First Day Out with the Epson R-D1
So the Epson R-D1 turned up yesterday — my first rangefinder camera. Picked it up the night before, and within a few hours I was already deep in. Actually, even before I’d taken my first proper photo with it, something pretty wild happened.
On the drive back after picking it up, I spotted this black and gold Trans Am parked outside a pub — a dead ringer for the Smokey and the Bandit car. I couldn’t not stop. Ended up chatting to the guy who owned it, a bloke called Richard. Turns out he’s built a full-on replica of the Smokey and the Bandit truck as well. Proper detail-obsessed stuff. We got talking, and I grabbed his details — hoping to photograph him and his studio soon. It sparked an idea I’ve been sitting on for a while: portraits of men in their spaces, surrounded by the stuff they love. That encounter made the R-D1 feel like the right camera for that kind of work — small, unobtrusive, filmic vibe without the fuss of actual film.
The next day, I took it out for a proper walk. Lucy and I went through Newport — got breakfast and coffee at BOD, wandered through the markets. The R-D1 didn’t slow us down or draw attention to itself. It just sat in my hand, ready to go. I’d fitted it with a Voigtländer 40mm f/1.4 Nokton, and it really impressed me — the rendering is gorgeous. Shot everything in RAW so I could play around later.
Using a rangefinder was weird at first. I'm used to seeing exactly what I’m capturing, but with this it’s all muscle memory and trusting your eye. The focusing was tricky — I missed a few shots — but by the end of the walk I felt more dialed in. It’s something I actually want to get better at. Unlike most tech, this camera doesn't do it for you, and that makes it more rewarding when you nail it.
We ended up at a bar where a bunch of Shropshire Hells Angels were parked up, hanging around their bikes. I didn’t talk to them — felt like I’d be intruding — but I did snap a few frames. Just observing. Bikes gleaming in the sun, jackets patched up with years of stories. Felt like something out of a film.
Lucy let me take a few portraits of her too. She's always been good about me sticking a camera in her face, but this one made it feel more casual — like I wasn’t even shooting, just hanging out and happening to take a few pictures.
What really stood out is how much I enjoyed using it. I’ve been lugging around medium format gear and a Canon with a huge 28-70mm f/2 lens for a while, and honestly it’s heavy. Amazing quality, yeah, but not fun to carry. The R-D1 is light, well built, and actually fun to shoot with. Makes photography feel less like work again.
I’ve got some project ideas brewing — especially around documenting people like Richard, men in their worlds. The R-D1 feels like the right tool for that kind of slow, personal, observational work. It’s already made me excited to shoot again, and that’s kind of the whole point.
