Menu
What's new
The GetDPI Photography Forum

Great to see you here. Join our insightful photographic forum today and start tapping into a huge wealth of photographic knowledge. Completing our simple registration process will allow you to gain access to exclusive content, add your own topics and posts, share your work and connect with other members through your own private inbox! And don’t forget to say hi!

In a Rudimentary Sense: DSLR versus Rangefinder :Why One or the Other

helenhill

helenhill

Senior Member
I just got an Epson Rd1s (which I adore)
but heres the deal....sometimes I'm Spot On with the Rd1
whereas with an Oly e1 I'm always Dead on
Is this a complex Beast which must be Mastered (the rangefinder)
Practice makes PURRfect:ROTFL:
or is a DSLR just plain Easy

and then of course to my EYE viewing the overall photo
the oly seems more 'REAL'
wheras the RD1 seems more processed /homogenized
:)bugeyes:and YES I know I'm talking about so many issues at once)


Whats your View ?

Best-H
 
Last edited:
C

cam

Active member
briefly, as it's late and i'm lagged: this is a complex Beast which must be Mastered and you're still not going to always get it right -- but you're much more likely to capture magic IMHO.

are you shooting and looking at RAW on the R-D1??? the main difference, i'd have to say, is the lens. it's like a mic making the biggest difference in audio. you're using a Cron on the E-1 and a CV on the R-D1. i found the CV's i tried fairly flat (though that was the way they drew on the Epson, not necessarily all cameras).

i loved my Epson in use immediately, but did not fall for the pictures until i got the old Lux in my hands. then i fell in love with them, hits and misses alike. hence began my obsession for older glass (though the 28/2.0 is totally awesome as is the Noctilux in newer glass)...
 
helenhill

helenhill

Senior Member
WOW hard to believe you could have F.F. / Focus Frustration
Your work is SUPERB
so I'm in the Club....... :banghead::ROTFL: :ROTFL:

Best xo- H
 
helenhill

helenhill

Senior Member
heres for BAD Focusing......:banghead:A Shot I would have LOVED to have with HIM in Focus /rd1s 35mmcolor skopar 2.5 P II
 
TRSmith

TRSmith

Subscriber Member
helenhill said:
heres for BAD Focusing......:banghead:A Shot I would have LOVED to have with HIM in Focus /rd1s 35mmcolor skopar 2.5 P II
Click to expand...
Helen, you don't mess around do you? When you miss the focus, you miss it! :ROTFL:

I have way too many shots like this from the M8. I like to think of them as incremental steps along the way to getting better. Like most things worthwhile, patience and practice are essential. You will persevere I'm sure.

Best,
Tim
 
helenhill

helenhill

Senior Member
TRSmith said:
Helen, you don't mess around do you? When you miss the focus, you miss it! :ROTFL:
Best,
Tim
Click to expand...
Its not only that I NEED to have my HEAD examined...... now its my EYES too :ROTFL::ROTFL::ROTFL:
Cheers ! H:)
 
Last edited:
C

cam

Active member
Helen,

this shot shows how delicate the balance can be between in focus and out of focus, especially when shooting wide open.

look at Ethel's eye and then look at her feet. granted, she was a fairly big bird (shot at minimum distance, f/1.4) but still...

this was at the hotel, my first stop after buying the lens and when i saw this pic, i knew i was in for a ride!
 
helenhill

helenhill

Senior Member
CAM
Dreamy background......lovely bokeh really
and Ethel's face is Sharp
Good Showmanship w/regard to
how true " the Delicate Balance between IN Focus & OUT of Focus"

Best-H
 
C

cam

Active member
thank you, Helen. not the most interesting Ethel photo (the best, of course, were OOF), but it really did show me the precarious balance i'd need to shoot it wide open.

Maggie, it's an older (late sixties, early seventies) chrome Summilux 50. different than the pre-asph version most of the people seem to have here, but i much prefer its character. whilst theirs focus closer, i think mine has much more glow and is still surprisingly sharp wide open. the bokeh is beautiful as well... there's just something magical about it and it was love from the first snap. i'm keeping my eye out for other lenses from this era now. i've been spoiled :p
 
jonoslack

jonoslack

Active member
Strange you lot are having problems focusing - I've never had an oof shot in my life:ROTFL:

Helen - focusing with a rangefinder is definitely a practice thing - and I've got shots that much out of focus too - It's when you think you're lining up twig a with twig a . . . but actually it's twig a with twig b!

As for the E1 - Everyone I know who has had one simply things that it's a wonderful camera, little LCD 5mp and slow speed notwithstanding. The colour is lovely, and so are the lenses, and the handling . . . .don't get rid of it!

My son (who is a fine photographer) had the pick on a recent trip to Croatia . . . he took the old E1 with the new Zuiko pancake, and thinks that it's wonderful.
 
helenhill

helenhill

Senior Member
Jono
I just saw on Stephen Gandy's 'CAMERAQUEST' site
a used RD1 /mint condition box & all for $1800.00
not sure if thats in your budget considering your M8, D3, GX100, Dlux3 and God knows how much GLASS

and I do ADORE my RD1s not sure about the 35mm viewpoint /
should have done a 50mm & then a 28 and probably NEVER a 35 :angry: !!

but the E1 & cron is actually Erics and I borrow it ...... hehehe

Today Focusing was dead on ....YEA!!

Best-H:)
 
jonoslack

jonoslack

Active member
helenhill said:
Jono
I just saw on Stephen Gandy's 'CAMERAQUEST' site
a used RD1 /mint condition box & all for $1800.00
not sure if thats in your budget considering
Click to expand...
Hi Helen
What's a budget? is it some kind of a bird?

Actually, that would be fine if it were here, but by the time I've paid carriage to the UK and all the taxes, it would probably add another $600 - not so good.

Thanks for the heads up though - I'll keep looking.
 
A

asabet

Guest
I didn't want to plunge in with an expensive digital rangefinder, so I bought a Bessa R3a and M-Hexanon 50mm f/2 to see how I would get along with a rangefinder camera. I enjoyed the combination quite a bit and quickly adjusted to focusing with the rangefinder. However, in the end, I preferred using my old Olympus OM-2n and OM 40mm f/2. While many enjoy seeing the "whole" picture, looking around the outside of the frame, and shooting with both eyes open (possible with the Bessa 1:1 viewfinder), I prefer to get a DOF preview along with the more precise framing an SLR viewfinder offers. More than that, I enjoy being able to manually focus and take the shot without recomposing, impossible with the rangefinder and a breeze with the large, bright matte focusing screen in the OM-2n.

Unfortunately, the 5D is too large, heavy, and loud, while the E-420 and 25mm pancake (arrived yesterday) is too difficult to manually focus, impossible to zone focus (no distance window and focus point resets whenever you turn the camera off), and limits my DOF control. Of course neither offers aperture control on the lens. If there were only a digital OM, just like my OM-2n, I think I'd be able to commit to a single camera. Perhaps :).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top