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Post by dee on Oct 17, 2009 13:55:05 GMT -5
Is it me , but my K10d and Leica Digilux 3 miss focus on th eyes when taking portraits of kids and cats ? I am ever turning to manual .
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Post by dee on Oct 16, 2009 13:58:14 GMT -5
Factor for all 4'3rds and micro 4'3rds is x 2 , so a neat little 135 / f 3.5 becomes a light compact 270mm. By the same token , the size of the viewfinder is halved ! I thought my Leica IIIc was squinty - I have to focus through the Dig 3 , but the 135 is usually used at infinity - problem solved . 400 will be a 1st for me ! A 50mm on Emma the M 8 is a super 67mm - which I quickly began to like a lot - but I am into dee'tails . A 35mm is around 46 which is handy .
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Post by dee on Oct 13, 2009 17:00:51 GMT -5
Me too - I like the earlier Fed 2 - I have four , in different colours - green / blue / maroon / black plus one black painted body . It's probably one of the best Russian cameras - and easy to find working .The Industar is a good lens too .
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Post by dee on Oct 13, 2009 16:55:39 GMT -5
The No-name cameras were 1963 Kiev 4a - destined for the USA in the height of the Cold War , where everything 'Commie ' was a no no . They go for $250 or more . Sometimes the collectors market is a joke - you could buy a proper camera for that money ! As you say , what's in a new chromed face plate any 1963 K 4a is fair game . The cameras coming into UK through TOE were all standard , but were substantially checked before selling . A UK sourced Kiev 4 / 4a is a selected camera - I have an as new 1976 K 4a , box , UK passport and Manual . It's still rough and ready - but has history for me .
My 1st film roll for many decades was in Sept 2006 - with my twin Fed 1g ' Leicas ' . Then a few more with the Kiev 4 / 4m which just blew me away . Like coming home . Daft I guess . But ASdee is so dee'sruptive , I will cling to anything remotely ' real ' . Film and Contax is comparitively new to me too .
I used Minoltas for decades , but Contax is just so much more .. solid .. for me .
Frankly , I would be fine with Digital , but can't resist picking up a Kontax ...
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Post by dee on Oct 13, 2009 14:37:28 GMT -5
OOPs ! It was my Uk 1950s Diecast collection which funded my Kontaxes ! But I still have a few - including several Dinky Buses including a prewar in ivory and blue . I painted a 1947 version , similar casting , in the same colours to experience how awesome and desirable to a child of the 30s . I know that in the often drab 50s , they were a dash of sunshine .
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Post by dee on Oct 13, 2009 14:32:23 GMT -5
I loved using a 1979 Kiev 4 and 1981 K 4m from Oleg a fine ex-USSR dealer who checks and CLA all his cameras . It works exquisitely despite the poor build and finish . I genuinely think that a pre 1955 Kiev is of excellent quality , they dropped of rapidly in the later 50s . However , they are much maligned 'cos they are 50 years old and have often been abused and butchered in back street workshops . Few have seen a service or any TLC in decades My 1951 and 1952 Kiev IIs are of comparable quality to my Contax III . [ Steve Ash , a retired repairer in UK confirms that the mechanics are equally fine .] The 1951 is CLA and is why I have dee'cided to create my own special collection as a comfort zone from ASD . It's quiet , smooth , dee'lightful ! It's my perfect camera . That simple .
I am cheating on my K 4s - one with scrap genuine Contax body , [ meter spares donor ] the other with a reasonable 1947 Kiev IIIa . Both have early broken Kiev 4 tops with working meters from the second year of production [ when they still cared ! ] So the quality issues of the body are addressed - the top plates have crisper engraving and better chrome that later K 4 , and can be polished to match the bodes . The K 4s in themselves are rare as they have a Contax IIIa copy meter cover without ridges which were added presumably 'cos they dinted easily [ one has dints ] I love the Kiev 4 with compact meter , hence these two indulgences .
The post war IIa is undoubtedly a ' better ' camera , but a rebuilt prewar Contax or early Kiev is a fine instrument ... my Contax IIi had to go back 'cos it needed another part for the meter , I bought a scrap C III just for this . It is a superb camera ... so Art Deco , I can't wait for it's return - with fully working meter .
Until recently , a Kiev II or III was a cheaper alternative to a Contax , but Contax prices have dropped , and Kiev IIs , risen , so that it is possible to buy a broken Contax II / III and have it CLA for about the same outlay . Controversially , Kiev parts can keep it alive without sacrificing a complete camera as spares . My Contax II has been built from a dismantled camera with shutter and various parts missing . It will have a later Kiev shutter , silver paint and tan leather . In total it was £110 . The Arsenal techs even suggest a late Kiev shutter as newer and potentially more reliable .
A Kiev IIa / IIIa with CLA will be about £120 , a Kiev II about £150 . For that considerable outlay you will receive a classic camera which will provide years of enjoyment . Especially with optional special Leather covering LOL ...
