Going Retro-Digital

[Gdad]

Check out my new camera- it's not a Nikon- it’s not even a DSLR.

It is the Epson R-D1s Digital Rangefinder.

Not abandoning my D700 kit any time soon- but I wanted to find something that was less Paparazzi feeling for daily life and family gatherings but yet still have something with a high degree of personality and potential. I wanted something to keep photography interesting, challenging, and real. The one thing my search kept coming back to was Rangefinders. My first camera was an old Argus C4 Rangefinder. A rangefinder is a type of camera that has a built-in device for measuring distance based on triangulation. Unlike an SLR/DSLR where you focus by looking thru the lens, with a Rangefinder the photographer focuses the camera by superimposing two slightly different views of a scene in the viewfinder itself. And since the field of view is not blocked by the action of a shutter as it is with a single-lens reflex camera, the photographer will not miss the decisive moment.

Some of the R-D1s ‘Features’ include:

• Fun Nostalgic Rangefinder Experience but Digital with a Hidden 2” LCD Screen
• Smaller, Lighter, and Quieter than a DSLR with Smaller Lenses- This is Smaller than my D40 & 35/1.8 Setup
• Huge Bright 1x Viewfinder- and way more than 100% coverage on most lenses (see BEYOND the frame)
• Excellent Build Quality with a Magnesium Alloy Body and very cool Analog Gauges
• A wide Assortment of Compatible Fast Prime Lenses- some new- some vintage- some esoteric
• Shoots only in Aperture Priority or Full Manual with Ultra-Cool Manual Focusing
• No Vibration Reduction, Image Stabilization, in the lens, in the camera, or anywhere else. (Hahahaha)
• Multiple B&W Shooting Modes- The Effect of color filters mounted on the lens: green, yellow, orange or red (Shoot RAW+Jpg and get the Color RAW file PLUS a B&W Jpg)
• And my Personal Favorite- A lever to hand charge the shutter (Like Advancing Film- a physical connection to the frame on every shot)

I thought this statement on DPR summed up my feelings well:

The R-D1 dares to swim against the high tide of fully automatic electronic digital cameras. It is a digital camera that still manages to feel like a traditional manual camera, for people who appreciate the peculiar satisfaction that comes with the ability to use an analog camera well. In other words, the R-D1 is simultaneously a state-of-the-art digital camera that offers outstanding performance and image quality, and a throwback that offers camera buffs the look and feel of a vintage film camera, as well as the joy of skillfully using their camera as a tool.

The R-D1 is also the world's first digital camera to accept Leica L- and M-mounts*2. As such, it offers a new platform that links the future with the past. A huge number of lens types — more than 200 — have been created and sold over the long history of photography. This camera gives twenty-first century photographers a way to use these famed lenses from our photographic heritage. The new camera gives photographers the chance to develop a new cult of photography by allowing them to resurrect their familiar old lenses in a digital world.

Some further reading on the R-D1/R-D1s (if anyone is interested) can be found here:

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0403/04031101epsonrd1.asp

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0603/06031502epsonrd1s.asp

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/cameras/epson-rd1.shtml

 

[Todd_H]

Check out my new camera- it's not a Nikon- it’s not even a DSLR.

It is the Epson R-D1s Digital Rangefinder.

Thought you were going to try to stay off of ebay late at night! You might need some help, Jeff! JK of course. Very, very nice.

I definitely understand about trying to feel less paparazzi. I tried to shoot a family reunion a few weeks ago (it was inside due to the heat) so I slapped on my 70-200 f/2.8 to get some candids from across the room. My family gave me absolute hell for it ("I bet you could see Mars with that thing!") and I had a hard time getting some folks to relax. It is a bit intimidating.

 

[Gdad]

I slapped on my 70-200 f/2.8 to get some candids from across the room. My family gave me absolute hell for it ("I bet you could see Mars with that thing!") and I had a hard time getting some folks to relax. It is a bit intimidating.

Todd- I bet I know EXACTLY how they felt. Kind of like looking at you Avatar.

 

[JoeDif]

Cool camera Always good to look into new challenges

Is that a tachometer in #4

 

[Todd_H]

Todd- I bet I know EXACTLY how they felt. Kind of like looking at you Avatar.

touché

 

[pointandshoot]

That is cool. Makes me think about my old Pentax K1000 with the spot light meter and little needle in the viewfinder. Please let us know how you like it after some use. I got a ton of *stuff* about my gear and its size. This looks like it would be good in urban settings where gear attracts attention.

Chuck

 

[boBQuincy]

I like the idea.
Perhaps my favorite camera was an Olympus 35SP rangefinder, my first serious camera.
However,... I am not ready to give up autofocus and autoexposure. A micro 4/3 with a real viewfinder would be really great. The new digital Pen is almost there, so close, but without a proper viewfinder it is out of the running.

