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I've recently re-read an article by Lee Johnson. He talks about his experience with his favorite Hasselblad camera after 10 years of working with it.
The article has given me food for thought regarding camera systems and what is really required
for good photography. For example, Lee talks about picking one camera and one lens for a project and sticking with that choice. I've never tried the one-camera one-lens approach to shooting, or at least
not consciously. But in practice I do. Despite having all of the
available Mamiya 7 lenses in my
toolkit, I usually use the 43mm or 50mm wide-angle lenses. Although I am
trying to be aware of when the 80 mm normal
lens might be more appropriate. And when I'm using my 35mm, my go to lens
is the Tamron 28-200 zoom. So this has become a part of my practice because it just makes sense most of the time.....
The above image, made with my Mamiya 645 and wide angle lens ( the wide angle lens always a favorite regardless of the camera I'm using). Interesting that he
notes the need for a faster shutter speed to avoid mirror vibration. The
Hasselblad must have mirror lock-up? My Mamiya 645 does, and
Hassies are better, right? So they must have that feature????? I
usually avoid this problem by using my Mamiya 7
rangefinder....no mirror, so no mirror vibration. But for my work the day I made this image, good old mirror lock-up was in play.
He makes 10 points, and it's not my goal to replay and comment on all of his ideas. It's a good article and I agree with most of it. The point is, we all can be more thoughtful when choosing the equipment that we use in each circumstance.
......Recently I rediscovered the value of cameras other than the M7,
although that relationship remains strong. I typically use my 35mm Minolta
X-700 as my "roadtrip ready to go camera". I'm now getting back to my M645 and Minolta 35mm cameras for macro
photography. Something that you can't do with a
rangefinder.
I guess the point I want
to make is choose the right camera for the task! If you want versatility
in a film camera and especially if you are just getting
started, choose 35 mm because the cameras a cheaper and there are lot's of lens
possibilities.
For the truly
adventurous, another interesting entry point for film photography is Plastic
Cameras. But that will be
discussed elsewhere.
