This system is an incredible example of top quality optical/ photographic craftsmanship. I have only been able to afford the 65mm lens so far, but lens quality & performance is mind-bogglingly good; the camera is v. easy to handle, & it's also light in weight; viewfinder is clear & concise with good parallax correction; inbuilt meter is v. accurate.

The main problem is the rather difficult-to-see shutter information in the viewfinder - LEDs are fairly dim and one often needs to actively search for the indicator in bright light conditions; another concern I have is the apparently inconsistent film winding mechanism - I've lost 1-2 frames at the end on quite a few films now; difficult to use grad. & polarizing filters.

Just outstanding!

Customer Service

No needs as yet, but if the winding problem persists, may need to get it looked at.

Similar Products Used:

No experience with other medium format rangefinders.

* super sharp lenses
* well corrected optics, near APO performance
* interchangeable lenses
* lightweight body
* battery operates for a long time (compared to a Leica M6)
* can change lenses with film loaded
* best medium format super wide angle lens on the market (43mm) IMHO
* perfect travel and wedding camera

* limited lens selection
* lenses are expensive
* non inchangeable backs
* useless panoramic 35 mm adapter (optional)
* as with any medium format camera film changing is slow by comparison to modern 35mm SLRs
* dependant on a battery, always keep a spare with the camera
* difficult to read viewfinder electronic display with glasses
* I would not recommend using 220 rolls with this camera

Superior images is the bottom line for any good photographer and this camera produces them with ease. The camera becomes a natural extension of the photographer allowing him or her to focus on the subject instead of the camera. The M7 is lightweight in comparison to a the RZ67 and is ideal for candids and lanscapes. The M7 allows for manual over ride as well as AE operation.

Customer Service

* none needed after years of service

Similar Products Used:

* Fuji GSW 690
* Fuji GW 690
* Mamiya RZ67 II
* Mamiya M645 super
* Leica M6

Portable, good lenses, (but not as good as zeiss) weight acceptable.
good update of Plaubel Makina 67 concept, but unfortuntely bigger and less portable (doesn't fold like plaubel, but Mamiya lenses are better, as you'd expect from 20 years of progress!)

rangefinder very inaccurate with 150mm lens - you will miss half your shots unless you can crank it up to f16/22. Other lenses ok, but rangefinder needs to be bigger and brighter and have less drift.
lenses are slow, rangefinders are for people on the go, and Mamiya should at least release a premium 2.8 80mm option.
too many wide angles (43/50/65/80) then it jumps to a 150 - what happened in between? where's a 110mm or thereabouts? Also only focus to 6 feet for 150 and 1 m for 80.
Mamiya 7 v3 needs improvements to rangefinder (bigger, clearer) and a 110 coupled in to the system.
I would personally prefer a 6x8 version as this is a better format.

Good camera. Nothing competes really. Fuji too big and poor lenses, Plaubel out of production and old.

Similar Products Used:

Plaubel
Contax 645

* Larger negatives than 35mm
* Lenses are fantastic

* Using a rangefinder is tricky
* Hard to get everything set right

When the camera is set up correctly, it takes stunningly fantastic photos. However, with this being my first foray into both medium format and rangefinder cameras, I find the camera slow and difficult to use. As stupid as this sounds, its really pretty easy to forget to take the lens cap off. I find the focusing slow, and sometimes I forget to do that too. Lastly, I have to get the exposure set right, and even though it has a built in meter, I usually use a spot meter. Changing film and lenses are slow and cumbersome. Then some of the lenses have separate viewfinders for composing, and sometimes I forget about that too. All of this is becoming more natural as I use the camera more, but in the beginning I found it very easy to make a mistake. Some people say this is a great camera for weddings, but I find it so slow and cumbersome that I couldn't imagine using it for that. I use it almost exclusively for landscapes. Oh yeah, one of the main reasons why I bought the camera was because of its light weight and rangefinder (e.g., no mirror) the camera was supposed to be great for handheld photography. But if you're going to do landscapes, which often times means early morning or late evening (low light), slow film speeds for finer grain, and small apertures for DOF, then the shutter speed is too slow for handheld use. So alas, after all that, I end up using a tripod anyways. And of course, since the camera is so light, I have to use a heavier tripod. Kind of ironic.

