Kiev 60 Experience

[jeff_swauger]

I recently purchased a Kiev 60 camera and thought I'd share the

results of my first tests, as Kievs are a subject of some controversy

regarding their performance and quality. This is my experience, your

mileage may, of course, vary.

 

I bought a Kiev 60 kit with mirror lockup and also purchased the 30mm

Arsat wide angle lens from Mike Fourman in Atlanta

(www.kievcamera.com). I chose the 60 over the 88 because of both

price and the fact the 60 is supposed to be simpler and less prone to

problems. The purchase was uneventful, that is to say it went

smoothly, the camera arrived when he said it would, well packed and

in good condition. Good service so far, so that was a good start. I

immediately tore into the contents of the boxes, and found I had a

Kiev 60 made in 94 according to the serial number, with the 80mm lens

made in 95. The 30 mm serial number seems to indicate that it was

made in 98, but the paperwork says it was inspected/produced in 2000.

 

The camera does not have the fit and finish of a Hasselblad or one of

the major Japanese MF cameras, but it isn't bad. I little work with a

fingernail managed to remove most of the excess glue and other minor

cosmetic flaws. The manual is in Russian, but a badly translated

photocopied manual in English is provided, and a well worded and

clear page describing how to load film to avoid frame spacing

problems is also included.

 

I followed the directions and loaded up some slide film and tested

the camera out. I shot two frames at the same shutter speed/aperture

combo, then moved to a shutter speed/aperture setting that would

yield an equivalent exposure, did the same, and so on to test shutter

speed accuracy and consistency, using the 80mm lens. I then shot a

roll playing around with the 30mm lens. The mirror lockup is the good

kind, a silver button on the left side of the lens that when pushed

locks up the mirror (as opposed to the kind that requires two pushes

of the shutter release).

 

The results have been impressive. I have not encountered any of

the "normal" problems attributed to the Kiev 60. Frame spacing is

good, quite uniform (better than my YashicaMat), no overlapping

frames, the film advance level is smooth and not notchy. Looking at

the film on a light table, I couldn't detect any differences in

exposure between any of the frames, which indicates that, at least

for my uses, the shutter speeds are accurate enough and consistent.

The standard 80mm lens appears a little soft wide open, but then that

also could have been due to my not using a cable release and the fact

I had tripod column a bit too extended in the first few frames, the

camera does have a fair amount of shutter slap even with the mirror

locked up. The shots were contrasty, sharp at smaller apertures, and

showed good resolution. Same went for the wide angle, it's a hoot,

the effects are interesting, gotta watch where you put the tripod

legs (or your feet!). This lens also has an incredible depth of

field, at f22 the hyperfocal range is from about 1.5 feet to infinity!

 

So, this has been my experience. Time will tell how durable/reliable

it is, but I'm happy. I finally have found a system where I can

afford to have a MF camera that accepts interchangeable lenses and

actually afford more than one lens. If this one keeps working, who

knows, maybe I'll try a Kiev 88 next.

 

Jeff Swauger

[andrew_schank]

Congratulations Jeff, you must be a lucky man. I liked the design and simplicity of the 60, and really wanted to use one with the East German Zeiss lenses. I tried 3 bodies, all from reputable sources, and couldn't get one of them to work right for more than a couple of rolls of film before numerous problems developed. I had meter problems, film spacing problems, lenses with sticky apertures, light leaks, etc. By the way, the 80mm is very soft wide open, it wasn't you. A test of the 80mm showed a whopping 15 lines per mm at f2.8. The Zeiss lenses, especially the 50mm, really are excellent and I think much better than the Kiev lenses I tried, both on the build quality and optics. I hated to get rid of the camera because of that Zeiss 50mm lens. I got a cover shot on a national car magazine with the Kiev 60 and Zeiss 50mm on one of the few rolls where I didn't have any problems. By the way, most of the Zeiss Pentacon lenses I tried wouldn't fit right on the camera without some modification to the mount, and/or adjustments to the camera body part that controlls the aperture pin. Either they wouldn't lock on the body, or the 60 wouldn't operate the aperture through its full set of openings. Bad tolerances I guess.

 

Be careful changing lenses in bright light, as the shutter will allow light to pass through and leave a light streak on the film. I finally figured this out by myself after sending the camera in for service twice. Every time I changed lenses outside, the streak would be there in the very next shot.

