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Jeff Adler

If Camera Barn stayed open longer than it might have because of the wholesale business, Olden stayed open longer for a different reason. They owned the building their store was in. They were criticized for not making the same level of sales per square foot that a tenant renting the space would need. In the late 1980s there was a repair place in Olden's building called Kipling Photo Fix. They overhauled a number of Konica RF cameras for me and made an unusual trade. I found a Konica SLR with a Vivitar 55/2.8 Macro which wouldn't come off. They separated the two and I gave them the camera. The 55/2.8 Vivitar Macro was and is a very nice lens. The Vice President at Canera Barn was Glenn Hale. I was once babysitting his car (Oldsmobile Toronado) near the 341 Madison Avenue store. While I was not paying attention, his car got a ticket. I found out that Glenn Hale knew many bad words. Those of us who were in school and worked there during the summer and holidays referred to the year-round employees as the "lifers." When 47th Street Photo was forced to close, I was at B&H (at their old 17th Street location) and asked someone whether they now had more of the market to themselves. The answer? "We're related to them by marriage and we gave them a lot of merchandise." What about Willoughby's (Willoughby Peerless)? They weren't too friendly, especially to young customers. The one benefit of shopping there if you used Konica equipment was that they were either connected to or owned by Berkey, Konica's importer at the time. Odd Konica items would appear in the store. A number of the employee's were Hungarian and the word nem (no in Hungarian) was often heard. That was the only Hungarian word I knew. I would ask to try on a lens or accessory and they would ask "Are you going to buy it?" The short answer was "Not if I can't even look at it." Olden did eventually get the look of a museum and I liked looking at things even when I wasn't buying. My Konica Autoreflex T2 of 1971, bought at Camera Barn, was used heavily and was wearing out by 1975. I needed a new camera and Camera Barn did not have a T3 in stock. I traded in my T2 and got a new T3 at Olden. At the same time I traded my 57/1.4 Konica Hexanon for the newer 50/1.4.

I have different memories of Camera Barn than Orsetto. I can't say what the store was like in the 1960s because I would have been too young. I first knew the store in 1971. It was not a "dump" fleecing tourists. It did a good business in used equipment and that department was run, at 1272 Broadway, by Henry Albu, the owner's son and Ken Hansen. Ken would later open his own store nearby at 19 West 34th Street. He specialized in Leica and other professional equipment and always had an excellent reputation. He called me to say hello not long before he passed on. I miss him. The discounters, like 47th Street Photo cut many corners. They sold gray market goods without a U.S. warranty and as we would later learn, failed to remit millions of dollars in sales tax. These were the types of places Camera Barn and other legitimate stores had to compete with. Camera Barn had some kind of arrangement with Agfa and would receive large shipments of film, paper and chemicals from them. Agfa made some very high quality materials and Camera Barn had good prices for them. My two brothers also worked there during school summers as did a number of friends. When Ken opened his first store, I asked Henry Albu about it. His response? "Ken is into photography. We sell cameras." Sour grapes. I realize that working in a camera store was not a glamorous occupation. I knew I wouldn't be there when school started up again. I went back after graduating from college in 1979. I worked there while studying for the GMAT at Stanley Kaplan and starting graduate school. The other store employees knew I had a job interview somewhere when I showed up for work wearing a suit. I would eventually start working in insurance, where I have been working for almost 44 years. Camera Barn was not the only store which did not make the transition to mail order or other consumer electronics. Most of the camera stores did not succeed in making that transition. This doesn't mean they weren't trying or that they were doing something wrong. The time for that type of business had simply passed them by. In my area of NJ I am not far from three camera stores: one in Millburn, one in Madison and one in Fairfield. People ask me whether I can still buy film. The answer is yes. Jeff Adler

Rick, Did you mean 150mm f/3.5 Mamiya Sekor C? Jeff Adler

A few things - first, I always like your photos. On a whim a few years ago I got several Nikkormat EL cameras, an ELW and a Nikon EL2. Getting the battery in is a little annoying but when there cameras are in good working order, they are pleasant enough to use. Getting automatic exposure even with very old lenses is nice. What about Albinar lenses and the Albinar name? In my school years in the 1970s I worked during the summers at the Camera Barn stores in New York. The owner of the chain was Fred Albu, also known in some ads as Fred Barn. The Albinar lenses and Alfon flash units were named after Fred Albu. Over time Fred Albu started a wholesale operation called Uniphot-Levitt. Uniphot-Levitt distributed Albinar lenses, Alfon flashes and many other products. They also used the Star D name for some products. They were importers and distributors so they didn't actually manufacture anything, with the possible exception of the tripods which were similar in design to the Tiltall and made, for a time, in the same factory. The Camera Barn chain is long gone, as is Fred Albu. His son Henry worked at the main store at 1272 Broadway and would be in his late 70s now. Memories. Jeff Adler

The 28-80 AF-D Nikkor is a very nice lens if your subject matter fits into its speed range. On an N90S with a roll of Portra 800, it can do a lot. Luis, I hope those photos were not taken in the wild. I would not want to get close enough to either animal in the wild to capture those images with a 105. Jeff Adler

I forgot one thing - Jeff Adler

My latest interesting acquisition is an 85mm f/1.4 Rokinon in Nikon AIS mount. It is the older manual focus model but is chipped. So far I have just handled it on a Nikkormat FT2. It should meter in all modes on my N90S cameras and also meter on my D3300. The price was very reasonable and the lens is interesting. It has internal focusing and the front element does not rotate. The focusing ring moves past infinity, which might help in cold or hot weather. It came with the dedicated bayonet hood. If the weather is good, I will try it out on Thursday.

