Monochrome Journey 2024-8. Fujica G690 BLP, An Awesome Medium Format Beast

[@philipblanchardphotography3784]

Hi from the UK, great episode and I'm subscribed. Keep it up Chuck.

[@ChuckAbles]

Appreciate it Philip, thank you so much.

[@chumleyk]

I have the same model Fujica for nearly 20 years when you could pick one up for peanuts on early eBay. Thank you thank you for not calling it the "T****s Leica" which truly undermines the Japanese origin and excellence in design and construction for their demanding customers.

[@ChuckAbles]

Appreciate your comment, thank you very much. Though I do have a fondness for the Leica's, I agree with you on the Fujica G690. It can certainly stand alone on its on its merits with no comparison to others.

[@Joel4JC]

Just came across your channel today, recommed by KZbin. I've alreay watch several of your videos, then had to subscribe. Back in the 70s I shot weddings and other events using a Yashica 124 G. Changed photography genres in the 80s and stopped shooting Medium Format altogether. Now that 120 film is readily available, I decided to give Medium Format Film another try. A couple of months ago I purchased a Fujica GW690 CLA'd off ebay in fair condition, and fell in love with Medium Format Film all over again. The 6x9 negative is just amazing. Thanks for sharing, looking forward to more of your videos.

[@ChuckAbles]

@Joel4JC appreciate the comment, thank you so much.

[@michaelappleyard6300]

I have to agree with you about this camera. I bought a GL690 earlier this year, along with the 65, 100 and 180 mm lenses, fortunately all in near mint condition. Straightaway, using Kodak Gold 200, I was knocked out by the images. Whereas, with 35mm, the grain and lack of sharpness in the film emulsion become apparent at arm's length when displaying on screen or printing at anything bigger than 8 x 12 inches, with the 6 x 9 centimetre format, prints can be up to 30 inches wide before the grain is noticeable. But the clincher is the quality of the Fujica lenses which are very sharp corner-to-corner and have no issues with chromatic aberation, distortion or flare..Although the camera is big, it is not excessively heavy, being around the same weight as a Nikon D850 plus a 24-120 zoom, and therefore significantly easier to carry and handle than a 6x7 reflex camera. It is smooth and quiet to operate and so is actually quite discrete in that respect. An important tip to anyone buying one is to download the pdf of the User Manual which readily available for free online. This will avoid a lot of head scratching regarding film loading and the various interlocks (e.g. the S/R switch). Also, search carefully for bodies and lenses which are in good condition and pay the extra (e.g. pay around $700-$1000 with a lens) as most examples out there had a hard life with commercial photographers originally. In my experience, the Fujica 690 is a game-changer for film photography.due to its image quality..

[@ChuckAbles]

@@michaelappleyard6300 Thank you for sharing. Brought up some good points.

[@bernardkealey6449]

Love 6x9 I’ve got a ~70yo Bessa i with a 105 f4.5. Being a bellow folder it’s way more compact, but while it shoots well it’s way way slower to use being viewfinder only, and manual “red window” wind, and much fiddlier focus/aperture/speed/cocking. Still, while that slows me down in taking, that gives me more enforced “stop and think” about my compositions too which is good. I used to print back in high school (‘80’s) and have signed up to use a reasonably local community darkroom again, hoping to get back to it soon - while I think I’ll probably be pushing a lot more rolls thru my Mamiya C330, if I can master hyperfocaling the Bessa it is small enough to be a daily carry.

[@ChuckAbles]

Thanks for sharing your experiences.

[@robinlevin3221]

Love your passion, Chuck. Like you, I purchased a Fuji GW690III last week and put a roll of FP4+ through it the next day. Developed the film in 510Pyro, semi-stand and scanned the images on a V850Pro. I was blown away by the image sharpness, contrast and the ease of editing and the print results. Printed 4 shots at 13" 'x 20" (2:3 aspect).

[@ChuckAbles]

@robinlevin3221 Appreciate it. Thank you for sharing.

[@colinosullivan]

This is another great episode mate. Loving this monochrome journey series. That camera is a beast, would love to give that a go. The negatives off that will be nuts. Love the side by side with the M-A. And it’s a range finder too. Wow! This is right up my alley mate. Hmmm 🤔 now you have me thinking. I wonder how difficult it would be to get one of those to ireland. Double stroke advance, man! ❤❤❤ Wonderful photos too. Very interesting change lens curtain. I’ve never had the pleasure of shooting medium format of any sort!

[@ChuckAbles]

Appreciate Colin! Medium format photography is great and of course it does have its uses. I for sure wouldn't use the Fujica with street/event photography. But you'll be happy to know I took the MA and M246 out to photograph a parade in Jerome last Saturday. Working on the next video. Thanks buddy.

[@jackthompson8377]

Use mine for infrared since you are not looking through the R72 opaque filter You can handhold at f5.6 / 1/30 on a sunny 16 day.

[@ChuckAbles]

Thank you for sharing. Appreciate it.

[@williamschmidt9336]

Hi from Fresno,CA. I just picked up the same camera last week. I intend to do black and white landscape photos. Have you figured out the most secure method of attaching to a tripod? The small silver plate on the bottom of the camera seems to be similar to a arca Swiss mounting plate. Please let me know how you are mounting your camera to a tripod. Thanks! Bill

[@ChuckAbles]

I use a standard tripod with 1/4-20 base to mount on the tripod. Do some shopping for the sturdiest tripod to support the weight. The dovetail configuration on the bottom, I believe, is for tripods of the past. I'm not certain. Good luck with your new camera and landscape photography.

[@williamschmidt9336]

@@ChuckAbles are the sample photos you posted in this video hand held or shot with tripod? They are very nice and razor sharp.

[@ChuckAbles]

@@williamschmidt9336 It was had held throughout. I was in a hurry to see how well the camera would photograph. If I remember correctly, I used f/16 most of the time allowing for a faster shutter speed with 400 ASA film. Best thing I would suggest is with serious landscape photography, say on the level of 'Ansel Adams', invest in and use a tripod, a shutter release cable, and look into a Sekonic Twinmate L-208 analog light meter from Amazon. All a nice little basic set-up for landscape photography. in addition, use f/32 on your lens as the center of the universe, adjusting only the shutter speed. Learn the exposure triangle and the 'Sunny 16' rule. I only use 100 and 400 ASA film because I can develop those with instant coffee recipes. And finally, just go out and have fun experimenting, keep a log of what you did, exposure, weather and the likes.

[@dflf]

I do develop and print my B&W film through my local park and rec that still has complete dark room services at a community center. However it's only staffed once a week.

[@ChuckAbles]

Thats cool and great that you develop and print your works. Makes it all worthwhile to photograph with film.

[@MarttiSuomivuori]

I got that camera and just shot the first roll. The camera wegihs about 2 kg. You need light to stop down for DoF and a tripod is handy as you have to go to slow speeds as the evening comes. My first roll is still to be developed. I have a feeling about the purpose of this camera. It is for taking graduating class photos using flash. This thing does not travel very well.

[@ChuckAbles]

Appreciate it. Thank you.

[@GrandadsReviews]

One of my favourite cameras but just be careful with the lens blind as it is the one thing that regularly fails on these cameras and the only real fix is to cut it out which means you can only change lenses when there is no film in the camera.

[@ChuckAbles]

@@GrandadsReviews thanks for sharing the information.