This may sound like I'm unhappy with the camera. I'm not. I bought it so I could take really great landscapes without having to go all the way up to a really heavy 4x5 set up. For this task, its a great camera. It just takes some getting used to, and its no where near the convenience of 35mm photography.

Customer Service

Haven't used

Similar Products Used:

Did all 35mm photography before purchasing this camera

light, low vibration low noise, optical quality.
I prefer rangefinders to SLRs

Difficult to see shutter speed display. Manual doesn't explain that the rangefinder spot is the meter area (I found this myself by experiment)

I haven't used my Hasselblad since I bought it 2 or 3 years ago

Customer Service

never needed

Similar Products Used:

Hasselblad 501.

Most compact, light weight 6x7 medium format camera on the market. I found it a joy to use. Just like a 35mm rangefinder camera. I would call it a 35mm Camera on 'Steroids'.

Lenses produce picture quality that are top rate and among the best out there. Tack sharp pictures, beautiful color and saturation.

I have also found the metering on the body to be extremely accurate.

Extremely silent and light shutter..ie electromagnetic lens shutter. Hence syncs at all speeds.

Great for travel, street and landscape photography.

Since it deppends on batteries, always carry a spare.

Wish Mamiya would produce faster lense. Then again this could lead to a significant jump in prices.

Besides that, i have nothing to complain about this camera.

If you are looking for an easy to use, compact and light weight 6x7 medium format camera with top rate lenses, then look no further. The big negs are just great..!

If you have not tried a rangefinder camera before, then this will take a little while getting used to. You'll either love or hate it..!

The picture quality speaks for themselves.

Customer Service

None required so far

Similar Products Used:

Leica M3, M6
Mamiya RB67

Lightweight
Superior lenses.

A 6X7 camera will always feel "bulky" if you. like me, are used to operating 35mm...
Finder in M7II is improved over this one
Separate finders very prone to flare. 150mm finder has very poor marking, virtually impossible to see. Other M7 finders are better.

If you are into Macro/Tight portraits and FAST lenses for medium format; stop reading here and continue your search elsewhere.
If you are into moderate bulk vs. extreme quality for travelling/landscape photography; look no further. The stunning results of this lightweight
(semibulky) camera makes you ditch your 35mm gear, or at least leave them at home more often...
If you have or buy the M7 upgrade the viewfinder to that of the M7II - it is well worth it!
Value/overall rating is 4/4.
Mamiya7II IS improved. This one is good VFM though...

Customer Service

Excellent

Similar Products Used:

Hamiya 645
Hassleblad´s ;-)
Pentax 6X7
Mamiya7II

Lightweight
Synchs at all speeds
Superb lenses
Easy to focus

Does not do close close-ups

With many years of 35 mm work with SLR cameras (F3HP for many years) I moved to 4x5 view camera work. You can't beat the focus capability of a view camera. Spoiled by the big negative, but blocked in some situations by the size, several years ago I went to the Mamiya 7 for some situations. This was the first time with 6x7 and the first time with the rangefinder.

For me the rangefinder focus was no problem at all. Frankly, aside from the 4x5 with its ability to solve a variety of focus situation problems, I prefer the rangefinder to any SLR - autofocus or not. The rangefinder is fast, mine is accurate, and I have had no problem with it. The lenses available for the Mamiya 7 are simply outstanding. It is almost impossible to tell an 11x14 print from the 6x7 negative as opposed to the 4x5 negative (Schneider lens). The only clue is that the plane of focus with the 4x5 can be at any angle while that of the Mamiya must be parallel to the film plane. The leaf shutter makes the use of the system whisper quiet, nice for events where that is an advantage, and it allows synchronization at all shutter speeds, which provides good control with foreground/background in flash situations.

