wanders Posted January 3, 2020 Share Posted January 3, 2020 This fella will be getting a workout soon; arrived to me yesterday. I've stared at the photo on the right many a time, a Christmas morning snap of my gramps opening up a gift camera in 1974 or thereabouts. I'm not 100% convinced I got the right one, but either way I've a yet another nice arrival. A couple years ago I was holding out hope that this one and several others would be unearthed from my grandparents' storage boxes but it seems a number of his old cameras have disappeared, likely by way of my aunt "tidying up" numerous times over the past decade. Ah well. After a quick consult with a friend, I re-adhered the mirror last night which had broken loose inside the mirror-box in shipping and had been flailing about in there, but luckily little-to-no damage to it. All cured and shined up this morning. A solidly made and reliable little shooter, evidently a lower-tier Topcon model but still quality (but for the sparse pickings in the UV mount variety), i'ts metering nicely and with working shutter-priority as well manual. A nifty little 70s example that's as of yet still comparatively dirt-cheap on the used market. A six-element Topcor 50/2.0 on the end of it. Love the bright-work at the end of the barrel. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rick_drawbridge Posted January 4, 2020 Share Posted January 4, 2020 Wanders said: This fella will be getting a workout soon; arrived to me yesterday. Very nice indeed. Even these mid-range Topcons are beautifully built and the Topcor lenses are excellent. I have a couple of similar Topcons and both leaked light at both ends of the door, so it would certainly pay to check the seals in these areas. I'm currently using an old favourite, the Konica Autoreflex T2 with a fine 57mm Hexanon AR f/1.4 lens, and I'll try to post some results later in the weekend. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wanders Posted January 4, 2020 Share Posted January 4, 2020 Wanders said: Very nice indeed. Even these mid-range Topcons are beautifully built and the Topcor lenses are excellent. I have a couple of similar Topcons and both leaked light at both ends of the door, so it would certainly pay to check the seals in these areas. I'm currently using an old favourite, the Konica Autoreflex T2 with a fine 57mm Hexanon AR f/1.4 lens, and I'll try to post some results later in the weekend. [ATTACH=full]1323903[/ATTACH] Yes, I'll be replacing the door seals tomorrow. They don't look too awful but they're certainly a gooey mess in spots. I've been shooting my T3n a fair bit recently but my T4 has become the daily driver. I recently acquired an FT-1 Motor, which I'd wanted for quite some time.... it's giving the T4 some time off. Konica AR is new-to-me in the past 3 or so years, but has all but replaced my Pentax system (K and m42) as the favorite. Really enjoy those cameras and glass and wish I'd had a go much earlier on! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Gammill Posted January 4, 2020 Author Share Posted January 4, 2020 Also in addition to the ZX-5 I'm running a roll of Adox Silvermax through my Olympus XA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Gammill Posted January 7, 2020 Author Share Posted January 7, 2020 Also have a Nikkormat FT3 with 28mm f 3.5 AI Nikkor standing by. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick_van_Nooij Posted January 7, 2020 Share Posted January 7, 2020 Last time I shot a roll with this Agfa Record III, after I had freed up the shutter and rangefinder, I discovered a light leak. I've rechecked the bellows and couldn't discover anything there. So I added some additional padding to the film chamber edges. We'll see how it goes this time. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rick_drawbridge Posted January 9, 2020 Share Posted January 9, 2020 This little outfit arrived yesterday, a nice example of the Praktica BC1, the top model in the Praktica "B" series of cameras that served to introduce the Praktica bayonet lens mount. These cameras seem to be comparatively unknown in the USA and Asia, but were popular in Europe and Australasia. I already have a copy of the BC 1 but the shutter has become a little unpredictable, and I was pleased when this collection became available. The BC1 was considered a semi-professional camera, offering aperture priority automation with full manual override, and there was a large range of accessories and lenses available; I prefer it to the later BX series which were electronically more advanced but featured lighter construction with a greater use of plastic. I've run a short test film and I'll try do do something more serious in the weekend. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Gammill Posted January 9, 2020 Author Share Posted January 9, 2020 Very nice outfit, Rick. I look forward to seeing some images. