CosteaM Posted May 13, 2009 Share Posted May 13, 2009 <p>Fantastic post Louis, very detailed and informative. Thank you. The portraits of Clarence and Kevin are masterpieces.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k5083 Posted May 13, 2009 Share Posted May 13, 2009 <p>This thread has it all. Beautiful obscure funky camera, detailed review with tech and historical context, personal impressions, and great shots. This is the kind of thing I come here for and I know it's a lot of work to put these posts together. Thanks very much Louis.</p> <p>P.S. I'm intrigued by the Pop Photo article on "Model Trains"! </p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken_jeanette1 Posted May 13, 2009 Share Posted May 13, 2009 <p>Great Post Louis. We're all salivating to get one. Let's see, how do I explain to the wife that I MUST HAVE another camera?</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_shriver Posted May 13, 2009 Share Posted May 13, 2009 <p>Aires invented and patented a very clever design for the range-viewfinder that allows a very good bright line system with far less optics than other designs. <br> Basically, one lens in the viewfinder is a positive lens to focus the bright lines. But, the coincident rangefinder image wants to go through that same lens, but it wants a negative lens in that location. So they drilled a hole in that lens, and glued a negative lens in it. <br> So the viewfinder on these later Aires cameras is beatiful. Big glowing bright framelines, good eye relief, and a decent RF patch. Only negative is that the RF patch is not sharp-edged, a feature which remains unique to the Leica design.<br> Aires' design would have also allowed for parallax compensation, but they never did that.<br> More details and context on the rangefinder available at http://rick_oleson.tripod.com/looking_forward.htm<br> The Viscount was even cheaper, something like $65 in 1960's dollars. Still had that same excellent lens. Plus, it has that spiffy styling on the front windows. Only downside is the LVS coupling, and it's not a tight "locking" coupling, so it's not a huge nuisance.<br> The finish of the castings on the inside is a bit crude. The mechanics of the rangefinder are very sinple, all glued into a very simple casting. The shutter cocking mechanisms are fragile. But they are very nice cameras.<br> Aires demise probably had a lot to do with their inventments in the Penta, which was a one of many cameras designed as part of the leaf shutter SLR fad, which produced few memorable, and many profoundly unreliable and hard to repair cameras.</p> <p> </p> 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lou_Meluso Posted May 13, 2009 Author Share Posted May 13, 2009 <p>Thanks for the feedback, guys!<br> <br />"The shutter cocking mechanisms are fragile. But they are very nice cameras."<br /><strong>John-</strong> Thanks for the contribution to the thread. Although I have not had any problems with any of my Aires under pretty heavy use but, my camera tech, Clarence Gass did mention to me that the gear cog teeth have a shallower depth than some other cameras and, if jammed, it should not be forced to prevent stripping gears. It seemed common sense but it is worth mentioning. Thank you for jogging my memory.</p> 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lauren_macintosh Posted May 13, 2009 Share Posted May 13, 2009 <p>Louis Meluso: Whats the story behide the wet feet foto, Very interesting :</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lou_Meluso Posted May 13, 2009 Author Share Posted May 13, 2009 <p><strong>Lauren</strong>- I'm glad you like the shot. That is a group of bronze sculptures called "Standing Figures", by the Polish artist Magdalena Abakanowicz. It is installed outside were I work-The Nelson-Atkins Museum. Coming to work one morning, the rain had just stopped and I thought the legs and feet on the wet planks looked abstract and kind of neat.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverscape Posted May 13, 2009 Share Posted May 13, 2009 <p>Wow! Awesome looking camera and very sharp pictures. I especially liked your black and white photos. I think I just might look for one now too!</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gene m Posted May 13, 2009 Share Posted May 13, 2009 <p>Like they said.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnw436 Posted May 13, 2009 Share Posted May 13, 2009 <p>Bah!!!!</p> <p>I had just convinced myself to shell out $1500 for a new Pentax K20d and lens, because I obviously needed it. I guess I'll go spend three dollars on a roll of film instead. (Curse you!)</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mt4x4 Posted May 13, 2009 Share Posted May 13, 2009 <p>Cool camera.<br /> <br /> Just out of curiosity I found an inflation converter to see what the $99.50 the camera cost in 1956 would buy today...<br /> <br /> And.. it came out to $778.11 for 2009 dollars.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Currie Posted May 13, 2009 Share Posted May 13, 2009 <p>I must have forgotten to hit the confirmed button last time, so I'll say it again. Nice shots, unfamiliar camera, but one to keep an eye out for.