Did you mean f/2.8-3.8? Jeff Adler

I am a big fan of Vivitar lenses and have mist of them from the early 1970s to the start of the AF age. If I am not mistaken, I have two of the 35-85 lenses. The late Roger Hicks was a fan of this lens and thought it to be capable of professional use if in good condition. Before the AF era, varifocal zoom lenses were not very popular. Two of mine that cone to mind are the 35-100mm f/2.8 Konica Hexanon and the Vivitar 28-85mm f/2.8-3.8 Auto Variable Focusing. The Konica lens is large and very heavy. My example was inherited. The varifocal design was used to allow the constant aperture. It was a very good lens for its time but few were made and they were very expensive. I have examples of the Vivitar 28-85 in many mounts. It is suitable for most subjects with the possible exception of exacting architectural work. I have read that this model was in contention for being a Series 1 lens but was passed over for the 28-90 f/2.8-3.5. I have many of those too. The 28-85 was also sold as a Kiron model. Only the cosmetics are different. As usual, Rick has not only shown the technical details of a piece of equipment but has illustrated them with his very nice compositions. I always look forward to seeing his photos. My latest Vivitar Series 1 purchase was a 200mm f/3 in Konica AR mount. Once the AF era took hold, varifocals became more common because AF systems could adjust for both the varifocal designs and the variable aperture feature. Jeff Adler

If I am not mistaken, I have all of the Celtic versions in every focal length. I have a funny story about a 50mm f/3.5 Celtic Macro. The glass was bad but I had an MD Rokkor-X with good glass but a cracked barrel. My repairman took the glass elements out of the Rokkor and put them into the Celtic. It was a perfect fit. The Celtic needed new rubber on the focusing ring and that's how I remember which Celtic has the Rokkor elements. The funny thing is that the second version of the MC Rokkor-X, the MD Rokkor-X and the MD all have plastic barrels. The Celtic has a metal barrel. Both are very good lenses. When Konica made the Hexar lenses and Nikon made the Series E lenses and Yashica made the Yashikor lenses, no Macro versions were made. Only Minolta, with its Celtic line, made a macro lens. Jeff Adler

I have many SRT cameras and enjoy using them. It was difficult to find an SRT 201 with the split image focusing aid so I had a switch made. The split image focusing screen from the 202 was installed in a 201 and the microprism focusing screen from the 201 was installed in the 202. Am I the only one with a 202 which has a plain microprism focusing screen? I don't know. Jeff Adler

I have many light meters of different kinds but rarely use them. I have some Promaster 2500PK Super cameras. I put on the Promaster 50/1.7 and hang the camera on my neck. It makes a nice light portable light meter. I might use it with a Bronica SQ-A or a Mamiya RB67. The 2500PK Super's meter is reasonably sensitive and accurate and the resulting exposures are good. If I want a narrower view for metering purposes I might put on a 100/2.8 or 135/3.5 lens. Jeff Adler

I bought Negra 21 b&w film in Spain in 1972. Jeff Adler

I think I have three of these. They make a nice small package with the 40mm f/2.8 "pancake" lens. The camera does not have an exposure lock feature so I find myself using the exposure compensation dial or setting things manually, especially in backlit situations or when there is a lot of sky in the scene.

The 60mm HOya lens mentioned was sold as the Bogen 60/4 Wide Angle. I have a number of these and I think they were made by Tokina (Tokina/Hoya/Kenko). I have used a 105/5.6 EL Nikkor with 6X7 negatives with good results. At some point I may have also tried the 80/5.6 EL Nikkor - old and new versions. I think the Beseler Pro lenses and the Computar lenses were made by the same company. Some of these seem to have yellowed over time and this may be due to the aging of the cement between some of the elements. Another possibility is the excellent 80/5.6 CE Rokkor-X.

Here we go again. There was an attempt to redesign the site not too long ago. It did not go well. Is this a better attempt?

