Originally posted by chickentender Hey Colton - Along these rangefinder lines, I've been meaning to ask you about your Bessa R.... All this playing with Russian RFs really has interested in possibly stepping up to something more friendly/reliable. How do you find that Bessa and do you (or anyone else can pipe up) much about the difference between that original and the newer offerings (I've looked at the R3M a number of time online) and whether they warrant the additional cost? All my years with cameras, it's only the past two months I've spent any time at all with rangefinders and must say, I now understand the appeal.
The Bessa R series are great user friendly cameras. They are well made and have some great features. I really like mine, although am not able to use it properly. The viewfinder is superb and really makes a difference. My main other rangefinder experience is my Zorki 4, Retina IIIc, and Contax G1, and the Bessa finder is way way better. I get used to whatever I'm using, but it definitely nice to have a big bright finder.
The Bessa R is screwmount, the R2 is basically the same camera with an M mount. The Bessa T is basically an R2 with a rangefinder but no viewfinder, ad the Bessa L is basically an R with no rangefinder or viewfinder.
The R2A, R2M, R3A, R3M, R4A, R4M are all variations of the R2 idea, but with slightly revised looks and possibly better build. A for Autoexposure, M for Manual. Te main difference in all these cameras is the finders.
The R2 series has the same finder as the original R. It's .7x magnification and has framelines for 35/50/75/90 lenses.
The R3 cameras have a 1:1 finder with framelines for 40/50/75/90
The R4 cameras are basically wide-angle cameras with framelines for 21/25/28/35/50.
I think you'd love a Bessa R.