Kent T

I miss shooting Plus X. Was a beautiful film, at a reasonable speed. Also, so beautiful looking. I will need to grab some Film Photography Project Super XX and run a roll through my Kodak Retina 1b. And try out that "Cinematic Look" 

I'll take December 7,  Kodak Retina 1b, Schneider Xenar 50 mm/f2.8. Fujicolor Superia Extra 400 film, exposure f5.6, 1/125 second. Baby (my Tuxedo cat) 

Here's another few Kodak Retina 1b images. Schneider Xenar 50mm, f2.8 lens, sans rangefinder. Fujicolor Superia Extra 400 film, F8, 1/125 second. Mainly Gossen Luna-Pro (miss it but love the new Luna-Pro F). Enjoy! 

Some new Kodak Retina 1b shots. Schneider Xenar 50 mm/f2.8. Scale Focused. Fujicolor Superia Extra 400 film. Metering with the dear departed Gossen Luna Pro, and by Gossen Pilot 2 later in the roll. 1/250 second, F5.6

On 11/22/2022 at 10:28 PM, AJG said:

Pentax K 1000's were a decent value for money when they were made, but they are way over priced today due to internet "wisdom." If you want a Pentax from that era a film KX model is a better choice and probably cheaper.  The community college where I teach owns 30 or more K 1000 cameras which hold up fairly well although the meters are increasingly likely to die and they don't seem to be easily repairable.  Any 30+ year old camera will be a bit of a crap shoot--some have had heavy use or abuse or have sat unused long enough for lubricants to harden or evaporate and may fail at any time.  Some are worse than others and some are more expensive due to hype rather than performance. 

I agree with these thoughts. I like a good Pentax, but the KX is a much better built camera than a K 1000, and usually less expensive used in top condition. KX for me all the way. I also like the Pentax Takumar lenses a lot (some of my favorite lenses). I like old Nikkormats, the FTn and later mechanical models. However, I use them with a hand held meter (I favor the Gossen Luna Pro meters). 

Planning on getting my Kodak Retina 1b out for some photos. And test my new to me Gossen Luna-Pro F meter. Have some Fujicolor 200 loaded in the Retina. Scale focus fun awaits me, depth of field and smaller fStops get you by. 

On 5/24/2009 at 2:58 AM, john_layton said:

<p>On the Church St. pedestrian mall in Burlington, Vt. (2nd floor - look for the street-level sign)...Its called Lezots Camera, and they have a great inventory of both film (lots of great old Nikons, Canons, Leicas, Blads, etc.) and digital gear - a huge assortment of lenses, plus darkroom stuff...and wonderful folks who know their stuff! About an hour and a half from my home in Newbury, Vt., and definitely worth the trip!</p>

My Nikomat FTn has a repair sticker from Lezot's Camera Repair dating from 1980. Apparently this camera spent some time in that area, before it moved South to Tennessee and my subsequent ownership. Thanks for that history. 

Here's another Retina 1b photo. Kodak Retina 1b, Schneider Retina Xenar 50 mm, f2.8 lens. Fujicolor Superia Xtra 400 film. f8, 1/60 second. Used the Gossen Luna-Pro. 

Here's a test upload. Kodak Retina 1b scale focus fun. Fujicolor Superia Xtra 400 film. Schneider Retina-Xenar 50 mm/f2.8. Gossen Luna-Pro (dear departed, took a bounce, died). Shot at f5.6/1 /125 second. Cerebral Palsy and muscles with a mind of their own, have caused a few meters to meet their demise. Yes, I will replace that Luna-Pro. 

Another Kodak Retina 1b scale focus photo. Kodak Retina 1b, Schneider Xenar f2.8 lens. FujiColor Superia Xtra 400 film, Gossen Luna Pro meter. 1/125 second, f11

Some Kodak Retina 1b fun. Scale Focused, Fuji Superia Xtra 400 film, Kodak Retina 1b, Schneider Xenar F2.8 lens. Used my Gossen Luna Pro. 1 125 second, f5.6

One of these deserves some exercise, probably the Kiev 4-M at the front with the Helios 103 lens, as I think I've run only 1 film through it since acquiring it about 4 years ago.

