#BRONICA SQ FOR SALE SERIES#

The founder, Zenzabur Yoshino, invested the complete working capital into the production of the camera body and left the fabrication of the lens to Nikon.

#BRONICA SQ FOR SALE SERIES#

The good news with Bronica, at least the SQ series anyway, is that they're fairly robust (I've knocked and dropped mine on several different continents now), but if something does go wrong, they seem to be perfectly fixable. Bronica started out in 1958 with the introduction of the Bronica Z on the Philadelphia Camera Show. With the SQ-Ai, however, the advantage is that you would learn quickly that your camera isn't working, but you would be left with a useless brick until it gets fixed, which would be especially painful in the middle of a big trip. It's fine if you know that the camera isn't working, as you can adjust exposure appropriately for the 1/500 speed, but you're screwed if you don't know and you're shooting slide film, which will end up underexposed for every frame that's not shot at 1/500. I went a whole day once firing every shot at 1/500 on my SQ-A and didn't know it, as there is no warning until you get the film back.īelow is what happens when your electronics die on you and you don't realise it with an SQ-A.

Mirror lock-up and multiple exposure mode.

Interchangeable back, focusing screen, finders and Bronica leaf-shutter lenses. Zenza Bronica SQ-AiHighly modular medium format SLR introduced in 1990. Otherwise elements are in good condition. It's a pro, because at least you know something is wrong with the camera if it doesn't fire. Lens rear element has two hairline scratches, which has no affect on image quality. It's a con because it means you're stuck with nothing if your battery dies or something goes wrong with the electronics of the camera. Oh yeah, forgot to mention that the SQ-Ai doesn't have a mechanical fall back shutter speed. I also find most people ignore me if the camera is dangling from my neck, so it's easy to get good candid or street shots. This has allowed me to get down to 1/15 or so, although you will probably need to lock up the mirror with the SQ-A to reduce the effects of mirror vibration. I really just use normal neck straps for my Bronicas and my Minolta Autocord (as you can see in my avatar), which I keep relatively tight, as this allows me to compose or focus easily with the strap taking some of the weight and helping to keep the camera steady.īy keeping the strap taught and resting the camera against my body, I can limit unwanted camera movement, permitting me to shoot at slower shutter speeds than I might have been able to otherwise. With regard to the strap, I had a sling strap when I still used my DSLR, but I don't find that style very helpful with Bronicas or any camera with a waist level finder for that matter. Shame about the illness, but hopefully you'll be able to get out to use your SQ-A soon!

Bronica sq for sale