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Ricoh 500RF

 

The technical stuff:

Camera type: Rangefinder

Lens Type: Rikenon f2.8 40mm

Shutter Type: Two blade lens mounted shutter

Automatic exposure

 

 

This is nice small lightweight rangefinder from Ricoh that has something of a good reputation. This particular example is in immaculate condition apart from the light seals which have gone spongy. It comes fitted with a Rikenon 40mm f2.8 lens and has built in cds metering within the lens housing. This is good because you can use filters (46mm) and not have to worry about compensating for exposure. 

There's a good side and a bad side to this little gem. The good side is that it produces cracking pictures with superb sharpness and detail. The metering is a little on the dark side but this is better than blowing out the highlights. The bad side is more of a subjective thing. The handling is not the most user friendly, unlike most rangefinders in this class which have a lever arm of some form to move the focusing ring, this one does not. This is particularly awkward because the ring is very thin and therefore not easy to use. Another issue with focusing is that the rangefinder "spot" is a very small square and not easy for me to see clearly without spectacles. The combination of these two issues made focusing a difficult operation which is the one thing that a rangefinder is normally good for. Otherwise it's a very nice little camera. Check out the results.

 

 

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