My Kiev 88 Experience

[ed_lau]

My Kiev 88 experience:

 

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First I�d like to thank all the wonderful people on the Medium Format Digest,

for all their help and suggestions during the past several months.

 

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I like most people became interested in the Kiev 88 camera system, because I could not afford a Hasselblad camera. When I first started to research the camera system, I was very turned off by all the negative feedback of poor quality control and lack of real customer service. However, like most photo

nuts, I kept on looking at web site printout of the camera system and compared every other used & new Japanese / German / Swiss / Chinese

camera system. There were two main reason I wanted a 2 < system, first was the fact that a larger negative will always beat a smaller negative when doing super sized enlargements ( regardless of the newer films Kodak & Fuji have out ). Although I�ve printed color 16" x 24" enlargements from 35mm Kodak Royal 400 film, with excellent results, there is always something still lacking when you compare photo�s side by side, were the negatives are from two different formats. My second reason was that the Kiev 88, is a very beautiful looking camera. The only camera that is made to semi modern standards but with a real retro styling look to it, at a low price.

 

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I then started to look at all the advertisements for used and new Kiev 88 cameras. The bottom line was a new outfit that was totally re-work and brought up to U.S. standards would run for $600-$700 (USD) with 1 year dealer warranty. A factory NEW setup from Russia / Kiev would be $500 (USD), with a 3 month dealer warranty. Then there was used equipment,

which ran from $250 - $600 (USD) and NO WARRANTY at all. But the thing with a used setup, was that you had a lot of extras.

 

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For Example: New Kiev 88 setup might include: camera, 80 mm lens, strap, box, lens hood, two 120 backs or one 120 back and a Polaroid back, UV and Green filter, instruction (sometimes in Russian or English ) and a waist level finder.

 

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A USED setup would include, all of the above but maybe only one 120 back and a TTL prism finder and a extra lens.

 

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After several months, I found a USED setup advertised on Dejanews.com.

I paid $400.00 (USD) for the following, Kiev 88 camera (Made in 1996), with two 120 2 < X 2 < film backs, 80mm lens, UV & Green filter, TTL Prism Finder and a waist level finder, cheap camera strap. The camera was Super clean and smelled also like it just came out of the factory. The previous owner said his wife purchased it in Russia, directly from a Manager at the Kiev Camera Factory. He also said he only shot 6 rolls of film in a studio setting and only 1 back was used / tested. He said his results were very good but they were in NO-WAY even close to a Hasselblad. He said the image quality was although comparable to a Mamiya 645. Well, I gambled and my results were as follows, in door flash and available light shots were excellent, the sharpness and contrast surprised me. There was a problem with frame spacing. And when I did outdoor shots on a sunny day, there was a light leak on the bottom and left side of both film backs. Also there was a problem with a plate within the camera body that connected with the PIN on the rear of the 80mm lens. This plate would press on the pin and stop down the lens during exposure. The plate was out of alignment and sometimes the lens would not stop down to F16. I decided to send the entire outfit to Kiev USA a dealer in the United States. I�ve read several good things about this dealer, Kiev USA has factory trained personal and offers a 1 year warranty. However they also

are the most expensive Kiev Dealer in the entire world. But they seem to stand behind there work and products. After sending in my outfit, the repair bill came to $275. (USD). The plate within the camera body that I spoke of

before was adjusted and both 120 backs were adjusted for space framing

and light leaks. The repairs came with a 1 year warranty, which is VERY rare for photographic equipment repairs. After getting my equipment back, I went to Central Park in New York City and shot my favorite subjects

( Trees in front of the New York City / Manhattan Skyline ). One roll came out great, the frames were all evenly spaced and no sight of any light leaks.

The other 120 back however, still had a light leak. I send back the 120 back to Kiev / USA and received it back in 4 days. Just yesterday, I went shooting again in Manhattan, tomorrow I will see the results when I pick up my pictures and I�ll see if they really fixed the light leak this time.

 

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As for additional accessories for the Kiev 88 camera. Here�s the next story.

Don�t buy anything prior to 1991. The Kiev lens all have serial number�s the first two digits represent the year that they were made. From what I�ve seen, the earlier than 1991, the workmanship is very poor. Now you have probably heard that even with new Kiev lens, that they sometimes look used. This is VERY TRUE. Sometimes, you get lucky and the new lens looks just as good as a Brand New Lens made in Japan. That recently happen to me, I purchased a NEW 30mm Kiev fish eye lens from a company called Continent Wide Enterprises. When I saw the box, I thought is was previously flushed down the toilet. It was covered with old dried brown and white glue and cheap string. However, when I opened the box, I found a Beautiful retro style leather and brushed aluminum lens case and a Super Clean Brand New Fish Eye lens that would rival any fish eye lens made in Japan. I quickly took several pictures the following weekend and the shots were just great. The contrast and sharpness are just excellent, NO Lens Flare. By the way, the lens only cost me $299. (USD) and it came with a 3 month dealer warranty. The lens was made in 1992 and is Multicoated. The best lens deal I ever had was when I was at the New York City Camera show. I purchased a Kiev 45mm wide angle lens. It was new and made in 1991. On a scale of 1 through 10, this lens was a 8.5. The lens is also multicoated. I paid only $160 (USD).

