Rangefinder camera
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A rangefinder camera is a camera fitted with a
Almost all digital cameras, and most later film cameras, measure distance using electroacoustic or electronic means and focus automatically (autofocus); however, it is not customary to speak of this functionality as a rangefinder.
History
The first rangefinders, sometimes called "telemeters", appeared in the twentieth century; the first rangefinder camera to be marketed was the 3A
Rangefinder cameras were common from the 1930s to the 1970s, but the more advanced models lost ground to single-lens reflex (SLR) cameras.
Rangefinder cameras have been made in all sizes and all film formats over the years, from 35 mm through medium format (rollfilm) to large-format press cameras. Until the mid-1950s most were generally fitted to more expensive models of cameras. Folding bellows rollfilm cameras, such as the Balda Super Baldax or Mess Baldix, the Kodak Retina II, IIa, IIc, IIIc, and IIIC cameras and the Hans Porst Hapo 66e (a cheaper version of the Balda Mess Baldix), were often fitted with rangefinders.
The best-known rangefinder cameras take
The Nikon rangefinder cameras were "discovered" in 1950 by Life magazine photographer David Douglas Duncan, who covered the Korean War.[1] Canon manufactured several models from the 1930s until the 1960s; models from 1946 onwards were more or less compatible with the Leica thread mount. (From late 1951 they were completely compatible; the 7 and 7s had a bayonet mount for the 50 mm f/0.95 lens in addition to the thread mount for other lenses.)
Launched in 1940, The
In the United States the dependable and cheap Argus (especially the ubiquitous C-3 "Brick") was far and away the most popular 35 mm rangefinder, with millions sold.
Interchangeable-lens rangefinder cameras with focal-plane shutters are greatly outnumbered by fixed-lens leaf-shutter rangefinder cameras. The most popular design in the 1950s were folding designs like the Kodak Retina and the Zeiss Contessa.
In the 1960s many fixed-lens 35 mm rangefinder cameras for the amateur market were produced by several manufacturers, mainly Japanese, including
Starting with a camera made by the small Japanese company Yasuhara in the 1990s, there has been something of a revival of rangefinder cameras. Aside from the Leica M series, rangefinder models from this period include the Konica
Medium-format rangefinder cameras continued to be produced until 2014. Recent models included the Mamiya 6 and 7I/7II, the Bronica RF645 and the Fuji G, GF, GS, GW and GSW series.
In 1994, Contax introduced an autofocus rangefinder camera, the Contax G.
Digital rangefinder
Epson R-D1, Zenit M and PIXII
Digital imaging technology was applied to rangefinder cameras for the first time in 2004, with the introduction of the Epson R-D1, the first ever digital rangefinder camera. The RD-1 was a collaboration between Epson and Cosina. The R-D1 and later R-D1s use Leica M-mount lenses, or earlier Leica screw mount lenses with an adapter.
After the discontinuation of the R-D1, only Leica M digital rangefinders were in production until the introduction of two additional rangefinders in late 2018:
- the Pixii Camera (A1112) from France-based firm Pixii SAS;[3] and
- the re-emergence of the Russian camera manufacturer Zenit with the limited release (500 units) Zenit M designed in Krasnogorsk and made in collaboration with Leica.[4][5]
Both the Pixii and the Zenit M are true mechanical rangefinders, and they employ the Leica M mount, affording compatibility with current lens lines from
themselves.Leica M
Leica released its first digital rangefinder camera, the
Later, Leica released the Leica M (Typ 240) digital rangefinder, which adds live preview, video recording and focusing assistance, the Leica M Monochrom, which is similar to the Leica M9 but shoots solely in black and white, the Leica M Edition 60 which is similar to the M (Typ 240) but omits a rear display panel as a homage to film cameras,[6] and the M10 and M11 without video recording.
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The Epson R-D1 with a Leica lens
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The Leica M8
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The Leica M9
Pros and cons
Viewfinder parallax
The viewfinder of a rangefinder camera is offset from the picture-taking lens so that the image viewed is not exactly what will be recorded on the film; this parallax error is negligible at large subject distances but becomes significant as the distance decreases. For extreme close-up photography, the rangefinder camera is awkward to use, as the viewfinder no longer points at the subject.
More advanced rangefinder cameras project into the viewfinder a brightline frame that moves as the lens is focused, correcting parallax error down to the minimum distance at which the rangefinder functions. The angle of view of a given lens also changes with distance, and the brightline frames in the finders of a few cameras automatically adjust for this as well.
In contrast, the viewfinder pathway of an SLR transmits an image directly "through the lens". This eliminates parallax errors at any subject distance, thus allowing for macro photography. It also removes the need to have separate viewfinders for different lens focal lengths. In particular, this allows for extreme telephoto lenses which would otherwise be very hard to focus and compose with a rangefinder. Furthermore, the through-the-lens view allows the viewfinder to directly display the depth of field for a given aperture, which is not possible with a rangefinder design. To compensate for this, rangefinder users often use zone focusing, which is especially applicable to the rapid-fire approach to street photography.
Large lenses block viewfinder
Larger lenses may block a portion of the view seen through the viewfinder, potentially a significant proportion. A side effect of this is that lens designers are forced to use smaller designs. Lens hoods used for rangefinder cameras may have a different shape to those with other cameras, with openings cut out of them to increase the visible area.
Difficulty integrating zoom lenses
The rangefinder design is not readily adapted for use with
Historically unobtrusive
Rangefinder cameras are often quieter, particularly with
Absence of mirror
The absence of a mirror allows the rear element of lenses to project deep into the camera body, making high-quality wide-angle lenses easier to design. The
Since there is no moving mirror, as used in SLRs, there is no momentary blackout of the subject being photographed.
Field of view
Rangefinder viewfinders usually have a field of view a little greater than the lens in use. This allows the photographer to be able to see what is going on outside of the frame, and therefore better anticipate the action, at the expense of a smaller image. In addition, with viewfinders with magnifications larger than 0.8x (e.g. some Leica cameras, the
Use of filters
If filters that absorb much light or change the colour of the image are used, it is difficult to compose, view, and focus on an SLR, but the image through a rangefinder viewfinder is unaffected. On the other hand, some filters, such as graduated filters and polarizers, are best used with SLRs as the effects they create need to be viewed directly.
References
- ^ Levett, Gray (2005). "The History Of Nikon Part IV". Nikon Owner Magazine.
- ^ "Confirmed: Cosina to Discontinue Zeiss Ikon Camera Bodies – The Phoblographer". thephoblographer.com. 7 December 2012. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
- ^ "Pixii – rangefinder camera". Pixii – rangefinder camera.
- ^ "Zenit M with 35 mm F/1.0 Lens – Russian Legendary Brand Enters Digital Age – Interview and Footage". October 1, 2018.
- YouTube
- ^ "The essence of photography: the LEICA M Edition 60 Special edition for the 60th anniversary of the Leica M rangefinder system // Photokina 2014 // Press Releases // Press Centre // Company – Leica Camera AG". us.leica-camera.com. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
- ^ James Tocchio (January 19, 2018). "Contax G2 Camera Review – The Anti-Rangefinder That's in a Class of Its Own". www.casualphotophile.com. Casual Photophile. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
External links
- Voigtlander Rangefinders – a brief write-up on Voigtlander Rangefinders by Matthew Joseph.
- Looking Forward: rangefinder design in the context of viewfinder design, by Rick Oleson.
- "Rangefinders & Compacts". Matt's Classic Cameras. Archived from the original on 2006-07-17. Retrieved 2006-05-16.