<p>Rick, you have outdone yourself. A chrome T2 with the silver and black 57/1.4 with the EE lock in was my first good camera in 1971. I was young enough then that I didn't really appreciate just how much money it cost. It was about $225US and was purchased at the Camera Barn at 1272 Broadway in New York City. I did use my late father's Konica Auto S1.6 a few times before getting the T2. My Konica collection is among my largest. In the last few years I have started using some pre-Auto Reflex / Autorex Konica FP cameras. I do not have the clip-on meters for them. My F mount lenses are: 50/2, 52/1.8, 42/1.4 and 135/3.5. <br> Some of my T series Konicas have been overhauled by Greg Weber. One of them a nice black T2, has a Nikon E focusing screen in it. This makes using slower lenses and doing macro work easier. The split image focusing screen from the original Autoreflex T3 of 1973 can be transplanted into the T and T2 cameras. It has no microprism collar. When I got my first T3 in 1975 I chose the split image screen to make it easier to focus wide angles. The T and T2 cameras used an internal "bumper" system to dampen the action of the shutter mechanism. This material can deteriorate over time but can be replaced by other materials when necessary. I consider the T2 to be the sturdiest of the mechanical Konica SLRs. The T3 was changed to have stiffer film advance but a shorter shutter button travel. In the process of making these changes, Konica made the T3 work less reliably with third party lenses. Both the 57/1.4 and the 50/1.4 are excellent lenses. Greg prefers the 57. I think the 50 might be slightly better and I use both. Going from a six element f/1.4 standard lens to a seven element model created problems and opportunities. The extra element in the design allowed for better correction of certain abberations but introduced the possibility of more light loss or internal reflections. Canon went from the six element 50/1.4 FL lens to the seven element 50/1.4 FL in 1968. The coatings, at least on the front element, look the same on both. This design was carried over to the first 50/1.4 FD (chrome front) and one black front model. Only the FD SSC of 1973 used the improved coating. Minolta went from the six element 58/1.4 MC Rokkor to the seven element 50/1.4 MC Rokkor-X in 1973. Nikon switched from the old 58/1.4 to the 50/1.4 in 1962. Both had seven elements. Only in 1973 did the coating get a big improvement with the 50/1.4 SC. As you can see, 1973 was a big year for multicoating.<br> If I am using a Minolta X700 or a Canon F-1 with an L screen, even slow lenses are easy to focus. The T2 doesn't have the brightest finder so I prefer to use it with faster lenses. The finder didn't seem dim in 1971 but my eyes were younger then and I started out with just the 57/1.4. The later Konica FT-1 has a brighter finder and I have one of those with a transplanted Nikon E focusing screen too. With the various cameras and lenses of different makes that I have, I can see the strong points and weak points of each one but I will always have a special feeling for the chrome T2 and 57/1.4 I started out with so long ago. </p>

<p>Getting close enough with a standard lens might not provide the most aesthetically pleasing portrait results.</p>

<p>There are two of the 35/2.8 EF lenses being offered on eBay. They are in unknown condition. I suspect the seller does not have a functioning camera on which to test them. There was a third one from this same seller and in the same condition. I bought that one earlier today. The manual for the ZE shows the P adapter which allows you to use M42 mount lenses with correct infinity focus and stop down metering. </p>

<p>Osawa was the importer for the Mamiya 35mm equipment. I'm not sure whether the Mamiya medium format equipment was also imported by them. When Osawa went bankrupt in 1984, that was the end of the Mamiya 35mm equipment line. I have modest collections of all of the Mamiya 35mm SLR systems. I have at least one 500DTL ad one 1000DTL (no 500TL or 1000TL cameras) and a number of Mamiya M42 lenses. I have several Auto XTL bodies and lenses from 28mm to 200mm, also the 90-230. My NC1000/NC1000S collection is a little smaller but I even have extra focusing screens for the NC1000S. My SX collection of cameras and lenses keeps growing. These cameras do not have the brightest finders but are still pleasant to use if the light is good. Lastly there is my ZE collection. I have more lenses than cameras and finding ZE series cameras which still work (if they ever did) is not easy. I have the P adapters for the Auto XTL, NC1000/1000S and ZE cameras. These allow me to use M42 lenses to expand my selection when I need to. Were all of these lens mount changes good for marketing? Probably not. That doesn't mean we can't have fun with the equipment. </p>

<p>There was a 35/2.8 E and a 35/2.8 EF. I have the EF. The EF has a function which transmits subject distance to the flash system. This is similar to the AF-D Nikon system. You can get a P adapter which will allow you to mount M42 lenses. There will be no auto diaphragm operation so you will either have to shoot wide open or make sure the M42 lens has an A/M switch so you can close down manually. There are also T mount adapters for this camera as well as the Tamron Adaptall II which Mike mentioned. </p>

<p>I have used my 35/2.8 Distagon successfully on an FX-3 but have not tried them with my FX-3 Super or FX-3 Super 2000 cameras. There is no reason it shouldn't work with these cameras if they are in good working order. The Super 2000 has even more plastic in it and seems more lightly built in general than the FX-3. I am waiting to compare the Distagon to the 35.2.8 Yashica ML but that lens is out for service. It had tight focusing when I got it. I think the Super 2000's winding mechanism is somewhat delicate. </p>

<p>It doesn't look like a Minolta manual focus mount or Minolta A mount. </p>

<p>Greg is a good friend of mine. He was, unfortunately, injured in an accident several months ago. He is on the mend and making slow progress. I sent him a lens to work on a while ago. This was after his accident but before I knew about the accident. If I am not mistaken, his wife is checking e-mails for him. Try contacting him at gweber@webercamera.com first. If that doesn't work, contact me through the photo.net system. In the interim I will try to get a message through to him. </p>