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Old 9th May 2012, 09:30 PM
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kennethcooke kennethcooke is offline
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Default Mamiya C3 and Lenses

Hi I respect you people on this forum, As you know I have a Leica M and a Nikon F3hp System and I am looking at buying something MF. What as your views on this camera?

http://forum.mflenses.com/beautiful-...it-t48138.html

Thank you
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Old 10th May 2012, 06:32 AM
cesare cesare is offline
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Ken,

The C3 is a good camera, and mamiya lenses are lovely with a great look. The C range of TLRs have one trick other TLRs can't do, and that is change lens. In order to achieve this, the cameras are bigger and bulkier than other similar cameras, but this has no impact on the results of course. The cameras are rather angular, so if you want to walk around with it all day on your shoulder it ends up poking you in the leg which gets annoying.

Lenses - the ad mentions these are the 'blue dot' versions, which basically means the more recent version of the lens. I believe it has the same formula but better coatings than the previous build, but personally i've not seen any difference in image quality between the two (comparing 80/2.8).

If you want to dabble in MF, a TLR is a good place to start, but do also look at the rollei. The rolleis are much lighter and smaller, and if you can live with a fixed lens, you'll probably prefer to carry these around with you (I certainly do).

Cesare
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Old 10th May 2012, 06:44 AM
Richard Gould Richard Gould is offline
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I would agree with the above, but the Mamiya TLR and lenses can begin to feel heavy after a while, I would say to try a Rollei, either a Flex or a cord, fixed lens,but I use both and don't find it a problem, It depends what sort of photography you do but I have back problems and carrying a MF camera, all the bits you need plus a couple of lenses can become painful after an hour or two, but with a rolleie, light small and pain free and great photographs,
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Old 10th May 2012, 06:51 AM
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The Mamiya TLR's are good cameras that offer versatility and great quality at an affordable price.

I have the C220F so can't really comment on the C3's pitfalls but you've probably done your research so you know it is an earlier version of the C330. Here's the Mamiya TLR's evolution.

I don't think much can go wrong with these cameras as they are purely mechanical and pretty robust.
You may need to think about light seals but again that can be easily replaced too.


If you're an aficionado, then you probably won't be happy with anything less than a Rolleiflex so get saving!

And if you're more of a "standard lens" user anyway without the real need of lens interchangeability and concerned about weight then there are other options in the vintage range.

Many people own one so see if you can loan one for a while?
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Old 10th May 2012, 07:14 AM
Dave miller Dave miller is offline
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Having owned both a Mamiya 330s with a range of lens and a Rollei 2.8f I can say that you will be hard put to see any difference in printed results; a statement that I imagine will raise a few hackles. It’s true that the Mamiya is a lump but you get the benefit of interchangeable lens and a lower price, it was designed as a professional’s workhorse. The triple digit range has the added benefit of the shutter being cocked with the film wind on cranking. The Rollei is much lighter and the built-in exposure meter useful, but grossly overpriced, especially the accessories. If you cannot get a decent print out of a Mamiya you won’t make one with a Rollei.
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Old 10th May 2012, 07:53 AM
cesare cesare is offline
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I guess I should add that I have a C3 with the 80 and 65 lenses, and a rolleiflex automat 3.5 (from around 1955).

As I said, I prefer to carry the rollei, but the C3 is a great camera. Oh, another thing, the bellows are really handy on the C3 for macro stuff, but watch the exposure when focussing close.

The C330 I believe has some sort of parallax correction indicator in the viewfinder which the C3 doesn't. Other than that, I can't see a reason for getting one C over another.
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Old 11th May 2012, 04:28 PM
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Thank you all. I am thinking that possibly a Rollei 2.8f or a 3.5f might fill the bill as I am very much a one camera person when I go out with the theory that if I have brought the wrong lens with me, tuff.

The guy at Vintage cameras has a couple of Rollei's at about £1,000. Would seem to be about the asking price for a nice one?

http://vintageclassiccamera.com/inde...6e9a7454b1e402
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Old 11th May 2012, 09:26 PM
Keith Cocker Keith Cocker is offline
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Ffordes have a 2.8F Planar in what looks like good shape at £799.00.

£1000.00 is steep in my opinion
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Old 12th May 2012, 02:30 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Keith Cocker View Post
Ffordes have a 2.8F Planar in what looks like good shape at £799.00.

£1000.00 is steep in my opinion
I was thinking that too Keith
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Old 12th May 2012, 03:11 PM
cesare cesare is offline
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I'd personally get a 3.5 not a 2.8. The 3.5 is very sharp, and the cameras are lighter and tend to be much cheaper. I'd have thought £400 would give you a choice of rollei 3.5s.

Oh, and do consider a rolleicord V as well.
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