This is a great overview from a new user’s perspective… I haven’t used one of these in 22 years (when I was a teen) and I’m buying another. But this line took me outttt: “and it makes me feel a little bit nostalgic because it was rare to have your picture taken… the photographic era wasn’t there in the 90s” The 90s?? SIR. We had tons of photography in the 90s: disposable cameras, polaroids, and 35mm film was cheap and plentiful and there were 1-HOUR photo labs in every grocery store and pharmacy. It wasn’t the 1890s! All the film nostalgia is FOR the 1990s. That said, I’m glad you’re having a great time with this magnificent, ornery camera.
Hey man thanks for the comment! Let me elaborate on that, I had to go further into detail; what I meant was that nowadays, everyone has a camera on their phone and a picture is not as special as my days in the 90's. I can imagine that in the 1890's it was BEYOND more special! But still, felt like sharing this feeling! Thanks for your opinion on this
You don't have to take lots of time to shoot. I take mine out for street shooting. On an optech strap cross body and carry it for 3 hours with no problem. I have the shutter lock off, dark slide out, film advanced, aperture/ shutter set when in a new lighting situation. So all I have to do is cock the shutter, focusing with a rick oleson split prism finder snaps to focus from fully retracted bellows and fire. Before the split prism screen I was never sure of focus. I'm 77 and it's no problem without a tripod. The mirror up switch getting accidentally switched is something most experience. Mine are gaffer tapped off. On, you push the shutter button, hear the mirror slap and think you took a photo... you didn't you dropped the mirror. So you cock the shutter again and repeat, taking no photos. It is also imperative you have the shutter cocked when you remove a lens and the lens cocked when you mount it. This is NOT the ideal first mf camera. It can also have light leaks in the back which will ruin every shot till the seals are changed.
Hey, ik heb ook een RB! De mijne is eentje uit de eerste serie, een RB67 Pro uit 1970, met een 127mm lens. Heb ‘m nu ongeveer een jaar en ik ga graag op mooie zonnige dagen met dit ding op pad in steden. Heb er ook een keer een oldtimershow mee gefotografeerd. De RB heeft inderdaad een aardige learning curve en als je er een dag mee hebt rondgelopen hoef je niet meer naar de sportschool. Ik heb er een handgreep bij die je op de onderkant schroeft. Dat scheelt echt enorm in het handelbaar maken van de RB. Ik zal je andere video’s over de RB eens bekijken! Ziet er tot nu toe echt super goed uit en je legt mooi helder uit waar mensen aan moeten denken als ze er ook eentje willen. Happy shooting :)
Gertjan, I have been shooting the RB forever and Nikon F3 - F4. I shoot with an auto-wind back on the RB which is 6x8. FYI the RB high-end lens are in fact radio active. Don't have some of these lens in your face all the time as you don't want to get radiated. Just search Radioactive lenses and you will get the picture. You can get a prism viewfinder... which is what I have been using for so long but it adds weight. I only shoot Ilford Delta 100 with my RB. In 6x8 you would need at 10,00m MP digital to capture the same detail. Printing a 6x8 up to 16x20 is insanely fine grain. I have pushed the 100 delta up to 400 just to get some grain in a shot at times. I carry 4 auto wind backs and two manual 6x7 backs in by bag. As for my other camera, I now have 2 Nikon F4... it's a workhorse just like the RB is. I shoot landscapes with both of these cameras. As you stated in your video, you have to learn the art of photography to uses these kinds of camera's. You will become better at taking photo's by using them. And, you have to study light a great deal more! You just don't "I will fix it in post"! What you will find is this. With digital its about taking frames. With film it's about setting the shot, taking your time and putting your artistic skills into it. There is very little post production needed with film if you know what you are doing. It's a ONE and DONE, not filling a flash card with frames. Before digital and photo shop my teacher produced images that now days everyone thinks are digital... WRONG Jerry Uelsmann's work was on either an RB, a 4x5 or an 8x10 and just look at his film work! I know how to do this, learned from him in class... but you know what, I just don't have that kind of feel to do that kind of photowork, it's an art form that is being lost to time and the computer. Jerry Uelsmann is an artist, people that shoot in digital are not in my opinion. BTW I was shooting cannon digital and nikon digital and about 10 years ago I sold it all and went back to film and will never think about digital ever again! So bravo for you! Keep taking pictures in film, it is the best way to create an artistic view of the world.
