david_barts2 Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 <p>I splurged a little for my birthday and bought myself a Leica IIIf RDST. Hey, it's a lot cheaper than a DSLR outfit and if I tire of it I'll get my money back when I sell it instead of having it lose most of its value in a few years.<br> NOOKY-HESUM is Leica's code word for a nifty little device that goes between several of their 50mm lenses (a Summitar, in my case) and a LTM body. When I heard they could be had for well under $100, I jumped at the opportunity to buy one (mine cost $65 plus $10 shipping), since I always seem to notice small scenes.<br> It turns this:<br> <img src="http://homepage.mac.com/n5jrn/photo_net/P1030614.JPG" alt="" /><br> into this:<br> <img src="http://homepage.mac.com/n5jrn/photo_net/P1030615.JPG" alt="" /><br> The round window is a prism that lets one use the rangefinder at close distances. The square one has nothing but the finest optical-grade air inside a frame that moves to provide parallax correction. There is more fine optical-grade air inside; no extra optics to introduce distortion into the picture, just more extension for the lens.<br> It's only a modest amount of extension, so it doesn't affect exposures by more than 1/3 stop or so. I have a vintage light meter but it sorely needs calibration, so sometimes I ended up using my digital camera as a light meter. Mostly, I made educated guesses based on the chart here: http://www.fredparker.com/ultexp1.htm .<br> Taken at a restaurant table while waiting for my lunch to arrive. Set the shutter to 1 second, placed the camera on the table, and used as gentle a touch as possible on the shutter button:<br> <img src="http://homepage.mac.com/n5jrn/photo_net/110003-08.jpg" alt="" /><br> Oregon's state flower, Oregon Grape (Mahonia aquifolium):<br> <img src="http://homepage.mac.com/n5jrn/photo_net/110003-09.jpg" alt="" /><br> Red-flowering currant, Ribes sanguineum, native here, grown everywhere with a mild temperate climate as an ornamental:<br> <img src="http://homepage.mac.com/n5jrn/photo_net/110003-11.jpg" alt="" /><br> Rhododendron:<br> <img src="http://homepage.mac.com/n5jrn/photo_net/110003-18.jpg" alt="" /><br> The last of the daphne is opening:<br> <img src="http://homepage.mac.com/n5jrn/photo_net/110003-22.jpg" alt="" /><br> The walls have eyes (well, an eye):<br> <img src="http://homepage.mac.com/n5jrn/photo_net/110003-25.jpg" alt="" /><br> And some without the NOOKY-HESUM. It's hard to nail the focus when the lens is wide open. It's doubly hard when you want to move the camera away from your eye so your face shows in the mirror:<br> <img src="http://homepage.mac.com/n5jrn/photo_net/110003-01.jpg" alt="" /><br> Dakota loves the couch (I can't remember, maybe I had the NOOKY-HESUM on when taking this, maybe not):<br> <img src="http://homepage.mac.com/n5jrn/photo_net/110003-05.jpg" alt="" /><br> Handyman Wade installing a new storm door:<br> <img src="http://homepage.mac.com/n5jrn/photo_net/110003-20.jpg" alt="" /></p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick_van_Nooij Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 <p>Congratulations on the camera and the NOOKY. I've got one too around here somewhere, not a HESUM, though. I have used it a few times, but never really found it practical for the pictures I take. (If I need Macro, I'll use my Visoflex ;) )<br> Some nice shots though, I like the eye!</p> <p> </p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subbarayan_prasanna Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 <p>Your camera looks very nice and so do the pictures. I am familiar with a very elegant Zorki 3 belonging to a friend similar to yours. Thanks for the post. sp.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subbarayan_prasanna Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 <p>I like the "Handyman Wade" the best. It has a lot of poise and character. I tried some tweaking and found it to be quite sharp. Regards, sp.</p><div></div> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the celt 2 Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 <p>Can I buy some of that "finest quality optical air" on ebay? Seriously, great shots, and a fine camera. </p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james_kennedy9 Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 <p>Do you live in a community property state?</p> <p>Oh, I see. It's one of those nutty Leica names like Bowwu.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
