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My Zorki 4K is mint, I should put a roll in it this spring. Same lens.
 
It's heeere!



It's going to need some servicing (as was expected). The shutter curtains look really good, and most mechanics seem to work, but at least the exposure knob is misaligned and long exposure mode (1/25s+) is not working at all. The lens also would benefit from disassembly, cleaning and lubrication. Otherwise the condition looks good. Feels so small after all the other cameras I own! But also has a very solid mechanical feel to it, and nicely weighted.

The seller also kindly included a roll of film for me to test it on!

My Zorki 4K is mint, I should put a roll in it this spring. Same lens.

DO IT!

EDIT: Actually, brainfart. The exposure knob is fine. The slow exposure mode works down to 1/2s. I think I'm going to shoot that test-film after all, and then see what kind of service it needs.
 
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The Jupiter-8 is a sweet-looking lens, and very lightweight too. I had one on my Olympus E-P1 a while ago.


It was very easy to take apart; the one I had, though, wasn't very sharp wide open.
 
The Jupiter-8 is a sweet-looking lens, and very lightweight too. I had one on my Olympus E-P1 a while ago.

It was very easy to take apart; the one I had, though, wasn't very sharp wide open.

Yeah, so I've read. It's the downside of the Zeiss Sonnar design, but everyone says it should be very good with stopped apertures. I'll see what I can do to clean it as soon as I find a screwdriver small enough for some of those screws ;)

In other news, I already fixed the long exposure mechanism on the Zorki. The problem was apparent as soon as I got the front cover open, one of the levers jumped out of its position, so I moved it back and slightly bent to make it stay in place in the future. Works great :) No idea if timing is accurate, I'll try to test it tomorrow with a photodiode and a scope.
 
Need some thoughts.

I want to buy a couple of lenses. Currently I have a Canon 17-40mm f4 and a Canon 50mm 1.4 which is now manual focus lens due to the auto focus problem. So i need a replacement lens for my 50 and a tele lens. I was thinking of getting a new Sigma 50mm 1.4 Art to replace my Canon 50. That would be i think a very good upgrade, its sharper, better build and has working AF :D. That would be my portrait, detail, bokeh, all around lens. For the tele i was thinking of 70-200mm f4 IS. Ive use the non IS a couple of times and its very handy to have. But i could also get a 135mm f2, which is a beast of a lens. Its optically better but its "only" 135mm compared to 200mm.

Or should i get a Sigma 85mm 1.4, keep the Canon 50 1.4 and use it as a manual lens? Im scared that the 85 is going to be too tight for indoor portrait use, like small rooms and such. 50mm lens is better in that respect.

What would you get?
 
I have the 85 and it's an amazing lens. Same technology as the one the goes into the 50 f/1.4, just longer focal length. It's perfect for portraits on a full frame, but if you're shooting on a ASP-C sensor, I'd get the 50. You want to avoid 100mm (35mm equivalent) or higher for portraits (as a rule).



The image quality of the lens (and the 50) is absolutely phenomenal.















links to full res
 
Im talking about shooting on FF.

I know 85mm is better for portraits, better compression of the background, thinner DOF, over all a better combination than the 50mm. But in about a month or so im dong a small civil wedding ceremony at the civil registry office, and i guess its a small room of sorts with limited light. Im afraid that the 85mm wont cut it there, thats its not gonna be wide enough. Ill have to switch to my 17-40mm f4. I can boost the ISO on my 6D a fair bit, so i could get away with it but a fast prime would do the job much much better.

I did a night shoot with my broken 50, getting the focus was a pain and its not a sharp lens. 85 would do better here i think.


IMG_0865C1 by Boobo_oobo, on Flickr


IMG_0868BW by Boobo_oobo, on Flickr


IMG_0874C1 by Boobo_oobo, on Flickr

Regarding the 135, i love the look it gives. And its a fast prime with excellent optics. But its not as versatile as the 70-200 and thats whats bugging me. The 70-200 would get much more use i think overall. There are some with the 135 :


File0121 by Boobo_oobo, on Flickr


File0149 by Boobo_oobo, on Flickr


File0114 by Boobo_oobo, on Flickr

I think the 70-200mm f4 IS is an obvious choice for the tele range, would love to own the 135 but im afraid that i would miss the 200mm range for some things.
 
I absolutely hate the look that gives. Everyone looks like a troll with sticky out ears. I'd go with the 50mm in your case. Gives you more freedom. You can always go further back and crop a bit later.
 
Havent tried the 135mm but 70-200 4L IS is a cracking lens.. sharp and the IS does wonders on some situations. Also the ability to shut down vertical stabilization is a nice bonus for panning. I agree its a bit slow when shooting indoors but for the price it does deliver and has indeed some versatility advantage over prime.
 
Finished a test roll on Zorki. A few examples here: https://forums.finalgear.com/finalgear-meets/gear-fi-2015-a-58927/page-11/#post2280688

Good news: Mostly functional! No light leaks, rangefinder is adjusted correctly and the lens is focusing uniformly over the film.
Bad news: Shutter sticks at 1/25s exposure, I'll have to avoid using that for now, also the viewfinder is pointing way off, much too high and to the right. I had to crop every shot quite a lot :)
 
So I lasted barely a month before getting the next toy :D



Such a pleasant device to operate, solid and heavy. The lenses are 75mm, f/3.5 for the taking lense, in a good old Tessar configuration. 120 film is easily available, and I got the first roll in already.
Needs a bit of cosmetic work, the vulcanite panels are pealing off and are very brittle, so I'll get a leatherette kit to replace them. But it's very clean inside the film chamber, so I hope it will work fine.
 
Nice. I always wanted a camera like that. They just look so funky.

But in more practical news, I'm really close to getting a Tokina 11-16 f/2.8.
 
Got the Sigma 50mm 1.4 Art. Great lens, still working with the AF adjustments a bit. And a 10-stop ND filter, wanna do some more day time long exposures.

IMG_0851.jpg
 
If you're having pre/post focus issues to fix with that dock, you do know how to measure the error so you can input it into the firmware fixer, right?
 
If you're having pre/post focus issues to fix with that dock, you do know how to measure the error so you can input it into the firmware fixer, right?

Made this for that :

WP_20150424_13_52_58_Pro.jpg


But still i get some inconsistencies in the "overlapping" focus range. My copy is front focusing close stuff and back focusing far stuff. Ranges you can adjust are 0.4m, 0.7m, 1.5m and INF. Currently its +7,+7,+2,-3.
 
And at a distance of 20x the focal length, right?

I just measured 0.4, 0.7m etc from the sensor and focused on the calibration tool and took a shot, went to see where the focus is and made an adjustment based on that.
 
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