Mamiya 7 – Good & Ugly
I get a lot of e-mails regarding the Mamiya 7 camera, which I use extensively for my travel and landscape shots.
I feel that many people assume that having the same camera as me is going to make their images better, which I misleading. But for those that are intrigued by the camera and want to know what I think about it, I’m going to give you the low down here and now.
Q. Why did I choose this camera over other Medium Format systems?
A. Because first and foremost, I wanted something with maximum resolution and lightest weight. I do a lot of traveling and it’s important that the camera is light and that the lenses are light too. Try out many other MF systems and you’ll soon see why the Mamiya is great for compactness and light lenses.
Q. What is the resolution like?
A. It’s a rangefinder system, so the lens designs were not compromised by having to ‘work around’ there being a mirror in the way. The wide angles in particular extend right into the camera body and are a few mm close up to the film plane. The distortion in these lenses is almost non existent. Point the camera down and the horizon is at the top of the frame – straight as an arrow. No barrel distortion.
Q. Are the lenses fast?
A. No. This is the real downside – depending on what you are shooting. With maximum apertures of f4.5, they are a few stops slower than other MF systems. This is because Mamiya couldn’t guarantee precise focussing with a rangefinder MF system. For instance, a standard lens in MF land is 80mm or 90mm. Now think about the DOF (depth of field) you have on a 90mm lens in 35mm land…. it’s not that deep is it? If your focussing is slightly off, chances are that at f2 you’re going to notice it. So the best compromise is to make the lenses slower. So that’s the downside. Slow lenses, but on the bright side, because they are slow lenses, they’re not that bulky / heavy / big. A plus point. Ideal for travel.
Q. What is a Rangefinder anyway?
A. A rangefinder is a system where you do not look through the lens. You actually view through a side window an ‘approximation’ of what you will get. The problem with this is that focus is achieved by overlapping two paralax images onto the same spot… this requires some mechanical calibration so that when the images are overlapped correctly, the lens is actually in focus.
Q. So why use this system if it doesn’t allow you to see through the lens then?
A. Because it makes the system more compact (no mirror in the way), you also get to see the scene at the point of exposure (no mirror flipping out of the way for a moment obscuring your view) and the system is also very, very quiet (no mirror to make a big slapping noise). The Mamiya 7 System has the shutters placed inside the lenses, making the shutter tiny – and therefore less prone to vibration. So images are often sharper than systems with large shutters that are 6×7 in size!
Q. What are the other limitations of the Mamiya 7?
A. Close focussing is terrible, due to limitations gaining accurate focus with a rangefinder system. No decent telephoto support either – the biggest telephoto you can get for it is a 210mm lens – at f8 !!!! and it’s not even coupled to the rangefiner – so you have to guess the focus point…. bit of a silly lens unless you intend to use the camera for landscape work.
Q. So what do I like about the camera?
A. I keep coming back to the camera time and time again. I swear at it, curse it while I’m using it, feel I’m missing shots with it, but each time I get the films back and look at those sharp 6×7 transparencies on my light table… I instantly forgive it its weaknesses.
A. I also actually like composing the shot through the rangefinder window. Because it is an approximation of what is there, I have to ‘visualise’ more in my head what I am wanting to create – no bad thing.
A. I tend to use it in manual mode all the time for landscape work. I have a Sekonic L-608 light meter which I use for zone system metering, so I can determine where and if I should use a grad filter. So I tend to slow down with the camera and think more about composition.
A. I also love the 6×7 aspect ratio.
A. I also love how quiet the camera is when out shooting street scenes. Even though it’s big, it doesn’t attract as much attention as a small SLR does.
A. I also find placing the grads on the camera to be a non-issue. I compose, I check how much area the sky is using – if it’s using a 1/3rd of the scene, then that’s how far down I put the grad. Because the grad is so close to the front element, it’s diffused anyway. I only use the hard grads. The soft grads are no use to MF or 35mm shooters because the lenses are small. For Large Format, the soft grads are worth holding onto.
A. I find the camera great for the landscape work I do. I have my process with this camera nailed down now, and am comfortable with it. I can take it anywhere with me and its been up the side of glaciers in Patagonia, on an ice field for a week (it uses small batteries), and its been completely soaked in New Zealand and it still worked the next day once all the water evaporated off all the lens elements.
Q. What don’t I like about the camera?
A. No close focussing.
A. No decent telephoto support
A. Slow lenses
A. To change lens, I have to pull a curtain over the film via a dial underneath. Can’t take any pictures until the curtain is released and I *always* forget to release it once I’ve changed lenses.
A. It’s poorly made, bits keep falling of the camera.
But I keep coming back to it. But be warned : it’s not for everyone.
Hi Bruce,
Concerning the maximum aperture, they probably had to sacrifice a stop to save room for the shutter, while keeping the lens compact. The same thing occurs with the Hasselblad C vs F lenses. I’ve got an old Zeiss Ikon rangefinder with a 2.8 lens, and never experienced focusing issues when shooting wide open.
I use the 6 version myself (my preferences goes to square) and find it to be a great system, even tough it might be a bit “too sharp” sometimes, compared to it’s german grandfather which is more delicate, yet sharp.
Cheers,
Comment by Benrouf — 19 May, 2009 @ 10:38 am
Hi Benrouf,
Thanks for the info – it was really a guess of mine why the apertures weren’t so wide – your suggestion about making room for the shutter makes a lot of sense.
I’d love to get a Mamiya 6 too – just for its compactness. They’re like gold dust now. I hear that parts are hard to come by as Mamiya no longer have serviceable parts left. Don’t know if this is true or not.
Comment by Bruce Percy — 19 May, 2009 @ 10:43 am
Hi Bruce.
