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Which P&S do you use?
- Thread starter dirk
- Start date
biggles3
Well-Known Member
I have taken a liking to the old Contax digital compacts: the TVS-D, i4R and SL300RT - I'm not bothering with the U4R as I have yet to see a good review for it. These cameras are definitely NOT for the pixel counters but the quality of the Zeiss lenses and their T* coatings is beyond doubt. The little i4R and SL300RT are brilliant as they fit in almost any pocket and start up in under 1sec. The TVS-D takes a long time before its ready to shoot but the image quality can be outstanding. All these cameras are best used in good light or with their flash. I have found a superb work-around for the limited flash output of the TVS-D - I use the Contax SA-1 Flash Adapter and any TLA flash. The limitations of these cameras are poor performance in low light, 2Gb limit on SD cards, poor battery life in the smaller ones. But despite that, I love using them and they all get a regular work out; I was able to upgrade the firmware on all of them before Kyocera closed the website. I think somewhere among my files I stored the zipped firmware updates though I have no idea where on my system they are...
I've appended a piccie of the Contax P&S gear - you may notice an intruder: the Yashica/Kyocera Finecam SL400R - I bought this to compare with the 3Mp SL300RT - the Contax proved the winner as the lens and contrast was superior.
I always carry either the i4R or the SL300RT with me wherever I go and regardless of which other camera I'm using. The SL300RT makes a lovely snooping camera as you can reverse the body while still looking ahead and shoot over your shoulder to see what's happening behind - great fun!
I've appended a piccie of the Contax P&S gear - you may notice an intruder: the Yashica/Kyocera Finecam SL400R - I bought this to compare with the 3Mp SL300RT - the Contax proved the winner as the lens and contrast was superior.
I always carry either the i4R or the SL300RT with me wherever I go and regardless of which other camera I'm using. The SL300RT makes a lovely snooping camera as you can reverse the body while still looking ahead and shoot over your shoulder to see what's happening behind - great fun!
Hi Biggles3,
I still have a Kyocera Sl300R. My Contax version with the engraved Logo of the Contaxinfo.com forum was lost by Zeiss after using it for an exposition in Oberkochen
The last weeks I tried the Canon G9X. This is the littel brother of the G7X. Same 1" sensor, but smaller zoom range (28-85). The advantage of it is, that it really fits in my "slim fit" trousers. This is not possibel with my beloved Ricoh GR or the Canon G7X. But of course it is not a slim as the Contax SL300R...
I had also the Contax T3 and TVS3. Really lovely cameras. But I do not shoot with film anymore. Not enough time for it. I never tried the TVSD. But I remember that Marc (fotografz) raived about it when he had it. Execllent black tones etc.
Yeah, the good old times... I miss them...
I still have a Kyocera Sl300R. My Contax version with the engraved Logo of the Contaxinfo.com forum was lost by Zeiss after using it for an exposition in Oberkochen
The last weeks I tried the Canon G9X. This is the littel brother of the G7X. Same 1" sensor, but smaller zoom range (28-85). The advantage of it is, that it really fits in my "slim fit" trousers. This is not possibel with my beloved Ricoh GR or the Canon G7X. But of course it is not a slim as the Contax SL300R...
I had also the Contax T3 and TVS3. Really lovely cameras. But I do not shoot with film anymore. Not enough time for it. I never tried the TVSD. But I remember that Marc (fotografz) raived about it when he had it. Execllent black tones etc.
Yeah, the good old times... I miss them...
biggles3
Well-Known Member
I hope Zeiss compensated you for the loss of a unique SL300RT! I know technology moves on and things improve but some of those 'good old times' seemed a lot better and more fun...
I still shoot with film although I probably use digital more frequently these days as it's more convenient. I still use my Contax gear from the late 1970s through to the Aria, N1 and 645.
Some technology from those days is more reliable than its modern equivalents. Example: I have an Olympus FL36 flash which I had put away for about 4 months as I prefer the Metz 54 MZ-4 + P76. I got it out and popped new batteries in, fired it up and while the LCD showed everything was in order, it simply would not fire: the capacitor was dead and checking online this is a common problem with some Olympus flash units - they must be fired at least every 8 weeks to keep the capacitor functioning or risk failure. The day afterwards I found a Contax RTF540 I had not used since the 1980s - I thought 'there's no way this will work after all this time'. I popped in 12 AA batteries, heard it whirr into being - the light came on and that familiar loud crack sounded as the flash test fired. The great thing about all the Contax flash guns is that their trigger voltages enable them to be used with most DSLR and CSC cameras...brilliant when you hook up 2 or 3 of them in stroboscopic mode using the RTF540s' Slave Units. Some old technologies just got things right and haven't been bettered...
I still shoot with film although I probably use digital more frequently these days as it's more convenient. I still use my Contax gear from the late 1970s through to the Aria, N1 and 645.
Some technology from those days is more reliable than its modern equivalents. Example: I have an Olympus FL36 flash which I had put away for about 4 months as I prefer the Metz 54 MZ-4 + P76. I got it out and popped new batteries in, fired it up and while the LCD showed everything was in order, it simply would not fire: the capacitor was dead and checking online this is a common problem with some Olympus flash units - they must be fired at least every 8 weeks to keep the capacitor functioning or risk failure. The day afterwards I found a Contax RTF540 I had not used since the 1980s - I thought 'there's no way this will work after all this time'. I popped in 12 AA batteries, heard it whirr into being - the light came on and that familiar loud crack sounded as the flash test fired. The great thing about all the Contax flash guns is that their trigger voltages enable them to be used with most DSLR and CSC cameras...brilliant when you hook up 2 or 3 of them in stroboscopic mode using the RTF540s' Slave Units. Some old technologies just got things right and haven't been bettered...
This is also a nice little one: Canon G9X. Not on par with my beloved Ricoh GR in terms of IQ, but smaller with zoom for family snapshots good enough...
- Canon - Canon IXUS 300 HS
- 4.9-18.6 mm
- 4.9 mm
- ƒ/2
- 1/250 sec
- Pattern
- Auto exposure
- ISO 400
- Canon - Canon IXUS 300 HS
- 4.9-18.6 mm
- 4.9 mm
- ƒ/2.5
- 1/30 sec
- Pattern
- Auto exposure
- ISO 125
- Canon - Canon IXUS 300 HS
- 4.9-18.6 mm
- 4.9 mm
- ƒ/2.8
- 1/80 sec
- Pattern
- Auto exposure
- ISO 125
- Canon - Canon IXUS 300 HS
- 4.9-18.6 mm
- 4.9 mm
- ƒ/2.8
- 1/60 sec
- Pattern
- Auto exposure
- ISO 125
yes, pocketability of the Canon G9X is excellent. But the zoom is not THAT good (IQ). Also the focal range is rather limited (28-85) at the long end, if you want to blurr the background. I prefer the Canon G7X for the zoom range and aperture, but the Canon G7X is thick compared to the G9X. Well, you can't have it all....
I stick with my Ricoh GR and wait what 2017 will bring. The new Sony RX100 MkV is for my needs definitely overpriced...
I stick with my Ricoh GR and wait what 2017 will bring. The new Sony RX100 MkV is for my needs definitely overpriced...