Classic Cameras in Singapore

[alternatve]

The M5 is dam hot to me!! :bsmilie: and its hard to find. Including the parts if the meter is spoilt. So a Bessa may be much better. Thanks!

I apologise then, for insulting your beloved. Well, even the M2 without a body would cost more then a new Bessa R3a with a basic lens. But in the end, it is your choice. Haha, it seems that I am advertising for ChiiFei a lot.

jazzguy, I have to decline your very generous offer then. I want to start with something more modern so I can know what I can expect when I move onto more classic stuff. Also, since I am still new, I won't be able to value those beautiful cameras like a more experienced person would. Thank you very much again.

The_Cheat, I was referring to a used Leica lens I saw in an auction. This is only to state the costliness of the product and is not in anyway defaming it.

I would support and go for any such meeting, but I am a bit timid, so you'll see me fiddling with the cameras more. :bsmilie:

 

[clubgrit]

Here's an interesting article I found on the net, regarding Japan's Classic Camera scene (in 2004, though) :

What's Hot ...

As for the fair, well, good luck to all organizers. I have no experience to contribute :dunno: Mine is very commercial-oriented ...

 

[CZJena]

Well frankly chiifei, i am an infocomm & enterprise man as well, do you think they can survive like that for long? Its matter of time some smart guy like you replacing them all, just like what amazon.com is doing. Between ritzcamera.com and cathay, you sure have an edge above. I still think local, regional market is huge for classic camera. These few days been talking alot with friends about you and your business model, admiring your spirit.

 

[chiif]

Hee hee... to be honest, as a dealer for Voigtlander, I must confess, I do not use the Bessas for my personal shooting. But I do use the 21mm/f4 as my primary lens.

Not that the Bessa is no good, the R2A & R3A are superb built and if you see the R3M, you will be seduced. They are nice to hold & with the side grip, it's near perfect.

But the feel of a M6 is really really hard to describe. Maybe it's the weight or the curtain shuttle. When I press the shuttle, I just feel that the moment I capture is ... :kiss:

Maybe it's the name, Leica, that gives the feel good factor, or maybe it's just me. You need to hold a Leica and shoot with it to feel the difference yourself.... Maybe Keng Yong can articulate the feeling better.

Having said that.... R3M is a classic. You can ask Derekphan. I think he has fallen in love with it deeply....

BTW, I just passed by one of the camera shop in SimLim and saw a digilux 3. I was curious and asked whether the lens is interchangable. The kind sales gentleman said, yes, but it is Four-Third system and lens 14mm-(dunno until what) is a olympus 4/3 mount....

I asked to hold it and have a feel of it... er... then I said.. thank you.. and hand the camera back to him. The digilux cost more than 1700+ I think... well... I guess the rest of you can guess my conclusion of the cam.

Sometime I just wonder... to survive in this industry, even a company like Leica has to resort to use their brand name and coming up with such a product for the mass market to keep the company afloat. It's really quite sad...

I apologise then, for insulting your beloved. Well, even the M2 without a body would cost more then a new Bessa R3a with a basic lens. But in the end, it is your choice. Haha, it seems that I am advertising for ChiiFei a lot.

 

[Keng Yong]

Maybe it's the name, Leica, that gives the feel good factor, or maybe it's just me. You need to hold a Leica and shoot with it to feel the difference yourself.... Maybe Keng Yong can articulate the feeling better.

You make me feel like a fondler......however I know what you mean. Maybe it's just the way a RF focuses differently and the click sound it makes instead of "whack!"

In any case, the advice is go out and shoot more!

 

[CZJena]

For equipmt, seems like people pressing on for quality and long term investment will eventually go to Leica, but somehow Leica has to find ways for their survival going lower. For classics they built things that last too well and provide premium support. So we can say we live in a golden age where we enjoy the classics with "moderate" pricing and peak quality now. The key is still Quality not mass production. i always like to cite the effect of "swiss watch vs quartz watch", and of course equipmt aesthetic & feel.

 

[jazzguy]

Yo folks,

I see clubgrit here also kenna infected by the RF and Leica bug

Quote:
"As for the fair, well, good luck to all organizers. I have no experience to contribute Mine is very commercial-oriented ..."

He's being humble... great and steady guy, he really knows his photography.

 

[tomcat]

BTW, I just passed by one of the camera shop in SimLim and saw a digilux 3. I was curious and asked whether the lens is interchangable. The kind sales gentleman said, yes, but it is Four-Third system and lens 14mm-(dunno until what) is a olympus 4/3 mount....

I asked to hold it and have a feel of it... er... then I said.. thank you.. and hand the camera back to him. The digilux cost more than 1700+ I think... well... I guess the rest of you can guess my conclusion of the cam.

Sometime I just wonder... to survive in this industry, even a company like Leica has to resort to use their brand name and coming up with such a product for the mass market to keep the company afloat. It's really quite sad...

The Digilux 3 costs $3,900 while its Panasonic twin, the L1 (which I have) costs $2,9xx. Much of the cost is due to the superb Leica 14-50mm kit lens though. It is of course a DSLR and not a RF and should not be compared with a RF in terms of size, weight and handling as such. If a comparison must be made, I think it's only fair that it's plus points should also be mentioned as well and those are exactly the features that a RF or a DRF does not have... like autofocus, OIS, macro-capability, tele-capability, infinitely variable zooms, TTL-flash, evaluative exposure, spot metering, shutter priority, etc.