 

I'd wait to see if it is going to hold up before spending any more money on the system. Maybe you got a really good body that will hold up for you. I hope you did, as it is kind of an interesting camera.

[jeff_swauger]

Thanks for the tips! I hope this body turns out reliable, but I'll take your advice and run a fair amount of film thru it before I run out and dump a ton of money on lenses. The meter seems, so far, to be about one stop underexposed, but it's hard to say as I haven't used it much, mainly my Sekonic. I have a feeling the meter will not be as consistent as, say, the honeycomb meter in my wife's Minolta. ;-) I really like the camera, it reminds me of the feel I get with my Diana and Holgas, only with more control and better optics. But it's that kind of crude, old fashioned feel I like. The body on this one if well flocked, but I definitely will heed your advice on changing lenses in sunlight.

 

Keeping my fingers crossed that my luck will hold...

[nhat]

I had a Kiev 60 a couple of years ago. I had erratic shutter

problems and frame spacing issues.

 

I was happy with the lens performance and yes the 30mm

fisheye was tons of fun and stretched my creative boundaries. I

had a Zeiss Jena 180mm Sonnar that performed well wide open

at 2.8.

 

I later sold it. The Kiev 60 is the more stable of the two Kiev style

bodies. I was impressed the brightness and contrast of the

focusing screen. Damn brightest screen other than an

Hasselblad Acute Matte IMO.

 

I like the screen so much, I recently hacked one into one my

Bronica S2a bodies.

[paul_destocki__ii]

Hi Jeff,

 

I am a fellow Kiev user. I have a Kiev 645 MLU and a Pentacon Six TL. I am glad you chose this system. These truly are wonderful cameras. As a previous owner of 2 Hasselblads and current owner of a Rollei, I have to say you have found the diamond in the rough. When used with Fuji film, which has thicker spools, and Zeiss lenses this camera is capable of truly wonderful pictures (don't let anyone else sway you).

 

The fellow who gave you his opinion first obviosly had a bad experience or was not used to taking good care of his equipment.

 

As to fixing your meter, go to Kiev Kalibration and it will tell you how to make the meter pretty darn accurate.

 

I hope you enjoy your new camera and may it bring you many beautiful images.

 

In case you are wondering I am not a newbie to cameras. I am a professional with 17 years of experience working in the Myrtle Beach, SC area.

[chris_lauritzen2]

I am using a 60 and have had no problems up to this point. Truly a great camera for the price

[lucas_de_boer]

I have bought my Kiev 60 MTL from DVDTECHNIK in Kiev in the Ukraine thru eBay almost a year ago and I must say that I never experienced any problems with this camera except those that were of my own doing. After reading the manual and articles about the do's and don�ts on the internet this camera is until now a reliable tool that I use mainly for my own pleasure. And as a graphical designer I use it to shoot images for my low budget clients who don�t have the funds to pay for a real photographer. I have bought especially the 45mm and 65mm Hartblei Shift Tilt lenses for that and with the rest of them: the 30mm and 80mm MC Arsat, the 50 mm MC and 65mm single coated Flektogons, 80mm and 120mm Biometar, the 180mm MC and the 300mm single coated Sonnars and the 2x Arsat converter I have everything I have ever dreamed off in the medium format! In situations that the metering prism is not to be expected reliable I use my old Goosen Luna Six Pro for the light metering. What a system I have for just a �few bucks�! And the M42 adapter I have got when I bought the 180mm Sonnar made me buy the old but very versatile Praktica VLC 2 35mm camera complete with its 3 interchangeable viewfinders and view screens for all sorts of purposes. I have the electric 20mm and 35mm Flektogons, the 50mm Pancolar and the 135mm Sonnar for it and the adapter let me use the lenses I have for the Kiev 60 on the camera (not all lenses work out fine but the 120mm Biometar and both Sonnars do!). I have a Nikon and a Canon with lenses but the old Carl Zeiss Jena lenses render a different image and I love it!

What a discovery!

 

Lucas de Boer

[greg_w1]

For help and more recent information on the Kiev 60 camera., try...

http://www.geocities.com/kiev60slr

 

Kiev60SLR

[greg_worobets]

I have 2 kiev 60s (one MLU one without) and a Kiev 6C. My experience tells me if you keep the film stressed when you load it and wind smoothly, you'll have no problems. I have had absolutely no problems with these cameras and get beautiful results. If the Hassy users slumming with Kiev 60s have a problem, I'd surely be able use some of their excess $$$