#BRONICA SQ SPEEDGRIP PLUS#
I perused information online (thanks 35mmc), recalling what I’d learned while shooting film as a teenager, plus lots more about different cameras and film formats. Something clicked during lockdown and I decided that returning to film was the antidote I needed. It had become an exhausting chore that distracted me from enjoying and remembering what I was doing. My photography felt inconsistent, dispensable, and plagued by my own perfectionism. I had shot digital cameras exclusively since the 2000s and grown tired of capturing, sorting, and editing heaps of photos. Like many other photographers, I looked for inspiration to go on photo walks during lockdown, but inspiration eluded me. My partner had to cancel an upcoming visit from overseas, and I had to face the reality of being stuck in a shared flat for six weeks instead of going on a road trip as planned. Still, the initial outbreak and lockdown in Aotearoa was a punch in the gut. I was lucky to live in Aotearoa/New Zealand during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, spared from the long-term lockdowns, infection rates, and losses that so many others have experienced. Fifty years later, this is still the case, with Bronica S2A kits costing around one-fifth the price of Hasselblad C/M kits. Some other lenses that fit the S2A include the Nikkor-D 40mm f/4, Nikkor-O 50mm f/2.8, Nikkor-H 50mm f/3.5, Zenzanon 150mm f/3.5, and Nikkor-P 200mm f/4.ĭuring the 1960s-1970s, Bronica’s 6×6 SLRs provided photographers with alternatives to the pricey Hasselblad 500 C and C/M. Bronica partnered with Nikon to produce a line of reputable lenses for the S system. It’s sharp, fast enough for shooting indoors in decent light, and produces gorgeous images.
That said, the S2A makes up for its lack of subtlety with good looks, a maximum shutter speed of 1/1000 second, interchangeable film backs, a bright viewfinder, and a safety that prevents the shutter from firing without removing the dark slide (i.e., no misfires).įrom what I can tell, the best feature of the Bronica S2A is the standard Nikkor-P 75mm (~50mm equivalent in 35mm format) f/2.8 lens. Firing the shutter is like slamming a car door, so you can forget about being discreet with this camera. Weighing in at just under 2 kg, the Bronica S2A is a tank, almost to the point of being absurd. The S2A is unique in having an ‘instant return automatic mirror’ that swings down instead of up during exposure, which allows space for wide-angle and deep-seated lenses that extend far into the camera body. It was the last fully mechanical 6×6 SLR among Bronica’s Z/D, C, and S series, and later replaced by the electronic EC model. All of my lenses are of the original series.The Bronica S2A is a hefty 6×6 focal plane medium format SLR produced in Tokyo from 1969-1977. Later on Bronica introduced an improved line and called it the PS series. The original lenses for the SQ are called the S series. This new placement of the dial is especially helpful when using the prism VF because it renders the dial on the original back almost completely inaccessible.įor photos taken with this camera look here.
#BRONICA SQ SPEEDGRIP ISO#
But when the SQ-Ai was released it came with an improved back that has the ISO dial on the back where it is easily accessible, and it also includes an EV comp dial. The original SQ back had the ISO dial on the top, like you can see in the photo of the 645 back below. And speaking of film backs, there are a couple of different designs. You can also shoot 6×4.5 photos with this body if you use the appropriate film back. I mostly use this one handheld, and absolutely love taking square photos probably largely under the influence of my Dad, who shot 6×6 almost exclusively from 1956 to 1963 and left behind a treasure of well preserved and well organized black and white negatives. It’s bigger than the ETR but not all that much different in practical use. The first model of this line, the SQ, was released in 1980. This is the SQ-A, the second of five versions of the 6×6 camera that takes square photos and was released in 1982. After many years and many models of modular medium format SLR cameras based on focal plane shutters, the last three SLR models made by Bronica were all based on lens shutters, with several versions of each one.
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