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#11
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RB67 for Mamiya 7/7II
"Bill Hilton" wrote in message ... From: "Mike" I understand Bill what I don't know yet is, do any of the lenses fall in to their gray market category. Mamiya gives that impression, and for warranty work that's what I'd expect. Not sure if they'll refuse to work on a grey market item that's out of warranty, or if that's even legal anymore. I personally felt that a body is a lot more likely to fail than a lens so I was willing to go grey on the lens but not on a body. I did have a body fail (rangefinder wouldn't couple to the lenses) but natcherly this happened after the warranty had run out. Mamiya USA seems to have a much tighter hold (more like a legal death grip) on grey market imports than the 35 mm vendors like Canon USA or Nikon and we pay for it in higher prices on some of their products. Bill One reason why Mamiya America has the hold they do is that they are not owned by Mamiya Japan unlike Nikon, Pentax, etc. While I can not confirm this little piece of information the guys who put MA together had to come up with 5 million. It use to be with the 35mm companies sales carried the service department. From what I am hearing that's changing so I wouldn't be surprised if more companies stopped doing warrantee repairs on gray market equipment. I hope to have more info from Mamiya tomorrow. Mike |
#12
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RB67 for Mamiya 7/7II
I had a 7II, and ditched it for the same reasons: I had problems focusing.
And when you're off just a little with that camera, it really softens the image, defeating the purpose of having it in the first place. I was attracted to the neg size, portability, and lens quality. But the drawbacks eventually drove me away. "Matt Clara" wrote in message .. . "Bill Hilton" wrote in message ... From: "Matt Clara" Listen to what I'm saying, and then tell me if I'm crazy, or not. I want the rangefinder for its legendary lenses, its portability, its accurate meter, its ease of use, its ease of focus, and the fact that it's somewhat discreet. We have two bodies and five lenses for this system ... the lenses are great, portability is great, I guess it's discreet. Love the image quality and large prints. But ... The meter is accurate to a point but it's easy to get bad readings since it's basically heavily center weighted to the viewfinder (not the lens) and consequently the wider lenses end up with a very narrow metering area, so you have to be careful there. For landscape work I usually carry a 1 degree spotmeter and use that to meter the tricky scenes when using this camera and often overrule the camera's reading. "ease of focus" is a joke. One of the lenses won't focus at all (210 mm), meaning it doesn't couple to the rangefinder or an optical finder, you simply have to measure the distance or guesstimate it. Another lens (43 mm) focusses thru the viewfinder but the viewfinder can't show the correct field of view for the lens, you need a second finder attached to the hotshoe for that. So you focus thru one window and frame thru another. Even the lenses we have that act "normal" focus-wise (65, 80, 150 mm) don't focus very quickly for me and my eyes. I can focus my Pentax 645 much faster than I can this system, for example. I think it's a quirky focus system so maybe you can try it ahead of time with the lenses you hope to own and see if it fits your needs. even with the money made selling the RB67 equipment, I'll still have to pony up some of my own dough just to get the Mamiya and a basic 80mm lens You might find that the lenses are a lot cheaper if you buy from Hong Kong or Robert White in England, since Mamiya USA has such a monopoly that there are no grey market items available in the US and prices are ridiculous. I saved almost $1,000 buying the 43 mm from Robert White for example, compared to the B&H price on the same lens. I think I'd still buy the body here in the states just to get the warranty and ensure service. This may be the most fragile camera body I've ever owned, on one of them the rangefinder simply quit working (wouldn't focus) one day after a couple years of moderate use and zero rough handling and it cost several hundred bucks to get it fixed. ... if it's not a crazy move--what do you think? The image quality is great but there are a lot of quirks with this system. Make sure you understand them before you dive in. Bill Thanks for your reply, Bill--I was hoping for some more input from others as well, but none seems forthcoming. Be that as it may, do you know of any online camera stores based in Japan with the great Mamiya prices of which you speak? Used equipment would be acceptable, too. -- Thanks, Matt Clara www.mattclara.com |
#13
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RB67 for Mamiya 7/7II
From: "Bouser"
I had a 7II, and ditched it for the same reasons: I had problems focusing. And when you're off just a little with that camera, it really softens the image, defeating the purpose of having it in the first place. I was attracted to the neg size, portability, and lens quality. But the drawbacks eventually drove me away. Ah, that clicked a dozen neurons into place and I remembered this article by Michael (Love 'em or Hate 'em) Reichmann, who used the 7 II for a year and then dumped it, in large part because of focus problems. Matt, you might find it worth reading before you decide. http://www.luminous-landscape.com/re...hands-on.shtml Then there's Pulitzer-Prize winning photojournalist David Kennerly, who did a very nice book using the Mam 7 II with mainly (only?) the 43 mm lens ... Bill |
#14
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RB67 for Mamiya 7/7II
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#15
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RB67 for Mamiya 7/7II
"Bill Hilton" wrote in message
