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Rangefinders Cameras |
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Rangefinders cameras
The rangefinder camera represents one of the first truly compact film cameras in the history of photography. It is the first camera to utilize the 35mm film format, bringing forth a new era in photography from the age of medium and large format film. In addition, rangefinder cameras are significantly more compact than most SLR cameras, making them an elegant choice of camera in many situations.
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Unlike a single-lens reflex (SLR) camera, rangefinder cameras do not have any mirrors for focusing the image. Because of that, rangefinder cameras are usually smaller than SLRs, and they do not suffer from the vibration and noise of a moving mirror. The compactness and silence of a rangefinder camera makes it the choice of many photojournalists.
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Rangefinder cameras uses a complex system of prisms to triangulate the position of the subject, and the focusing mechanism is displayed as a small focusing spot in the middle of the viewfinder. When the subject is in focus, the split-image in the spot matches up. If you are familiar with the split-focus screens of manual focus SLRs, this is something like that – only much smaller. And the entire viewfinder remains in focus, except that small focusing spot in a rangefinder camera.
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For many people, the rangefinder camera is not a easy camera to use. It took me years to finally overcome the difficulty of using a rangefinder, but once you “get it” rangefinder cameras are incredibly fun to shoot with!
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The quintessential rangefinder camera must be the Leica cameras. Probably the best built 35mm film camera in the world, a Leica rangefinder camera is a work of art in itself. The elegant design remain largely unchanged from the original 1950 model, with elegant styling devoid of any superfluous features.
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While rangefinder cameras largely killed off twin-lens reflex (TLR) cameras with its compactness and ability to interchange lenses, the irony remains that rangefinder cameras retain two main weakness of TLR cameras. Because there is a slight distance between the viewing window and the lens, there is parallax error when shooting close subjects. In addition, you cannot easily use filters such as a polarizer or gradated filter easily because you cannot see the effect of the filters through the viewfinder.
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The viewfinder window of a rangefinder camera is both a blessing and a curse. The design of a rangefinder means that there is no mirror blackout, so you can see the very exact moment when you click the shutter. However, the viewfinder is fixed and does not zoom according to the lens you use, but rather it displays a set of frame lines to show you the field of view of the lens. This means that you cannot use a wider or longer lens than what is preset in the viewfinder, unless you are prepared to use auxillary viewfinders (just for composing; focusing still takes place in the built-in viewfinder) or totally forgo the composition by shooting blind.
These weaknesses became the Achilles’ heel of the rangefinder cameras when SLR cameras became more popular, leading to the demise of rangefinder cameras’ popularity in the 1980s.
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Focusing a rangefinder camera quickly
Many people (including yours truly) have struggled to use a rangefinder camera, and have failed miserably because we have the mindset of a SLR user. We expect a generous focus indicator such as a split-screen focusing, as well as being able to gauge from the other parts of a ground screen to see if the focus is correct. Peering through the rangefinder camera’s screen is a bit of a shocker for the first time. The entire viewfinder is extremely bright and contrasty, and the world looks really good. You will then quickly realize that the entire viewfinder is in focus, and that you are expected to focus the camera using a small miserable illuminated spot in the middle of the viewfinder!
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It is certainly frustrating to be constrained to such a small spot for focusing, and there are times where you cannot even find the lines or patterns to focus upon easily! This is the part where all the enthusiasm for the rangefinder evaporates completely, and the photographer dumps the rangefinder for the comfort of the SLR camera once again.
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Hang in there – there’s a easier way to handle a rangefinder camera. Basically, you gauge the range between your subject and the camera, and turn the focusing ring on the lens to that distance. So by the time you lift the camera up to your eye, the split image spot should be quite close so you can slightly tweak the focus and capture the image much faster, compared to turning through the entire focus range of the lens aimlessly. This sounds easier than it’s done, and it will definitely require some practice on your part. But if you can master using a rangefinder, it opens up a new world of photography for you, and may even make you a better SLR photographer!
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Which rangefinder camera for me?
There are many rangefinder cameras in the market today. For less than $100, you can get a simple old rangefinder camera from the likes of Yashica or Canon. Personally I’d stay away from them, not because of the quality of the cameras, but because the age of such cameras usually means that the rangefinder spot is faded and difficult to use.
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You might like to consider buying a Voigtlander rangefinder or a Zeiss rangefinder camera – these are currently in production and they are easy to use and relatively affordable. My personal choice is still the superlative Leica cameras, although they are not everyone’s cup of tea with their exhorbitant price tags. Nonetheless, you can’t go far wrong with either a Voigtlander, Zeiss or Leica rangefinder camera. There is a huge range of lenses, both old and new, for the three systems. However, rangefinder users typically use less than four lenses due to the constraints of the rangefinder window in displaying the focal length.
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