C41
Kodak Portra 400
Kodak Portra 400 is a professional C-41 color negative film known for flexible exposure latitude, natural skin tones, and fine grain.
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slr-medium-format
The Bronica GS-1 W Kit (~1988) is a kit configuration of the GS-1 6x7 medium-format SLR pairing the standard GS-1 body with the Zenzanon-PG 50mm f/4.5 ultra-wide-angle lens. The "W" in the kit name denotes the wide-angle lens configuration, distinguishing it from the standard GS-1 kit (100mm PG) and the 65mm-based GS-1 W body configuration documented separately. The GS-1 body itself is mechanically identical across all kit configurations: a modular 6x7 SLR with Seiko electronic leaf shutters in each Zenzanon-PG lens, interchangeable film backs, and aperture-priority autoexposure via the AE-G prism finder.
Reference
Recommended film stocks for the — format your camera takes.
C41
Kodak Portra 400 is a professional C-41 color negative film known for flexible exposure latitude, natural skin tones, and fine grain.
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Kodak Portra 160 is a professional C-41 color negative film with fine grain, soft contrast, and natural color.
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Kodak Ektar 100 is a fine-grain C-41 color negative film with saturated color and high sharpness.
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Before you buy used
About this camera
The GS-1 system packaged with the Zenzanon-PG 50mm f/4.5 - the widest rectilinear configuration in the GS-1 system.
| Field | Value |
|---|
| Format | 120 / 220, 6x7 cm (~10 frames per 120 roll) |
| Mount | Bronica G |
| Kit lens | Zenzanon-PG 50mm f/4.5 |
| 35mm equivalent | ~25mm (approximate) |
| Years | ~1988-2002 |
| Shutter | 8s - 1/500s, Seiko electronic leaf, in 50mm PG lens |
| Flash sync | All speeds |
| Meter | None (body); via AE-G prism finder |
| Modes | Manual; aperture priority via AE-G prism |
| Kit weight | ~2,200 g (body + 50mm PG + 120 back, estimated) |
| Battery | 1x 6V (required) |
Bronica introduced the GS-1 in 1983 as its sole 6x7 SLR system. The Zenzanon-PG lens line was designed specifically for the GS-1 and included seven lenses from 50mm to 250mm. As the system matured in the late 1980s, Bronica offered the GS-1 in multiple kit configurations to address different market segments:
The 50mm kit was positioned at the premium end of the GS-1 range; the 50mm PG lens carries a higher manufacturing cost than the 65mm or 100mm due to its complex optical design for a large 6x7 image circle. Production continued alongside the standard GS-1 until 2002 when Bronica's production lines ceased.
The GS-1 W Kit represents the widest practical hand-holdable leaf-shutter 6x7 configuration available in the Bronica system. For architectural and interior photographers, the combination of:
For landscape photographers, the 50mm PG on 6x7 film produces large negatives with an expansive wide-angle perspective, and the leaf shutter can be used at any speed without flash-sync constraints. The 6x7 negative area (approximately 56x70mm) provides significantly more resolution headroom than 35mm or 645 format for large-print output.
In the contemporary used market the 50mm PG lens is less commonly available than the 65mm or 100mm PG, which can make assembling this kit configuration more challenging and costly than the standard GS-1 kits.
The Zenzanon-PG 50mm f/4.5 is the primary lens in this kit. Full Zenzanon-PG system compatibility: 50/4.5 PG (this kit), 65/4.5 PG, 100/3.5 PG, 110/4 PG Macro, 150/4 PG, 200/4.5 PG, 250/5.6 PG. All PG lenses use the same Seiko electronic leaf shutter design and couple identically to the GS-1 body electronics.
Film backs: 120 and 220 GS-series backs, 4.5x6 mask back (645 format), Polaroid back. All backs are interchangeable mid-shoot by using the dark slide.
Finders: folding waist-level (standard, included with body), AE-G metered prism (required for aperture-priority and TTL flash metering), magnifying chimney finder. Winders: Speed Grip-G (slower), Motor Drive Wind Grip (full motor drive). The AE-G prism is strongly recommended for the W Kit because it enables handheld metering for interior and architectural work where a tripod is impractical.
BW
Ilford HP5 Plus is a flexible ISO 400 black-and-white film with classic grain and strong push-processing tolerance.
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Kodak Tri-X 400 is a classic black-and-white film known for strong tonality, visible grain, and documentary character.
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