View Full Version : I thought I had better say hi
Just thought I had better introduce myself, as I believe ou may be seeing a lot of me around here :p I just ebayed my first rangefinder tonight, a yashica electro GSN, and Im really excited! I think I got a pretty good deal for $20 bucks, including a few other bits and pieces.
Ive been taking photographs for a few years, film, digital, some alt. processes but have been feeling a pull back to film, so here I am!
You guys have a huge wealth of knowledge amongst you, so Im sure ill be able to learn a bunch, I already have in the few threads Ive read.
parks5920
08-25-2005, 22:59
Welcome Kara, you'll love the GSN! Everyone here is very cool and helpful so jump right in!
Congratulations, Kara, on your forthcoming Yashica! Good price too! I bet you'll have a lot of fun with it, post some pics here, and share your experiences. :)
Thanks for making me feel so welcome! I can see Im really going to like it here :D
Welcome, Kara. Is there anyone else here from Montana. You may be the first. The GSN is a fun camera. Can't wait to see some pics. What kind of alt. processes?
I think Andcolor spends some time in Montana, but yes, it will be fun to see a lot more of it. Ever run into Tom Brokow?
SolaresLarrave
08-26-2005, 02:33
Montana... I was there a few years ago, and the sky is really bigger there: beautiful place to own a medium format and a bunch of wide-angle lenses.
Welcome to the RFF Kara! And to the world of rangefinders too! :) Be ready: one of the membership traits is the accumulation of good, inexpensive rangefinder cameras. We all have or have had a Yashica GS at some point so your questions about the camera will never go unanswered! :)
oftheherd
08-26-2005, 02:40
Welcome Kara. I always have had a soft spot for Yashicas. About 1963 I got a Yashica movie camera while on Okinawa. I liked it. About 1970/1, I got a Yashica TL Super, my first SLR. Still have it. Never had a Yashica rangefinder, but everyone here who has them speaks well of them. Hope you got a good one. Look forward to seeing your picks.
Watch out for the GAS attacks. It seems to get us all.
Welcome, Kara...another Yashica user. Mine is the Lynx 14. I love Montana. One of the best vacations I have ever had.
TPPhotog
08-26-2005, 03:40
Hi Kara and welcome to RFF from the other side of the pond :)
back alley
08-26-2005, 04:34
greetings & welcome to the forum.
i'm in alberta, just north of you. i have ridden through montana a couple of times when i had a motorcycle. (many years ago in my youth;))
never had a yashica but have had plenty of smaller fixed lens rf cameras. they can be great fun and capable of taking some pretty good pics.
joe
back alley
08-26-2005, 04:49
not quite THAT many years ago manny!
joe
i do have a few pics around here from those days, i should try to locate...
JoeFriday
08-26-2005, 06:29
hey Kara! your new GSN is a great camera.. that was also my first RF purchase.. now I have two of them, along with... umm.. a LOT of others.. is anybody here keeping a list of what I have?
so tell me, is Montana really as windy as they say?
Wow, what great posts to start the day with :D thank you all so kindly for such warm responses and welcomes, I feel like Ive been here forever already.
Montana is a great place to take pictures, Im not native to Montana, or the US (Born and bred in New Zealand) but Ive lived in this gorgeous state for a few years now, its very picture friendly ;).
Ive been smitten with the look of the yashica rangefinders for a while now, but other toy (and when I say toy - I mean other cameras) purchases get in the way, but I guess Im knee deep in it now :eek:.
RayPA, most of the alt processes I do are polaroid based at the moment. Emulsion lifts are my favorite, havent done very many image transfers though.
Now if GAS attacks are what I think they are, I already had that before I got here :angel:
yeh it sounds like it Kara... ;) NZ eh? Now that is one place I would really love to go to. We have one or two NZ members here! One of the nicest things about this forum is the number of international members we have - you'll be making friends all over the globe! :)
One thing to know is that there is an unlimited gallery here so when you get your new cam and have taken some pics with it you can post them into your gallery and don't forget to tell us that they're there...
Oh and welcome to the forum BTW! :D
wlewisiii
08-26-2005, 17:44
Welcome to the looney bin. I found this place because of a GSN, a flea market, just enough money in my wallet and not knowing any better... :eek: But if you have the fun I have had hanging around here, you'll do allright.
Good luck & good light,
William
Welcome, Kara. I think you'll like it here. There are some really great people here, with an infinite depth of knowledge. :)
Welcome to the looney bin.
Actually, I consider this place to be an island of sanity in the great asylum known as the Internet. :)
Oh, don't forget to answer the first poll in the "RFF Polls" section. We're gaining on them. :)
Yea, the poll "Guy or Gal" is here: http://rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2637
Welcome, Kara. I am a GSN user myself. I love that old thing:)
Hehe, I was about to comment on the men:women ratio! One more for the gals.... lets just see how many of my mates I can get hooked on RF's!
Hey Jin! :D
Byuphoto
08-26-2005, 19:11
Welcome Kara. I see the post I left for you. on the other site was unneccessary. You will love the GSN and GAS stands for Gear Acquisition Syndrome. I was in Aukland in '75 almost married a girl from there. Robyn Alexander. He dad owned a restuarant
Hehehe, I grew up 2 hours north of Auckland. Knowing NZ her dad probably still has the restaraunt! Ive discovered I had GAS before I got here, seems the more forums I join, the worse it gets.
Prognosis: Not good. For fiance's wallet.
wlewisiii
08-26-2005, 19:17
Prognosis: Not good. For fiance's wallet.
SNORT... But good for you and probably for us (ie, post those images!)
William
Wayne R. Scott
08-26-2005, 20:09
Welcome Kara,
Nice camera, the GSN.