... From: "Bouser" I had a 7II, and ditched it for the same reasons: I had problems focusing. And when you're off just a little with that camera, it really softens the image, defeating the purpose of having it in the first place. I was attracted to the neg size, portability, and lens quality. But the drawbacks eventually drove me away. Ah, that clicked a dozen neurons into place and I remembered this article by Michael (Love 'em or Hate 'em) Reichmann, who used the 7 II for a year and then dumped it, in large part because of focus problems. Matt, you might find it worth reading before you decide. http://www.luminous-landscape.com/re...hands-on.shtml Then there's Pulitzer-Prize winning photojournalist David Kennerly, who did a very nice book using the Mam 7 II with mainly (only?) the 43 mm lens ... Bill Reichman's focus problem was almost exclusively with the 150mm lens--was that your experience as well? -- Regards, Matt Clara www.mattclara.com |
#16
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RB67 for Mamiya 7/7II
In article , "Matt Clara"
wrote: "Bill Hilton" wrote in message ... From: "Bouser" I had a 7II, and ditched it for the same reasons: I had problems focusing. And when you're off just a little with that camera, it really softens the image, defeating the purpose of having it in the first place. I was attracted to the neg size, portability, and lens quality. But the drawbacks eventually drove me away. Ah, that clicked a dozen neurons into place and I remembered this article by Michael (Love 'em or Hate 'em) Reichmann, who used the 7 II for a year and then dumped it, in large part because of focus problems. Matt, you might find it worth reading before you decide. http://www.luminous-landscape.com/re...hands-on.shtml Then there's Pulitzer-Prize winning photojournalist David Kennerly, who did a very nice book using the Mam 7 II with mainly (only?) the 43 mm lens ... Bill Reichman's focus problem was almost exclusively with the 150mm lens--was that your experience as well? Hi there, I have had Mamiya 7s (both versions) since they first came out, using 50, 65, 80 & 150 mm lenses. I take landscapes only, mainly with Fuji Velvia and always on a tripod. The transparencies are fantastic. I always focus using the lens depth of field markings (being more conservative by 2-stops) and have never have focus problems. The technique is simple and bomb proof but it is of course not particulalry fast and the tripod is a pain at times if I am on a multi-day backpacking trip (normal). If you can put up with taking photos in this manner, the Mamiya 7 outfit is brilliant. And as others have mentioned, Hong Kong or Robert White in the UK is the best place to buy. Should problems arise it is very easy to get support from the country of purchase. Courier after all can take as little as 4 days to go around the world. Not a biggie in my opinion. I have no problems at all with the Hong Kong shop I have been using for the past 5 years (Cameron Photo Comapny. Good luck with the purchase. Alan Hogg University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand. |
#17
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RB67 for Mamiya 7/7II
"Alan Hogg" wrote in message ... In article , "Matt Clara" wrote: "Bill Hilton" wrote in message ... From: "Bouser" I had a 7II, and ditched it for the same reasons: I had problems focusing. And when you're off just a little with that camera, it really softens the image, defeating the purpose of having it in the first place. I was attracted to the neg size, portability, and lens quality. But the drawbacks eventually drove me away. Ah, that clicked a dozen neurons into place and I remembered this article by Michael (Love 'em or Hate 'em) Reichmann, who used the 7 II for a year and then dumped it, in large part because of focus problems. Matt, you might find it worth reading before you decide. http://www.luminous-landscape.com/re...hands-on.shtml Then there's Pulitzer-Prize winning photojournalist David Kennerly, who did a very nice book using the Mam 7 II with mainly (only?) the 43 mm lens .... Bill Reichman's focus problem was almost exclusively with the 150mm lens--was that your experience as well? Hi there, I have had Mamiya 7s (both versions) since they first came out, using 50, 65, 80 & 150 mm lenses. I take landscapes only, mainly with Fuji Velvia and always on a tripod. The transparencies are fantastic. I always focus using the lens depth of field markings (being more conservative by 2-stops) and have never have focus problems. The technique is simple and bomb proof but it is of course not particulalry fast and the tripod is a pain at times if I am on a multi-day backpacking trip (normal). If you can put up with taking photos in this manner, the Mamiya 7 outfit is brilliant. And as others have mentioned, Hong Kong or Robert White in the UK is the best place to buy. Should problems arise it is very easy to get support from the country of purchase. Courier after all can take as little as 4 days to go around the world. Not a biggie in my opinion. I have no problems at all with the Hong Kong shop I have been using for the past 5 years (Cameron Photo Comapny. Good luck with the purchase. Alan Hogg University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand. Gotcha' Alan--thanks. -- Regards, Matt Clara www.mattclara.com |
#18
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RB67 for Mamiya 7/7II
Mamiya of America is the BIGGEST rip off around. If you want Mamiya, buy
from Robert White in the UK. 40% cheaper and great service. The will handle all warranty issues. Mamiya of teh USA is just ripping people off. No more and no less. "Mike" wrote in message ink.net... "Bill Hilton" wrote in message ... From: "Mike" Matt, FYI, Mamiya America will not perform warrantee service on select equipment they deem to be gray market. That's one reason I suggested buying the body with a US warranty but getting the lenses elsewhere. I understand Bill what I don't know yet is, do any of the lenses fall in to their gray market category. |
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