 

[Groucho]

Too cool! I love those things. I've kept an eye on them for a while but they're just too "dear" for me to actually buy one. I did run into a woman using one while walking around a large community garage sale a year or two ago and struck up a conversation with her. If it weren't for the LCD on the back, you'd have no idea that it wasn't a film camera, what with the shutter cocking and all.

Voigtlander makes some really wonderful lenses, too. Nice choice.

BTW, speaking of film, I sent a roll of film into Snapfish a week or so ago. They supposedly turn it around immediately and you can then download the scanned versions from their site, but no sign of them yet. I'll let you know how it turns out when all is said and done. I'm going to have to stick with film rangefinders for now...

 

[Gdad]

Thanks so much all. I got to use the new rig a bit this weekend- especially since it's all I took with me. Some quick observations with this setup:

Whoa- it is really a different animal than anything I have ever really used. I like it but it is going to take a lot of practice to get proficient at using- especially focusing on moving targets.

• The camera takes ultra-conservative pictures- even at +2 EV it was nearly impossible to blow any highlights unless I forced the camera into doing something it did not want to do. Seems to underexpose by at least 1 stop.
  
• The camera eats batteries like crazy. It came with two spare batteries and I had them in rotation the whole weekend. Pretty much had to change them every time I put in a new 2gb SD card (The biggest the camera takes BTW.)
  
• The Auto-WB is excellent. Better than any Nikon or Fuji DSLR I have ever owned. I have a weird mix of lights in my kitchen that confuses every camera- every camera until now anyway.
  
• 40mm is nowhere near wide enough for me on a crop body. I need to find something a lot wider when I can.

Here are a 'few' samples.

 

[Mr._The_King]

Great shots Jeff. That little camera looks like big fun. I especially like the tomorrow land one and the pineapple fountain. Thanks for sharing
-MR.TK

 

[WDWFigment]

Took a look at your Flickr stream of this weekend's shots. As always, very nice compositional work. Looks like the rangefinder performed well (although I'm more impressed by the composition, and I assume that was your doing, not the camera's? It sure would be impressive if that camera composed its own shots, too!)

 

[Groucho]

Took a look at your Flickr stream of this weekend's shots. As always, very nice compositional work. Looks like the rangefinder performed well (although I'm more impressed by the composition, and I assume that was your doing, not the camera's? It sure would be impressive if that camera composed its own shots, too!)

IMHO a camera like that can almost can improve your composition by forcing you to slow down and think about the shot... not being able to see through the actual lens also forces you to imagine how the final shot will look.

Some nice bokeh in some of the shots, too. It's nice to see a different "look" to the photos.

Gdad, FYI, Snapfish did post my roll of film that I sent in today... the online shots are very low resolution (and don't look all that hot), you have to pay to download high-rez versions, I don't know how high-rez they are and based on the smaller ones, I'm not inclined to find out.

 

[Gdad]

IMHO a camera like that can almost can improve your composition by forcing you to slow down and think about the shot... not being able to see through the actual lens also forces you to imagine how the final shot will look.

Some nice bokeh in some of the shots, too. It's nice to see a different "look" to the photos.

Gdad, FYI, Snapfish did post my roll of film that I sent in today... the online shots are very low resolution (and don't look all that hot), you have to pay to download high-rez versions, I don't know how high-rez they are and based on the smaller ones, I'm not inclined to find out.

The viewfinder is a little tricky at best. It has adjustable gridlines for 28mm, 35mm & 50mm lenses- 35 seems to suit the 40/1.4 pretty well but I notice it crops some off the bottom. It is weird to see a lot more of the shot through the viewfinder than you are going to capture when you take the shot. (I'm use to the opposite with the D700 which has 95% coverage so I am usually trying to 'squeeze' something into the frame figuring if I can almost see it I'll get it. ) I agree with you 100% on the composition. Same thing for film- and for prime lenses vs. zooms. Anything to get you to slow down and think for a second helps- at least for me.

Too bad on the Snapfish- I really need to find a good local lab or just break down and buy a film bag and some chemicals. So far I have just been shooting Kodak BW400CN that I can get developed at the corner drug store- but that's not what I got the 35mm for.

 

[Evad]

Very impressive my friend. Love all the shots you posted but this one is my fav....

Are the night shots hand held or was a tripod used?

 

[Gdad]

Thanks Dave- All hand held except for the one of the Astro Orbiter

 

[Gdad]

To give you an idea of how compact the Voigtlander 40mm f/1.4 Nokton is- from Left to Right:

Voigtlander 40mm f/1.4 (8.3 Oz)
Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 AF-S (8.3 Oz)
Sigma 50mm f/1.4 HSM (1 Lb 4 Oz)