[Leica] Hands on the Bessa-R

[Jeremy Kime <jeremy.kime@bbc.co.uk>]

I had my first opportunity to play with the Bessa-R at a camera show in
Birmingham, England, yesterday. There are only four in the country
apparently but before I had even got to the importer's stand I had been
photographed by someone using one of them!

Initial impression was that this should be a winner. I understand that
retail price should be between 400 and 450 GBP. Supplies start arriving from
the end of next month.
The ergonomics felt very good. the viewfinder was large, clear and the
bright lines almost dazzled in comparison to the Konica Hexar which I
examined again. The lever for adjustment worked faultlessly but seemed small
and fiddly, prehaps a design like the old Canon rotating wheel might have
seemed a little easier.
The leds were easy to see (the Yasuhara fails sadly here) but where the iris
is smooth to turn and adjust with ones face to the eyepiece the same could
not be said for the shutter speed dial. It was a tougher job to roll this
with the ease that the Leica has and that which would be desirable.
The rewind knob felt strong whereas the back, when opened, reminded me again
that this component is only plastic. I'm sure this should be fine and it
comes with a delightful rubberised exterior finish but I can't help but
wonder what this might look like after a year of hard use.
The wind on lever is strangely different to the Bessa-L model and still
seems odd with its silver finish contrasting with the rest of the (black)
camera! The shutter release is also slightly different in design but felt
identical in its release movement.
The sound of the shutter is still the loudest drawback to seeing it as a
'second body' Leica, it has a hollow 'clack' type sound. If you equate the
sound of a Leica shutter to a BMW car door clunk, then this reminds me of
the Renault 4L, a great car, but built to a price.
But I return to the opening line, ergonomically this felt better, to me,
than the Konica. It felt right somehow, good size, good weight (good price)
and it felt like it was wanting to go out and take pictures, this sounds
like I'm losing it(!) but somehow I never got that feeling with the Konica,
maybe it felt too precious, too expensive. Don't get me wrong, I'd be happy
with a Konica but I think I'd take more pictures with the Bessa.
The steel threads of the lenses still feel rather new and sharp, sometimes
the mounting doesn't feel as smooth as a Leica, but then they haven't had
30-70 years for the threads to bed down. A (very) little grease helps here.
I also saw the new 35/2.5 lens in its 2 styles, one of them matches the 25/4
Skopar more or less identically and the other style, I think, resembles a
late 60's Canon. They both felt good to use andergonomically sweet. Rotation
from infinity to close focus was just 90 degrees.
STOP PRESS
Another lens is due for release sometime in the next few months, a 12 (yes,
12!) millimetre jobbie. Gadzooks, as if the 15mm wasn't ground breaking
enough! No details on whether this would be a full frame fisheye, circular
fisheye or plain orthographic (?) lens.

hope this helps,
Jem