The Bronica RF 645 Medium format (120) camera - My first roll - Kodak Gold 200.

I've had my eyes on this camera for a few years and have never committed to buying it becuase of the cost, but one came out on ebay from a Japanese shop that is well known for having top mint and unused stock, so I just had to get this one. 

It is a 6cmx4.5cm 120 rangefinder camera that takes images in portrait orientation. This one came with a 65mm F/4 lens which is equivalent to about 40mm field of view in 35mm format, giving me the perfect set up for many uses. Being mainly a portrait photographer I will be using this a lot and probably will now be my go to camera for most shoots. It is so easy to use and as you can see from the test images extremely sharp, the depth of field at F/4 is beautiful with a soft bokeh dropout. 

Being 645 format it gives 16 frames to use up on one roll, which unlike most cameras of this format they usually give you 15 which is a nice amount of images, but giving you that one extra frame is a plus, maximising the cost effectiveness of the film. 

My first impressions shooting this camera are that it is such a perfect fit in the hand with its big solid grip yet it is very lightweight for a 120 camera, a perfect combination for me. I always find a lot of 120 cameras put me off the ideas of using them as it's such a chore to carry it around and to shoot them. This one made in 2005 is in many ways a very refined tool that puts together everything I need to shoot easily on 120 film, giving me the right improvement from 35mm film by having a huge negative which gives the ability to have nice big scans and detail for clients and viewing experience. When shooting the camera it is so silent that people don't even notice you have taken a frame, and it feels solid, full metal alloy body, extremely big and bright viewfinder, smooth focusing and half stops on the aperture that goes down to F/32 just makes it perfect quite honestly. 

I had some expired Kodak Gold 200 film in the freezer for a year and put it to the test, The film was fine, no deterioration chemically and honestly probably the best gold I have shot, the camera really helps to get the most out of the film and allows it to be seen in a nicer way than 35mm. I always felt 35mm is quite a small format for film and some of the old lenses dont do it justice, at least not Nikon or Canon lenses I have.