Fujica GS645
The Fujica GS645 is a dream-come-true medium format camera for many photographers. Fuji rolled this folding rangefinder out in March of 1983 and nowadays, forty years later, it is still highly sought after.
The GS645 has a couple great things going for it, and the biggest is probably its smallest feature - that compact size. This folding rangefinder tucks into a very compact piece when not in use. Despite being medium format, the GS645 will fit in a coat pocket once it is done performing its origami. Fuji is said to have originally marketed this camera toward the travel photography crowd and we can see why. What traveling photographer wouldn't want a medium format camera capable of fitting in one of the smaller pockets of a backpack?
Size is not everything when the GS645 is involved. This camera also has a stellar lens on it. Those Fujinon optics should never be overlooked. Plus, the camera is more mechanical than electronic. It is just electronic enough to give you an onboard, integrated light meter but, otherwise, the design allows you to do everything else you need to (like make exposures), whether there are batteries in the camera or not.
The Achilles' Heel of the GS645 is in the bellows, which were fragile enough when the camera was new but have proven to age poorly and are almost always found with holes in them, nowadays. Almost all GS645 cameras still functioning today are doing so after the installment of replacement bellows... or the original bellows are covered with gasket sealant from the local auto parts shop.
In order not to end this summary on a low note, we'll conclude by mentioning the camera is one of the rare 6x4.5cm format cameras that naturally shoots in portrait orientation. It also only produces 15 exposures per roll, instead of the standard 16 for this format.
So, the next time you have Milan on the mind and are wondering about the perfect camera to bring, it may be time to add a GS645 to your collection.
za/sd
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