Contax G2 Review

When I decided to get away from carrying a bunch of SLR gear, I picked up a Contax G1/G2 and a bunch of lenses. For the most part, I ended up using only the G2, and only the 28mm and 45mm lenses. The G2 is a solidly built aperature priority camera that does a whole bunch of stuff for you. If this is what you want, it's a great camera, and it's really easy to take with you wherever you might be going.

For shooting from the hip and on the subway, I don't think you can beat this camera. For me though, I'm moving away from those shooting styles. I still don't want to make it obvious as to what I'm doing, but I don't really like NOT looking through the viewfinder. Here the G2 hits a brick wall compared to the Leica. Like an SLR, you can't see outside the frame. If you're used to it, no big deal. But if you start using a Leica, the large clear viewfinder which gives you the ability to look outside the frame will make you an instant convert.

Another problem with the G2 is noise. The rewind noise is horrible, and the autofocus noise is not much better. This is of course compared to the Leica, which has a well damped shutter and rewind is silent since it's a manual process. Also, the G2 returns the lenses to infinity focus every time you release the shutter button fully... I never really noticed it being a problem until I put a few rolls through the M6. The ability to vary focus with just a small twist of the wrist is a godsend.

Overall, the G2 is a fantastic camera. But as a street photography rangefinder, I think it falls short of the Leica.

Want some specifics? Ok, let's start with focusing. On the G2, you depress either the shutter button halfway or a button on the back of the body to focus. When you do this, a little motor whirs and drives the lens to (hopefully) the point you've chosen to focus on. Unlike a Leica or an SLR, there's no real way to tell exactly what you've focused on... the only hint is given by the viewfinder itself, which corrects for parallax error. After a while you can tell by how much its corrected whether or not you're in the right ballpark. In all fairness the autofocus on the G2 is very good, there's just no real visual confirmation that you've correctly focused. Continuing with focus, if you release one of the focus botton, the lens returns to infinity. This makes it more or less impossible to make small changes in focus without letting the lens return to its base setting every time you release the focus button.

Noise wise, the G2 isn't any worse than an SLR, and it has a really neat shutter curtain sound, but don't expect silence. Also, the viewfinder is horrible... compared to just about any SLR, and especially to a Leica, it's just atrocious. Very small, not too sharp, and if your eye moves slightly to one side or the other it becomes occluded.

Admittedly, for the price of a Leica M6, you can get a G2 and probably every lens made for it. But for me, the Leica is infinitely more user friendly and does exactly what I tell it to do, when I tell it.

**** UPDATE - March 11, 2003 ****

I recently re-purchased a Contax G2, G1, and the 28mm, 45mm and 90mm lenses. Why? Expense. I didn't have much gear, but it was very expensive stuff, and I didn't like being beholden to my cameras (and the bank). After a lot of thinking, I went with the G series (again). I did so for a couple reasons:

  1. Handling: this is still the most comfortable to hold camera I've ever used. The hand grip is fantastic.
  2. Price: I picked up a used G1/G2/28mm/45mm/90mm setup for about $1200. To put that in perspective, this would only buy me a Leica M6 body.
  3. Autoexposure: I wanted something that had AE priority exposure. It's just quicker for me to use in a variety of changing light situations.
  4. Light weight: the 2 G's and 3 lenses are very small, light and easy to carry.
  5. Did I mention price?

Overall, the drawbacks that I cited in my earlier review I've learned to live with. The viewfinder isn't great, but it hasn't proved detrimental to my photography. Plus, the zooming viewfinder makes the 90mm tons easier to use. I've also found zone focusing with the 28mm lens to be very simple... I just carry a small piece of paper with me indicating the correct focusing points for various f-stops. In this way, I can lock the focus (on the G2), and when I trip the shutter release there's absolutely no lag. The autofocus is my last nagging point... it works. Usually. I've had few, if any, out of focus shots that were the cameras fault. However, in some situations (bright sunlight/snow glare being two of the most noticeable examples), the autofocus simply refuses to lock onto the target, and I have to play with camera orientation to get it to focus. On the plus side, the autofocus on the G2 is fantastic even in low light. The G1 only slightly less so.

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