paul s

These Minolta AL's are great little cameras and they are not too sought after, so they remain quite reasonable.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7532437446&category=15237&ssPageName=WDVW&rd=1

-Paul

I try to use film no faster than ISO 100 for half-frame cameras to address the grain issue.

Some one-hour color processors will print two adjacent half-frames on a 5X7 print. It's an economical way to get around the large number of exposures, 72 at a time, as well as the excuse by the processor, "we don't have a negative mask for 24X18 millimeters!"

-Paul

I have an FX-D Quartz which uses the same lenses. The least expensive Yashica 28mm f2.8 wideangle lens is not very impressive. It has quite a bit of blurriness at the edges, much more so than my Pentax 28/2.8 M in K-mount. I suggest you look for the Zeiss lenses in the wideangle. The Yashica 50mm lenses are excellent.

-Paul

The Yashinon (4 element Tessar type) is a better lens overall than the Yashikor (3-element Cook Triplet), but you may not notice it until you look closely at the corners and edges of the frame. My experience is that the 3-element Yashikors show softness in those areas, particularly on landscape, architectural shots and large group photos. The softness won't be obvious on single portraits and small groups, and may actaully be desireable if you are trying to blur other details.

-Paul Shinkawa

You might want to start with one of those wide, embroidered hippie neckstraps on your camera. Just to get in the mood.

-Paul

It doesn't look like it has an FP shutter, but it has a deep body, kinda like an SLR. Also, I see a guide for a cocking rack in the bottom which leads me to believe that it had a wind lever rather than a knob.

Have you ried off the back yet? Sometimes there are markings inside which can be clues.

Beats me.

-Paul

You've got a pentaprism with split image finder screen for an Exakta Varex or VX. Circa 1952. The prism cover is chrome right?

It will fit any of the Exakta's from the VX model to the VXIIB model plus the Exa's with the removeable finders.

Depending on its condition it typically sells from anywhere from $15 to $35 and the screen itself sells anywhere from $2 to $10.

I think there were three variations of the all chrome models made by Ihagee and perhaps one or two made by 3rd parties.

Get yourself a nice Exa with a waistlevel finder for about $25. add a preset 50mm Tessar for another $25 and add this to it. you'll have a nice compact camera.

-Paul

The US Occupation of Germany after WWII is officially from May 9, 1945 to May 5, 1955 (based on eligibility to wear the US Occupation medal. Those are likely the bookends to your manufacturing date.

I have read that all non-military camera production ceased during the war years. However, I have a Retina with a postwar body and a pre-war uncoated Schneider lens (based on Schneider's webpage. It was most likely put together out of inventory parts after WWII for the PX market. If the Solinar is coated you probably have something made toward the end of the Occupation. Sometime toward the end of the Occupation, Ansco cameras rebadged from Agfas reappeared on the US market. I believe the Ventura was sold in the US as an Ansco camera too.

Sorry i can't be more help than that.

-Paul

I have it on VHS. A lot of fun. I wish I could handle my Exakta as adeptly as he does.

-Paul

Peter:

If you need to adjust the Iskra rangefinder, send me an e-mail and I'll send you two small photos which show where the adjusting screws are located. The photos are not mine, so I do not feel that it is proper for me to post them on a public forum. "pshinkaw@yahoo.com"

I looked at the auction photos you linked above. The orange window is centered, so it appears to have been set up for 6X6 only. A 645 conversion would have a different placement for the window.

I really can't tell from the photos that either of the struts is damaged. I certainly wouldn't have picked up on it from those photos. Straightening them could be an interesting challenge, but necessary if you want reliable focusing.

Sometimes these cameras are sold after parts have been mixed and matched. I have noticed that not all Iskras interchange backs perfectly. That could be a source of light leaks. Also, light sealing in some Soviet cameras is done with black yarn. When that falls out it does not leave easily noticeable traces behind like crumbling foam does. Your camera may have lost some or all of its light seals. Additionally, there could be a missing screw or two under the top. Really dramatic light leaks, the kind that leave broad black bands, can result from these holes.

I would judge an Iskra on the quality of the lens and the integrity of the rangefinder. If those two things seem to be OK, I think the camera is worthwhile restoring.

-Paul

There is more than one version of the Welti, but I can't tell you how many. I think Welta (the manufacturer's name) didn't make it past WWII. I think the Welti was the entry level camera. The Weltini was a higher cost model. They also made very good folding rollfilm cameras and one or more TLR's. Some names to search for are Weltur and Reflekta or Reflecta.