Presumably , my Kontaxes will be valueless , so I cannot be forced to sell them on , just to eat .
Am I going to use my new toys ? You bet - perfect complement to my M 8 .
Have fun with the IIa .
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Post by dee on Oct 13, 2009 11:59:17 GMT -5
Hmmm , I hope that my 1952 Kiev II which has very evidently been a shelf queen is not in the never worked category - it seems dry but excellent .
Zorki 1 / C / 2C ? I actually love the taller C and 2C - I have three each of Moscow P hotos ' wartime ' faux Leicas which are exquisitely , if fancifully engraved , black top , new matt chrome top-plate . base - immaculate . S Why 3 of each ? I could afford it as it was recycled Dinky Toy money and three reinforces the stimulus , helping with ASD mind blindness . Not cheap at £60 / £ 70 each incl shipping , but they help enormously to ground me .
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Post by dee on Oct 12, 2009 13:50:49 GMT -5
I painted out the tacky Prinzflex name and Dulux white ' TTL ' on day one - just as I did to the Pentax K 10D - I like looking for cameras in movies too .
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Post by dee on Oct 12, 2009 13:47:12 GMT -5
Just bought a good Vivitar 80/200 in MD mount for £3.55 , just over £7.00 with post . It will be 160/400 on 4/3rds , gotta be useful !
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Post by dee on Oct 11, 2009 17:21:33 GMT -5
My 1st camera was a Prinzflex Super TTL [ Chinon with shutter dial on the front ] I went for black 'cos all the Pros use black . It was painted over chrome LOL . Picked up a perfect one on e-bay looking really tacky - so painted it in with acrylic for that rough and ready look . I now like the vintage feel of chrome cameras - such as my Leica M8 and Dig 3 , but love my twin black Leica IIs and Minolta SRTs . I understood that Pro users used to put black tape on cameras to make them less obtrusive - another tall tale ?
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Post by dee on Oct 10, 2009 12:56:13 GMT -5
I think that I have been tempted by the metallic coloured Digi-boxes so common today - and my favourite metallic '' Bluebell '' colour - which apeared on the original Honda Jazz range from 2000 , not to mention the exotic finishes from my favourite Art Deco period - shades of Cinemas in the 50s . I am seriously considering a metallic Pink K III too ... I know , but it's so 1930s - like those pink film sets and Restaurants I knew as post war kid . But another £130 may not be possible for another whim LOL I guess I would love a pair of 1952 Lambrettas in these metallic Ice Cream colours , but they are long gone . [ I have two cheap 1956 Kiev IIIa which have just a number on the access shoe - I can't get past the Made in USSR / CCCP clutter - which would make great donors ] I have a III/IV to paint , but the metallic works best with the Art Deco curves of the III . I would love it Contax badged , but that would be very naughty but nice ! These days few would turn a hair at coloured cameras ... and I would use them . Maybe I saw those grey and olive Leica M cameras , but wanted something a little more - girly !!!
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Post by dee on Oct 9, 2009 17:01:23 GMT -5
Of course a single messed with camera - good or bad - can't be a Limited Edition - but it can be a means of satisfying that craving for something unique ... hopefully , better that that limited run - or not !
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Post by dee on Oct 9, 2009 16:57:27 GMT -5
I can hear the saleman saying - ' It's the perfect camera , works beautifully - and you will never have to worry about taking photographs ' Transparently useless !
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Post by dee on Oct 9, 2009 2:34:16 GMT -5
I would love an SRT in tan leather , but all of my five [ early / late SRT 101 chrome early late SRT IOI black and my original SRT 202 ] ... and my SRs and SR7v are too precious to mess with - now where are thos old Prakticas ? Seriously , I prefer messing with poor unsupecting Kievs .
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Post by dee on Oct 8, 2009 16:46:16 GMT -5
I have been captivated by some of those limited edition cameras , not Gold Plated !
Hugely expensive , too precious to use , but sometimes georgeous .... and offering nothing in useablity over a standard camera LOL .
But how about having one made ? At a cost of about £130 ?
I am having a 1956 Kiev IIIa remade - with no engraving over the lens , KIEV in English on the meter door - and in metallic blue paint and tan leather with matching lens .
The cost , with donor camera and leather is around £200 , about the same as my restored Contax III from the same source . I love the Art Deco style of this camera and the state of the art built in meter . My Autistic Glitch loves the magic of selenium meters on my Kiev 3 and 4 !
I will also have a Contax III body with Kiev IV top and meter - from a broken , parts C III and K 4 - no fine cameras have been harmed in the making of my specials . Why not use a Kiev 4 ? My ASD rejects Kiev 4 as ' wrong ' because it's a different body , just as Leica II is right and Leica IIIc wrong . It will be just like one of those Contax fakes - but a little more authentic - LOL .
I could have had my Kiev IIIa serviced for about £70 - but , I reckon another £60 is well worth having something unique which helps with my Autistic Glitch .
Would you repaint or re-imagine any of your cameras ?
dee
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