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverscape Posted May 13, 2009 Share Posted May 13, 2009 <p>Yikes...not a cheap camera, is it Keith? I figured it probably was expensive, it looks like a really sharp, well made camera. But I didn't think it would be over $700 in today's money!</p> <p>It's funny when old timers say "well, we used to buy such-and-such for 25 cents." My parents tell me all the time what they used to be able to buy for less than a dollar. Yeah, but when you adjust it for inflation, it was actually a lot more money than it seemed. I have a few vintage Brownie camera ads. From the mid-1900's or 1920's, I think. They advertise for the Brownie camera, and roll film. The film cost like 50 cents. I thought..."wow, that's so cheap!" But then I went to a website where they have an inflation calculator and that ended up being like $4 in today's money. So it's about the same as a 120 roll of Kodak Plus-X. It's the same thing :) </p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martin_dake Posted May 13, 2009 Share Posted May 13, 2009 <p>Very nice write up on a sweet camera.<br> I loved the photos.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
golden Posted May 13, 2009 Share Posted May 13, 2009 <p>Wow! Excellent photos, very sharp. </p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason_hall5 Posted May 13, 2009 Share Posted May 13, 2009 <p >Man....I have GOT to get my Konica III working!</p> <p >Inspiring post...very excellent</p> <p > </p> <p >Jason</p> <p > </p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ralf_j. Posted May 14, 2009 Share Posted May 14, 2009 <p>Great post Louis. I discovered Aires a few years ago thanks to Ivor Matanle's write up on their Penta SLR that John mentions.<br> I did write up a post on the Viscount in 2007 and found it a very rewarding camera to use. It features the same lens as your III has here the Coral H, and I am thankful to you for posting the formula. I really like the portrait of Kevin at the shack, he looks pensive in a simple solitude. Well done. Here is my post on the Viscount:</p> <p><a href="http://www.photo.net/classic-cameras-forum/00NaWy">http://www.photo.net/classic-cameras-forum/00NaWy</a></p> <p> </p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brent_bennett Posted May 14, 2009 Share Posted May 14, 2009 <p>Beautiful! What black & white film did you use?</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfophotos Posted May 14, 2009 Share Posted May 14, 2009 <p>Louis -- Fantastic write-up, and wonderful to see the results from your eye with that camera. Many of us see some of these older cameras in such poor condition that when a nice-working and well-kept example comes along, it is a refreshing break from the clunkers. On top of it all, it is good to see these old cameras doing the job for which they were designed. Well-done!</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDMvW Posted May 14, 2009 Share Posted May 14, 2009 <p>Wow. Terrific.</p> <p>Must resist temptation to acquire more rangefinders.......</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lou_Meluso Posted May 14, 2009 Author Share Posted May 14, 2009 <p>I appreciate all the good comments and contributions.<br> <br /><strong>Ralf</strong>- Oh yes, I saw your post as I researched. As your delightful pictures show, and I discovered, the Coral H lens just blows me away with it's sharpness and contrast. My camera tech says they had a secret sauce in the lens coating procedure. They called it "hard amber coating". I'm not sure of the tech but it worked. My guess is that it is something akin to the Zeiss "T" coating.<br /><strong>Brent</strong>- That is all color film-Fuji Superia 400</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvl Posted May 14, 2009 Share Posted May 14, 2009 <p>I just had to find an Aries III after reading all these posts. Fortunately I turned one up and will be the proud owner in a few days. I was a high school camera-nut in the 50's and fondly remember the great fixed lens rangefinders of the day. Maybe I'll have to retire my Canonet G III QL!<br> Bill Lawlor</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvl Posted May 14, 2009 Share Posted May 14, 2009 <p>I just had to find an Aries III after reading all these posts. Fortunately I turned one up and will be the proud owner in a few days. I was a high school camera-nut in the 50's and fondly remember the great fixed lens rangefinders of the day. Maybe I'll have to retire my Canonet G III QL!<br> Bill Lawlor</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richard_ Posted May 14, 2009 Share Posted May 14, 2009 <p>Beautiful camera and photos! You have a good eye for composition Louis. Esp. like the shot of Kevin....</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mt4x4 Posted May 14, 2009 Share Posted May 14, 2009 <blockquote> <p>That is all color film-Fuji Superia 400</p> </blockquote> <p>Woot for Superia. I get mine for under a buck for 24 exposures. I know...I'm cheap, but it gets the job done doesn't it!</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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