Super Speedex / Isolette (A Rolleiflex in your Pocket)

Just kiddin about the Rolleiflex part, don't want to rile anybody up.

Just souped a roll of HP5+ from my Super Speedex and this camera still

amazes me. I know it is a four element tessar formula, but I got about

a dozen of those so what makes this one so much sharper? Is it because

of the unit focusing instead of just the front element, can that make

that big of a difference?<p>And does anyone have a Super Speedex /

Isolette and also an Iskra? Been thinking about getting an Iskra as a

companion if a well adjusted Iskra is a good match.<p>I'll post a

couple pics and some crops from a 2400 DPI scan. As I said it was HP5+

(my first roll of the stuff) in HC110 Dil-H for 9 minutes.<div></div>

Center crop.<div></div>

Bottom right.<div></div>

Weeds<div></div>

Weeds 2<div></div>

Paint or Rust, depends on how you look at it.<div></div>

I have a few folders (all front cell focusing) that are pleasant to use. What I don't have is one with unit focus, though I think the squinty viewfinders and parallax issues are still an issue. But my Rollei doesn't fit in my pocket and that's reason enough to own them :)

 

These are all very well "seen" B&W shots. I still struggle a bit with B&W, though there's been some excellent food for thought on this topic recently. Sharpness on a Tessar type lens cannot be faulted when you stop down a little. Wouldn't it be something to try a folder with a Planar type lens? Tack sharp wide open would be nice with my Moskva-5 but its not in the cards.

So, uh, Mike... you wanna trade back?

 

:)

And Steve.... nice work, guy.

Huh, a Planar on a folder. Wouldnt that be something. I guess a Bessa-2 with a Heliar would be as close as you could come and I know I'll never see one of those.<p>Thanks CE

I'm a skeptic about the advantages of unit focusing as opposed to front cell focusing. Your lens and the shooter behind it are both unquestionably excellent. However, there are a lot of other variables in evidence. HC-110 H along with fine grain film yields very smooth, low contrast images. Shooting at relatively high shutter speeds reduces motion blur. Distinguishing the edge sharpness from dof limitations is difficult in a shot with a prominent perspective. My feeling is that unit focusing may have some theoretical advantage in shots under 5 feet focal distance at wide apertures, but in the real world, it seems like it is going to be a hard thing to distinguish between one type of focusing system and another. All that aside, if you've got a system that works consistently for you, I say stick with it.

Nice shots Steve, the "weed that can stand on it's own" was looking like it was going to drop out of my screen all over the desk, the seperation in focus between it and the background really gave a 3-D effect. Keep shooting and posting. thanks, John R.

Steve, excellent tones!

Steve, nice stuff, beautiful texture, especially the peeling paint. By the way, I think that the "weed that can stand on its own" is in fact a Scottish Thistle. They grow wild all over the place here in Toronto, by Lake Ontario.

Great thread Steve and stunning images as well.

 

Personally, I'd go so far as to say that having a Super Isolette, Super Speedex or Iskra is like having a Rolleicord in your pocket. I say the 'cord because there are some seriously nice lenses for the Rolleiflex.

 

Mike Kovacs brings up a valid point regard parallax. I'm always overjoyed when looking down at the generic brand, bright-screen of my Rolleicord V. It is truly an East meets West experience. With East being towards the left when one is looking north.

 

Mike Conneally is our unit focus expert, IMO. He shoots remarkably well both with a Retina II and a Vito. Mike, does the Retina outperform the Vito close up at f/5.6?

Yes, the Solinar on the Super Isolette/Speedex is a nice lens, even for shooting color (Provia 400F, 1/500th sec. @ f/11):

 

<center>

 

<img src="http://photos7.flickr.com/6751636_e6d574f649_o.jpg">

 

</center>

. . . and even almost wide open @ f/4 (Delta 3200, 1/15th sec.):

 

<center>

 

<img src="http://not.contaxg.com/files/0017/7753-09Cleophus.jpg">

 

</center>

I don't claim any real expertise in any of this, but that does stop me from voicing opinions, of course. It just seems to me that there is a tendency toward hair splitting when you compare the better systems. So many things other than the focus arrangement enter into creating the final product. Steve is one of those fellows who would get nice results through the bottom of a coke bottle, so I tend to discount his pictorial evidence. Comparing the Vito and the Retinas is a good case in point. The Vito went with me to Greece because it makes nice images and it's ultra-reliable.

Wasn't the East German Ercona II reputed to be one of the sharpest lenses on any folder. It has front cell focusing. I know on my Record III the resolution is a bit soft for subjects closer than 6 ft, which isn't always a bad thing, either.

Mike Connealy... after reading and rereading your first post I have to say I agree. That first shot is not exactly test targets on a flat wall and if I remember right it was 1/250 @ f/11. Even though this was the first time I have used HP5+ it seems to be pretty smooth in HC110. Could just be that me and this particular camera really get along well. Like I said above I have several front focusing folders and only one (a Zenobia) approaches what I get from my Super Speedex. I have a 521 and a 521/16 both with tessars that I can't do nearly as well with. I've long admired your shots from your Vito, I have a Vito with a Color Skopar and I'd be lucky to make a good 3-1/2 x 5 print with it. Maybe I'll get the Vito out and give it another shot.<p>Nancy... could be a Scottish Thistle. I have no idea what it is but they are all over southern Ohio too.<p>Andrew... Rolleicord is a much fairer comparison. Please don't say that about the Ercona II as I passed one up about three weeks ago for $20.<p>Christopher... Thanks for posting a couple great shots, of course I'm a little partial to the black & white one.<p>And if anybody out there has a Super Speedex/Isolette and an Iskra I'd love to hear how they compare.

I really like these, Steve. I'm a fan of weeds, and these are such good comps. The rust stuff is one of those things that I wouldn't be able to figure out easily, but I know I like it. The railroad frog (that's what they call that thing in the middle of the tracks) is my favorite of this group. Nice work!