Seagull Twin Lens Reflex???

[metroshane]

Would a Seagull TLR be decent enough for beginning medium format? I know it's not anywhere near top of the line...but I don't want to shell out 4k on a camera that I don't know if I'll like or not.

 

[dlc]

To be as kind to them as possible, they are not very good. I have read several articles about the Seagull, and overall not good. Build quality is their biggest problem and the four element lens will get you a decent image(not the three element). They even admitted to one magazine that their quality control suffered in order to keep the prices down.

All that said, you could get lucky, and get one that will give you good service.

 

[photobug]

I think you'd be happier picking up a Yashica Mat 124 off ebay.

From what I hear they tend to work best at smaller apertures though, so you'll need plenty of light.

Think of the Seagull as an expensive twin lens Holga.

 

[John A]

Seagull cameras are made to a price so that they can be sold in 3rd world countries, not an ideal camera by any means.

I had a Mamiya 2 1/4 Sq which although secondhand when I bought it gave me good service for the 5 or so years that I owned it. The C220 & C330 have been on the market for many years & should be available at reasonable prices, another good feature about these cameras is that they have a range of interchangeable lenses.

I was not all that happy with the square format, so when the opportunity came about I sold it & went to a Mamiya 645J. Large format is good but can be expensive.

Best of luck.