DIGITAL AND FILM CAMERA RECOMMENDATIONS
(in association with Amazon.com)

This camera guide has been prepared to assist you with purchasing a new camera.  It is built in association with amazon.com.  I have owned numerous cameras including digital compact (point and shoot) cameras, digital SLRs, 35mm film cameras, and even medium and large format cameras.  So this page is put together to pass some of my knowledge on to you.  I know that there are numerous review sites on the web, but most of them do not really recommend a best product.  This page makes some recommendations based upon your specific needs.  While I have a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering, I try not to get too technical. In most cases, I do not discuss common features that you find on comparable cameras, and instead I focus on features that I think are different between comparable cameras, and/or are of greater importance. You can use the links for each camera to get the super low prices from amazon.com.  THANK YOU! 
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Medium Format Film and Digital Cameras

Here I have offered my opinions on a few medium format cameras.  Despite the fact that I shoot a lot of digital now, I still own medium and large format cameras. Digital cameras are just now starting to creep into the quality level of medium format film cameras, but these high end digital cameras are much more expensive. One camera below, the Mamiya M645 AFD SLR takes both film and digital backs to give you the best of both worlds! Note that for some cameras that I have not used personally, but of which I have a wide array of 2nd hand knowledge of the camera quality, I have substituted review language from other sources.

Contax 645 SLR with Autofocus

This is perhaps the highest quality of the 6x4.5 medium format autofocus cameras, although many Hasselblad and Mamiya users will disagree. Contax is well known for its excellent quality camera bodies and superb Zeiss optics. This is a very well thought out camera with outstanding metering and focusing capabilities. While the price is a bit higher than some of its competitors, Contax cameras tend to have very high resale values so, depending on how long you keep the camera and maintain it, you may actually be better off financially with the Contax.

Hasselblad H1 645 AF Kit with 80mm f2.8 lens, HV90x Viewfinder and Magazine HM,

The legendary Hasselblad with their latest autofocus technology represents one of the premier medium format cameras in the world.  In the past, many professional photographers have shied away from auto-focus cameras, complaining that the slow speed of the auto-focus let valuable shots slip away.  Quite often it was simply quicker, not to mention more reliable, to focus manually.  The H1, however, offers lightning fast, super-accurate focusing under almost any conditions, guaranteeing that even the most fleeting of instants can be frozen accurately and clearly.  And the auto-focus features an instant override function, enabling easy access to manual focusing without leaving the auto-focus mode.  The H1's central lens shutter design enables virtually vibration-free exposures at even the longest shutter speeds and makes the H1 capable of flash-synchronization at all shutter speeds, up to 1/800 of a second.  The advanced auto functions of the H1 take the guesswork out of your photography, allowing even the most spontaneous of shots to be perfectly focused and exposed.  In addition, the H1 can be customized to suit your individual needs.  The H1 allows you to save specific setting groups as so called profiles so you can then instantly access a whole range of pre-determined options at a press of a button.  This extremely useful feature enables the H1 to adapt to your specific work method or style, not the other way around.  But even when changing settings manually, the H1's ergonomic design and intuitive user interface enable you to make fast, easy adjustments without removing your eye from the viewfinder.

Mamiya 645 Pro TL Body

The Mamiya 645 Pro TL body with TTL/OTF flash automation is at the heart of a modular system accepting interchangeable viewfinders, focusing screens, film magazines, motor drive grips, and lenses.  The Mamiya 645 Pro system features fast and convenient 35mm-like handling with a medium format negative size nearly three times greater.  The cameras are hand-holdable, fast operating, and offer optional exposure automation, motor drive and a lens system that rivals the versatility of many top line 35mm lens systems, but with the enhanced quality of professional medium format optics and image size.  The 645 Pro system is the ideal step-up from 35mm.

Mamiya M645 AFD Medium Format SLR Camera Value Pack Body w/Lens Film Back, Batteries

A true film/digital SLR in 6x4.5 format, this wonderful camera can shoot both digital and film!  It handles like a 35mm SLR and has autofocus to make your life (and your eyes) easier.  Comes with an 80mm lens and a 120/220 back.  Mamiya has just announced a new 22MP (megapixel) back for this camera with a rumored price of much less than the best digital SLR out there.  I have the film version of this camera and it is presently my favorite camera to actually hold and shoot with.  It is of excellent build quality, and has some fantastic lenses available for it (my favorite is the 105-210mm f4.5 zoom that I still use for medium format portraiture).  An excellent camera for the photographer who wants it all!

Pentax 645N II

I have almost bought the Pentax 645 I system in the past but decided at that time to go with the Pentax 67 (see below). The 645N II however, is an easier and more economical transition from 35mm. It operates much like a 35mm camera, with excellent autofocus and metering systems. This is also perhaps the most economical of the medium format camera systems that have autofocus, making this an excellent choice for the beginning wedding or portrait photographer.

Pentax 67 II Medium Format SLR

Long known as the workhorse camera for medium format, the joke has been that it is the next best thing to a shotgun for defending yourself against a charging grizzly bear!  Seriously though, it is built like a tank and is a joy to use.  The version II model is easier to hand-hold than its predecessor and is equipped with a TTL direct metering sensor inside the body to offer advanced TTL auto flash operation for speedy, accurate flash photography.  With the optional 67II AE pentaprism finder attached, the 67II offers reliable aperture priority AE operation through its advanced six-segment, center-weighted or spot metering modes.  The large LCD data panel and multi-information viewfinder display provides the user with vital operational information.  The 67II offers an easy-to-use multiple exposure function. Simple operation of the multiple exposure switch, while cocking the wind-up lever, prevents the film from advancing, allowing the desired number of exposures to be made on a single frame.  The 67II offers a 12-second-delay electronic self-timer to delay shutter release.  It also comes equipped with a PCV beep to audibly confirm the operation. A great camera with today's electronics, the 67II still uses the excellent Pentax 67 optics with one of the widest range of focal lengths available for medium format. I shot with a 6x7 version I for a few years and found it excellent in every way (I sold it only to get a camera with front lens movements).