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I have 8 cameras at the time of this writing, and the Hexar is the one that I most like to fondle while I'm having my morning tea and watching whatever TCM movie that I happened to record in the previous few days. I really like the auto winding and the auto exposure. And I really like that I can use my four m-mount lenses on it. The only drawback is that I find that I miss the 2, 4, and 8 second shutter speeds on the dial which so many other cameras have. All in all though, a great little camera (with a heft that belies its size).
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
This camera is excellent, I bought it as a poor man's Leica M7 alternative. I feels much like the Leica M as for a weight, I can hold it just as well. The light meter is excellent, The 1/4000 shutter speed is much better than the M7s 1/1000 top speed, it sits better on a tripod then the Ms. If you want a camera to use all your leica M lens on at a great price, this is the one. The only the only area the leica M beet this camera in is viewfinder magnification.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
For many years I was a Konica SLR user. Eventually my curiosity got the better of me and I bought a Leica M6 and added a 35mm Summicron. The negatives were much better than any SLR. Then came the 50mm Summicron, then the 28mm Elmarit and on and on. When Konica came out with the RF I had to try it. It has been a pleasure to own and use. The key features it adds over the M6 are drop in loading, (Leica is a pain), auto film advance, copal shutter, (you can't burn a hole pointing at the sun as you can with Leica's cloth shutter), higher shutter speeds, higher flash synch, a very accurate auto exposure mode, pre-set exposure compensation. Another advantage to me is I am more comfortable in not so good environments, not displaying the Leica red dot. Similar to the leave the Rolex at home line of thought. The cons, well first it is just not a Leica, second the finish is not as durable, third the electronic shutter and power advance are not as subtile as Leicas soft click, fourth when you loose power you cannot take a picture and last someday the Konica will wear out and repairs will be difficult or impossible as opposed to the infinately repairable classic Leicas. It is, of course, possible to spend what an RF costs on a major Leica overhaul. I have mounted well over a dozen lenses to the RF and all have focused accurately, including the tough to focus Leica 75mm f1.4 summilux. I will mention I have used each of Konica's RF lenses, 21/35mm, 28 f2.8mm, 50mm f2, 50mm f1.2 and the 90mm 2.8 as well as their Leica Counterparts. The lenses are very high quality and the finished photographs are essentially equal in quality to those produced by Leica's similar offerings. Sure Leicas 90mm f2 APO lens is better than Konica's far more compact 90mm f2.8, but Leica's 90mm F2.8 Elmarit is very comparable to Konicas offering. The same at 28mm comparing to the excellent final Leica pre ASPH 28mm f.8. When it comes to the noctilux vrs the Konica 50 f1.2 perhaps the 1.2 is better at somethings and the Noctilux is better at some. They are just different and have different fingerprints, the Noctilux is worlds more valuable and a half a stop faster at least in the center of your image. While the Konica 50mm 2.0 is very nice, the 50mm Summicron is a bit nicer. The 21/35 is a wonder lens, producing excellent images at either focal length. I believe anyone who has used the Konica RF for any length of time and any of it's lenses will regard the system very highly. Most critical talk comes from people with little or no firsthand experience. If you are new to Rangefinders, their strength lies at 50mm and wider. Rangefinder Images made with 21mm-28mm lenses are worlds better than any SLR can produce. You will find above 50mm the SLR will begin to compete pretty well and above 90mm they really are the superior option. I hope this is a little helpful. Hats off to Konica for a great rangerfinder lineup at a great price.Read full review
Along with the Konica Hexar RF which I started using in late 2003, I have used many Leica M cameras (M2, M3, M6TTL, M7), and have to say that for convenience and portability, the Hexar RF is my choice over the Leica's. The auto-exposure is spot on for the color and B&W negatives that I have shot; I've not shot slides with any rangefinder camera. For stealth situations, nothing can beat the quiet cloth shutter of the Leica M's. From the viewpoint of esthetics, nothing comes close to the classic lines of the M3, and the M3 viewfinder is joy to use with 50mm and 90mm lenses. The Hexar RF viewfinder is also slightly less bright than the Leica viewfinders. However for travel, 'street' and general photography when one prefers a fast response to the scene and the whir of the film advance is not a big deal, the AE mode (aperture priority auto-exp.) and built-in motor drive of the Hexar RF is a great combo with a Summicron-M 35/2 or even a Tri-Elmar, and also balances very well with the 90mm Tele-Elmarit. One can load up an ASA400 roll of film and still use wider apertures since the shutter goes up to 1/4000 sec. The flash sync is at 1/125 sec., better than Leica M7 at 1/50 sec. Others have lamented the lack of TTL flash, however this has never been a problem for me. Although the Leica M7 also has an AE mode, I find its viewfinder lacking in wide-angle capabilty, esp. at 28mm; even though the framelines are there, I cannot see them as I wear glasses. From what I understand, the .58 finder version of the Leica M7 is also handicapped by a shorter focussing 40.2mm baseline, which means that focussing accuracy of the rangefinder patch diminishes with the longer lenses above 50mm. I don't have this problem with the Hexar RF (focus baseline around 60mm), which has all the framelines from 28mm up to 135mm. I also have no focussing-past-infinity problems with any Leica M-mount lens that I've mounted on the Hexar RF. It may not be as robust as a brick-like brass Leica M camera, but at about one third the price of a Leica M7, the Hexar RF is my AE-enabled M-lens rangefinder of choice, and lighter to travel with. I used to think that Leica should have collaborated with Konica to produce a really strong offering for their film-based rangefinder line. However, with the closure of Konica-Minolta's camera business, that will never be. In fact, SONY, who purchased portions of Konica-Minolta's business, does not have parts to support repairs of the Hexar RF. If you find that you like this camera very much after using it for a while, at one-third the price of a Leica M7, you can always purchase another 'user' to keep for parts! My other reviews and comments related to the Hexar RF: http://www.camerareview.com/templates/reviews.cfm?camera_id=376 http://photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=007quw Other online reviews: Dante Stella's excellent Hexar RF write-up here: http://www.dantestella.com/technical/hexarrf.html Karen Nakamura's write-up here: http://www.photoethnography.com/ClassicCameras/index-frameset.html?KonicaHexarRF.html~mainFrameRead full review
Very competant and precise having many desired features missing from the competition like a top speed of 1/4000, built-in winder and self timer. Only dislike is the rangefinder will most likely need adjustment but it can be done by a competant repairman.
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