I recently ordered a Mamiya 7 to complement (or replace) my Pentax 645 system for backpacking and travel. Do you know if Cokin P grads will obscure the metering patch? I plan on eventually buying a spot meter, but it’s not in the budget at the moment.
Thanks,
Ian Camp
Portland, Oregon
Comment by icamp — 19 May, 2009 @ 2:33 pm
Hi Bruce.
I recently ordered a Mamiya 7 to complement (or replace) my Pentax 645 system for backpacking and travel. Do you know if Cokin P grads will obscure the metering window? I plan on eventually buying a spot meter, but it’s not in the budget at the moment.
Thanks,
Ian Camp
Portland, Oregon
Comment by icamp — 19 May, 2009 @ 2:33 pm
Hi Ian,
Just about any filter on the front of the Mamiya obscures the meter. I’ve learned to forget about the built in meter when shooting landscapes because it behaves differently depending on what lens I’ve got on. Since the meter is the same angle of view, it means it acts like a spot meter with a wide angle, and an average with a standard lens on…… For street photography the built in meter is flawless though. Just filters cause problems, that’s all.
Comment by Bruce Percy — 19 May, 2009 @ 5:57 pm
You’re right Bruce, Mamiya 6 are pretty difficult to find these days, especially the wonderful 50mm that is usually hard to get at a decent price. We still have one shop here in France were you can have it serviced, but for how long…
Comment by Benrouf — 21 May, 2009 @ 6:43 pm
It’s worth noting that focussing on a rangefinder camera is usually more accurate than the autofocus or spit-screen aids on SLR/dSLRs. The rangefinder base is much wider, as that on a reflex camera is at the most, the width of the lens aperture.
The lens speed should not be compromised, as Benrouf pointed out. I’d have thought Mamiya deliberately made the lenses slower to keep the size, weight and price down.
The advantage of the leaf shutter allows for longer hand-held exposures, and of course for flash users, synchro at any speed.
After your recent email to me, I checked out Ken Rockwell’s review of the Mamiya 6. He loves it. Oddly he sold it on though!
The wide angle thing would be the clincher for me. I have a Contax 645. The 45mm (28mm equiv) lens is massive. Much bigger than the 80mm.
(What I like about the 645 though is the fast lenses, f2 & f2.8. )
I’d very much like to get my mitts on a Hasselblad SWC for wide angle photography. For portability, the Voightlander Bessa III looks the part
Comment by jeremy — 21 May, 2009 @ 8:58 pm
Hi Bruce.
My Mamiya 7 arrived. I’m hoping you can save me a few exposures. First, with the 50mm lens, where should I place the infinity mark for the best hyperfocal distance at f22? (I’ve heard the barrel markings are off). Second, when using the 50mm finder, there are two brackets below the main framing box. Are these for close focusing, and are they useful for normal landscape work? Any other suggestions regarding the 50mm finder?
Thanks for your help.
Sincerely,
Ian Camp
Portland, Oregon
Comment by icamp — 23 May, 2009 @ 4:12 am
Hi Ian,
In terms of hyperfocal focussing, I’d err on the side of 1 stop in. So if you work out your focus points and they are within f16, use f22.
In terms of saving you a few exposures, I can only say that you should test the camera yourself. It’s always good to test the lenses to find out the sweet spot (which f stop is best). Diffraction comes in to play and you should really take care to notice that. So running a few rolls through the system is beneficial.
Regarding the viewfinder guide lines, yes, these are for paralax, but I have to say that I rarely shoot the wide angle close up. So I don’t pay much attention to these. I’ve found that my shooting style doesn’t go into shooting the wide angle 1 metre from a subject unless I’m hand holding it in a street scene scenario. In which case, I’m not that stringent about the guides anyway. Sorry to sound so slap dash about it, but so far, the camera has just *worked* and I’ve never thought that any of my frames have been cut off at the edges.
Comment by Bruce Percy — 24 May, 2009 @ 7:50 am
Bruce:
I’m long time lurker first time poster here. I have a Mamiya 6 and the viewfinder baffle me. If I have the horizon horizontal in the viewfinder, the picture comes out tilted ( 15 degree CCW ). How do you keep the horizon horizontal in your photos.
Thanks.
Comment by DaveL — 21 July, 2009 @ 3:34 pm
Hi Dave,
I have similar issues because the viewfinder is so big. The way I get around it is to use a tripod head with a spirit level in it. It doesn’t always work because you may be pointing at an angle to a coastline for instance so you need to correct and level it in Lightroom or Photoshop. But in general, I tend to use a Really Right Stuff tripod head plate which also has a nice spirit level built into it. Holding the camera for landscapes I feel, is to be avoided.
Comment by Bruce Percy — 21 July, 2009 @ 3:38 pm
Hi Bruce
You make beautiful images! I especially love your portrait work.
I am a big fan of Mamiya 6, but now I would like to move to 6×7 or 645 format to make different type of images. I will be making full length horizontal environmental portraits for which I want shallow dept of field and also urban landscapes for which I will need the opposite. Do you think that Mamiya 7 is the right way forward or would you be able to recommend something else?
Thanks for your help.
Brij
Comment by brijlondon — 16 January, 2010 @ 1:17 am
Hi Bruce,
I just learned about you through a search I did about a Mamiya 7. I just purchased one. I really like your photography, I have been to the Bolivia flats myself and I loved those places too. Your photos of these places are very telling.
Anyways, I was wondering what you thought about using the Mamiya 7 for portraits with or without flash.. it looks like you rather 6×9 or 35mm for portraits, but I have a project in mind and I would love doing it with the new camera. I would appreciate anything you can share about this. Thank you!
Nico
Comment by nico — 4 January, 2012 @ 3:33 pm