The Most Expensive Lens Hunt in Tokyo
Time to feature the Mamiya 7ii with a Kodak Portra 160 film shot at box speed.
My trip to Japan got unexpectedly extended due to a happy accident at Film Camera Tokyo - a store you absolutely must visit if you're ever in the area. They have an incredible collection of Mamiya and Contax cameras, including the one that caught my eye: the Mamiya 7ii, a camera I'd been dreaming about for months.
There it was, waiting for me. Initially, the price tag made me hesitate, so I nearly walked away. But then something happened that changed everything: another customer suddenly walked into the store, picked up the very same camera to inspect it, and pulled out his phone to call someone (clearly asking for permission to make the purchase). That was my cue. I HAD TO ACT FAST before he beat me to it. Yeah, I'm definitely one of those competitive camera hunt.. 😂
The camera condition was perfect, and I secured it! As someone new to medium format photography, I was blissfully unaware of what I was getting into. In my innocence, I assumed finding a lens would be straightforward. Even with my local friend Kimi helping me navigate the search, tracking down a lens for this specific Mamiya mount proved more challenging than expected. There I was in Japan with a newly purchased medium format camera and no way to actually use it, making this clearly a problem that needed solving.
I found what I needed on eBay, but there was a catch: three-day delivery. My solution was simple, though far from frugal - extend my trip by three days! Sometimes the photography gods demand sacrifices.
This is my very first shot in medium format (yes, with EXIF and location!):
What immediately struck me was the incredible level of detail. Check out what happens when I zoom this photo to 100%:
The grain structure in medium format film is exceptional. Since the negative is significantly larger, the grain appears much finer when scanned. Everything scales proportionally, so what you get are scans with incredibly pleasant texture that's a joy to work with. There's something almost tactile about medium format grain that makes post-processing feel more rewarding, especially when scanning with also a mediu format camera (or tilt-shifted), and zooming in.
One reality check with the 6x7 format is that it only gives you 10 shots per roll, making it an expensive proposition. In hindsight, I probably should have gone with a 6x4.5 format, which would have allowed me to squeeze more shots out of each film roll.
But medium format has something truly special about it, particularly with the constraint of just 10 shots per roll. This limitation forced me to be more intentional, resulting in some pretty unique shots.
One quirk of the Mamiya 7ii is that its light meter isn't TTL (Through The Lens), meaning that when using ND filters, I need to compensate manually either by adjusting the ISO setting or using the exposure compensation dial on top of the camera body.
We woke up early that morning, and I was buzzing with excitement to finally test the camera. Fortunately, I managed not to completely mess up the operation, though I'll admit I felt intimidated by the mechanics of medium format film loading. After diving into YouTube tutorials, I discovered I needed a take-up spool, which is something the camera hadn't come with. Thankfully, the folks at the camera store came to my rescue and provided one.
We headed to Tokyo Tower, and all the shots I took were properly documented with accurate exposure information thanks to a phone App called LightMe Logbook, which I plan writing about it soon.
From the top of Tokyo Tower, I took some shots through the less-than-pristine observation deck glass. When I zoomed in later, I was blown away by just how sharp the Mamiya lens really is, even shooting through that dirty glass, couldn't diminish the incredible optical quality.
I shot three rolls during my extended stay: this Portra 160 and two rolls of Kodak Gold. When I returned home, I had them developed at Gelatin Labs since I wasn't familiar with medium format film handling and processing. I did scan them myself, but these first three rolls definitely weren't the best candidates for experimenting with home development.
And last, but certainlly not least, family's portrait over city convex mirrors: a classic signature!
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Very cool! Congrats on your new find. Enjoy!!
Would love to take you around the next time you come here 😉