I did encounter one problem with the film winding, but this is readily solved - there is nothing wrong with the camera. It is this: if you simply insert the roll and begin winding the roll in a casual manner, it is possible for the roll to wind on the take-up spool imperfectly. This makes the diameter of the wound roll increase beyond the spool diameter (i.e. the wound film is not tight and too fat). The result is that you can't fully wind the roll and can't finish the full number of negatives available on the roll. This also means that you must take the roll out in the dark or run the risk of loosing a few shots. But, I have found a simple solution to this that works perfectly and since finding this, I have not had a single repeat of the problem. As you begin to wind the film to start a roll in the camera after you have put the tab into the take-up spool, use your thumb to increase the friction of the feed roll so that when you begin winding the winding is TIGHT and well centered on the take-up spool. That solves the problem completely. If you have heard about this problem (I have seen people complain about it) this is the simple and totally effective solution.

I think this is a superb camera system for those who what a big negative with quality, what sharp lenses and convenience. The system is light, easy to travel with and very responsive. The drawbacks from the perspective of a 35 mm person are limited lens selection, limited close-focus capability, and the general nature of the 120 film system. But, for anyone who wants a high quality system for, for example, landscape work, and a system that won't break your back in the outdoors, this is it.

I bought a mint used second body at an internet auction. With a 4x5 each sheet of film can be selected individually and once you are used to that, it is hard to be stuck mid-roll with one film type. The second body allows two film types (black and white and something else as would be the case with two 35 mm bodies).

Several years ago, this purchase was one of the best camera purchase decisions and I would do it again in a flash.

Customer Service

none

Similar Products Used:

None

Lenses as sharp, or sharper than Zeiss (shoot with both cameras at the same time and see for yourself), lightweight, whisper quiet (great for wedding/cerimony shots), very easy to use hand held with studio flash, bright viewfinder

Beware of using 220 film. Images on 220 are not as sharp. I have 2 bodies, both have the same issue with 220. Use 120 for the sharpest work. Slow to change film, no TTL flash metering (would be nice)

This is not a camera for the one-camera photographer. It is a special purpose camera that does what it was designed to do like nothing else on the planet. Compare the image quality to any Hassy or the new Contax 645, you'll be stunned.

Customer Service

I had a very unfortunate accident with my first M7, fell off a tripod onto concrete with a 43mm lens attached. The 43 survived (thanks to a B+W filter), but the body wasn't so lucky. The shock to the body knocked the focal plane out of alignment. Sent the camera into Mamiya and was very disappointed to hear that the camera was "unreparable." So... don't drop this one, it can't be fixed with a hammer like a Hassy etc...

Similar Products Used:

Nothing like this camera is similar...

- Very Light in weight and incedible silent. Great for weddings,ceremonies, etc.
- Amazing variety of tack sharp optics, as good as as Zeiss.
- 6x7 is an outstanding format, it bails you out at times and is superb for enlargements.
- Very versatile, you can bring it anywhere and prepare quickly for motion shots.
- Hot shoe, 35mm type mount.
- Has a feel to it that you end up becoming married to.

- Can't bang it around, the body is a bit delicate... need to go easy on film advance lever.
- 35mm adapter can get stuck, not advance or rewind properly.
- 220 roll can miss shots if not perfect with film set-up.
- Touchiness of shutter release can loose shots.
- Changing lens a chore while doing professional work.

A very nice camera do use for just about anything, yet one better plot of what she/he wants do to when using the camera....especially when doing jobs. Roll of film goes quickly with the format and changing the lens requires going through a lot of steps before the next lens is ready to shoot. The quality of the optics is first rate. The variety of optics (43,50,65,80,150,250) is fantastic. The 43,80, and 150 are what you want. The light weight is great for going into situations where there are a lot of people to get around. Rangefinder system great for very low light situations. It takes time getting used to but given it's light in weight, amazingly quiet, dual formats, and caters to all of the needs of a professional and very advanced amatuer......this camera and its lenses Will Make Your Dream Shots Come True.

Customer Service

Decent, just don't drop the camera. Electrical problems very fixable.

Similar Products Used:

Fuji 6x7
Pentax 6x7
Bronica Etrsi 6x4.5