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Review Contax RTS III

Hi Guillaume,

I've only played with an RTSIII but anyway here goes:

1. Check mirror and focussing screen: most used ones tend to have replaced screens popped in and out. Careless ones have scratches on the mirror.
Screen quality may be scratched and need replacing.

3. Pale weak LCD display isn't such a problem: I'm a little embarrassed by the comments made by users about the viewfinder. Dirk is right - a depth of field preview can balance out any difficulty.

4. Check integrity of mechanical shutter release. Cover buttons tend to go missing.

5. The same goes for every other moving part, but I'm sure you don't want me to ribble on.

If you own 5 Zeiss lenses and an RTS-II, trust your own judgement.



Joe99
 
Joe, thanks for your advice. I finally found a second-hand RTS-III for a very good price. I carefully checked all the issues you mentioned and it was OK. I am very satisfied so far. The only odd thing is that whenever I switch the display on, I can hear a faint, high-pitched sound, which increases when I look at a brighly lit subject. A little bit like a neon tube about to die. Has anyone ever experienced this? I must say it is a very minor annoyance though.

Guillaume
 
Guillaume,

Congrats on the purchase. You will like it!

The high-pitched sound comes with the pretty blue display in the VF (probably a switching power supply). The display has two levels of intensity, set by the ambient condition.

Personally, I find the whine well within acceptable bounds, even in a quiet room; outdoors, it's inaudible.
 
Guillaume,

What you hear is a tiny switch mode power supply which supplies the higher voltage required to drive the display illumination, the reason for it increasing when you look at a brightly lit subject is that the camera increases the display illumination to compensate for the increased brightness and more power is put through the supply hence the more aubible the sound. I actually quite like hearing it as it's almost like a sign of life from my favorite camera.

Art

------original message--------

>The only odd thing is that >whenever I switch the display on, I can hear a faint, high-pitched >sound, which increases when I look at a brighly lit subject. A little >bit like a neon tube about to die. Has anyone ever experienced this? I >must say it is a very minor annoyance though.
 
Greetings, all. I'm ready to experiment with flash metering on our lovely camera, and am curious about your choice of flash unit. I imagine the contenders are the TLA 280, TLA 360, and perhaps a Metz model.

In other news, the 2nd-hand market for glass may be softening a bit. That means a buyer's market, so check your favorite vendor. I finally scored a 100/2 in LN condition for US$850. This purchase is three months overdue, and I'm REALLY impatient for tomorrow's delivery!
 
Hi to all. I am sure you will be able to help me. I bought recently a used RTS III camera. I understand most of the features, but I cannot make the MECHANICAL cable release for bulb exposure work. I use a conventional cable for this purpose (it works in my yashica 109 multi-program). I follow the instructions in the manual, but I can't make it work. I do not think I use this feature too much, but I would like to know why this happens! I prefer asking before and not to force it... Could it be a problem of the cable? Thanks to all!
 
mount the cable release on the body and fix it in released position. = Now fire the shutter with one of the exposure buttons or with the = opionally elecrical cable release.

cheers Dieter
 
I bought recently a> used RTS III camera. I understand most of the features, but I cannot> make the MECHANICAL cable release for bulb exposure work. I use a> conventional cable for this purpose (it works in my yashica 109> multi-program). I follow the instructions in the manual, but I can't> make it work.

I dont think I've ever used any remore release other than the electronic one on my own RTS3 , and its probably a stupid question , but you are using the second connection point next to the release button on the side[next to the film rewind] for the mechanical cable arent you?? Steve
 
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