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richard_ Posted January 11, 2020 Share Posted January 11, 2020 something different this week; "Spartus 120" - always interesting (and fun) to use as there are no exp. controls. Fp4 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eb_kidd Posted January 11, 2020 Share Posted January 11, 2020 If time permits, I will finish off the 120 roll of Holga 400 B&W in my Eastar TLR (Chinese Seagull knockoff) which has possibly the dimmest viewfinder I have ever seen on a medium format camera BUT has a surprisingly sharp lens. I keep a yellow filter on the taking lens and it does fine for B&W work, although I don't quite trust the top shutter speed of 1/300. I started the roll earlier in the week when driving through Crozier Canyon on Route 66 in northern Arizona, but given that I am between jobs and my darkroom gear is packed up with the rest of my household goods in a storage shed in Phoenix, I probably won't be able to develop the roll for a few months... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Bowes Posted January 11, 2020 Share Posted January 11, 2020 My two "Orphans" will be with me on a road trip thru Honolulu shortly. Aloha, Bill 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arthur_gottschalk Posted January 13, 2020 Share Posted January 13, 2020 Hasselblad 503CW + 120mm lens 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick_van_Nooij Posted January 16, 2020 Share Posted January 16, 2020 Haven't shot any film since loading up the Agfa Record III last week. But that's going to change this weekend! Taking the Agfa and one of my Contax II cameras with a 5cm f/1.5 Sonnar to a living history event in Bettendorf (Luxembourg) 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Bowes Posted January 16, 2020 Share Posted January 16, 2020 Red Fed's !! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rick_drawbridge Posted January 17, 2020 Share Posted January 17, 2020 This weekend I'm going to re-visit this wonderful old zoom lens, attached as it is to a Canon TLb. The lens is the Canon FL 55-135mm f/3.5 from 1964, one of Canon's first commercially available zoom lenses. For those who might be interested, there's a dossier on the lens here: Possibly Canon's Earliest Zoom 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Gammill Posted January 18, 2020 Author Share Posted January 18, 2020 Looking forward to seeing some images from this early zoom, Rick. I think Canon used the design for a number years as they upgraded their lens mount to allow for open aperture metering on later models. Later, Soligor offered a lens of this range for about half the price, but I'm sure the Canon outperformed it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rick_drawbridge Posted January 18, 2020 Share Posted January 18, 2020 I've posted some stuff from this kit in the current weekly thread, Mike. It's a while since I used stop-down metering and one forgets just what a clumsy procedure it was! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Gammill Posted January 19, 2020 Author Share Posted January 19, 2020 Thanks, Rick. I learned SLR photography with my father's Mamiya Sekor 1000 TL with 55mm f 1.4 normal lens and a Vivitar 85-205 f 3.8 zoom. Stop down metering of course. Several times I've thought about looking for an 85-205 to use on my Spotmatic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m42dave Posted January 19, 2020 Share Posted January 19, 2020 Back to basics with the Praktica LB and ISCO Edixa-Iscotar 50/2.8. Might be a few weeks before I get the film developed, though. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Gammill Posted January 19, 2020 Author Share Posted January 19, 2020 After running film through my Nikkormat FT3 and Minolta XE-5 I decided to give one of my modern era SLRs some exercise. Maxxum 8000i with 35-70 f 4. Loaded with Tri-X 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Gammill Posted January 20, 2020 Author Share Posted January 20, 2020 Also while I have film in the 8000i I may use the Maxxum 100-200 f 4.5. Like the 35-70 its maximum aperture remains constant while zooming. Great little due for traveling with just two lenses. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rick_drawbridge Posted January 23, 2020 Share Posted January 23, 2020 The current Zenit thread on CMC reminded me that I haven't used a Russian camera for quite some time, so I dusted off a couple of Zenit "B"s and I'll run a film through one of them this weekend. I'll probably use the one with the 58mm Helios 44-2 f/2 lens, rather than the earlier 44; there's not much to choose between the cameras as they're both tidy and fully operational. Pre-set lenses it has to be, as the Zenit B's don't have the mechanism to operate auto-aperture lens. To add a little authenticity to my outing I'll use the Leningrad 4 exposure meter pictured, still going strong, and accurate. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick_van_Nooij Posted January 23, 2020 Share Posted January 23, 2020 Loaded up a roll of Fomapan 100 in my Rollei 35 S (and found a PX625 battery that still had some life left in it to power the light meter) 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Bowes Posted January 23, 2020 Share Posted January 23, 2020 Weather forecast is sunny with trade winds (puffy clouds), moped just had a tune up, so will put the Agfa 6x9 to work with the Kiev-4 as backup. 100 asa material in both. Aloha, Bill 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Gammill Posted January 23, 2020 Author Share Posted January 23, 2020 Found my Maxxum 28mm f 2.8 that I had misplaced. While the faster f 2 version gets most of the praise, I find the f 2.8 a capable performer. I might post a few images from it later. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now