can I get anything that'll replace my Contax 159

Hi all

I've been a long time landscape photographer and have used Yashica and
then Contax SLRs since 1984. I love my old Contax 159 - it's light,
falls perfectly into my hand, and with various Yashica lenses and the
wonderful Contax Zeiss 28mm it takes some great photos. However I
increasingly take photos for digital reproduction and the Minolta Dual
Scan II that I've had a for a few years doesn't give me the clarity
and colour balance that I see in my slides (Fuji Sensia and Velvia)
and is slow.

While I've played with a little compact digital for a couple of years
(Kyocera S3L - great for a compact but poor battery performance) I'm
wondering it it's time to move to a digital SLR. However Contax don't
seem to do one anymore and even the last one they did (N) is way too
pricey for me, particularly since it seems my old lenses wouldn't work
with it. My budget is probably about £550-ish.

Can I realistically get anything that I'd be happy with? What should I
be looking at?
Or should I forget the whole thing and look at a better scanner?

Any suggestions or experiences much appreciated.


Bill Marshall

"Bill Marshall" wrote in message
news
Hi all

I've been a long time landscape photographer and have used Yashica and
then Contax SLRs since 1984. I love my old Contax 159 - it's light,
falls perfectly into my hand, and with various Yashica lenses and the
wonderful Contax Zeiss 28mm it takes some great photos. However I
increasingly take photos for digital reproduction and the Minolta Dual
Scan II that I've had a for a few years doesn't give me the clarity
and colour balance that I see in my slides (Fuji Sensia and Velvia)
and is slow.

While I've played with a little compact digital for a couple of years
(Kyocera S3L - great for a compact but poor battery performance) I'm
wondering it it's time to move to a digital SLR. However Contax don't
seem to do one anymore and even the last one they did (N) is way too
pricey for me, particularly since it seems my old lenses wouldn't work
with it. My budget is probably about £550-ish.

Not enough, in my opinion.

Can I realistically get anything that I'd be happy with? What should I
be looking at?
Or should I forget the whole thing and look at a better scanner?

Probably you should go for the scanner.

If you want a decent (semi-pro) DSLR, something like the Canon 20D/30D or
Nikon D200 might work but your budget is a bit too tight.

"Charles Schuler" wrote in message
...

"Bill Marshall" wrote in message
news
Hi all

I've been a long time landscape photographer and have used Yashica and
then Contax SLRs since 1984. I love my old Contax 159 - it's light,
falls perfectly into my hand, and with various Yashica lenses and the
wonderful Contax Zeiss 28mm it takes some great photos. However I
increasingly take photos for digital reproduction and the Minolta Dual
Scan II that I've had a for a few years doesn't give me the clarity
and colour balance that I see in my slides (Fuji Sensia and Velvia)
and is slow.

While I've played with a little compact digital for a couple of years
(Kyocera S3L - great for a compact but poor battery performance) I'm
wondering it it's time to move to a digital SLR. However Contax don't
seem to do one anymore and even the last one they did (N) is way too
pricey for me, particularly since it seems my old lenses wouldn't work
with it. My budget is probably about £550-ish.

Not enough, in my opinion.

Can I realistically get anything that I'd be happy with? What should I
be looking at?
Or should I forget the whole thing and look at a better scanner?

Probably you should go for the scanner.

If you want a decent (semi-pro) DSLR, something like the Canon 20D/30D or
Nikon D200 might work but your budget is a bit too tight.
I agree with Mr. Shuler -- went digital (Canon 20D) about a year and half
ago and it works fine BUT the Nikon 4000 Coolscan purchased about 3 years
ago has done a wonderful job with the thousands of 35mm Velvia and Kodak
E100VS slides I've put through it. The replacement model for the 4000 is
the 5000 and has a few more bells and whistles but I haven't felt the need
to upgrade since the 4000 does such a great job. Both are true film
scanners which is key.

Hi Charles and Mike

Not enough, in my opinion.

Can I realistically get anything that I'd be happy with? What should I
be looking at?
Or should I forget the whole thing and look at a better scanner?

Probably you should go for the scanner.

If you want a decent (semi-pro) DSLR, something like the Canon 20D/30D or
Nikon D200 might work but your budget is a bit too tight.
I agree with Mr. Shuler -- went digital (Canon 20D) about a year and half
ago and it works fine BUT the Nikon 4000 Coolscan purchased about 3 years
ago has done a wonderful job with the thousands of 35mm Velvia and Kodak
E100VS slides I've put through it. The replacement model for the 4000 is
the 5000 and has a few more bells and whistles but I haven't felt the need
to upgrade since the 4000 does such a great job. Both are true film
scanners which is key.

Thank you both for your comments - very useful to have that
perspective. I'll certainly look into the current range of scanners
and compare them to my old Dual Scan II.

thanks again


Bill Marshall