67II worth buying?

The Pentax 6x7 is the Arnold Schwazenegger of cameras -- everything else is a "girlie-man" compared to this behemoth. When you pick it up, it feels like it is made of solid metal. It's impossible to tell from photographs the sheer scale of this camera. Let me just say this - with the standard 105mm f/2.4 lens and prism, it weighs 1760 grams. That's twice the weight of a Leica M7 with 50mm f/1.4. (A fully loaded Nikon F5 with 50mm f/1.4 comes close at 1580 grams.) If the Pentax 67 isn't man enough for you, the Mamiya RB67 at 2690 grams or the Fuji 680 is your next best choice. Pentax 6x7 cameras are now widely available on the used market for about $600 with standard lens, which makes them the easiest entry to medium format quality.

Thank you, the Pentax 67ii kit I found is really nice. The previous owner, an amateur photographer, bought it new in 2000, and had only taken 30-50 or so rolls of film with it.

Colour transparency film would be interesting to try out, the only drawback is that not many labs in Norway process them anymore. Most photo shops here send transparency film to Europe for processing. It will probably also be quite a bit more expensive here than colour negative film both to purchase and process. By the way, is there such a thing as a 6x7 slide-projector?

The issue of film handling is one I that am most concerned with. For now I stay close to my car, so I can change film inside the car. Hopefully I will gain more proficiency and become more confident with film handling, so that I dare to change film also outdoors

Bjørn

Yes and I suspect that if any are still available new then the price will be very high. I would check with a professional dealer or The Widescreen Centre in London to see what is around.

Second hand prices could vary from very expensive to someone throwing out perfectly good kit because they don't need/understand what it is.

A friend of mine uses a 6x7 on a regular basis.

Film change.




I keep telling him that the bigger the viewfinder, the better class of woman he will meet.

What's not to like about a 6x7 wearing dark glasses.

link

I may put it down to Aussie attitudes and fine weather........?


Best regards

BTW if you are going the 67II route, pack a extremely good tripod and remember to lock-up the mirror whenever possible link. The scanned film (the lovely Provia/Velvia come to mind) just doesn't do justice when compared to viewing the same on the light-box with a nice loupe (Schneider 10x or the legendary Mamia 5x). If you want a medium-format that you can hand-hold, give the 645N-II a long thought. There is the lovely bokeh-master 150mm 2.8, ultra sharp 75mm2.8 and plenty others and when you are ready, upgrade to 645D with the same lens set. BTW Hartblei+CZ make some excellent Tilt-shift (Super-Rotator as they call it) for the 645 mount-> link.

I have both the Pentax 645NII and Pentax 67II; the 645NII I use everywhere like a 35mm camera or a DSLR and I just spent 3 weeks in Japan with only that camera with great results.
The 67II I use for landscapes mainly because I don't have the same choice in lenses (yet) for this camera and I do feel that it is more comfortable on a sturdy tripod, especially for longer lenses, whereas the Pentax 645NII handles extremely well handheld.

The Pentax 6x7/67/67II cameras look very cool and it can frighten people people just by the noise of the mirror flipping up and the shutter closing, but I think the 645/645N/645NII is probably the most generic of the Pentax medium format cameras (although there is a lot to say for the 6x7cm size of the negatives.)

I am now trying Pentax 67 and wanna try 645 N or 645 Nii just to see difference between them I have to say, I was a little bit frustrate I figure out that frame size is 55x70 (not 60x70). Than I check 645 and there is even smaller

The maximum width of image you can get on 120/220 film is 56mm, the 6x7 is something like 56x69, the 645 will be something like 56x42 'across' the film rather than 'along' it. Either way it makes very little difference due to the much bigger formats, but dropping down from 6x7 to 6x4.5 might be a bit underwhelming - handling will be better, faster and more 'compact' though.