Rollei 35S Meter On/Off Switch the Dumb Way

[jorn ake]

I am pretty mechanically adept, having worked on Volkswagens,

bicycles, houses, animals, small children - but I prefer the dumb

solution over just about any other.

 

Problem: I love my Rollei 35S but hate the @#$% case and strap

arrangement. But if I take the camera out of the case, the battery

drains away (however small that amount may be) and makes me feel

wasteful. I wanted a way to carry my Rollei out of the case in my hand

as I wander the streets of NYC but with the meter in the dark. Again,

I know that the meter is essentially always on, but whatever - somehow

being able to have the needle on zero makes me feel better about life

and what I do while living it.

 

Solution: A square of extra strength velcro with a hole punched in it.

I looked at my hole punch the other day, looked at my Rollei, looked

at the hole punch, looked at my Rollei, and zingo - an idea. Behold

the results.

 

I realize that this may be a totally worthless fix of a non-problem,

but what the hey! its Friday night and this is slightly better than

knitting.<div></div>

[jorn ake]

oooh....<div></div>

[michaelging]

Jorn , very classy, I am sure you can sell them on Ebay or home shopping network (hurry only 1400 left this hour). I have the 35se and my meter only comes on when I push the button ,as far as I know. Its really healthy for the world, that your talent has been used for good, instead of evil. :)

[jorn ake]

1400!? Holy cow, I think I blew out my hole punching muscles on the first one. I just wasn't meant to be an entrepreneur.

[georg_scheck]

Friends,

just as I opened the forum to post a question about my recently acquired Rollei 35 S,I found your useful hint.

Here is my question: Will that little thing live up to the expectations set by my Retina IIc qualitywise,other than being very pocketfriendly?

Are there useful recommendations in avoiding problems with that little camera out there?

Any input welcome! Georg

[nicolas_douez]

Great idea Jorn ! I will follow up on mine !

 

Georg : the 35S 2.8/40mm Sonnar is nothing else than an outstanding lens that gives wonderful results that are far beyond one could expect from such a little camera and fully comparable with more famous and expensive RF or SLR lenses.

 

What is particularly remarkable are the homogen sharpness from center to the edges even at 2.8, no vignetting at all even at 2.8 too, both saturation and fidelity in color rendition but without excessive contrast (highlights well exposed with still details in shadows and vice versa) while on other top-level compact lenses, although excellent, you often get too contrasty pictures IMHO.

 

So sorry I've no transparencies scanner available for now, but I'll try to drop a panel of some 35S pictures asap.

 

A very good purchase, keep it and use it as often as possible. Also get a protective 30.5mm UV filter and a screw-in collapsible lens hood for it asap. It might be easy as 30.5mm has become a standard filter thread on many Mini-DV digicamcorders.

 

:)=

[manh_le]

<i>Will that little thing live up to the expectations set by my Retina IIc qualitywise</i>

<p>

I don't have Retina IIc, but I do have Retina IIIc and Rollei 35S. Other than the distance scale, lens speed and size, the Rollei 35S does live up to the expectations set by my Retina IIIc.

[jorn ake]

I have a Leica, have owned a Canonet QL-17, and the Rollei compares favorably with them both. Not as sharp as the Leica, but certainly as good as the Canonet, which seems to be the standard for shooters of that era. The Retina shots I have seen are astounding, but I haven't seen the negatives so I don't know whether I can make a baseline comparison. What I like about the Rollei is that it is small, solid, has a very quiet shutter <snick> and a really good (I think) meter. The flash, though awkward, also works really well. Plus it is weird enough that casual conversation sometimes occurs when passers by notice the camera, usually old guys who were in Europe during the 60's. That's cool.<div></div>

[michaelging]

Georg ,I have both the IIc,and IIIc and both have sharp lenses. The sonnar is a no compromise lens that is razor sharp,with great contrast and color. The no compromise part is ,that if the photo is not sharp, it's you that is the problem, not the lens.The distance scale focusing takes a little time to get used to ,but the DOF on the 40mm lens usally covers any errors.

[georg_scheck]

After the answers I got from you all I started the first experiments with my Rollei 35 S.

Its a hefty little piece in the pocket.I have got good luck:being in Munich at a grand photo dealers place with a lot of second hand items and searching the boxes with various items I found a matching sunshade and a Zeiss Ikon 30,5 mm Skylight filter coming with it.

And the guy at the counter gave it to me for free.Thats good customers policy.

But after putting in a Chinese PX 625( I presume mercury-based)

the lightmeter doesnt live up to its expectations and is at least 3 stops away from my Lunasix value.

Is there a way to calibrate the cameras lightmeter?

Georg