 

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Once I have a take up spool in hand, plan on shooting my Kiev 4-A. I need to get me some Astrum Black & White, or some FomaPan and give it a taste of it's native film for the maiden roll. It has a 50 mm/F2 Jupiter. Got it for around $40 4 months ago.

You learn by your mistakes. At least you have some result

I've had some nice unusual photos due to mistakes, and learned photography by making mistakes. Art sometimes happens by happenstance, accidents, and even a technical mistake or three. Throw in equal parts luck, and inspiration, and being in the right place at the right time.

Oops, here it is ...

 

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Beautiful photograph, gary green. Like the results you get from those vintage Kodak folders.

Nikkormat FTn, 50 mm/f1.4 Nikkor lens. Fujicolor Superia Extra 400 film. 1/125 second, f8. Used a Gossen Luna Pro meter. Shot at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Oak Ridge, TN.

Here's some Nikkormat FTn action, 50 mm/f1.4 Nikkor, 1/125 second, f.5.6. Fujicolor Superia Extra 400 film, Gossen Luna Pro meter. Some wild mushrooms in my backyard.

Favorite collectable cameras, German edition:

Leica IIIf

Kodak Retina IIIc

Rollei 35

Rolleiflex Automat 3.5

Zeiss Super Ikonta B

Voigtlander Vitesse

Just about all of the Kodak film stocks have been in short suppy

Yes, been over a year since I've seen ColorPlus, and over 9 months since I've seen Gold.

I would add a caution on those old Voigtlander rangefinders. They come with a choice of lenses, and even the lesser ones make good pictures, but be aware that the same model camera can have different grades of lens. The other thing about them, and one that requires a firm ability to return a bad one, is that the rangefinder is made with a glued-together block of elements, and if dropped that block can come apart. When that happens, the rangefinder will never be accurate again. The camera will still work, but it's essentially not worth trying to repair. If you get a good one and don't drop it or break it, you will be happy with the camera. The "color Skopar" is the better grade of lens. I can't remember the others, but I think the lesser one was a Lanthar, and there was a superior one that's scarce as hens' teeth.

 

The Vito is a sweet little camera, but you should be aware that its odd winding mechanism means you cannot dry fire it. This may work in your favor if someone has one and thinks it's broken. To test it without film, you must open the back and use the film sprocket to cock the shutter.

 

Some of these models had a coupled selenium meter, and surprisingly, at least on the ones I've used, that meter tends to be accurate.

That lens would be a Ultron. I like the Voigtlander RF cameras a lot when working well.

I went to get some rapid fixer from a trusted local camera store, and came back with this baby Kodak Retina I. I should not have bought another 35mm cameras (let alone a zone focus folder), but two things caught my eyes.

• Firstly the lens is the high quality American made Kodak Ektar 50mm f/3.5, coated (lumenized) and build in 1947 (CAMEROSITY dating). I had great results from a similar Ektar 50/3.5 on the Kodak Signet 35. And to make it even better: the lens is unit focus instead of front cell focus.
  
• Secondly the rangefinder MIL-O (Japan), is compact, stylish and in high quality finish. I was looking for a good shoe mount rangefinder for a 6x9 folder, and this will work well. And best of all, both vertical and horizontal alignment can be adjusted easily.
  

The camera is really compact, and fits into my pants pocket when folded. Very simple and rugged. However the rangefinder interferes with shutter button on the Retina, so I won't be using it. I already developed one roll of Arista Ultra 100 and will post on the weekly once scanned. And in the future, this little guy will have a run for the money against my Rollei 35 TE with Tessar 40/3.5 lens.

 

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I have 36 exposures of FujiColor Superia loaded in my 1957 Kodak Retina 1b, think I will shoot this one this weekend. And join you in a moment of solidarity.

I should use my OM-1 more often. Besides light weight and easy handling, I like the bright and contrasty focusing screen.

You've sold me, I need to find me an OM-1. Light weight, easy handling, manual, and Olympus. I will hunt one down. A camera which will suit my needs well. Thanks, Mike.