A Guide For Beginners: Which 35mm Rangefinder Camera Should I Buy?

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Buying Your First 35mm Rangefinder

So what is the best 35mm rangefinder camera to get on a budget for a beginner? Finished our Which 35mm Film SLR To Get for A Beginner On A Budget? but decided you don’t want an SLR, you want a rangefinder? Budget around US$150 and don’t know what to spend it on?

Check out our guide to the best 35mm rangefinder cameras for beginners after the jump below.

Trivia: Can any eagle-eyed shooters out there identify the camera in the photo?

We’ll be adding more film camera roundups but our attention turns to helping those look for a 35mm rangefinder, either on a strict budget, or for those who are just starting out.

What’s the best?

The best rangefinder from a long-term shooting standpoint is a used Leica M (usually an M2, M3 or M4) with used lenses. This is the holy grail of cameras for photographers, and it’s not difficult to see why. Leicas are exquisitely designed and constructed but more importantly, they have the kind of lens range and pedigree which are rarely surpassed by other brands. (Note: there are some excellent lenses from Angenieux, Carl Zeiss, Kern, Kinoptik, Nikon, Olympus and Schneider-Kreuznach but none were as successful at repeatedly putting out lenses of consistently stunning quality.)

There are no dark, blurry viewfinders with a Leica M body: they have some of the very best viewfinders ever made, making it extremely easy to focus. Leicas also hold their value extremely well, and in some instances will appreciate in value over time, particularly those kept in excellent condition. The older Leica I, II and III bodies are almost completely different cameras and use a different screw-lens mount system called the LTM (Leica Thread Mount). Some LTM lenses are still extremely good but most are pushing 60-70 years old now. The older, screw-mount Leicas are venerable dames of the camera world but are rarely seen on the streets anymore.

What about Carl Zeiss / Contax though?

The Zeiss Contax was undoubtedly the world’s best camera before WWII. Many people even went as far as saying it was the professional’s choice of camera while the Leica was strictly for beginners. Unlike Leica, however, Zeiss suffered a cruel twist of fate at the end of WWII. When Germany was divided up between the Allied nations, the Zeiss company was split in two: the technicians ended up in the Allied half, while all the tools and machinery were carted off to the Soviet Union - thus leaving Zeiss very much a broken company, from which they never quite recovered from.

The Zeiss Contax IIa and IIIa are probably the most famous of the Contax models, the IIIa featuring a light meter housed on the top of the camera. Of the two, the IIa is definitely more elegant, and in the 60 or so years that have passed, that light meter is most likely not going to be accurate, if working at all.

Zeiss lenses in the pre-war period are legendary, and frequently reputed to surpass the quality of Leica lenses. Famed pre-war lenses include the 35mm f/2.8 Biogon, the 50mm f/1.5 Sonnar and the 85mm f/2 Sonnar. Make no mistake, these are wonderful examples of optical engineering.

But back to Leica, are they really that much better?

Are Leica lenses really that much better than Canon / Nikon / [insert Japanese brand here]. In a word, yes. Are they worth spending that much extra money on them? In a word, (or 10), that would depend how much “extra money” means to you – or your wallet.

In the days of film - and only film - Leica lenses were famous for having a Leica “look” that Leicaphiles swore couldn’t be achieved with any other lenses. While it is arguably true that most Leica lenses are of extremely good quality, as with all manufacturers, Leica has their own fair share of duds. It’s prudent advice to do your research before picking up a bargain-basement Leica lens at your local flea market - there may be a reason why it’s priced so cheap.

Have some of the best photos in the world been taken by photographers using Leicas? Yes, undoubtedly. But so to have award-winning photographers used Canon and Nikon glass.

Those who spend hours meticulously touching up their photos exclaim otherwise, but if a photograph requires that much scrutiny and work to be classed a “good” photo, chances are it wasn’t that good in the first place.

However, for most people, the cost of a Leica is astronomical. Once you factor in all of your costs: the body, a good lens, a CLA (Clean, Lube and Adjust), the developing costs of shooting film and printing, a strap or case to keep it protected. We’re talking thousands here.

Budgeting a rangefinder for a beginner

We’ve set our budget at roughly US$150 because we feel this is the minimum one can spend to get something a) reliable b) well-made and c) something that can produce excellent results. There are several excellent options such as the Olympus XA2 but they aren’t strictly rangefinders. You’ll want full manual focus control and with any luck, either aperture-priority or shutter-priority modes:

1) Yashica Electro 35 GSN



Perhaps the most well-known of all 1970s Japanese fixed-lens rangefinders, the GSN’s production line eventually moved to Hong Kong in the late 1970s, making it one of the only consumer cameras (read: not toy Diana or Holga cameras) ever manufactured in the city. The GSN is perhaps the most affordable of all fixed-lens Japanese rangefinders but is also one of the earliest, so watch out for electrical weaknesses or battery corrosion internally. It may not be as full featured as the Canon, Konica or Minolta cameras below but it is a thoroughly deserving camera with a fairly sharp, fast lens and accurate autoexposure metering. It is without a doubt the cheapest way to get into the proper rangefinder world with some good glass - provided you can find one in good, working condition. The Electro series also features the much more advanced, more compact and lighter GX, CC and CCN (our favourite because of its 35mm f/1.8 lens) models along with external lens adapter enabling macro and telephoto modes.

