darin_cozine

<p>For the past few months I've been working on a rare beauty, an Olympus Wide S rangefinder.<br> Back in 1957 Olympus released what I would think was a camera that would be fabulously popular. The Wide-S was a fixed-lens rangefinder with an unheard-of 35mm f2 8-element Zuiko lens! For some reason, only a few were produced, and thus it is a hard to find camera these days. I would love to know what the total production was, but it must have been under 10,000. </p> <div></div>

<p>Charles: Thanks for the info! Have quite a few vintage cameras. None with pinholes in the the shutter (that I know of) I will keep this thread pinned if I ever do.</p>

<p>"There were 55/1.8 Takumars (M42) but I don't remember any 50/1.8 Takumars in that mount."<br> yeah i was just going to ask about that as well.<br> </p>

There is a tiny pin on the back of the super multi coated takumars. That enables the a m switch to move.

<p>i recently gave some recommendations to a friend who wanted a better camera than their phone. Budget was 100-150. I gave some recommendations in the 250-300 range, and explained that the cheap ones would be pretty poor compared to a good cameraphone. </p>

<p>Olympus Wide-S<br> I think i have the focus right. this was from a test strip from a mystery bulk roll. Badly under developed, but it looks like the camera is working. </p>

Did you have the spotmatic F? What happened to it? Basically the only lenses that will work in full aperture mode are the ones dedicated to that system. There is a linkage required to tell the patent camera what aperture the lens is set to. The spotmatic F, es, and es2 will work in full aperture mode with the super multi coated takumars. That little 35mm f3.5 is a fabulous lens. I have not tried the 55mm f1.8 yet but it has good reputation

Nice shots John! You are right, that cheap film did a very nice job on the color. It is nicely saturated but not overly so. And you are lucky to have a decent film processor as well. Having a hard time picking a favorite, but I do like the guy with his jeep and the fordson. The orange really pops!

<p>Actually, the Vito III is on my 'want list' and would look very nice next to my Vitessa. Let me know if you want to trade for something with a 35mm and maybe we can work out a deal. </p>

<p>But then again, why on earth would you want anything besides that awesome Ultron?? </p>

<p>The Vito iii is a pretty sweet little camera, but it was designed as a fixed lens rangefinder and that is all it will ever be. You could try to find a wide-angle conversion lens, but the quality will just not be there. There is really no way to remove the lens and replace it with something else. <br> The closest thing (if you want a folder) would be a Kodak Retina IIc or IIIc which had interchangable lenses, and there is a 35mm available. </p> <p>if you want a classic rangefinder, then perhaps the Prominent as suggested above would be good. Or you could go for a more standard leica or modern bessa with a 35mm lens. </p> <p>If you want something pocketable with a 35mm focal length, consider an Olympus XA or a Yashica T4. </p> <p> </p><div></div>

<p>Rick, another nicely done post. I had seen the lordomats before, but I had always thought they were one of the many Japanese offerings. As usual, u have shared a wealth of information and some great images to go with them. I especially like #8 with the bench and the bicycle. </p>

<p>The Bookery. Olympus Wide S. Ilford FP4. Somewhat disappointed. The rangefinder may be off. Seems like everything is somewhat unsharp. </p><div></div>

<p>The red leather looks great on the Retina! -And very appropriate for Vegas! I will have to drop by and see it in person.</p> <p>I don't know how you are holding the camera, but it is very usable if you cup your hand under the camera and move the focus lever with your thumb. </p> <p> </p>

<p>Olympus OM2, 135mm f2.8 Zuiko I think. I seem to remember having a 135mm f3.5 for ashort time. But I cannot remember if I used it on this image. But that was when I first had my olympus, and 135mm was my longest lens.</p> <div></div>

<p>Overall the Konica III is a fantastic camera to use. The eclectic controls are overshadowed by the solid build and the outstanding quality of this vintage camera.</p> <p>Note: all images scanned on Epson v700, no sharpening etc. Midway through scanning i switched output from color jpg to greyscale only, which is why some images have a different tone. I hope you liked my mini-review!<br> -Darin</p> <p> </p><div></div>

<p>The lens is surprisingly free from flare.</p><div></div>

<p>The rangefinder is easy to see and the focus is spot on accurate.<br> (in the above shot, I was in a hurry and did not focus well. I tried to get the geese as they ascended)</p><div></div>

<p>The weight of the camera is considerable, and gives a very robust feel to it.</p><div></div>

<p>Having the rangefinder and the film advance on the same hand is not the most convenient. But considering that when I use cameras with a more standard layout, I almost never advance the film while still looking through the viewfinder anyway. So its not as bad as one might think.</p><div></div>

<p>And also considering I was using a similar vintage Weston Model IV light meter.</p> <div></div>

<p>Which was more than I expected for a 60 year old camera that had not been serviced, perhaps ever.</p><div></div>

<p>Almost all the negatives from the roll of 36 were perfectly exposed.</p><div></div>

<p>What really surprised me is just how nice the exposures were.</p><div></div>

<p>I developed the film in Ilfosol 3<br /> Thanks to the massive development chart for the times.</p><div></div>