Firstly, I’m a collector of things. My other passion, aside from photography, is the collecting of rare soul/funk original vinyl records, so I guess it was only natural that I wouldn’t just buy one camera. But for this post I thought I’d share a few of my feelings toward the Contax 167MT coupled with the excellent Carl Zeiss Planar 50mm f1.7 lens.
I enjoy the ergonomics of the Contax. It’s very sleek, and just about the perfect size; not too big, and not too small, so it fits comfortably in my hand. I tend to shoot in aperture priority mode and find the LCD top plate readout is very handy for quick meter checks. It has a simple viewfinder display, containing the frame number, shutter speed and aperture, which is all i need. There is a useful exposure compensation dial next to the sensitive shutter button which helps in tricky light situations. The automatic advance of the film is a a plus when you want to capture the fluid moments of the day, I keep it on single shot, but a rapid continuous mode is available.
I’m a fan of Carl Zeiss lenses, having had both a Contax T2 and Contax T, the 50mm Planar T* is a great, sharp performer. I tend to just shoot black & white, as I develop and print my own film. Having used film cameras for over 40 years the Contax family always been attractive to me. It’s a premium brand that oozed class without arrogance – I’d highly recommend the 167MT for those who haven’t had the chance to handle the system.
I’m fortunate to have been asked many times to DJ here in the UK and abroad – a trip to Stockholm in the summer for a Soul weekend was a good chance to take photographs, so I packed the Contax 167MT. The First image below was taken on that trip. I’m also a regular around the streets of London, and since my photography usually happens within the confines of my capital city, the other 4 images were shot there. For the purpose of this post, the budget Czech Fomapan 400 was used, it’s never let me down but I’ve no real loyalty and will shoot a myriad of 35mm negative emulsions.
Thanks to Hamish for providing a fabulous resource for the film photography community.
My Instagram – international_photo64
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Comments
Marc Petzold on 5 Frames with a Contax 167MT & Carl Zeiss Planar 50mm f/1.7 – By Brett Franklin
Comment posted: 12/12/2018
But my real fave Contax is the RX, and i also do shoot here & there with my Zeiss Icarex 35s SLR. Digital, it's the EOS 5D "Queen Mum", and my Sony A7, with adapted Lenses.
Good Light,
Marc
Comment posted: 12/12/2018
Barry Reid on 5 Frames with a Contax 167MT & Carl Zeiss Planar 50mm f/1.7 – By Brett Franklin
Comment posted: 12/12/2018
Loving the Contax 159MM and Aria too.
Comment posted: 12/12/2018
Heiko Höllmüller on 5 Frames with a Contax 167MT & Carl Zeiss Planar 50mm f/1.7 – By Brett Franklin
Comment posted: 13/12/2018
Lee Stirling on 5 Frames with a Contax 167MT & Carl Zeiss Planar 50mm f/1.7 – By Brett Franklin
Comment posted: 18/12/2018
Jose on 5 Frames with a Contax 167MT & Carl Zeiss Planar 50mm f/1.7 – By Brett Franklin
Comment posted: 21/12/2018
There is a problem however, whenever the ambient temperature drifts below about 10 C the camera just stops working! When it warms up again it's fine. The first time it happened I thought it had bricked itself, but I fired it up a couple weeks later and it was fine. Very strange. I guess that's why they made that external battery pack you could keep in your pocket, the Contax P6.
Reiner on 5 Frames with a Contax 167MT & Carl Zeiss Planar 50mm f/1.7 – By Brett Franklin
Comment posted: 13/06/2019
Comment posted: 13/06/2019