Mamiya 7

I've owned my Mamiya 7 for a few months and I wanted to share some sample photos from each lens as well as my thoughts on this camera system.

I picked up my Mamiya 7 off of ebay for $932 and that included the 80mm lens. My first impression is that it is a nice size, kind of boxy and very small compared to other 6x7 cameras that I am familiar with. I immediately noticed that the camera does not have dual top strap lugs for hanging it around your neck in the standard position. Instead, both camera strap ends connect to the same side of the camera which actually makes it ideal for street shooting. Hanging the camera off of one shoulder allows it to be much more stealth and it begins to shoot more like a 35mm camera than your typical 6x7 or large format camera. Overall, the Mamiya 7 is pretty basic. It takes 120, 220 or 135 film (with adapter). It operates in manual, aperture priority and shutter priority. The ISO and exposure compensation can be set manually on the top dial. It also has a self timer which I find very handy for tripod work when I don't feel like hooking up a cable release.

The 80mm lens is considered one of the sharpest lenses ever made for any camera system ever. It can be use for portraits, street photography and landscape work. It is equivalent to 40mm on 135 and is a great everyday shooting lens. Here are some samples from this amazing lens.





I'm a wide angle nut, so naturally, I went after the 43mm next and picked one up used on ebay with no caps or viewfinder for $676 (a steal). I immediately purchased all of the accessories and put it to work ($100 for the viewfinder, $15 for each cap). Around this time I realized that I could use my Nikon SB-28DX flash with this system. It had been rotting away in a camera bag for about 6 years, so this was great news. The 80mm and 43mm were just as good as everyone says. I am still astounded by how sharp the 43mm is corner to corner. I photograph a lot of construction and architecture for work so this lens is essential for me, but may be too wide for some shooters. The 43mm is the equivalent of a 21mm on 135 film (super wide!). Here are some sample shots to show the way this lens renders space.





Here is a sample using the SB-28DX flash off camera.


For my birthday my wife bought me the 150mm portrait lens, which is a 75mm equivalent on 135. To be very honest, this lens has only seen minimal use in the 3 months I've had it. This lens was $465 from KEH.com and did not include a lens hood. Here are a couple of samples. As you can see it is optical perfection just like its sisters.




The Mamiya 7 also offers a 35mm panoramic adapter. I agree that it is kind of weird to crop down such a beautiful 56x70mm (3920 millimeters square!) negative to a panoramic mode, however in use it is actually a lot of fun. This adapter adds even more versatility to an already awesome system. It is interesting to think about such a wide composition when you are accustomed to shooting nearly square. I also discovered that if you don't use the 7's negative mask you can shoot straight through the film sprockets which is a unique artistic element of this kit. I picked up my adapter from KEH.com for $79. I've seen them sell for even cheaper on ebay since then. Here a few samples from the two rolls I shot with this adapter. All of these shots were taken with the 43mm lens.





For Christmas I bought myself the 65mm lens. The 65mm is roughly a 32mm equivalent on 135 and seems to be the ideal focal length for most of my shots. I'm planning to mount this lens to my 7 for a 2 week trip to Europe this spring. I purchase it from KEH.com for $616 in beautiful condition with all the accessories. This lens is all most people will need for this system. It is slightly wide angle, but can still pull a decent environmental portrait. Here are a couple of samples from the past week.


(cropped)


Here is the current family photo of my system.


The only con I have found with this camera system is that I can't shoot B&W and Color film at the same time. I'm hoping to pick up a second body soon to fix this small issue.

Final Thought:

This is my favorite camera ever. The lenses are great, the feature list is minimal, the camera size is portable and the prints are amazing. I have shot Nikon for most of my life and I am very happy I decided to sell off the majority of my gear in order to afford this fabulous system. I plan on using it for many years to come and I hope I've given you a good idea about what this system has to offer.

Thanks,
Jeff