10/29/2026
The Canonet QL17 GIII is often called the “poor man’s Leica,” so after recently picking up a Leica M3 as my first rangefinder — and as a longtime Canon USA fan — I had to see what all the fuss was about.
I found this one at KEH Camera . It was rated Bargain, mostly because of a mysterious engraving somewhere on the camera. It was also the only working QL17 GIII they had in stock, so I decided to roll the dice.
For the first roll, I loaded Kodak UltraMax 400. Cheap enough for a test roll, fast enough for a foggy Vermont morning, and plenty of color for late autumn.
My wife had mentioned that the low fog at the town park looked especially good that morning, so that became the first stop. From there I went looking for a view of Arrowhead Mountain at the lake, and eventually stumbled across this mural.
That’s also where the Canonet taught me my first real rangefinder lesson.
I saw the fish beautifully framed in my truck’s rear-view mirror. Through the rangefinder, it looked centered exactly where I wanted it.
Then the scans came back from my favorite lab, The Darkroom 🎞️ Film Lab .
Not even close. 😅
It took me a minute to realize what I’d done: parallax. With a rangefinder, the viewfinder and the taking lens aren’t seeing from exactly the same position, and when you’re working that close, the difference matters.
I was a little disappointed that I didn’t get the frame I thought I had — but much more excited that I learned something new.
And the camera itself?
Small. Light. Super quiet thanks to the leaf shutter. Very different from my other film cameras, and a really fun shooting experience.
After seeing the scans, this one earned a permanent place in the bag.
Not bad for “Bargain.”
