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on Jul 27, 2021 14:35:51 GMT
Posted: Jul 27, 2021 14:35:51 GMT
At last I managed to find a sensibly priced Petri Orikkor Kuribayashi 50mm f2 lens in the M42 mount - and a lovely Petri Penta camera arrived with it. Petri Penta Kuribayashi 50 f2Many of you will be familiar with this remarkable lens and its beautiful bokeh; sadly. the word is out and its price has shifted northwards at an alarming rate. It does make a lovely companion to any of Yashica's M42 cameras and, using a flanged m42-C/Y adapter ring, any of the later models using the C/Y mount. And it's a charming legacy lens for many digital users...
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on Aug 19, 2021 15:56:42 GMT
Posted: Aug 19, 2021 15:56:42 GMT
I'm beginning to appreciate the engineering quality of Ihagee of Dresden's cameras. This is the Exakta Varex IIb, coupled with a Carl Zeiss Jena Tessar 50mm f2.8 lens. Exakta Varex IIbThe build quality of both camera and lens is exemplary; they'll go on snapping for another 60 years or more. BUT the ergonomics are appalling; it's the first camera I've come across that has dials on opposite sides of the top plate, one for slow shutter speeds and the other for fast. However, this camera never misses a beat. With speeds from 12s to 1/1000s it can cover most photographic needs and its variety of viewfinders provides great framing versatility. A separate light-meter is needed as none is provided. Ihagee was never a manufacturer of lenses and their cameras were paired with a host of models from manufacturers as diverse as Carl Zeiss, E. Ludwig, Meyer Optik, Steinhill, Schneider and a few others.
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on Aug 19, 2021 20:27:29 GMT
Posted: Aug 19, 2021 20:27:29 GMT
I have 2 of the more basic Exa models. They were a gift from my wife’s late aunt. Originally from the north east of Germany by the time I met her she had retired to Dresden. On seeing me shooting film with my Contax 159, she showed me a drawer of old cameras, including a couple of Exas. I loved the idea of making some images there with a ihagee camera so put a couple of rolls through them during our stay.
A very basic bit of kit, the waist level finder and non-returning mirror make it pretty awkward compared to a modern SLR, but there’s not much to distract and I found the experience charming. A few years later she passed them on to me along with the other bits, a couple of years before she passed from cancer.
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on Aug 19, 2021 22:52:59 GMT
Posted: Aug 19, 2021 22:52:59 GMT
I have 2 of the more basic Exa models. They were a gift from my wife’s late aunt. Originally from the north east of Germany by the time I met her she had retired to Dresden. On seeing me shooting film with my Contax 159, she showed me a drawer of old cameras, including a couple of Exas. I loved the idea of making some images there with a ihagee camera so put a couple of rolls through them during our stay. A very basic bit of kit, the waist level finder and non-returning mirror make it pretty awkward compared to a modern SLR, but there’s not much to distract and I found the experience charming. A few years later she passed them on to me along with the other bits, a couple of years before she passed from cancer. It's nice that you have a couple of cameras that will always prompt happy memories of your wife's late aunt. As Ihagee is the father of all SLRs, there is a kind of purist pleasure in using one, especially if it's an early model. Although the ergonomics are questionable, the quality of components, the build and the finish are first rate. I find that taking photos with the EXA 1a or this new Exakta is a bit like using a medium format camera in that more thought tends to go into the preparation for the shot, slowing the pace of the photography. Just the process of using a hand-held light meter and then transferring that information into the settings for the camera and lens makes one think more about the essence of taking an image. It takes me back more than 65 years to my very first camera - a real walk down Memory Lane.
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on Aug 28, 2021 2:35:02 GMT
Posted: Aug 28, 2021 2:35:02 GMT
My 2nd Yashica YK, and this one is all 'minty' and fully working - even the Honeywell Tilt-a-Mite flash! It's the version II flash, and uses either standard bulbs or cubes, and will tilt backwards about 15-20 degrees. I haven't tried, but I assume it will fire both bulb types at the same time if both are loaded.
