Voigtländer Bessa: The Evolution of Film

Voigtländer Bessa R3A 135 Aperture Priority Rangefinder
Voigtländer Nokton 40mm f/1.4 lens

It’s a bold statement, but more positive than my initial title, “Voigtländer Bessa: Last of a Dying Breed”. There are currently three top players in the rangefinder market; the Leica M7, Zeiss Ikon, and Voigtländer Bessa R. This post is about the most affordable of the three, and the best value in terms of quality vs. price.

Film is actually in an evolutionary phase, just as radio evolved when television came into being, and television is evolving with the advent of the internet. And the more I shoot with digital cameras, the more I yearn for the experience of shooting with a real camera, a film camera.

I have that real-camera feeling with my Nikon DSLR, but anything less than that is somewhat lacking. It’s not that I don’t enjoy using my P5100 or SD780, it’s just that something’s missing. It’s not real. And sometimes, the DSLR is just too much overhead. The micro four thirds standard looks promising, but it’s just not there yet. It’s not about digital vs. film. It’s about the camera.

But if I were considering the purchase of a brand new, high quality 35mm film camera today, my options would be pretty limited. The Nikon FM10 isn’t really a Nikon, and the professional-grade F6, as wonderful as it is, is a bit cost prohibitive at $2,810.00 for just a body. Canon is out; they no longer make any 35mm film cameras, not even a professional-level SLR. True, there’s a handful of toy and underwater cameras, but not anything that would give digital a run for it’s money.

This is where the evolution part comes in. The state of the art in the 35mm format has essentially evolved into the rangefinder. It’s the Porsche 911 of cameras. Just as the 911 has survived the “front engine” 924, 928 and 944, so the rangefinder has survived the digital era. In the sixties, the SLR essentially killed off the rangefinder. But with digital SLRs replacing their film counterparts, the rangefinder now moves back into the forefront.

At about $1,000.00 less that the Zeiss, and $4,400.00 less than the Leica, the Cosina-made Voigtländer Bessa R comes in six configurations to fit different shooting styles; the R2A, R2M, R3A, R3M, R4A and R4M. They all accept Leica Bayonet-M mount lenses, which are available from Leica, Zeiss, Voigtländer, Minolta and Konica. And, there’s a rich legacy of well cared-for used lenses in the Bayonet-M Mount. You can also convert screw mount lenses and Contax-S mount lenses for use on Leica M-Mount cameras.

There are three models, each with different viewfinders, each of which is available as a fully manual (M suffix), or aperture priority AE (A suffix) model.

Series 2 bodies have a standard .7x finder with selectable brightlines for 35, 50, 75, or 90mm lenses.

Series 3 bodies have a 1:1 finder, and selectable brightlines for 40, 50, 75 or 90mm lenses. This means that you can comfortably keep both eyes open while shooting to be aware of what’s going on around you. You also benefit from greater focusing accuracy.

Series 4 bodies have .52x finders optimized for wide angle lenses, with selectable brightlines for 21, 25, 28, 35, or 50mm, lenses. This means that for those photographers primarily using wide angle lenses, they no longer have to carry around a separate finder for each lens.

Bodies designated with an M have mechanical shutters with a manual, match-LED exposure mode. Even if the batteries fail, these cameras will still take pictures, which means that their reliability increases as the temperature decreases. Bodies designated with an A have electronic shutters with both manual and aperture-priority auto exposure modes. This means stepless exposures with increased speed.

All bodies measure 135.5mm wide by 81mm tall by 33.5mm deep, and weight just under a pound. By comparison, my Nikon D90 is 22mm taller, 43.5mm deeper, and weights almost twice as much.

These are beautifully made cameras. Their bright, parallax corrected viewfinder/rangefinder combinations are every bit as easy and practical to use as an SLR. They have advanced features never before offered on a rangefinder. SLR users will find themselves right at home in using them, while benefiting from their reduced bulk, near silent shutters, and high image quality. All this, and they’re affordable as well.

It is often said the the best way to choose a camera system is by the lens. By that standard, the Voigtländer Bessa R would enable you to choose from some of the best lenses ever offered by Leica and Zeiss. The M-mount is one of the most prolific standards still in use today, and there is an enormous legacy of new and used lenses by Leica, Zeiss, Voigtländer, Minolta, Konica and more. Even Canon, Contax and Nikon SLR and Rangefinder lenses can be mounted to M-Mount cameras with adapters. And the very affordable Voigtländer series, made in the same factory as Zeiss, consistently receive excellent reviews. M-Mount lenses are an investment, as they generally maintain or increase in value over time.

M-Mount lenses are smaller, lighter and for the most part, sharper than SLR lenses. This is due to the fact that rangefinders do not have a mirror box, so the lens can be placed closer to the film plane. All else being equal, the rangefinder will always be superior to the SLR because of this fact. And M-Mount lenses are easily adapted to Digital Four-Thirds cameras.

Rangefinders are not for everyone. The’re pretty much limited to the short telephoto range, since the rangefinder mechanism does not focus well with longer lenses. And fisheye lenses are out, since they are simply not manufactured in this format. But they are the king of the superwide, with rectilinear lenses available as wide as 12mm. If your subjects include high quality architecture, landscapes, nature, portraits, and street, and you’re not opposed to shooting with film, you might consider the purchase of one of these excellent rangefinders. I certainly am.

Even as I hold one of my 35mm SLR bodies in my hand (Canon AE-1, F1, Minolta SRT201, Nikon N80, Olympus OM-10) I yearn for the experience of shooting film through a rangefinder, the state of the art in 35mm photography.