Details:

Produced 1973, Yashica Camera Co., Japan

1973, Yashica Camera Co., Japan Weight 697g

697g Lens Color-Yashinon DX 45mm f/1.7

Color-Yashinon DX 45mm f/1.7 Filter size 55mm

55mm Shutter speeds 1/30-1/500 aperture priority (1/500 only without battery)

1/30-1/500 aperture priority (1/500 only without battery) Viewfinder coupled rangefinder with auto parallax correction

coupled rangefinder with auto parallax correction ISO 25-1000

25-1000 Battery 5.6v PX32 or 6v PX28A, 4LR44

2) Minolta Hi-Matic 7s



The Minolta Hi-Matic 7s is a legendary camera, extremely similar in size and weight to the Yashica Electro 35 and the Konica Auto S2. Well-built, tough, and with an excellent, sharp 45mm f/1.8 Rokkor lens, the only one of its type allowing an aperture all the way to f/22. This is an excellent camera for both a beginner to cut their teeth on and for someone who wants to challenge themselves in complete manual mode. A word of warning though: the advance lever has perhaps the longest wind stroke of any of the cameras in this roundup, meaning your fingers are in for a workout!

Details:

Produced 1966, Minolta Camera Co., Japan

1966, Minolta Camera Co., Japan Weight 725g

725g Lens Rokkor 45mm f/1.8 (6 elements in 5 groups)

Rokkor 45mm f/1.8 (6 elements in 5 groups) Filter size 55mm

55mm Shutter speeds ¼-1/500 automatic or manual

¼-1/500 automatic or manual Viewfinder coupled rangefinder with coupled parallax correction

coupled rangefinder with coupled parallax correction ISO 25-800

25-800 Battery 1.3v PX675 / ZA675 (1.4v)

3) Canon Canonet QL19



We had a tough time picking this one: the QL19 plays older brother to its more famous sibling, the QL17. Bigger, heavier, and with a slightly slower lens (the QL17 has an f/1.7 stunner of a lens), the QL19 nonetheless represents an excellent purchase for a rangefinder beginner, especially as the QL17 is frequently overpriced these days. Just like the later Konica Auto S2 and Minolta Hi-Matic 7s, the the QL19 works in manual and automatic mode, meaning that you can shoot it completely without a battery - provided you have a light meter handy. The original RM1 battery is rare but the PX625 is more common.

Details:

Produced 1965 Canon Camera Co., Japan

1965 Canon Camera Co., Japan Weight 686g

686g Lens Canon SE 45mm f/1.9 (5 elements in 4 groups)

Canon SE 45mm f/1.9 (5 elements in 4 groups) Filter size 55mm

55mm Shutter speeds 1-1/500 automatic or manual

1-1/500 automatic or manual Viewfinder coupled rangefinder

coupled rangefinder ISO 25-800

25-800 Battery 1.3v RM1 / PX625

4) Olympus 35 RC



Frequently billed as the world’s smallest 35mm rangefinder with automatic and manual exposure in the world, the Olympus RC is a legend in its own right. Small and compact, with an elegant design featuring a wind lever that is integrated into the upper part of the camera and a shutter speed dial on the top of the camera to save space, if compact size is your thing, it’s hard to beat this camera - it is probably the most expensive out of all the cameras in this roundup though, and also one of the hardest to find. The lens is a very sharp 42mm f/2.8 Zuiko and is quite often reputed to be sharper than the lens found on the Canon QL17.

Details:

Produced 1972, Olympus Optical Co. Ltd., Japan

1972, Olympus Optical Co. Ltd., Japan Weight 410g

410g Lens E.Zuiko 40mm f/2.8 (5 elements in 4 groups)

E.Zuiko 40mm f/2.8 (5 elements in 4 groups) Filter size 43.5mm

43.5mm Shutter speeds 1/15-1/500 automatic

1/15-1/500 automatic Viewfinder rangefinder

rangefinder ISO 25-800

25-800 Battery 1.3v PX625

5) Konica C35

The Konica C35 was one of the first, if not the first, compact Japanese fixed-lens rangefinders that were introduced into the marketplace in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Cheap, compact, light and easy to use, with a 38mm lens just wider than most of its rivals here. Shutter speeds are displayed in the bright viewfinder along with parallax marks. If you’re looking for something wider than 40mm or 45mm, this is the guy you want.

Details:

Produced 1967-8, Konishiroku Co., Japan

1967-8, Konishiroku Co., Japan Weight 368g

368g Lens Hexanon 38mm f/2.8 (4 elements in 3 groups)

Hexanon 38mm f/2.8 (4 elements in 3 groups) Filter size 46mm

46mm Shutter speeds 1/30-1/650 automatic

1/30-1/650 automatic Viewfinder coupled rangefinder

coupled rangefinder ISO 25-400

25-400 Battery 1.3v PX675 / ZA675 (1.4v)



*Honourable mentions go out to the Ricoh 500G and Olympus 35 DC, with an even better Zuiko 45mm f/1.7 lens. However, the DC is a fully-automatic camera with no manual controls.

What about very cheap interchangeable lens rangefinders: do they even exist, or am I stuck with a fixed-lens rangefinder?

Yes, in a way. Soviet-era Contax and Leica clones are all over eBay. Some work properly, most don’t. The Soviet-made Contax and Leica screw-mount bodies and lenses are dirt cheap (usually body + lens for about US$100 in good, clean, working condition. The Kiev 4AM is the easiest of the Contax clones to use, while we prefer the later Zorki 4, 5, and 6 models with larger combined viewfinders. However, these are much trickier cameras to use, without automatic exposure or aperture-priority modes and often requiring you to have a separate light meter due to the onboard light meter failing from age . That, and coupled with the frequent hit-or-miss nature when purchasing, means we can’t really recommend these cameras to beginners.

Getting bored of beginner cameras? Look out for our upcoming article on intermediate 35mm rangefinders and SLRs, along with an exclusive medium format camera roundup!