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on Sept 19, 2021 12:06:33 GMT
Last Edit: Sept 19, 2021 12:08:05 GMT by biggles3
I found this refugee from the German Democratic Republic hiding at the bottom of a storage box; it a CZJ Werra 1 with a Tessar 50mm f2.8 lens. CZJ Werra 1I was surprised by the find as it's not in my current inventory though after its discovery I vaguely recall receiving it with a microscope from the DDR about 30 years ago. Curiously, I now can't find the very distinctive Werra Microscope Camera that is in my inventory and was attached to that microscope. This has Carl Zeiss Jena's own shutter - a Prestor-RVS - which provides a higher (1/750s) top speed than the more common Synchro-Compur, the later version of which topped out at 1/500s. Other than the higher top speed, this remains a very basic camera. Purists - and I tend to agree with them - prefer the earlier Werra models with the flat rather than curved top plate which pays homage to Bauhaus' design cues which we would later see brought to near-perfection in the Contax RTS. I do like the combined lens hood/lens cap of the Werra models; simply screw on the cap and then the roundel and your lens is protected. Then when you want to shoot, unscrew the cap, pocket the roundel, and screw it reversed onto the lens and you have a very effective hood. A simple concept - and good design; just a pity that most were made of a thin plastic as you will see many that are damaged. Interestingly, the one on this model is metal and rubber which may explain its good condition though close examination of the camera and its interior makes me doubt that a film has ever been through it.
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on Sept 26, 2021 15:50:53 GMT
Last Edit: Sept 26, 2021 15:52:06 GMT by biggles3
Moving away from film cameras for a moment, here's my favourite camera from the year 2000: the Sony Mavica MVC-CD1000Sony MVC-CD1000This is a pretty massive camera for a 2.1Mp sensor but it had a lens that became a legend, its f2.8 39-390mm zoom. Although I wouldn't recommend it, you could also add a 2x digital expansion to that 10x zoom. The camera records its images onto 8cm CD-R discs; thankfully these can still be found. It was highly specified for its time - and I can recall rushing to London's Tottenham Court Road and spending a fortune to be one of the first UK adopters of this remarkable camera. Among the Main Specifications: 2.1 megapixel, 1/3 inch CCD producing images of up to 1600 x 1200 resolution. 2.5 inch, color, TFT LCD monitor. LCD optical viewfinder with data display. 6 to 60mm optical zoom lens equivalent to a 39 to 390mm lens on a 35mm camera, with a constant f2.8 maximum aperture, plus a 2x digital telephoto option. Switch selectable Auto or Manual Focus options. Steady Shot function to significantly reduce camera shake. Program AE, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, Twilight, Twilight Plus, Landscape and Pan-focus taking modes. Shutter speeds from 8 to 1/500 seconds and a 10 second self-timer. A variety of white balance settings. Built-in, pop-up flash with Automatic, Red-Eye Reduction, Forced and Suppressed modes along with manually controllable intensity settings. Spot metering option. MPEG movie recording, etc., etc. The list goes on.... I'm delighted to be re-united with this old friend... Discs for it will arrive tomorrow...
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on Sept 28, 2021 13:39:03 GMT
Last Edit: Sept 28, 2021 13:40:54 GMT by biggles3
This is a bit of fun...a FED Leica II copy, dedicated to the 1935 Centenary of the German Railways. FED Leica II 1930s This rangefinder is of superb quality; its 518g (18.3oz.) weight attests to its substantial build quality. The shutter offers a range of speeds from 1/20s-1/500s plus Bulb. The 5cm f3.5 lens is a real beauty. Attention to detail is exemplary; for example, look at the alignment of all the screw heads on the front of the camera. And you have to love that old Leica leather case...
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on Sept 29, 2021 12:23:57 GMT
Last Edit: Sept 29, 2021 14:25:27 GMT by biggles3
This has been a very fortunate find: a Canon Pellix with the beautiful FL 58mm f1.2 lens attached. Canon Pellix FL 58 f1.2The Pellix was Canon's first TTL SLR and was introduced in 1965. What made it unusual was the use of a fixed, pellicle mirror through which light was metered and the film exposed. Pellicle mirrors were also employed in later models of cameras by a few manufacturers when using high-speed motor drives; with a fixed mirror, meaning no black-out, frame speeds could be greatly increased. By way of example, the Contax RTS could fire at 5fps with its motor drive but cameras with pellicle mirrors were able to fire at a rate of 9-11fps - a sports photographer's dream (provided a bulk-back was available!). The downside of a pellicle mirror is the reduced amount of light that gets through to both the film and viewfinder. That also means that if the mirror becomes soiled or damaged, the projected image will suffer and the mirror will need replacing. Obtaining a mint example was a necessity which is why it has taken so long to find one; it was worth waiting over half-a-century! The Canon FL 58mm f1.2 lens is one of those pieces of glass that everyone should try working with if only once. It is supposed to exhibit a 'pictorial' quality which will be in stark contrast to a lens like the Contax Zeiss 55mm f1.2 Planar which is all about edge-to-edge sharpness. But all super-fast lenses offer exciting creative opportunities with their shallow depths-of-field when wide open. I can't wait to try it...
