted: The shift lens (hopefully) solves the problem with converging lines that you can often see in architecture shots. The much bigger 'sensor area' (it's not a sensor, of course, but just let us assume that the size of the negative and the sensor in a digital camera are basically the same) will help a lot when I want to zoom into the photo without loss of quality. Just compare the size of an APS-C sensor that you can find in common crop cameras with the size of a medium format negative. See here. With this camera I hope to get much more detailed shots, and the shift lens is something I've been wanting for a long time. Sure, going the analogue way requires more work until you're able to hold a reprint in your hands, but this opportunity was just too good to let it go!

Steven from Chicagoland, United States

Christmas in August! Have fun with the new toy!

17 Aug 2009 10:45pm

@Steven: Thanks, Steven! No Christmas (at least no Christmas presents) this year - I'm broke now! :-D

JoeB from Brampton, Canada

No rush, but how long before we see a shift lens shot?

18 Aug 2009 12:31am

@JoeB: Give me at least two weeks, I'll be off for a few days next week. (I'm curious, too! :-)

akarui from Kagoshima, Japan

I have seen beautiful pictures taken with that type of camera. A very good acquisition for people who want still to use film.

18 Aug 2009 10:37am

@akarui: Digital backs are also available. Who knows, in a few years...

Ted from South Wales, United Kingdom

I'm waiting to see the proof of your pudding! (if I sound sceptical it's because you've already set the bar so high!)

18 Aug 2009 6:09pm

@Ted: If my shots look bad I won't blame the camera! :-D

justme from cateye, United States

nice! i am eager to see your photos

19 Aug 2009 12:36pm

@justme: Me tooi! I will have to learn a lot!

Twelvebit from Victoria, United States

I used to lust after one of these, but now I'm content to stay digital. With no particular interest in architectural photography I haven't really cared about tilt lenses but now that I've picked up a D90 I'm thinking one might come in handy for video work.

20 Aug 2009 2:23am

@Twelvebit: I'm really curious how it feels to use a quarter of an hour for just one shot. :) Okay, there _is_ one disadvantage: this beast is heavy. Really heavy. 4 kg (8.8 lbs) is the weight of what you can see here.

Laurie from New Jersey, United States

Ahhh...nice! Have fun with the new gear.

I have to agree that I would be drawn to medium format if I were to get back into analog photography. I have not used my 35mm analog in years.

25 Aug 2009 4:59pm

@Laurie: I'm very excited about this purchase, it was so beneficial that we couldn't deny it. :) This will be a different kind of taking photos and I consider it being a new set of photographic grammar rules that will extend my visual language. Well, perhaps less sophisticated ;)