A contax 645 free#
While this keeps the entirely flat top-plate free of protrusions (good for portability), it makes using exposure compensation an unpleasant haptic experience. Lastly, the exposure compensation dial is a recessed crater that requires the shooter to jam their finger into the crater and twist. This makes aperture adjustment a minor challenge. The aperture ring, located around the tiny retractable lens barrel, is a bit small and offers no protruding grip. The aperture control is flawed as well, since the f/2.8 setting actually activates program mode, meaning that you cannot intentionally shoot the camera wide open when the camera’s metering system decides light conditions are too bright for f/2.8.
A contax 645 manual#
The snappy autofocus of the camera means that a sub-standard manual focus mode isn’t a dealbreaker. With a rather long close-focusing distance of 70 cm (20 inches), focusing on up-close subjects is also a challenge. I rarely used the manual focus beyond setting the camera to infinity for landscapes, and it was too fiddly to use for fast action. While these manual controls are nice to have, they are by no means perfect. The T2 adds to this concise feature set a manual focus capability. Its manual aperture control, manual flash engagement (no more awkward exchanges with strangers as a result of a candid botched by unintended flash), and exposure compensation are all features that certain Contax T2 users will eventually take for granted. The camera’s superior build quality may be the first thing we notice about the T2, but it’s the array of manual controls that arguably set it apart from most of its peers. I had to work hard to resist the temptation to snap random photos for no reason other than to hear the beautiful mechanisms of the shutter and automatic film advance spring to action.
Plastic is ubiquitous in this film camera segment, which may help to explain why the Contax T2 has stood out from the competition since its introduction in 1990. Very few point-and-shoots are made of metal, with titanium even rarer. Even its battery cover is a milled disc of solid metal (the T2 uses one CR123 battery). Clad in titanium, cold to the touch, and featuring well-damped controls, the camera instantly inspires confidence. I used the Contax T2 extensively during 2018, taking it to Lake Como and documenting England’s unforgettable World Cup run, which happened to coincide with a vintage summer in terms of weather.įrom the first moment that I held the Contax T2, it was clear that it’s not the average point-and-shoot.
No wonder I ended up buying one.īut the real question is whether or not the camera lives up to the hype, and more importantly, the astronomical price that it now commands.
A contax 645 series#
Millennials have coveted the Contax T series ever since. More than that, it announced that the Contax T2 must be the coolest film camera of them all. This moment announced to the world of 2017 that film was officially back in style. The Contax T2 entered the mainstream cultural stratosphere in 2017 when supermodel Kendall Jenner used the camera to snap photos of Jimmy Fallon live on primetime television. And the effect that hype has had on the prized titanium point-and-shoot’s price has been equally unmatched. In terms of the sheer hype it has received in the past decade, no film camera can match it. While many cameras have gone from unknown to idolized as a result of the film renaissance, the Contax T2 stands shoulders above the competition.
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