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on Oct 7, 2021 11:56:16 GMT
Last Edit: Oct 7, 2021 14:12:17 GMT by biggles3
Hot on the heels of the 1965 Pellix shown above is this: the 1966 Canon Pellix QL (Quick Load) with a Canon Booster attached along with the FL 50mm f3.5 Macro lens. Canon Pellix QL FL 50 f3.5 MacroThis version of the Pellix was a small advance on the original; among the improved features was the ability to enhance metering by adding the Canon Booster - a useful accessory when coping with the light loss brought about by the use of the pellicle mirror. Also part of the kit was Canon's FL 50mm f3.5 Macro lens which is a very decent performer.
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on Oct 7, 2021 16:34:43 GMT
Last Edit: Oct 7, 2021 16:35:01 GMT by bp_reid
Since you brought Canon up... Before digital I used FD gear from my student days in the early 90s to 2005 when I finally bought a secondhand Canon 1Ds. Ironically, that set me down the Contax route as the lenses were compatible with my Eos and have a colour rendition that works well alongside Canon EF lenses. I sold off almost all the FD stuff to get a couple of shift lenses but I kept my T90 & 28-85 but always regretted losing the 135/2 and 20-35L. Since getting to the end of what I want in C/Y fit (and Tamron Adaptall-2) I've been re-building my Canon FD kit over the last few years but only with the best possible lenses e.g. the 85/1.2 rather than the 85/1.8. My most recent acquisition is the better version of my former 85-300/4.5. Spotted in Cameraworld this summer at a price which was too good to pass up, although I already had a 100-300 f/5.6 L. The big L is substantially better at any setting than the older 85-300 f/4.5 and still noticeably better than it's younger 100-300L sibling which is pictured alongside it. For scale and relevance, the Yashica ML 100-300 f/5.6 is roughly the same size but heavier than the FD 100-300L. Canon FD L 300mm Zooms by bp reid, on Flickr The photographed lenses join a T90, F-1, New F-1 and 20-35L, 50/1.2L, 85/1.2L, 135/2, 28-85/4, 80-200L & 200/4 Macro. I'd like to add a 17/4 but they are too expensive right now for what they deliver, being comparable in price to the much better Zeiss 18mm.
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on Oct 7, 2021 18:38:04 GMT
Posted: Oct 7, 2021 18:38:04 GMT
Hi bp_reid That's some handsome glass you have there; a fine FD collection! Concerning the two lenses photographed, what is the performance of the 50-300 like at the extreme telephoto end of its range? I assume a pretty deep hood is useful to extract the best contrast from it..?
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on Oct 11, 2021 9:03:38 GMT
Posted: Oct 11, 2021 9:03:38 GMT
Hi bp_reid That's some handsome glass you have there; a fine FD collection! Concerning the two lenses photographed, what is the performance of the 50-300 like at the extreme telephoto end of its range? I assume a pretty deep hood is useful to extract the best contrast from it..? We moved to a new house recently which is not decorated to our tastes. Which means little time is allowed for photography or other hobbies! In my case enforced time not photographing makes GAS much worse and that 50-300 plus a quite a few other bits have arrived this summer but not used. As a result, the 50-300 has only seen a few snaps of a neighbour's cat in our back garden on a dull day, which it handled easily without need for a hood. Sadly the OEM hood is rare and expensive, Ffordes had one on eBay but I wouldn't pay the price they wanted for the condition it was in. Regardless, the big gun is sharper and had a little more contrast at 300mm & f/4.5 than the 100-300L at f/5.6 but the smaller lens had a touch less CA. I also threw my ML 100-300 into the mix but, unsurprisingly as it lacks special glass, the gap in performance between the 2 100-300 f/5.6 lenses was bigger than the difference between the Canons as it was noticeably poorer in both sharpness and CA.
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on Oct 19, 2021 4:18:01 GMT
Last Edit: Oct 19, 2021 4:31:22 GMT by lumiworx
This pair showed up on the same day, and I thought they made a handsome couple for a group shot... Yashica J-5 w/ 5.5cm all-chrome Auto Yashinon f/1.8, and an all-black DX 200mm f/4.
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on Oct 19, 2021 8:17:15 GMT
Posted: Oct 19, 2021 8:17:15 GMT
Hi lumiworx Absolutely magical - such immaculate condition! What a delightful catch...some superb Yashica classics.
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