I own and use two RB67 bodies with multiple 120 and 220 6x7cm film backs and the following lenses: 250mm 180mm 150mm soft focus 140mm macro 90mm 50mm 100-200mm zoom I use my RB67 for shooting portraits, landscapes, panoramas, still life, architecture, products, weddings, close-ups and macro. I especially like to use it when I need to use a camera that is smaller and lighter than my 4x5 inch view camera.
@@GertjanVanVooren For decades, I had been shooting weddings with 6x6cm Mamiya TLR medium format cameras. I think I switched to 6x7cm medium format cameras in 1997.
No, don't try to wear it around your neck, you will hate it. Get an optech strap that is wide foam at the center and wear it cross body. That spreads the weight across your back and chest and you can lightly support it with your r hand or press it against your hip. I can carry it for 3 hours this way without a bit of fatigue. Don't listen to the you tube morons walking around carrying it like a football... a 6 lb foot ball. They will tell you to carry it in a back pack. BS. Cross body and it is a walk about camera.
@@dwilliam925 Yes, but worn as I suggested, 3 hours straight is no problem,expecially when you get this quality images. I carry it dark slide out, film advanced, shutter lock off but can't fire until I cock the shutter. So plenty quick reaction especially if set shutter/aperture in each new lighing area. With rick olsen split prism focusing screen super quick focusing. The key is multiple backs with several isos to cover desired aperture range.
It's doable, e.g doing portrait on bright afternoon wide open. Of course, in general, a bulky camera like this works better on tripod. If you want something more ergonomic for handheld shooting, consider Pentax 67.
This is a great overview from a new user’s perspective… I haven’t used one of these in 22 years (when I was a teen) and I’m buying another.
But this line took me outttt: “and it makes me feel a little bit nostalgic because it was rare to have your picture taken… the photographic era wasn’t there in the 90s”
The 90s?? SIR. We had tons of photography in the 90s: disposable cameras, polaroids, and 35mm film was cheap and plentiful and there were 1-HOUR photo labs in every grocery store and pharmacy. It wasn’t the 1890s! All the film nostalgia is FOR the 1990s.
That said, I’m glad you’re having a great time with this magnificent, ornery camera.
Hey man thanks for the comment!
Let me elaborate on that, I had to go further into detail; what I meant was that nowadays, everyone has a camera on their phone and a picture is not as special as my days in the 90's. I can imagine that in the 1890's it was BEYOND more special!
But still, felt like sharing this feeling! Thanks for your opinion on this
You don't have to take lots of time to shoot. I take mine out for street shooting. On an optech strap cross body and carry it for 3 hours with no problem. I have the shutter lock off, dark slide out, film advanced, aperture/ shutter set when in a new lighting situation. So all I have to do is cock the shutter, focusing with a rick oleson split prism finder snaps to focus from fully retracted bellows and fire. Before the split prism screen I was never sure of focus. I'm 77 and it's no problem without a tripod. The mirror up switch getting accidentally switched is something most experience. Mine are gaffer tapped off. On, you push the shutter button, hear the mirror slap and think you took a photo... you didn't you dropped the mirror. So you cock the shutter again and repeat, taking no photos. It is also imperative you have the shutter cocked when you remove a lens and the lens cocked when you mount it. This is NOT the ideal first mf camera. It can also have light leaks in the back which will ruin every shot till the seals are changed.
Hey, ik heb ook een RB! De mijne is eentje uit de eerste serie, een RB67 Pro uit 1970, met een 127mm lens. Heb ‘m nu ongeveer een jaar en ik ga graag op mooie zonnige dagen met dit ding op pad in steden. Heb er ook een keer een oldtimershow mee gefotografeerd.
De RB heeft inderdaad een aardige learning curve en als je er een dag mee hebt rondgelopen hoef je niet meer naar de sportschool. Ik heb er een handgreep bij die je op de onderkant schroeft. Dat scheelt echt enorm in het handelbaar maken van de RB.