Now to help feed the forthcoming GAS attack. Let us start small. As the GSN has a long shutter release stroke a "Softie" soft release is an ideal addition to your equipment needs. Check this link:
http://www.rapidwinder.com/
look at the soft release, only $10 shipped. Choice of colors available also, better buy 2, each a different color so that you can tell which camera has B&W film and which has color film in it by the color of your softie.
Since you now have two softie releases and only one RF camera, better start shopping for another camera. A black Yashica GT will go nicely with the GSN.
After using an aperature priority camera for a while, the call of full manual operator control will slowly creep in. Hmmm, a nice Canon QL-17 G-III should just do the trick. Then there is the Olympus RC it is so cute, better add one of those.
Standard 40mm to 45mm fixed lens are nice, but a body that would allow wide angle and telephoto lens to be mounted would really be nice to try. Since you are close to Canada I would recommend a Canon P. That way our friendly moderator will have another allie on his team :)
You may want fiance to find a second job real soon, right after you handle a Leica M2 at the local camera shop.
That should be a nice blueprint to follow. Then there are the medium format folders, 1/2 frames, big honking 6x7 Koni-Omegas, even bigger still 4x5 Speed Graphics and Crown Graphics. You can keep him busy and broke for several years.
Wayne
tedwhite
08-26-2005, 20:22
Welcome also, Kara. Back in the sixties my girlfriend and I decided to "tune in, turn on, and drop out." So we booked out of California and bought a small ranch in Somers, at the north end of Flathead Lake. I fell in love with the Montana, and indeed, you do need an MF camera and a wideangle lens. But then we realized we were basically starving and sold the place, returned to California and pursued divergent academic careers.
Never been to NZ, but it must have vistas similar to Montana's.
Ted
ROFL Wayne, you sir, are hilarious. I see I am going to enjoy reading your posts :p. Im trying to stay away from telephoto stuffs being as I dropped a bundle on a DSLR and some L glass a few months back (dont blame me, blame my generation), but a wide angle would be heavenly... what do you suggest ;).
Ted, I live in the Flathead! In fact I just moved up to Kalispell from on the lake in Kalispell :(. I agree with you, it is beautiful here, but you can starve in more ways in one in this valley. Its nice to know some things dont change!
cameramanic
08-28-2005, 23:58
Shwmae Kara, and nau mai
A warm Welcome from Wales.
Wayne R. Scott
08-29-2005, 21:05
Im trying to stay away from telephoto stuffs being as I dropped a bundle on a DSLR and some L glass a few months back (dont blame me, blame my generation), but a wide angle would be heavenly... what do you suggest ;).
Ah, what would I suggest for a wide angle? Hmm, depends on what you call wide angle. From my experience I only have 3 rangefinder lens that might be called wide angle. I have a 35mm VC f2.5 Skopar in 39mm LTM that I use on Canon P camera body, a 35mm Nikkor f2.5 that I use on Contax IIA body, and a Zeiss Biogon 21mm f4.5 that I also use on Contax IIIA body. Many people consider 35mm lens a "standard" or normal lens for ever day shooting. I might be one of those people. I would consider the 21mm as being wide angle, but not super wide.
Many people love Voightlander Cosina glass and use 35mm, 28mm, 25mm, 21mm, 15mm etc. Good quality at a reasonable price. Here is a link that should provide you with some reading and a shopping list:
http://www.cameraquest.com/classics.htm
But you need another camera. A 35mm lens with a Canon P, Leica M2, Bessa 2R or 3R, any of these would make a nice outfit.
Good Luck,
wayne
PS My avatar was shot with a 21mm Zeiss Biogon (for what that is worth).
Gabriel M.A.
08-29-2005, 21:22
A tad late, but hi and welcome! Yes, GAS is bad. I have succumbed and gone deeper into the dark(er) side: I have recently purchased a Yashica Electro from the G man (Greyh.) the same day I won another at the 'bay. One's black and the other silver. Interested in a silver Yashica Electro? ;)
Oh, this one may be fun.
We normally offer suggestions of how other folks can spend their own money. Now we get to spend Kara's fiance's money. :D
I think you may as well start by telling him how nice the Bessa R looks, and there is such a good deal with a very highly thought of 35mm lens, and well, all the CV lenses are very good, so why not throw in a 28 or 21 in the package right away....
Hi Kara's fiance.
Brian Sweeney
08-30-2005, 02:10
Yashica made "auxiliary lenses" for the GSN. They can usually be bought inexpensively. They are a "pain" to use, you focus with the RF spot, look up the distance on the attached lens, and then set the distance scale of the main lens according to the "look-up table". It works, and for scenary is Okay. The same is true of my Retina IIIc. So, you focus, note (for example) the lens distance scale is 7', look at the lens, note 7' should be reset to 10', then set the main lens to 10'. It works, the lenses are cheap. It will give you something to play with until you are really hooked and get a Bessa R with 35mm F2.5 at cameraquest -or something like that-.
An Auction showing the Wide-angle and finder mounted on the camera.
http://cgi.ebay.com/Yashica-Electro-35-GSN-flash-new-seals-aux-lenses-batt_W0QQitemZ7542273964QQcategoryZ30028QQssPageNa meZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
The aux lens for the GSN will be about $400 less than a new Bessa with Wide-Angle lens. Your Fiance can thank me later...
JeffGreene
08-31-2005, 15:38
Welcome Kara:
I'm a GSN owner as well, and love them. My major issue with the forum is the GAS infection I acquired since recently joining. I'm currently eagerly awaiting the arrival of my new Lynx 14e.
tedwhite
08-31-2005, 17:29
The auxiliary lenses, in my opinion, are not worth either the money or the effort of fooling with them. They are not sharp, and they degrade the quality of a superb lens.
Save your moneda.
Ted
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