However there was no warranty. At the time, the guy selling the Russian cameras also had a Kiev 30mm fish eye for $190. But two hours later, he offered it to me for $150. Now not all lens are cheap priced. I just purchased a Kiev 250mm F3.5 from Kiev / USA. I paid $525.00, it was only single coated and the exterior finish was only a 7.5 to a 8. I thought about sending it back, but mechanically and optically it was the best out of all of my Kiev Lens. I said to myself, don�t chance it. Anyway, the glass on the lens is just so clear and well polished, that I was shocked. I later found out from a guy in Cleveland Ohio that Kiev / USA disassembles all the lens they purchase and regreases,

and reworks every part of the interior. I wish they could do that for the outside too.

 

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So far, I have spent about $2000. (USD) on my Kiev 88 system. About $150.

(USD) went to processing film that showed light leaks. After everything, if I had to do it all over again, I think I would only purchase a Kiev 88 body from Kiev / USA company. It�s not worth the time or hassle to find a bargain and pay for repairs later. The main saving in a Kiev 88 system is the price of the lens.

 

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Please feel free to E-Mail me about anything Kiev 88.

 

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Ed Lau

 

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E-Mail = ELAU632855@AOL.COM

 

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P.S. I finally did get a decent picture with my Kiev 88 camera.

 

[andreas_carl]

So, how do the photos compare to a) Hasselblad, b) Mamiya 645 or c) 35 mm cameras?

[ed_lau]

My photo's taken with a Kiev 88 don't come close to anything photographed with a Hasselblad. However the Kiev 88 photo's

are comparable to photo's taken with a Mamiya 645 or Bronica ETR.

When I say comparable, I mean sharpness F8 and smaller, color contrast, and resolution. I would also say it's of equal quality to my Canon Elan IIE camera with a NON Canon L Series lens.

 

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Ed

[ed_lau]

My continuing Kiev 88 experience.

 

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Well, as I last left off. I went out and tested my newly repair (2nd time) Kiev 88 back from Kiev/USA. The result was that they did not fix the light leak at all and the frame spacing problem returned. After another $22.00 in flim and processing, I was really made at Kiev/USA. The next day I wrote a real nasty letter to them and included every copy of previous correspondence, pack up my Kiev 88, film back and lens and shipped everything to them. The following day I followed up with a phone call too. I receive the entire camera setup back in 8 days. The 120 back was rebuilt and it seems to work now.

However this camera system is such a pain in the neck.

 

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I have to honestly tell you that when ever I pick up my Canon Elan //E camera, it�s like magic. Every shot is perfect, even when I go to full manual. Sometimes, I ask myself when did I every purchase a Kiev 88. The cost of 120 film and processing is so costly.

And everything MUST be printed by a custom lab to get a decent picture. Kodak is terrible these days. They average a 1 in 2 chance of screwing up your negatives or how about taking 3 attemps to print an enlargement with the proper color balance or without dust.

 

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Ed Lau

[ed_lau]

My Kiev Experience again!

 

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Well it just happened again. I just opened a box from Continent Wide Enterprises. My Kiev 65 mm

short wide angle lens came. When I opened the box, a smell came out that reminds me of my Grandmothers

closet. My eyes actually teared from the moth ball like odor. Anyway, after carefully removing the lens from the leather case, my eyes looked upon a Super Clean Lens. Another Kiev 88 lens from Continent Wide that could rival ANY Japanese Brand. It didn�t even look Russian. A very even multicoating, and smooth focusing that felt as good as one of my Canon EF lens. The filters were also Very Clean. Plus the Lens hood was as good looking as a Nikkor metal hood from the late 1980�s.

 

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If you read my prior post about my fish eye lens from Continent Wide, it seems they have the Best Kiev 88

Lens for the right price ( 3 month warranty included ).

 

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Anyway, I�ve decide that my next Kiev photo project will be in early fall. I�m going to shoot photos of the New York City, ( Manhattan Skyline ) from the top of the Empire State Building. My camera and lens will be a Kiev 88, 80mm & 45mm lens VS. Canon Elan //E with 50mm & 24mm lens. The films will be Kodak

PPF 400 color negative film. Processing will be done at Soho Professional Color Labs in New York City.

