Contax G2 35mm Rangefinder Camera

In this day of "megapixel envy", when digital camera models arrive on the scene to great fanfare and then become obsolete faster than your desktop computer, it seems anachronistic to be writing a review of a film camera. It's especially true if the camera in question is no longer in production, is only available used, and is rangefinder focused to boot. After all, didn't the SLR make all rangefinders obsolete years ago?
Well, I'm sure the legions of Leica owners would probably have something to say about it but too many of them are more collectors than users and that's a whole different thing. Me, I'm a user and I buy cameras to make photographs with. Now, like many, I have partially succumbed to the siren song of the digital age and must confess to owning a digital SLR - which has effectivly relegated my pro-level film SLR to the status of an expensive, rapidly depreciating, paperweight. On the other hand, I am also very aware of the fact that film has a different look than digital - not better, just different - and for some situations I think the look works.
The Contax G2 (like the G1) is really all about the lenses. Small rangefinder cameras with fixed focal length lenses are really a different approach to the hobby of photography to begin with. Rangefinder cameras lock the photographer into a certain set of limitations inherent to the equipment and, consequently, encourage him/her to "see" differently. Given these limitations, the only rationale for owning either model of the Contax G is to have someplace to mount the superb Carl Zeiss optics that were made for them. Yes, it is the only autofocusing rangefinder with interchangable lenses I'm aware of. Yes, it's robust construction and build quality make it a joy to hold and use and have translated for me into absoloute reliability (I own both models)for years. Yes, I can carry a camera and four lenses, 28, 35, 45, & 90, in an Eddie Bauer traveler bag the size of a hardcover book and it weighs maybe a pound - or I can stick a body with lens and a spare lens into a couple of coat pockets and walk around for hours and not even notice they are there. All these things are true but would mean nothing were it not for the quality of the optics. Imagine, 21mm and 28mm f2.8 wide angle lenses with essentially ZERO distortion! Try pointing your favorite zooms at a brick wall and watch what happens to the straight lines at the wide angle end. Imagine, a 45mm f2.0 normal lens that is one of the sharpest lenses ever tested by a couple of independant testing sources! Round out the stable with a 35mm f2.0 , a 90mm f2.8 and (for the truly devoted) a 16mm f8.0 and you have a true "system" camera with high quality, very, very, sharp optics.
One side effect of the digital dementia has been a drastic depression in the resale value of film cameras. Who would have thought a few years back that a $2500 pro SLR like the Nikon F5 would be routinely selling for $500 in like new condition? The Contax line is no exception and has suffered the same fate - making them very attractive as an extremely compact "second" system for the film or digital SLR photographer.

Using professional Nikon SLRs all the time, I wanted a highest image qaulity rangefinder, but never could justify inflated price of Leica. When Kyocera decided to stop Contax G2 production and put on sale it's Contax G2 remaining stock, I bought a G2 body with 16mm, 21mm, 28mm and 45mm Zeiss lenses (mostly for wide angle shots). After seeing first pictures I do not use my wide angle Nikon lenses any more (and I have the sharpest ever made Nikkor wide angle, like manual AIS 28mm/2.8 - Zeiss 28mm/2.8 is still better). My Nikon gear is still number one, when it comes to telephoto lenses - Nikkor 300mm and Nikkor zoom 80-200mm/2.8 are irreplaceable, but for wide angle shots I always have beside Contax G2 with Hologon 16mm and Biogon 21mm, as with other Contax G lenses - they are very small and easy to carry around, unbelievably sharp and free of distortion. The picture qaulity is on par (if not even better!) with Leica for the third or forth price of Leica!
In my opinion, concidering the qaulity/price issue, the Contax G2 system is better than overpriced Leica and newly developped Zeiss Ikon rangefinders.

Dedicated Nikon/Contax G2 user

Incredible lens, excellent auto-exposure (through lens at time of exposure), solid quality. Also, I love the 90mm and the wide angle (24mm??). If you can't stand to abandon film, this is a great camera to have.

