Berndt
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Post by Berndt on Aug 29, 2012 22:23:53 GMT -5
Never heard of an Auto Wester 35 mm rangefinder either. There are Wester- or ( very similar named ) Vester-cameras, but they are all medium format cameras, using 120 and not 35 mm film. However, your camera/NKK shutter seems to be mentioned here briefly: camerapedia.wikia.com/wiki/Nishida_shutters#Wester_and_NKK_Wester.2C_.2300_sizeA rare camera, I guess. If it is not too expensive and still in decent condition, go for it. |
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Berndt
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Post by Berndt on Aug 25, 2012 20:44:55 GMT -5
Congratulations !!! 10 bucks for a box of cameras ? That's like giving Santa a tip  |
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Berndt
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Post by Berndt on Aug 24, 2012 6:17:57 GMT -5
Looking forward to it !!!
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Berndt
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Post by Berndt on Aug 24, 2012 5:55:54 GMT -5
Just one word ... beautiful !!!
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Berndt
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Post by Berndt on Aug 20, 2012 21:10:51 GMT -5
Sorry, same here ... I wouldn't even say, that I can repair recent cameras. My skills and knowledge are ending with the beginning of the electric era in the 60s. I have an AE-1, but it is also not working ( anymore ). On my camera, it's the shutter. I thought about a repair, but when I opened the camera, I gave up on that and bought a functional FTb instead. Those old Canon SLRs are quite cheap here in Japan.
Good luck with yours !!!
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Berndt
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Post by Berndt on Aug 14, 2012 2:54:50 GMT -5
I am using just Flickr and lomography.com for analog stuff yet. It's okay for me, as I don't take thousands of picture, worth being published ... even I would wish so ... hahaha ...
The question is also, with whom do I need to share what. For private shots, I use Facebook, but I don't have so many pictures of "common interest".
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Berndt
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Post by Berndt on Aug 9, 2012 5:28:15 GMT -5
Thanks Mickey  I will forward your kind words to the right address |
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Berndt
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Flicker
Aug 8, 2012 22:12:21 GMT -5
Post by Berndt on Aug 8, 2012 22:12:21 GMT -5
Very beautiful camera !!!
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Berndt
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Post by Berndt on Aug 8, 2012 4:30:13 GMT -5
And ... getting the first test film back from the lab today, this camera seems to be still capable of taking decent pictures   My lovely wife by bokuwanihongasuki, on Flickr |
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Berndt
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Post by Berndt on Aug 7, 2012 18:38:58 GMT -5
That's a stylish camera indeed. Beautiful. Thanks for sharing !!!
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Berndt
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Post by Berndt on Aug 7, 2012 10:16:11 GMT -5
Google is the first to check of course  ... but not many good sources there. The best is always Barry Toogoods TLR HP: www.tlr-cameras.com/ The rest probably just copied from there. It seems, that there are a few variations of this camera, but none of them does exactly look like mine ... or just one. It shows up if you try to google pictures of "firstflex", but it seems to be a dead link. Klicking on the picture, it leads to an old japanese blog with no useful information. Interesting, that the Firstflex is mentioned at the end of the camera manual of the "first six" www.cameramanuals.org/pdf_files/first_camera_works.pdfHowever, no model described there, would match MY Firstflex. |
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Berndt
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Post by Berndt on Aug 7, 2012 7:06:32 GMT -5
I hope, I do not become annoying with my TLR stuff, but here is another interesting ( and mysterious ? ) japanese early postwar TLR, which I got from an auction last week. As I recently got a Middl Flex and now a Firstflex, I just need to find a Lastflex now ;D I couldn't find much about my new find and all pictures of Firstflexes, which I found in the internet look different from mine. The only hint is the box. My TLR came with the ( hopefully original ) box and "Model II" written on it. But I have no idea, what it exactly means or when my Firstflex has been made. It has not been in really good condition when I got it, but the shutter has been still working, which is always the most important thing. I decided to disassemble the lenses completely and it was worth, doing that. The lenses are clean like new now But ... it took me three days, to get all parts together again ... hahaha ... and the focus adjusted. Different from the Middl Flex, the lenses are synced by cog wheels on this one. However, if somebody needs to know how to do it, he/she can ask me now. And here it is:  Firstflex by bokuwanihongasuki, on Flickr If anybody has more information about this camera, please don't let me die benighted |
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Berndt
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Post by Berndt on Aug 7, 2012 6:42:17 GMT -5
I think, I need to surrender. Nothing to adjust on this simple constructed camera and the focus is quite weird. If it wouldn't sound that strange, I would say, that the focus adjustment ( distance ) has no meaning at all on this camera. You can get the best results at far distances/infinity, if the camera is focused to the shortest distance ( app. 3 ft ) and that means, that closer objects will never be sharp because the lens would be needed to become pulled out more, which is technically impossible on this particular model. On the one side, this is not that surprising. I used similar ( we would nowadays say "toy like" ) cameras of the 50s, having the same issue. The focus is "somewhere" and the focussing scale/device is in reality not much more than a decoration. But on the other hand, I expected more, because the nearly in the same way constructed "big brother", the Bencini Koroll works pretty good. I got sharp pictures on all distances with it. Therefore, it is a little bit surprising and disappointing, that the Comet ( or just my Comet ? ) is so much worse. Last weekend, I needed/wanted to check four cameras ( all using 120 film though ). I just used one film for all, always spooling it back and forward to the next frame in the next camera. Saves testing material too, because the development is actually more expensive than the film and we mostly do not need to waste a whole film to see, what is wrong ... or finally fixed |
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Berndt
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Post by Berndt on Aug 7, 2012 6:19:48 GMT -5
Thanks, Mickey ... and it sounds logical, what you are saying.
My mistake might just have been, not having/using a proper ground glass. I mostly used matt tape, which is not as plain and stable as glass. But basically you are right. Thanks for reminding me on that !!!
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I will forward your kind words to the right address 