Originally posted by gabro822 Hi!
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I have the opportunity to buy a P67+55,75,200 or a P67II+105 for quite the same price. On one side, I have 3 lenses, on the other, the new model.
Considering that I'm not a professional photographer and I will do mostly portraits, which kit is better, for you?
Is the 67II a real improvement?
Thank you very much
Gabriele
Milage will vary on an answer no doubt. The 67II is an improved camera if you like shooting this camera out in the field like the more nimble 35mm camera. And I suspect anybody that does that also uses it for that roll only part time because that is a lot of camera + lens options to causally haul around given most people also have other camera(s) they shoot too.
In my case, having used medium format gear for a long time, I don't need a built-in light meter. I'd rather meter it myself with a one-degree spot meter or no meter at all which much easier to do outside than most people think with BW film. And I end up using the folding hood in lieu of the prism most of the time because it gets the job done for many situations I shoot the camera in plus I like the reduction in bulk and not to mention the battery lasts for years on end. The camera is a system so reaching for a prism is there if I need it. So I basically only shoot my Pentax 67 for scenes that fall within the scope of this configuration and reach for another camera otherwise.
If the camera is going to be tripod mounted for those portraits, I highly recommend the folding hood (aka waist level finder - WLF). On a tripod, even portrait orientation is doable and you get 100% view plus a magnification for critical focus. But a WLF is not for everybody.
You gave the lens selection generically. We really need to talk about which generation some of those lenses are if you want to evaluate the cost and the deal. Refer to the following
Pentax 6x7 Lens Guide. It shows all the different lens generations, a rating of that lens relative to other Pentax 6x7 lenses and importantly if the optics changed between generations. You can see most lenses only had a cosmetic change going from the 6x7 to the 67 generation, for example, but note what it says about the 55mm and 200mm.
The 67 generation of the 55/4 and 200/4 would improve the deal considerably. And if it had a 75/2.8 AL it would be super sweet. The 105/2.4 is a really good lens for a range of portraiture if you like selective focus. The leaf shutter versions of the lenses are also a serious consideration for portraiture. So for which camera, 67 or 67II, that's your call based on what you want to spend and how you want to use the camera.