Lomopedia: Fujica G690

Fuji decided to make a medium format rangefinder camera after having discussions with Japanese commercial photographers who preferred medium or large format over 35 mm but wanted the easier handling of 35 mm rangefinder cameras. The result was the Fujica G690, whose design was based on the 70 mm Combat Graphic (used by the US Navy and US Marine Corps in 1944) and the handling of Leica. Yamamoto Katsuhiko, the head of the design team, surmised that while it would not need the weatherproofing or rugged handling of the wartime rangefinder camera, it still warrants a design that prioritizes durability for hard use and ease of handling.

The Fujica G690 prototype was exhibited in the March 1968 Tokyo Camera Show, then in the September 1986 Photokina. Later in the year, the Japanese market got their hands on the 6x9 interchangeable lens rangefinder camera with a standard 100 mm f/3.5 lens for ¥78,200 a piece. It takes 120 and 220 roll films and 6.5 x 9 cm daimeishi sheet film. This rangefinder camera also boasts of a superior field-corrected viewfinder (even reportedly better than the Leica M series), its bright lines adjusting for parallax and field of view when the lens is focused.

Photos Taken with the Fujica G690

Technical Specifications

Type: Coupled range/viewfinder camera with interchangeable lens
Frame Size: 56x82.6 mm (6×9 format) or 56 × 69 mm (6×7 format)
Film: 120 (8 exposures for 6×9, 10 exposures for 6×7) or 220 (16 exposures for 6×9, 20 exposures for 6×7) roll film by a reversible pressure plate
Film advance: Two-stroke lever on camera top advances film, cocks the shutter, and locks itself to prevent double exposure. Automatic frame spacing. Multiple exposures are possible, but the procedure is awkward: one has to press release for first exposure, close light shield curtain, remove lens, manually cock lens, mount lens, place Roll/Sheet selector on "S", open light shield curtain, press release, repeat if needed and put back the selector on "R" when finished.
Exposure Counter: Automatic reset, additive type.
Lens: Interchangeable, bayonet (breech-lock type) mount lens with a built-in leaf shutter.
Shutter: B, 1 - 1/500 sec. built-in M and X contacts for all-speed flash synchronization (X synch. only on Fujinon EBC AE f/3.5 100 mm).
Viewfinder: Projected bright frame, automatic field, and parallax correction. Magnification 0.75x, rangefinder base length 67 mm (effective base length 50.3 mm). Built-in bright frames for 100 mm normal and 150 mm telephoto lenses. Field of view reduction 96% at 1 meter, 84% at infinity for G690 and G690BL; 95% at 1 meter and 92% at infinity for GL690
Rangefinder: Split image coupled rangefinder/viewfinder
Focusing: Direct advance helicoid lens coupled with a rangefinder
Height: 166 mm, width: 183 mm, front to back (with normal lens): 145mm (body thickness = 38 mm)
Weight: Body only: 1,260 g (G690/G690 BL) / 1,148 g (GL690).

All information for this article was sourced from Camerapedia and artbig.com.

Scritto da plasticpopsicle il 2014-03-19 in #gear #Lomopedia #medium-format #120 #rangefinder #review #220 #fuji #fujifilm #rangefinder-camera #lomopedia #fujica-g690 Condividi Articolo