The Plaubel Makina 670 is a professional medium format rangefinder camera known for its portability, sharp optics and precision engineering. The Japanese-made camera was introduced in the mid-20th century as an advanced successor to earlier models such as the Makina 67. The 670 is widely appreciated for its combination of classic mechanical craftsmanship and advanced photographic features.
Makina 670 Features
The Plaubel Makina 670 is a medium format rangefinder camera for 120 film that produces 6x7cm negatives. The camera is equipped with a high-quality Nikkor 80mm f/2.8 lens that features a 6-element, 4-group optical design that provides exceptional sharpness and contrast. This lens has a focal length equivalent to approximately 40mm in 35mm format, making it versatile for various photography styles such as landscapes, portraits and documentary work.
Exposure time and shutter
The camera features a Seiko central shutter mechanism with speeds from 1 second to 1/500 second, including a bulb mode (B) for long exposures. The central shutter enables flash synchronization at all shutter speeds, a feature that is particularly useful for studio and flash photography. The flash can be connected to the hot shoe on the top, among other things.
Focusing
Focusing is achieved via a coupled rangefinder system with parallax correction, which ensures precise and accurate focusing. The camera has a minimum focusing distance of 1 meter. The optical viewfinder includes bright frame lines and exposure indicators for easy composition and exposure adjustments.
Light Meter
The Plaubel Makina 670 features a built-in light meter with a CdS (cadmium sulfide) cell. This light meter supports ISO sensitivity settings from 25 to 3200, allowing accurate exposure measurements in a variety of lighting conditions. However, the camera is fully manual, giving photographers full control over aperture, shutter speed, and focus settings.
The film handling system includes a manual film advance lever and automatic frame counter reset. The camera is designed to work with 120 roll film, known for its high resolution and image quality.
Body
As for physical specifications, the Makina 670 is equipped with a sturdy metal body and a folding bellows mechanism that allows the lens to retract into the body for compact storage. The folded dimensions are 178 mm x 118 mm x 85 mm and the camera weighs approximately 1.5 kilograms (3.3 pounds), making it portable for a medium format system.
Films for the Plaubel Makina 670
The Plaubel Makina 670 is a medium format camera known for its high image quality. It uses 120 roll film, allowing large format shots in 6x7 format. For example, the Kodak Portra 160* is suitable for color shots, while the Ilford Delta 100* is an excellent choice for black and white photography.
220 films
Although the camera can also be used with 220 films, this is rather unusual due to the low availability and high cost of these films. The 120 film must be changed after ten shots.
Batteries and Price
The Makina 670 is powered by two S76 batteries (eBay / Amazon*). The bellows camera is usually only available used and the price varies depending on the condition.
