Mamiya 7 II

Review Date
April 11, 2008

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

Visitors rate this review
1.00 of 5, 1 votes

Reviewed by
tunggal , Beginner

Price Paid
$1373.00 at Hobbies photo,Mangga

Photography Experience
6-10 years , Fine Art

Summary
one of the best...just try it...

Strengths
the lens!

Weaknesses
the photographer...you know what i mean...;p

Similar Products Used
Hasselblad 503 CW

Customer Service
no customer sevice

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Review Date
May 13, 2007

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
3.00 of 5, 2 votes

Reviewed by
Ben Hider , Professional

Price Paid
$1000.00 at craigslist

Photography Experience
11-20 years , Fine Art

Summary
I have been shooting with this camera for over 6 months and am more than happy with the end results. A great way to get a 6x7 negative in a fairly compact camera.

Strengths
Easy to use

Great Lens

All the benefits (and downfalls) of a rangefinder

Weaknesses
Usual rangefinder quirks

Cannot get very very close to subject (not a problem ever for me)

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Review Date
April 12, 2006

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 2 votes

Reviewed by
harbormor , Expert

Price Paid
$1500.00 at B&H

Photography Experience
21+ years , Fine Art

Summary
I've always wanted a medium-format camera without the inherent bulk, with the standard amenities like lens interchangeability; with some means of autoexposure, and at the same time, a control surface layout that is fairly uncluttered. Add to that, handling that is similar to a working photographer's SLR camera. In my humble opinion, the Mamiya 7II comes very close to filling out my criteria.

Strengths
--A very quiet leaf shutter design that is as quiet (or quieter than) a Leica M rangefinder camera.
--Lightweight (for a medium-format 6x7, that is) and attractive body design.
--Build quality is exceptional. It does not feel cheap, as some have stated.
--Autoexposure lock (AEL) option; very accurate.
--Aperture priority exposure mode option; very accurate.
--Lens interchangeability
--The lenses I've tried (43mm & 65mm) are of incredible build quality; yielding exceptionally sharp images on black & white film. Because the camera is a rangefinder design, no compromises to the lens designs had to be made to accomodate a pentaprism as seen in single-lens-reflex cameras.
--Well-designed ergonomic grip.
--One roll of 120 film yields ten, big 6x7cm negatives (or positives).

Weaknesses
--The lenses typically focus only as close as three feet.
--There are no mechanical shutter speeds. It is 100% dependent upon battery power.
--No provision to enable one to shoot 6x6cm format (12 exposures).

Similar Products Used
Holga 120s; Diana (do these two count?)
Pentacon Six TL
Yashica Mat 124G

Customer Service
I have not had to call for customer service, and hope to never have to do so.

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Review Date
May 19, 2005

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Visitors rate this review
3.00 of 5, 2 votes

Reviewed by
William H.W. Read , Intermediate

Price Paid
$2255.00 at Euro Photo, Geneva

Photography Experience
2-5 years , Outdoor

Summary
No camera can fullfil all situations, and for the use this camera was designed, it does very well indeed. It is not a very versatile nor very fast camera, but the main idea is to have a light-weight 6x7 camera for outdoor shooting. Using a rangefinder in a studio is ok but very approximative. The focusing is good, but takes some time. I use this camera mainly for landscapes, but I have used it for travel photography with very, very good results. Since it is horribly ugly, with a bit of black tape to remove the brands, it becomes virtually undesirable, hence theft proof! The "Champagne" version is a lot prettier, but more likely to be noticed and less discreet for street shots. Use it in unexpected places, fasten it on a dustbin, a car, a brick and take glorious cityscapes! Bottom-line: a very specific and slow-ish camera, but with stunning results.

Strengths
Faultless metering. Doesn't come any better.
Rock-solid. Lots of hard falls, no scars.
Unbelievable image quality. On a tripod or fastened.
Small for a 6x7 system.
Looks like an old russian design mistake.

Weaknesses
Slow lenses: no low-light handheld photography.
All the cons of rangefinders: framing, focus, no DOF preview, etc.
Slow to operate. No instant action shots.

Similar Products Used
Hasselblad 503
Hasselblad Xpan I

Customer Service
Not yet

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Review Date
April 16, 2005

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 3 votes

Reviewed by
truando , Expert

Price Paid
$0.00 at Robert White, UK

Photography Experience
21+ years , Outdoor

Summary
A truly great camera! It produces high quality photos once you get used to it. Some people say it's not sturdy: mine fell out of my camera bag while riding a motorcycle at 100 mph - it still worked (I'm not kidding!) Sharpness and image quality cannot be topped. Especially with the 43mm lens, which is as good or even better than the biogon. Buy it in the UK at Robert White's you'll save yourself a lot of cash... And they will be there for you if you have any trouble with your equipment, I know what I'm talking about!

Strengths
Image quality, weight, handling, size

Weaknesses
none

Similar Products Used
Leica M6
Mamiya 645
Linhof Technika IV

Customer Service
Robert White - really outstanding!!!!

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