Originally posted by Vendee Could you elaborate on that please? The reason I ask is that I don't really get rangefinders and I'm trying to figure out why. I've got two rangefinders, a Kiev 4 that I've had for years but with a leaky shutter so it never gets used now. Also this year, a neighbour gifted me a mint Yashica Electo 35 GTN which works very well and has a nice fixed 45mm lens. Thing is.... I struggle with rangefinder focusing. I prefer the split prism of an SLR. I'm guessing that when you say that a rangefinder works well on the street, you are zone focusing it?
In my experience, it’s largely the noise. Rangefinders are generally eerily quiet compared to slrs.
If the rangefinder mirrors are aligned and in good shape, I’ve found the focusing experience very similar to a slr split image focusing screen.
Though I’ve used a number of rangefinders with lousy mirrors...
Otherwise, you’re right, there’s no meaningful difference in zone focusing either one...
-Eric