Several 8" x 10" and 11" x 14" enlargements will be made from each format and compared.

 

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Ed Lau

[ed_lau]

Well,

 

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I just received a 11" x 11" enlargement back from Kodak. The shot was Rockafella Center in New York City (Manhattan) during the recent flower show. I was so surprised of the quality of the Kiev 250mm F3.5 lens.The sharpness, color resolution and contrast are excellent. Color balance is VERY TRUE, not over compensated or washed out anywere.

 

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I tell you if you have a Kiev that works, the picture quality will rivial any Japanese 2 1/4" x 2 1/4". The main problem, as I stated many times before. Is just getting a Kiev 88 to work properly. Some advise to novices interested in purchasing a Kiev 88. There are NO bargains out there. Just buy from Kiev / USA. Their prices are high and there service is at times shotty. But what you pay for is peace of mind.

I'm finally starting to enjoy my Kiev 88, after 4 1/2 months of repairs,

lost money on test shots and lost time waiting around.

 

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Also for those interested, a fully loaded ( new & rebuilt ) Kiev 88, with TTL meter, cloth curtains and crank. Come within about $200. (USD) to a new Pentax 6 x 7 camera body with standard prism. As I said before too, the savings in the Kiev 88 system are in the price of their lens. The most expensive part of 2 1/4 photography is the cost of film

processing and enlarging. Anything really decent quality must be done by a custom lab or by yourself.

 

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Later Gang !

 

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Ed

 

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E-Mail = ELAU632855@AOL.COM

[sheldon_hambrick]

>Also for those interested, a fully loaded ( new & rebuilt ) Kiev 88, >with TTL meter, cloth curtains and >crank. Come within about $200. >USD) to a new Pentax 6 x 7 camera body with standard prism.

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As a former Kiev (two 60s, and one 88) owner, I'm happy to see that someone's willing to admit this. Kiev's are fun (I love old/new Iron Curtain stuff), but by the time you get a good one, you've could have bought a decent Mamiya TRL system, or made a good down payment on a new MF system.

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>As I said before too, the savings in the Kiev 88 system are in the >price of their lens.

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Yep! Now we just need a Kiev to Pentax 67 converter!

[reginald_watts]

About a year ago I decided to take the plunge into Medium Format photography after about 20yrs with a Pentax 35mm. I went to eBay (after several weeks of research on the internet) and purchased a Yashica Mat 124G. I love the clear, sharp pictures that I can get with this camera but the lack of lens options was bothering me. Always one to accept a challange 9and mot being made of money), I decided to look for an economy camera system that I could play with.

 

After another week on the internet, I decided on the Kiev 88. It had a good design, interchangable lenses and interchangable film magazines. I got the camera for about $350 from eBay. When I got the camera I did the standard "play with the new toy and see how it works". The camera came with the body (1997), the 80mm lens (1996), the strap (cheap but functional), Prism viewfinder, two film magazines, lens filters, and instructions. I found out quickly that the flash sync on the camera didn't work. I decided to run some film through the canera before getting anything fixed in case I was looking at major repairs.

 

I took a hand held light meter with me to make sure I had a backup. Good thing I did. The prism is great but the meter sucks pond water. Needless to say it doesn't work. The camera takes good, sharp pictures in good light. Nature shots and outdoor shots are great. Low light pictures outdoors are also great. I took the Kiev 88 to one of the natural caverns in Virginia and (shooting with 3200 speed B&W film) tried to get some postcard shots. I found that the camera can be hard to focus in low light. The split prism is hard to see and adjust the focus. At that point I missed the 3X loupe on the Yashica. I also found that depth of field was a problem. Because of the focus problems, my focus was sometimes off of what I wanted. I did learn a lot about the camera. Other than low light focus problems, this camera produces (for me that is) sharp, vivid pictures in both B&W and color. I put at least 10 rolls of each through this camera in the first four months that I had the camera.

 

The camera is heavy. With the prism it is about 4 or 5 pounds. It is hard to hold steady because of its weight. I only use it with a monopod or a tripod. I like the monopod because of the mobility it gives me. I can move the camera over rough terrain and shoot whenever I want.

 

Please don't get me wrong, I enjoy this camera even with the drawbacks. I look forward to getting some additional lenses. While I see the weight as a drawback, the interchangable film magazines (one roll B&W and one roll color) is great.

 

Feel free to E-mail me with any questions you may have.

 

Reggie Watts

reggiewatts@hotmail.com