I usually shoot large format, either 4x5 or 8x10 (Usually 4x5). As anyone who has ever shot large format knows, its labor intensive. You have to pull out the camera, set it up on the tripod, Select the proper lens, go under the dark cloth and compose the picture, pull out a torpedo level and level out the camera, bring out your light meter and meter the scene for the proper exposure, and finally pull out your film holders and expose the picture. I have actually gotten pretty fast at doing all of this, when I want to be, but its still labor intensive any way you look at it.
With that being said there are times when I like to shoot without it being so labor intensive. When I am in these shoot quick and fast mood's I go with my Mamiya 7. The Mamiya 7 is a 6x7 medium format rangefinder camera with interchangeable leaf shutter lenses. Shutter speeds range from 4 sec. to 1/500 sec. and it has a Bulb setting which allows any length of exposure necessary by keeping the button pressed down. It has double exposure capability, X synchronization at all speeds, Film speed settings from ISO 25 to ISO 1600, Exposure Corrections +/2EV in 1/3 step, an Automatic parallax compensating viewfinder, weighs 2.6 pounds with the standard 80 mm lens and last but not least comes in 2 different colors, Champagne and Black. This camera also has some great add-ons including a Polaroid back and a 35mm Panoramic Adapter Kit which yields spectacular 24x65mm images, an aspect ratio of 1:2.7.
Its an extremely comfortable camera to shoot with as it basically mimics a 35mm body, its just a bit bigger body wise. Overall there are 6 lenses available for the Mamiya 7.
Ultra-Wide Angle 43mm f/4.5
Super Wide Angle 50mm f/4.5
65mm f/4.0
Standard 80mm f/4.0
Telephoto 150mm f/4.5
Telephoto 210mm f/8
In all honesty the lenses for this system are STUNNING and I do mean STUNNING!! I am used to Schneider MC XL 4x5 lenses so I am not easily impressed in this regard and I was simply blown away the first time I saw the quality of pictures these lenses produce. They are just razor sharp. On top of that this camera has a fabulous metering system. In fact its one of the best metering systems I have ever seen for a camera. I never bracket my shots on AE and I always get negatives that are either dead on or very close to being dead on. Some of the best negs I have ever shot have come from this camera. Of course it does have a manual mode but I rarely ever have to use it as again the meter is just outstanding in this camera.
Another great thing about this system is how small and light it is. The lenses are actually quite small, especially compared to 35mm glass or even other medium format camera's. You can pack this entire system, the body and all 6 lenses, into a relatively small bag. you would be lucky to get a 35 body and 2 normal sized lenses into a similar sized bag. This is actually one of my favorite aspects to this system.
This camera is basically the exact opposite of shooting 4x5. While shooting 4x5 is slow and labor intensive, the Mamiya 7 is just super fast with almost no work to do whatsoever except composing the frame and shooting. Again this camera does have a manual mode so you can slow things down if you want to but I like just being able to shoot without worrying about anything. Its just a nice break from shooting 4x5. The whole size issue is just another aspect of this system that is basically like the exact opposite of shooting 4x5. Shooting 4x5 requires multiple large sized cases and shooting with a 100% complete Mamiya 7 system requires just 1 small to mid sized bag.
The bottom line The Mamiya 7 is easily one of the best camera systems I have ever used or owned. Its lightweight, super fast, is small enough to carry the whole system around in a small bag, has outstanding metering, and has super super sharp lenses. In regards to medium format, it is easily my camera of choice when I am shooting portraiture, documentary or snapshot style shots. This is a system that I hope Mamiya continues to support for many years to come.
5 Stars and then some!!
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