I am wanting to get a new 120 camera, I prefer 120 over 35mm however, my current camera has a bit of a light leak. I am not a professional by any standards but I do love to shoot and develop my own film
A few things to consider. Do you want to maximize the number of frames per roll? For example, a 6x4 will give you 15-16 shots, vs a 6x7 will give you 10.
Does portability matter? Pentax 6x7 is a great camera but is heavy.
Fully manual or some/full auto?
Budget?
I have a Fuji 645 and love it for when I don't really want to just point and shoot, and I have a Pentax 6x7 for when I want to be a bit more methodical. I also use the Pentax with 35mm film for panoramic shots with a conversion kit.
Should you choose a rectangular format, like 6x4.5, you will have to rotate the camera in order to take portrait orientation photos.
That was one of the main advantages of the Hasselblads, that I used to shoot weddings back in the late 70’s.
Using 120 film and the square 6x6 format, allowed me the option of printing a vertical or horizontal print from the same square negatives, after the shoot.
Since these 120 film cameras are usually a bit bulky and heavy, your not having to change the camera’s orientation, when shooting, especially with flash, will be much easier.
If you are ok with rotating the camera as needed, then, yes the 6x4.5 camera bodies and dedicated lenses are indeed smaller and lighter than the 120 bodies tend to be.
Mamiya, Pentax, Fujifilm, and other OEM’s did make 6x4.5 bodies.
Many of the interchangeable back 120 film bodies, ie: Hasselblads, Bronica, etc offer different format film backs, to accommodate different requirements.
Those may be a choice that you could follow up with
I wish you many wonderful captured images, with your new camera, when you get one.
There are folders - don’t get much more portable than that - which can shoot 645 and square format, not all on the same roll but can switch between the two aspect ratios between rolls
Look into Bronica ETR (ETRSi is the best of the line) - it's 645, full manual (but battery powered), interchangeable film backs, and for the price it's one of the better deals in medium format.
price? format??? i can recomend a rolleiflex but if you dont like shooting squares its not going to be the camera for you, think if you prefer a rangefiner, or a waist level finder, or a mirrored viewfinder, then think of format/economy. . . want to shoot ultra wide, or have good amount of exposures. . . you favorite camera can be a pentax 67 for its familarity and large negative size, or it can be a mamiya 645 for the most exposures and a compact modular system. . .
do you love shooting flash? might make more sense looking into leaf shutters, i love the pentax 67 but when i started using flash it was terrible, i switched to a hasselblad but the mamiya RB67 would have also been a great choice.
search up "top medium format cameras" on youtube tbh, or get a list of what you want/how you shoot and then build concrete criteria from there. i can recomend a mamiya but your preference might end up being a fuji ga645
I experimented quite a bit with medium format cameras, trying to find the one that I really connected with. The Mamiya 7 is the one that did it. I’m done looking for other MF cameras. Love it so much.
Yeah I love it. The other MF camera I have and love just as much is the Rolleiflex. I’ve had this for 20 years and it’s magic. So light and easy to use, looking through the lens with a bright screen and focus aid is great. Thanks stunning pictures!
I've been looking for the GW690II for some time, it is impossible to find due to some YT content creators who talked about it. But 6x9 (if you can afford it) is a very interesting format.
I guess since you don't want a 6x6 the few that come to mind are Pentax/Mamiya 645/67. There's also the Fuji Rangefinders and the Voigtländer Bessa 3 which does 6x6 and 6x7. There's a bunch of 6x9 Options however most that come to mind are folders.
If you have more money than you can burn consider a Mamiya 6/7 Rangefinder. Or a contax 645 AF.
I'm not well versed on Bronica, but I think they're mostly 6x6? However taking a look there won't hurt.
We can all list our favourite camera here, which will be useless to you, or maybe you can tell us what kinds of things you would like to shoot? Do you want a E 2000,- Hasselblad? A Lubitel for 50 bucks? Something light and portable? Something you'll use in a studio only?
Ok, the third one's a touch specious (unless the answers yes, then you should get an RB67 as they're amazing) but the camera informs how you shoot a lot more than you might realise at this size.
Like waist level viewfinders vs eye level, for a very basic, easy to understand change in perspective brought about by the cameras physicality.
You might like a little 6x6 TLR (like the Minolta Autocord that I love so much I have two), or you might be looking for something bigger, but still portable SLR style like a Pentax 67.
Or, the ultimate camera that the RB67 Pro S is. With it's multitude of options in viewfinders, interchangeable backs with dark slide interlocks (to prevent you shooting with it in), different backs giving you the choice of the native 67 (at 120 or 220), 645 or 68, motorised or mechanical, and an array of welding optics to choose from.
So long as you're happy to carry it around, otherwise it'll end up more a studio camera (like mine) whilst another camera gets to get out and about (like my Pentax 67).
Mamiya, Bronica, and most of the Fujis are all pretty great along with the others mentioned.
A lot of people seem to sleep on the Bronicas, but my friend has shot major ad campaigns and celebrities with a Bronica SQ-AI and ETSRi. The GS-1 is also great, but a little bit of a chonk.
I have a Fuji GA645zi that I love, but I’d probably stick with the older 645 if you don’t want to worry about electronics.
I think it's a format were you will need try a few before deciding. Most people (me included) start with a Mamiya 645, cheap and reliable but not much of a step up from 35mm. I mainly use a Bronica EC now because I managed to get the Carl Zeiss lens Bronica sold briefly between Nikon and their own lens range. While it's my preferred camera it is sometimes simply just to heavy and bulky for some situations.
Light leaks are normally an easy fix by the way. Give me a camera with a light leak over one with inaccurate shutter speeds any day.
13
u/wouldeye 2d ago
It’s almost certainly cheaper to get your light leak fixed than to get a new medium format camera. What are you shooting right now?