Bronica sq vs sq a manual#

As I mentioned earlier the grip makes it feel like a giant SLR, but I generally feel more comfortable using this on a tripod. It’s silky smooth to use, yet solid and robust – I’m pretty sure if I dropped this camera the floor would come off worse. You can physically feel the roll of film being pulled through the mechanism inside the back.Įvery removable part when connected feels solid and secure.

The film advance is smooth and easy to move. The mount is smooth, you can feel that it’s been machined to fit. You attach the lens with a satisfying click as the release switch engages. Looking at its construction, feeling its weight, I’d frankly be disappointed if it handled any other way. So how does it feel to shoot…? Well, how do you imagine? It’s a freakin’ tank, and that’s a great thing for me to be totally honest. Hell, I’ve never seen one, but apparently, they made a back that takes 70mm film, giving you a whopping 90 shots before you need to swap it out! The Bronica ETRS in use If you can find them – and eBay to be fair does seem to have a supply of most – you can also equip yourself with film backs that accept 220 roll film, 35mm film and Polaroid pack film. At least the ones I’ve had experience with have been… But 120 format film isn’t where it stops. Oh, and the backs from the old ETR are interchangeable with the backs for the ETRS. I have two 120 film backs for my ETRS, one generally has colour negative film in, the other has black and white. This dark slide, when clipped into its little guides allows you to remove the film back and swap it for another at any point through the roll. This ‘film back’ as they are known simply clips onto the camera, but between the back and the camera body is what is called a dark slide. So as the camera is modular, one of the parts that comes off is the entire box that holds the film. …and the film backs.! Oh what a joy it is to use a camera that has interchangeable film backs.Īgain, if you’ve never experienced this let me tell you about it. The handle allows you to hold it in the same way, and the thumb use film advance will be familiar to any SLR owners as well. You really can treat the camera in the same way you would use your traditional SLR. These speed grips change the feel and aesthetic of the camera to be more like a giant SLR camera, and for me at least when making that transition to medium format it made it much easier.

Bronica sq vs sq a manual#

Mine has the manual speed grip which replaces the crank but you can also (if you can find one) get a motor winder as well. Zenza Bronica ETRS rotary finder (image credit: KEH.com)Īs standard, the camera comes with a hand crank on the right-hand side of the body for advancing the film. I’m sure Mike Butkus has a manual if you need one. There’s also flash sync but I don’t use it and have no idea how it works so sorry, you’ll have to head elsewhere if you want to know more about that. You’ve also got a ‘bulb mode’ (ish) by using the A/T lever on the lens (T for Timed, A is for Auto I assume) and a standard cable release socket for your long exposures. If the little 6-volt battery inside (A PX28A, or 4LR44) goes dead, it will also mechanically shoot at a standard 1/500th. The shutter is an electronically controlled Seiko leaf shutter in the lens, with a choice of 8, 4, 2 and 1 seconds, and 1/2, 1/4, 1/8th, 1/15th, 1/30th, 1/60th, 1/125th, 1/250th and 1/500th of a second. It’s certainly heavy enough that I’m pretty sure it’s all metal…! Mine is on the front, so I’m assuming mine is an early version. I’ve never used the later version, I assume its new nickname comes from its build.Īccording to Camerapedia you can tell the difference by the location of the lens release – the later version locates the release on the left-hand side of the camera. There were supposedly two versions of ETRS released during its time, the early version is of metal construction and the later is known as the “plastic” version. I’ve never personally used an ETR model, so I cannot vouch for any other differences that there may be. Camera review: the Zenza Bronica ETRS - Workhorse, or Hippopotamus…? - EMULSIVE Close Search for:

Bronica sq vs sq-a