No doubt the G2 is legendary and fabulous in many ways. The camera is like driving a Porsche. Sleek, fast and manueverable. All of the lenses out match the best of my Nikkors, including the 55mm, 85mm, and 105mm which are Nikon's best. And not just in sharpness but in resolution of color, which is a very noticable difference when projected. Couple of problems though. The G2 is not a camera you can get repaired any longer. I am planning to purchase new bodies as needed, and the black body is now very pricey. Keep this in mind when you purchase a system. Also, the G1 is problematic for the pro shooter due to it's slower motor and lack of an auto-focus freeze button. This is an essential feature of the G2 that (almost) overrides the problem of the slight delay between shutter release, auto-focusing, and the actual opening of the shutter. The G1 is 'not' a great photojournalist camera for this reason. The G2 is clearly one of the all-time best camera systems ever manufactured, especially for hobbyists but for pros as well.

after doing much, much research and in my search to purchase a rangefinder system for its lack of a mirror and for its ability to contain optics in a more compact system, a decision was made to purchase the contax g2 system. all the reviews before and the mtf charts compared this system with the leica m system and so forth. the spoke highly of both systems, with the mtf charts showing that the zeiss lenses were equal to the lenses of the leica m system, at least in the f-stop range of 4 and above.

usually, the rule is that when people compare to something, that "something" is better. in this case, that might well be true to a microscope. according to the mtf charts however, the zeiss lenses were equal to better to any other 35mm lens on the market today. now, when one keeps this in mind and looks at the price of a system, for example the one that was purchased by me, then a decision to purchase a contax g2 system is made with much ease.

the system purchased on ebay, the contax g2 plus the 28mm plus the 45mm plus the 90mm plus the 35-70mm plus the flash plus all cases plus a tamrac camera bag plus all the manuals and paperwork all in perfectly new and unused condition, all for half of the price of a new leica m lens, half the price of a hasselblad medium format lens, was the best purchase made by me in my photographic career.

this was proven on the first weekend. portraits were made of a most beautiful person with my two systems, the hasselblad with the 180mm cfi lens and the contax with the 90mm lens, the hasselblad on a tripod and the contax hand-held, both using fuji's neoplan acros 100 asa film. the shutter speeds on both were higher than 1/180. to write that the detail on both enlarged images is an understatement. to write that the lighting captured shows the characteristics of the zeiss family is an understatement as well. both images showed that three-dimensional characteristic that is classic german glass. both images showed the texture and transition from light to dark areas with perfect smoothness.

also, out of the 120 images made, four were out of focus terribly. that was surely to my first attempt with the contax g2 system. after using it for just a few minutes, it was easy to work with for the rest of the time. the controls are intuitive and easy to visualize. the auto-focus system might be an issue of noise for some in a church and so forth... but for street photography and portraiture, this is a non-issue.

the viewfinder, while certainly outside of the best in the camera world, has this to brag about: magnification with each lens used. in comparison to a leica m system, when one is looking through a box the size of a pea for the 90mm lens, the contax system gives me the entire viewfinder to compose. now, some like to see everything outside of the subject in order to compose and they have my respect for that thought. however, for me, there is reason that everything outside of that subject is outside, it was my choice.

it is a beautiful system, automatic to a beautiful level, manual to a beautiful level. the lenses are superb, just like the lenses of my hasselblad system.

sure, this system is no longer being made. sure, repairs to this system will be hard to make. however, when one thinks that five contax systems (rangefinder and lens) could be purchased for the price of one new leica, why worry?

that is an overstatement of course.. but just slightly an overstatement. enjoy!

Best camera I have ever owned. Built in diopter so I can look through the viewfinder with out my glasses. Excellent auto focus. Tac sharp photographs. If you still shoot film and like range finder type cameras, this camera is my favorite. Yes I personaly like it better then my Leica M4-p not taking anything away from leica. But if I had to choose I would not give up my contax.

The Contax G2 represents a nice combination of automatic features on a solid range finder platform. Even with its automation, you do have to have patience as most of the lenses are fixed focal length which requires a little work to move between lenses. You need to think about what you want to capture (visualize) before you take the shot. The Zeiss lenses are of the highest quality. The body is of equal quality. I have read reviews that discuss how loud the shutter is. Is it quite as a Leica (I own a M7)? No. But I've found the shutter to be very quiet with no vibration. The camera takes great pictures. I own several other cameras - Olympus OM1n & OM2n, Nikon F2As, Nikon N90s, Yashica G, and a Leica M7 35mm's, Yashica 124G and Mamiya 645 medium format cameras and a Canon PowerShot S70 digital camera. Yes it is a film camera, but I've had great deal of fun with it. The G2 is a great addition to my collection.

Excellent piece of engineering - elegant design, superb build quality, great ergonomics, fabulous Carl Zeiss T* G lenses. This camera is the all-singing and dancing answer to the Leica M cameras, with innovative autofocus with manual option, auto exposure with manual option, auto film advance and rewind, interchangeable lenses (including a 37-70 f3.5 zoom!) Quiet shutter, beautiful titanium finish, what a camera!

Excellent, but it is Cacnada so not too manay people interest in buying because of import tax issue. But I know thre is no import tax with NAFTA so I bid and win with very reasonable price.

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