Ik zal je andere video’s over de RB eens bekijken! Ziet er tot nu toe echt super goed uit en je legt mooi helder uit waar mensen aan moeten denken als ze er ook eentje willen. Happy shooting :)
Gertjan, I have been shooting the RB forever and Nikon F3 - F4. I shoot with an auto-wind back on the RB which is 6x8. FYI the RB high-end lens are in fact radio active. Don't have some of these lens in your face all the time as you don't want to get radiated. Just search Radioactive lenses and you will get the picture. You can get a prism viewfinder... which is what I have been using for so long but it adds weight. I only shoot Ilford Delta 100 with my RB. In 6x8 you would need at 10,00m MP digital to capture the same detail. Printing a 6x8 up to 16x20 is insanely fine grain. I have pushed the 100 delta up to 400 just to get some grain in a shot at times. I carry 4 auto wind backs and two manual 6x7 backs in by bag. As for my other camera, I now have 2 Nikon F4... it's a workhorse just like the RB is. I shoot landscapes with both of these cameras. As you stated in your video, you have to learn the art of photography to uses these kinds of camera's. You will become better at taking photo's by using them. And, you have to study light a great deal more! You just don't "I will fix it in post"! What you will find is this. With digital its about taking frames. With film it's about setting the shot, taking your time and putting your artistic skills into it. There is very little post production needed with film if you know what you are doing. It's a ONE and DONE, not filling a flash card with frames. Before digital and photo shop my teacher produced images that now days everyone thinks are digital... WRONG Jerry Uelsmann's work was on either an RB, a 4x5 or an 8x10 and just look at his film work! I know how to do this, learned from him in class... but you know what, I just don't have that kind of feel to do that kind of photowork, it's an art form that is being lost to time and the computer. Jerry Uelsmann is an artist, people that shoot in digital are not in my opinion. BTW I was shooting cannon digital and nikon digital and about 10 years ago I sold it all and went back to film and will never think about digital ever again! So bravo for you! Keep taking pictures in film, it is the best way to create an artistic view of the world.
“120 film” has nothing to do with 120
millimetres. The film is nominally between 60.7 mm and 61.7 mm wide. (Wikipedia).
I appreciate you explaining that there are different levels of the Mamiya RB67 I will buy the Pro SD.
Awesome! Hope you'll like it :)
The "complete failure" at 3:50 looks amazing.
I own and use two RB67 bodies with multiple 120 and 220 6x7cm film backs and the following lenses:
250mm
180mm
150mm soft focus
140mm macro
90mm
50mm
100-200mm zoom
I use my RB67 for shooting portraits, landscapes, panoramas, still life, architecture, products, weddings, close-ups and macro. I especially like to use it when I need to use a camera that is smaller and lighter than my 4x5 inch view camera.
That's amazing! how long have you been shooting with it?
@@GertjanVanVooren
For decades, I had been shooting weddings with 6x6cm Mamiya TLR medium format cameras. I think I switched to 6x7cm medium format cameras in 1997.
Thanks for making this video. And good luck!
(Victoria, BC, Canada)
Thank you!!
Leuke video! Goeie tips!
Is it impossible to use without a tripod? I actually think it looks great with the light leaks!
I saw a people using a strap on it so you can carry it around neck
No, don't try to wear it around your neck, you will hate it. Get an optech strap that is wide foam at the center and wear it cross body. That spreads the weight across your back and chest and you can lightly support it with your r hand or press it against your hip. I can carry it for 3 hours this way without a bit of fatigue. Don't listen to the you tube morons walking around carrying it like a football... a 6 lb foot ball. They will tell you to carry it in a back pack. BS. Cross body and it is a walk about camera.
very possible to use without a tripod, but its a quite heavy piece of kit seeing as how its originally meant for studio work
@@dwilliam925 Yes, but worn as I suggested, 3 hours straight is no problem,expecially when you get this quality images. I carry it dark slide out, film advanced, shutter lock off but can't fire until I cock the shutter. So plenty quick reaction especially if set shutter/aperture in each new lighing area. With rick olsen split prism focusing screen super quick focusing. The key is multiple backs with several isos to cover desired aperture range.
It's doable, e.g doing portrait on bright afternoon wide open. Of course, in general, a bulky camera like this works better on tripod. If you want something more ergonomic for handheld shooting, consider Pentax 67.
Would love to be the owner of one of these 🥺
Check out the mamiya c330