Are rangefinders making a comeback? Or rather, should I ask, are rangefinder style cameras making a comeback?
Canon 7 rangefinder camera, with 50mm f1.8 lens.
Rangefinder cameras, by definition, need a rangefinder device. OK, but moving away from the specific mechanical definition, there does appear to be a trend to move towards smaller mirrorless digital cameras (and yes, I do realise that mirrorless cameras have a definition all of their own).
What I think I’m talking about is the rangefinder style – or rangefinderesque, if we like (as opposed to Leica, which are pretty much the only contemporary producers of true digital rangefinders). By this I mean digital cameras that have the ‘benefits’ and aesthetic appeal of traditional rangefinders, even if they don’t have an actual rangefinder focussing function. Advantages such as compact size and weight, smaller lenses, viewfinder on the side of the camera (rather than the nose-squashing central viewfinder approach of dSLR cameras).
The most obvious example of this are the various Fujifilm cameras, which sport retro rangefinder styling. These come in both fixed lens varieties – such as the FinePix X100, which has a hybrid viewfinder (optical and electronic) – and also as interchangeable lens cameras, such as the X-Pro1.
Sony’s Nex range could also claim some rangefinder influence, although currently only the Nex-7 has a built in viewfinder. I have one of these, and I love the fact that I can manually control (via physical dials) the shutter speed and aperture. I’d rather that the aperture dial was physically on the lenses (or on the camera, in front of the lens), rather than on top of the camera, but maybe that’s just me.
That said, I think the Fuljifim cameras are far nicer to look at. In a camera shop I visited recently, the Fujifilm line-up was displayed in its own cabinet – and it did look good. Although, not as good (or expensive) as the Leicas, I perhaps.
But looking around (I know, not exactly a top research methodology there), it seems to me that most people – who are not using cheaper point and shoot cameras – are still using dSLRs. Even if they are holding the cameras up and using the focussing screen, rather than the viewfinder.
So, I wonder if this is a trend which is set to grow further ahead than the near future, or if it’s just a short-term retro thing?