-Paul Shinkawa

If the Agfa camera has a Schneider lens (e.g. Agfa Karat 36 w/50/2.0 Schneider Xenon) the Schneider website can tell you when the lens was manufactured. That should get you to with a a year or so of the camera manufacturing date.

http://www.schneideroptics.com/info/age_of_lenses/

However this technique does not work on cameras made during the eraly Allied Occupation years, I have a definite post-war camera with a pre-war dated Schneider lens. Things were pretty chaotic in those years.

-Paul

There is some information on the Uni here:

http://www.marcoant.com/Topcon/info.htm

I think it was also marketed in the US as the Auto 100. The lenses were also usable on the Unirex, a later model which I have.

My lens samples are quite good, but the leaf shutter limits the maximum speed of the lenses. Also, the Unirex has a quick return mirror, but that also contributes a good deal of noise. It's kind of a trade-off since the Retina Reflexes are a lot quieter but have no quick return mirror.

I bought the Unirex because I wanted flash sync (for outdoor fill-flash) at all shutter speeds.

I have a friend who uses an Auto 100 and is very happy with it.

keep in mind that even the big pro Topcons (Super-D etc) were limited by the narrow diameter Exakta bayonet mount.

-Paul Shinkawa

Nuno:

Here is a downloadable instruction manual for the Super Silette. I think the Silette is the same except for the lens and rangefinder.

http://www.urmonas.net/manuals/supsil/supsil.html

-Paul

The late model K1000 I gave my daughter uses an MS76 silver cell. I don't know if the earliest K1000's used a PX13 mecrury cell or not. I suspect that they all used the 1.5-1.55 volt battery.

-Paul

Nuno:

I think the country of origin explains a lot. I did not know that Agfa had a factory in Portugal. My 535 is marked "Made in Germany" as are my other Agfa cameras.

It most likely is a Sensor 535 under a different name.

-Paul

Most of the Konica Family of rangefinders is pictured here. On some of them you can click on the phot and get more detailed pistures.

http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~rd2h-ari/KONICA_LIST.htm

-Paul

Nuno:

Agfa labeled many of their their cameras differently depending on which part of the world they were marketing in. I suspect your Optima Electronic is really one of the numbered series with a different label. Most likely the Sensor 535, which was almost the top of the series.

The Silette was also sold in the US as an Ansco Memar/Super Memar. The Super model had a rangefinder. If you research this as an Ansco Memar you may have better luck. It was an early 1960's camera with the 3 element Apotar as the standard lens. The Super model had the 4 element Solinar (a Tessar type lens). I think the Agfa model sells for a little more than the Ansco version, but they were identical.

I have an Ansco sales brochure at home with some pictures of the Memar. My Sensor 535 looks identical to your Optima Electronic.

-Paul

Here are three sources of information on the Optima:

http://www.erikfiss.com/foto/cams/optima/e.html

http://www.bubu.jp/optima/optima.htm

http://cameras.alfredklomp.com/

I read somewhere else that the person who designed the Optima Sensor is the same person who designed the Plaubel Makina 6X7 from the mid-1970's. It does have a certain family resemblance.

-Paul Shinkawa

Agfa's from this period used a grease that turned green and solidified with age. Heating usually isn't necessary, just ethanol and lots of patience.

The 6X9 Venura with the Solinar is a really good camera. The Solinar is a Tessar copy. The really nice thing about the Agfa/Anscos is that they use 120 film and thereby avoid the complications from having to use 620 film spools.

-Paul Shinkawa

Life is short. Buy the Rollei.

If you stay with an f3.5 lens your filters and lens hoods may be easier to find. Check out the viewfinder if you can before you buy and see if it is adequately bright for your needs. OPtherwise you may want to opt for an aftermarket bright screen.

-Paul

You may have a shutter curtain hanging up partway through, possibly both. Does it occur at all speeds or just some?

Bottom loaders like the Zorki-5 can sometimes accumulate film chips torn off the leader where the hook on the take-up spool rips it. These chips can hang-up a shutter. I've had it happen to both Leicas and Zorki's. You can try gently rapping and shaking the body with your hand or using a rubber bulb blower to squirt a little air into the shutter curtain track.

Don't use an air canister. You can blow a curtain out that way if you are not careful.

-Paul

In the US Konicas were marketed under 3rd party department store names like Montgomery Wards. I have a Konica rangefinder with the Wards nameplate on it. They could have done the same in Europe.

Ihagee Exas sometimes surface in half-frame. Reportedly they were used for "law enforcement purposes" in the DDR. I do not know if they were Exakta bayonet mount or M42.

-Paul Shinkawa

The 45mm Tessars are front element focusing. I think the 50mm Tessar's are unit focusing. That could improve the performance at closer than infinity settings.

-Paul Shinkawa