Simple 35mm Chaika equivalent?

[daniel_h_gberg]

<p>Hi!<br>

I found that my absolute favorite camera for street and documentary is my half framer, Chaika 2M.<br>

The reason is that is its superfast! NO SHUTTERLAG! ;) And that I can reach both the focus-ring and the shutter dial with the same finger that I take the picture with.<br>

This makes for a ultrafast control no matter what situation.. BUT, I would love to have an 35mm camera to with the same ease of use and nice simple control...? Is there anything like that?<br>

I´ve looked at the Smena cameras and such, but the all need to cock the shutter manually, and that I think is one more step that I dont need.. And I need the shutter-dial to be on top of the camera so I can reach it with my finger and control it without looking..<br>

No, I dont want, autoexposure, autofocus or anything auto.<br>

Thankyou!</p>

[jean_yves_mead]

Olympus Trip 35? You don't even need to worry about shutter speed, and rarely have to refocus. It's hard to think of anything that better combines speed, simplicity, and image quality.

[john_robison3]

<p>If you want full manual control then an Olympus 35RC offers that, but without the meter. The meter only works with the cameras shutter preferred auto setting.<br>

Or a Canon GIII 17<br>

Konica Auto S3?<br>

Minolta HiMatic 7 SII?<br>

Olympus SPn?</p>

<p>All these offer auto and full manual operation. They are getting to be quite desirable and clean working examples will set you back $100 to $250 (or even more) so only you can say if that is worth it.<br>

One more option, the Ricoh 500G. Again, it offers auto and full manual control but is more of a 'sleeper' in the film camera world and can be had for $50 or even less sometimes.</p>

[maderik]

<p>The problem with most older 35mm mechanical rangefinder/viewfinder cameras is that they require a very long stroke for the shutter release to engage the metering and other functions even if you are not using them. Whether that counts as shutter lag depends on how you use the camera. Now the Olympus XA/XA2 have simple operation and a very soft/quick shutter release (it's almost too easy to trip) but no manual control. <br>

The GIII/S3/7SII/SP all have the shutter control on the lens barrel. The Olympus 35RC is one of the few that has it on a dial at the top. </p>

 

[john_robison3]

<p>Erik, I know what you mean. The 35RC has trap needle auto exposure control and that requires a long shutter button travel against spring pressure, even in manual. With my RC I've learned to take up the slack, then a 1/2mm press releases the shutter. From more than 5 or 6 feet away you can't even see my finger move. I use the same technique with my OM-1. In fact, with almost any camera it's smoother to take up slack on the shutter release and then, at the right moment, tense you finger for the release.</p>

[maderik]

<p>For a short stroke, the camera has to be either entirely manual or partially electronic. In the entirely manual class, the Rollei 35 has a short & fast shutter stroke -- as long as you don't confuse it with the lens unlock! However the dials are on the front and not the top so the ergonomics take some getting used to. The shutter control is on the left so you'd need long and nimble fingers to adjust it with your right hand in shooting position. I've never handled one, but the Petri Color 35 is also all manual and should be responsive. The shutter speed dial is on top. I'd say it's possibly the closest full frame to the Chaika 2M.</p>

<p> </p>

[JDMvW]

<p>Hey, Chaika is not the only workers' dream camera.</p>

<p>I just got a Elikon 35sm for 99¢ on eBay. I unfortunately broke the door to the battery compartment and will have to see if I can get it working again. It's got a nice Industar-95 38mm f/2.8 on it. Made by the hard-working proletarians at BeLomo sometime near the end of the USSR as we knew it, I think.<br>

(<a href="http://www.sovietcams.com/index.php?877608700">link</a> to further Elikon info)</p>

<p> </p><div></div>

[JDMvW]

<p>Spoke too soon, I have since discovered the "Made in Belarus" on the bottom plate of the Elikon, so those former proletarian makers are now wage slaves like most of us...</p>

[User_4525289]

<p>JDM, where did you get that Perestoyka monster?Last salute from the former Soviet Union. Faded glory. Does it work?</p>

[JDMvW]

<p>eBay. Only bidder at starting price of 99¢. It looks like someone (the vendor says his granddad) formed a very large collection of really cheap cameras. It doesn't work right now as I broke the battery cover off when trying to open it. I think I can fix that, and if I do get it working I'll definitely post any results I get. Without batteries, the shutter does open at some speed, but I have no idea what it might be.</p>

<p>I also got a non-working Argus A4 for the same price. Not sure what the problem is there, but I'll poke around and see if I can get going too. The Yashica ELECTRO 35 I recently posted on was part of the same deal (I bid on them to combine shipping, which even so was more than the prices of the cameras combined). The Yashica and an earlier Praktica V FB from this vendor, however, worked perfectly, so 50% isn't too bad for a few bucks and shipping.</p>

[User_4525289]

<p>I just look in my coffee table book of Soviet cameras. It said that Elikon 35 CM has some manual control. W/o batteries it is set fo1/125 shutter speed. Aperture you can change manually. So you can try it to sometime.</p>

[JDMvW]

<p>Thanks very much, that's good to know so, even if I can't get the meter going, I can give the Industar a little workout.</p>

<p>Um, what coffee-table book about Soviet cameras? par russki? Still in print?</p>

[User_4525289]

<p>Yep,<br>

it is in Russian.Called 1200 Soviet cameras (1200 fotoapparotov iz SSSR). Translation is not available. However am still a native speaker sometime it helps. I had a topic about that book. http://www.photo.net/classic-cameras-forum/00VTaL</p>

[JDMvW]

<p>Thanks again, I can't imagine how I missed that post....</p>

[JDMvW]

<p>Just looked it up. The sample pages look fairly 'standard format' and I can just (like a recent illiterate) spell out Cyrillic characters. After all Marx taught himself Russian to read economic information, maybe I could pick up enough?<br>

[At this point, a character played by Anthony Quinn stands up and says "But Marx was a prophet, and beloved of God"]<br>

The price is bad enough, but the shipping is a killer, however.</p>

[JDMvW]

<p>This is not absolutely and completely off topic and things had already slowed down, but all the same, sorry for hi-jacking the thread, Daniel. :|</p>

[daniel_h_gberg]

<p>Haha :) Thats ok JDM, the Elikon was an interesting camera that I´ll put into consideration as Im also looking for a vintage 35mm P&S.<br />Erik Magnuson, thanks for the info about the Petri Color, it looks exactly like what Im looking for! Now the problem is to find a good copy that works for a reasonable price.. Is there any other place than Ebay, KEH and Adorama to check? Is there maybe someone who sells "refurbished and like new" on the web?<br />I also wonder if someone has experince of the Smena 35 or 8M.. I know that the shutter has to be cocked manually, but maybee I can live with that, - my biggest concern is the focusing, it has to be very smooth, so can be able to turn it with the tip of my finger seconds before the shot :)<br />As for those who wonders, Im very into photojournalism, street photography and non-staged portraits. The camera has to be cheap, all manual, no stiff focusing, simple, small and reliable.. And I have concerns about buying old vintage cameras.. Would a new Smena 35 hold up better than an old Petri Color for instance?<br />Thankyou!</p>

[alexandr_naboishchikov]

<p>If you like Chajka, you should try LOMO135:<br>

<a href="http://www.camerapedia.org/wiki/Lomo_135">http://www.camerapedia.org/wiki/Lomo_135</a></p>