Who in the heck uses a motor winder/drive on a film camera these days?

Do You Use an Accessory Motor Drive or Winder on a Film Camera

  • No way, man, too much weight and bulk

    Votes: 49 35.8%

  • Are you kidding me, look at the cost of film and processing

    Votes: 21 15.3%

  • Ya, baby, these things are so cool!

    Votes: 22 16.1%

  • Yes, I really do find them useful

    Votes: 65 47.4%

  • Yes, it's important for collectibility

    Votes: 8 5.8%
  • Total voters
    137

xkaes

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Les Sarile said:
I believe the MD4 used on the F3 is the only one that also supplements the in-camera battery.
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As a side note, Minolta made TWO versions of the Auto-Winder G and one (GP? is hard to find and more expensive as a result) powers the camera as well as the drive. Works on any X- camera except XD and XK. The regular Auto-Winder G goes for about $10-20 on EBAY. Soligor/Kalimar/Centon/Spiratone/Seagull/Phoenix/etc. sold improved G winders with remote releases, intervalometers, etc.
 
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film_man

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I prefer the handling of the EL series to the regular ones. Heavier but the electronic shutter release makes it easier to keep steady and if you use one with a prism you can keep shooting without taking your eye off the viewfinder.
 

GregY

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I don't have any cameras that take them, but aside from drives, I do use a Leicavit sometimes
 

glbeas

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Sharktooth said:
You're a funny guy, glbeas

As an owner of a Bronica SQ-Am, I found that hilarious!
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SqAm cameras are not so readily available, plus the ai has a few features the older bodies dont. You use what you can get. Take care of that camera, its a good one!
 

ericB&W

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I have MD2 on Nikon f2 and MD14 on FG , don't have on Nikon F.
i find that FG is too small and needs a motor drive to use with heavy lenses to
keep camera more steady.

I can't undersand why at Nikon didn't made a smaller winder for F2 in addiction to MD2, like Canon F1 winder,
with battery inside the motor instead of the battery pack.
I find this the only great lack in Nikon F2 system , not having made a smaller winder , just to advance the frame
and to have a better grip .
 

eli griggs

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Cheers.
 

Roger Cole

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Dennis S said:
I used one for a while on my Mamiya 645 Super until I looked at the gear that the winder drove and saw how thin the gear really was and immediately went back to the hand crank method
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If it breaks I’ll buy another one, or better yet maybe a donor body just for the gear. It just handles so much better I’ll take that (small in my view) chance.
 

Dennis S

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Roger Cole said:
If it breaks I’ll buy another one, or better yet maybe a donor body just for the gear. It just handles so much better I’ll take that (small in my view) chance.
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It's just the supply of Mamiya 645 Super parts that keeps me cautious as I do have a spare but that may fail also but good luck. It is a great thing on the camera but.....
 

Dennis S

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neilt3 said:
Is it not the sort of gear a decent clock repairer could easily make ?
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I suppose it would be easy but it would be at a price that would outshine a crank. I never shoot 120 film very fast so cranking doesn't interrupt much for me anyways. I had mine on for a while also but the closer inspection of the gears ended that.
 

Melvin J Bramley

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Best use of a motor drive was with Ilfords HP5 'autowinder" with it's 72 exposures.
I still have the Ilford/Hewes ss reel and loader for processing.
Imagine that film with an Olympus Pen 1/2 frame?

TB
 

Cholentpot

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Melvin J Bramley said:
Best use of a motor drive was with Ilfords HP5 'autowinder" with it's 72 exposures.
I still have the Ilford/Hewes ss reel and loader for processing.
Imagine that film with an Olympus Pen 1/2 frame?

TB
Click to expand...

144 frames a roll but imagine if you bulk loaded one of those and squeezed even more into the can. Imagine you could have got 160 shots on a single roll. Insanity.
 

BrianShaw

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Melvin J Bramley said:
Best use of a motor drive was with Ilfords HP5 'autowinder" with it's 72 exposures.
I still have the Ilford/Hewes ss reel and loader for processing.
Imagine that film with an Olympus Pen 1/2 frame?

TB
Click to expand...

I still have a roll of that film.
 

lxdude

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eli griggs said:
The basic A series two frames minute winder is good and I've always had one or more since 1977 or therein.
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That one can't be stressing the mechanisms much!
 
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eli griggs

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lxdude said:
That one can't be stressing the mechanisms much!
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No, but I suppose I should try to find an A-1 and md sometime when I have a less pressing list of wants, just so I could take advantage of that camera's features.
 

MattKing

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Roger Cole said:
How it LOOKS is one thing, but are they actually known for failures?
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Actually, they are - but only in the case of when the camera is used with a motor winder. Replacement of the gears with more robust options in order to permit trouble free operation with a motor winder was one of the design goals behind the next model - the Mamiya 645 Pro. It is important to remember that Mamiya 645s were aimed at the wedding photography market.
Dennis actually bought one of his 645 Supers from me, and we talked about that. I had bought it used myself, from a photographer in Quebec, who had used it a lot, but never with a power winder. When I sold it it has become my backup body because I had purchased a 645 Pro, primarily because I make a lot of use of the self-timer on it, and preferred having that available over the single manual shutter speed that the 645 Super offered.
 

Helge

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Well, the GP really just has a penis that goes into the cameras battery compartment. That’s really kind of cheating.
If you want the winder off at some point while out and about, you are f**ked.
 
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guangong

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Of course there are many applications for which a motor drive are essential. But for me, using motor drive for general photography is somewhat similar to using a fully automatic rifle when hunting. One of the challenges that makes photography interesting and exciting is cultivating the skill of capturing the “decisive moment”!
As opposed to digital, there is also the suspense that is only answered when the film is developed.
I was given a motor winder for my Leica R 5, but never felt a use for it. Forgot to remove batteries, and now kaput.
 

faberryman

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guangong said:
As opposed to digital, there is also the suspense that is only answered when the film is developed.
Click to expand...

If you want to feel that same suspense with digital, turn off your rear screen, and put your memory card in a drawer for a week before downloading and reviewing your images. If you really enjoy the suspense, you can keep your memory card in a drawer for two weeks.

With respect to winders and motor drives, if you want or need to use one, use one. If you don't want or need to use one, don't use one.
 
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Cholentpot

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Working that bolt though. It's just that awesome mechanical feeling. With a motor drive you can set it to single shot instead of full auto. Some of my later cameras even have burst mode.
 

Helge

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What kind of lab are you using? Or alternatively, how long do you wait before you develop?
 
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BrianShaw

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guangong said:
One of the challenges that makes photography interesting and exciting is cultivating the skill of capturing the “decisive moment”!
Click to expand...
Ironically, that’s exactly what the folks who take photos in continuous and burst mode also say.

Same
Exact
Words

Gotta ask, which “decisive moment” is most important: the decisive moment that the image is most interesting, or the decisive moment the shutter is released by the photographer.
 
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