I have been shooting for a few weeks now with an Epson R-D1s and can safely say that I could appreciate the basic differences in photography with a DSLR and a (D)RF. I really like the looks of the images taken with the Epson coupled with the CV lenses that I have. It would be quite expensive to get equivalent DSLR lenses that are that sharp wide-opened and at all other aperture settings too but taking photos with a (D)RF is really 'hard work' compared to that with a DSLR. Then again, I feel that the user would learn more about the principles of photography by shooting with a RF... simply because everything is so 'manual' and a beginner would be forced into the situation of learning by trial and error most of the time. Luckily for me, mine is a DRF and I don't have to wait for the film to be developed and printed before I know whether I got it right or wrong and could make the necessary changes almost immediately.

Simply put, I get the feeling that RF is for the gentlemenly photographer.. one who have the luxury of taking all the time in the world to compose, focus and shoot... in other word to 'make the photo' while a DSLR is so fast and efficient in use that there is a very 'mass-production' feeling to its usage in comparison. I seem to get a greater sense of achievement from a nicely shot photo from my Epson than if I got it from my other DSLRs. Maybe that's the intangible difference between these 2 photographic tools. :dunno:

 

[student]

I Then again, I feel that the user would learn more about the principles of photography by shooting with a RF... simply because everything is so 'manual' and a beginner would be forced into the situation of learning by trial and error most of the time.

Simply put, I get the feeling that RF is for the gentlemenly photographer.. one who have the luxury of taking all the time in the world to compose, focus and shoot..

I think the more correct statement should be ".... would learn more.... by shooting with a manual camera". It just happened that most RF are manual. But many SLRs , medium format cameras, and large format cameras are also fully manual.

 

[alternatve]

I think the more correct statement should be ".... would learn more.... by shooting with a manual camera". It just happened that most RF are manual. But many SLRs , medium format cameras, and large format cameras are also fully manual.

I think any manual camera would be an experience to a regular teenager now, other then a few of course.

 

[bahibo]

not exactly, i think if u look around,can find manual body with a decent lens at good price , around the digital point and shoot i think.

Well for the discussion, let's not start the war between film and digital again

About the feel, it's like giving a sword to a martial art fighter or a girl to a man, different people may "feel" differently so no point disscussing. Old camera have the solid feel, the shutter click and sound, someone i know love film camera because of the shutter sound, to him it's like music. Most film cam will be more solid and have better feel since at that time, durable,long lasting is one important point to sell , for the time being, for Digital ,only some pro model have that kind of solidity, and of course, electronic equipment harder to keep it working after bumping,dropping,drown like mechanical film cam but the technologies is rising, cam get more solid, price cheaper, and produce more comfort ,fast editing, easier printing, good quality.

 

[alternatve]

not exactly, i think if u look around,can find manual body with a decent lens at good price , around the digital point and shoot i think.

Well for the discussion, let's not start the war between film and digital again

About the feel, it's like giving a sword to a martial art fighter or a girl to a man, different people may "feel" differently so no point disscussing. Old camera have the solid feel, the shutter click and sound, someone i know love film camera because of the shutter sound, to him it's like music. Most film cam will be more solid and have better feel since at that time, durable,long lasting is one important point to sell , for the time being, for Digital ,only some pro model have that kind of solidity, and of course, electronic equipment harder to keep it working after bumping,dropping,drown like mechanical film cam but the technologies is rising, cam get more solid, price cheaper, and produce more comfort ,fast editing, easier printing, good quality.

No war needed. Digital go digital. Manual go manual. Respect each other and and everything is ok.

 

[bahibo]

that's why i say let's not but u have to say digital go digital, film go film, digital also have manual you know.

 

[alternatve]

It can't really be considered a true manual camera. If the batteries die... =\

 

[bahibo]

yaaa i forget. About the Classic camera community, i agree with the idea we meet at someone house or go to some place for coffee,tea and discuss for futher evolution

 

[jazzguy]

Good. All settled. Let's go back classic cameras discussion.

Someone posted in B/S section an early Leica M3 Double stroke. To see in detail, can go to this link.

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost-classifieds/showproduct.php?product=2679

The pictures are there. Seems that today a number of Leicas are surfacing, including a M4.

 

[tan131]

sigh... i'm still a long way off saving up for my m6 + 35 summicron combo... anyway, u guys have the book "The man, the image, the world" by HCB? fantastic!

 

[alternatve]

Good. All settled. Let's go back classic cameras discussion.

Someone posted in B/S section an early Leica M3 Double stroke. To see in detail, can go to this link.

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/photopost-classifieds/showproduct.php?product=2679

The pictures are there. Seems that today a number of Leicas are surfacing, including a M4.

Yea, I see three or four Leica M series in our own B/S. ?! Someone going digital or in some financial crisis?

 

[clubgrit]

You flatter me, jazzguy :embrass: I'm just one of the guys here who enjoys taking pictures using film cameras, and the Leica certainly adds to my enjoyment. Love everything about it, thanks for releasing one of your "precious" to me

Yo folks,

I see clubgrit here also kenna infected by the RF and Leica bug

Quote:
"As for the fair, well, good luck to all organizers. I have no experience to contribute Mine is very commercial-oriented ..."

He's being humble... great and steady guy, he really knows his photography.

 

[heday]

Im still struggling to decide on a bessa or a leica maybe a M2. But theres no metering for M2, and if theres anything wrong with it. Will i have any problems getting the parts and getting it repaired? A m5 or m6 is really too much for me.