on 11/24/01 6:16 AM, Henrik Dahl at hdahl@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx wrote:
> Could someone explain the Rangefinder philosophy/technique in simple
> phrases ;-)
> I know what they look like and so, but what's good/bad/special with them?
>
> Thanks
> Henrik Dahl
You need to take a look through a Leica M6 viewfinder and fiddle with the
focus, then this will become more clear. Rangefinder shows you the frame
with some of the surroundings, so you can see 'outside the frame' and decide
if you want to recompose the picture.
The rangefinder (high quality rangefinders mostly) allows you to focus by
superimposing the two images in the focusing frame, or by using the 'break'
in the image at the edge of the focus frame. Note that this is highly
dependent on the quality and alignment of the rangefinder, but a Leica will
almost always allow both methods.
In very low light environments the rangefinder can be easier to focus than
an SLR viewfinder, especially where you are using a relatively slow SLR
lens. Focusing a 28mm 2.8 on an SLR in low light is fussy, but a rangefinder
with a 28mm 2.8 will have a viewfinder very much like looking through a
glass window. Very little light loss through the viewfinder... The downside
is that even with so narrow a lens as a 28mm you will likely need an
auxiliary viewfinder for composing the image. You still use the regular
viewfinder to focus, but then you have to change finders to compose the
picture. Therefore most rangefinders are suitable for only moderate
wide-angle to moderate telephoto lenses, typically 35mm wide to 135mm
telephoto.
At the telephoto end of the range you can run into possible focusing
inaccuracy due to insufficient rangefinder 'base length'. Base length
directly correlates to the accuracy of focusing... and it is limited by the
size of the camera body. Here again, Leica is about the best you are going
to get... but even Leica fans will admit that the accuracy in the long focal
lengths is not as good as an SLR.
Rangefinder cameras can be MUCH quieter than an SLR because there is so much
less happening... no mirror flipping around and no aperture closing and
opening. For this reason they can be useful for candid picture taking. For
portraiture where you might be using a short telephoto lens, the viewfinder
being 'on' all the time means you see the expression *during* the exposure,
so you know if somebody blinked.
I love my OM's but I would someday like to have a nice Leica system as
well...
--
Jim Brokaw
OM-1's, -2's, -4's, (no -3's yet) and no OM-oney...
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