will_daniel1 Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 <p>I got some nooky over the weekend too, but it didn't look anything like your photos (thank goodness).</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony_lockerbie Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 <p>Got to love those Leica codes, maybe that's why they are worth so much! The 111F is a lovely thing, keep enjoying it.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ridinhome Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 <blockquote> <p>I got some nooky over the weekend too, but it didn't look anything like your photos (thank goodness).</p> </blockquote> <p>I take it you're not a Leicaphile.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jodys Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 <p>Interesting. I also got my first Leica this year for my birthday (Feb), it's almost the same camera (IIIf red dial, no ST). I've been shopping the 'bay also for accessories, but I've found the prices are ridiculous. Well lens prices are, which is why I'm still using my Industar glass on it.</p> <p>A little question: the Nooky doesn't give you adjusted distance scales I'm guessing? Because anything close-focus related, I don't trust the rangefinder 100% and I tend to use the distance scales on the lens. So I was looking at a dual-range lens, I forget which one, where there's a tab you move on the lens that switches it over to close focus, but it has 2 distance scales stenciled on the barrel so you can still check. Trust but verify. Of course it was more money than your Nooky, but I don't have any Leitz glass anyway so I have to find something. Not that my coated Industar-22 doesn't perform well, it is superb.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david_barts2 Posted March 31, 2011 Author Share Posted March 31, 2011 <blockquote> <p>A little question: the Nooky doesn't give you adjusted distance scales I'm guessing? Because anything close-focus related, I don't trust the rangefinder 100% and I tend to use the distance scales on the lens. So I was looking at a dual-range lens, I forget which one, where there's a tab you move on the lens that switches it over to close focus, but it has 2 distance scales stenciled on the barrel so you can still check. Trust but verify. Of course it was more money than your Nooky, but I don't have any Leitz glass anyway so I have to find something. Not that my coated Industar-22 doesn't perform well, it is superb.</p> </blockquote> <p><a name="pagebottom"></a><br> The NOOKY-HESUM (and I presume the plain NOOKY as well) is marked in reproduction ratios (1:6.5 to 1:17.5 to be exact), not distance scales. I used the rangefinder to focus and generally got good results.<br> eBay prices have gotten ridiculous in recent years. I think part of it is more people know about eBay, so the odds of there being someone who <em>really</em> wants something (and is willing to outbid you) at any given time is higher. I also think part of it is how eBay fees have gone up significantly, and sellers are in general asking more in response.<br> All the eBay prices for the NOOKY-HESUM struck me as ridiculous, so I did a Google search and found one for sale at Camera West (http://www.camerawest.com/) for $65, which was less than the starting bid for most of them on eBay. I also didn't buy the camera and lens via eBay; I bought them from Youxin Ye (http://www.yyecamera.com/) directly. He does sell on eBay, too, but charges very fair prices for deals off the auction site because he's effectively sharing the savings of not having to shell out eBay and PayPal fees with you.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jodys Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 <p>Yes, prices on the 'bay have gone up a lot, and yes I do believe it's a concerted effort by sellers to get a better price in part because of the now-exorbitant charges by ebay and Paypal. I do sell on the 'bay myself, just enough to pay for my purchases, but it seems every month the payment I make to ebay just gets larger and larger, and of course Paypal skims off the top. And I get stuck with the loss whenever something gets lost or stolen. Oh well, from their point of view it's still cheaper than having a brick-and-mortar store, but they're driving all the small sellers out of business, which leaves just the big camera dealers who now ask $1200 for a common lens.</p> <p>So I've been looking locally. So far I've scoped out a Canon 50mm f1.2 screw-mount that I could pick up for $400. If you're wondering why I haven't already bought it for $400, it's in terrible condition with horrendous scratching on the front and rear elements. I tried it, I'm waiting for my film to come back so I can judge whether it produces an image at all. Plus I'm dusting off my vacuum electroplating machine (came with my electron microscope, commonly called a 'sputter coater') and looking up formulas for lens coatings. I may just give it a try with some $5 flea market find, to see if I can get a hard, durable coating. I know I can do a gold, platinum, palladium, or chromium coating, unfortunately those materials tend to be rather more 'opaque' than 'low-dispersion'.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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