Soviet Cameras 6 - Siluet / Smena / Orion / Vilia

[Cameras - 35mm - Direct View]

The following cameras are the low end of the former USSR cameras. They're plastic, simple, very cheap and they use the same lens.

Some are even cool to use.

Lomo Vilia

Lomo Vilia

Vilias are plastic, very cheap and fiddly, but interesting cameras. It's a direct view camera with an Albada type viewfinder, all mechanic and without any electronics.

If you don't have an exposure meter, don't worry. This camera was built with this in mind. Actually, it has a fairly good implementation of the sunny 16 rule. Just set the film speed (actually the film speed control is the same as the shutter speed control but with slightly different values).

This ring has SPEEDS marked on top: B, 30, 60, 125 and 250 but also has GOST, the old Soviet standard for film sensibility marked on the same ring, but at the bottom side. Both settings are set with the same control.

GOST scale: 32 - 65 -130 - 250

SPEED scale: 30 - 60 - 125 - 250

Since the old ASA (now ISO) and GOST are roughly the same, just set it to the nearest GOST value to your film sensibility in ASA (ISO). For example, if you're using an ISO 100 film, just choose GOST 125 and don't bother.

Then, adjust the small aperture lever at the lens side until the proper "weather symbol" on the viewfinder is according to what you see in the sky. From left to right, the symbols are: bright sun, diffuse sun, partially clouded sky, overcast and heavy weather. Those symbols can be translated into the following aperture values: F16, F11, F8, F5.6 and F4. It just works, believe me.

Of course, if you have a handheld light meter, you can just adjust the proper speed and aperture and forget the symbols and GOST setting.

The lens is a very simple 40mm F4 TRIPLET 69-3, and it can be very sharp at F8 and F11, but with awfully blurry corners at F4. Well, you get what you pay.

There is no other focusing aid besides a neat depth of field scale (green scale on foto). Basic but works.

Special note about all this camera family is the fact of the terrible quality control. All the cameras I had were with a very badly aligned (collimated) lens, making one or more corners completely out of focus even at mid apertures. Even Kodak Instamatics are usually better at this. 

Smena 8M Type 1 (C) Fotoua.com (Alexandr Komarov)

A very crude camera, the worst pick of all. No double exposure prevention, shutter cocking is not linked to the film transport and the viewfinder has absolutely no optics, just two plastic windows. Handling is awful, especially for aperture setting.

The SMENA family is quite large with 150 types/subtypes.

Vilia Auto (C) Fotoua.com (Alexandr Komarov)

Same as the Vilia, but with fully automatic exposure and a selenium light meter. You just set the film sensibility. Like the Orion, it also has the aperture control for flash photography.  The viewfinder has a scale and a needle for aperture indication. Not bad at all.

If you find a Vilia Auto with a working light meter, it's a fun camera to use.

The lens is the same Vilia's Triplet-69-3 40mm F4

It’s a Vilia with electronic shutter priority and a reasonably good light meter. In case of flash photography, an aperture lever like the Vilia’s provides control to the aperture. You’ll find the same F4-F16 settings for manual flash use (1/30s shutter) plus an “A” for automatic aperture setting depending on the selected speed.

It’s the rarest model. There are two alert lamps on the viewfinder, a yellow one for shake alert that lights if the speed drops under 1/30s and a red one for overexposure alert. 

Siluet Elektro

Also rare but not like the Orion. It’s basically the same camera but with aperture priority instead of shutter priority. It remembers a very spartan and a very cheap version of the Yashica-35 Electro.

Note that those cameras are not on par with any of the Japanese compacts of the ‘70s, but still fun to use

Some tips:

• Filter size is 46mm screw-in
• Use a lens hood if possible, flare is a real issue
• Use small apertures if possible
• Pay attention to the focus zone

To my taste, the best picks are the Vilia due to having no electronics and the Vilia-Auto (if working). Neither one uses batteries and are cheaper than the Orion or Siluet but has the same optics.

Please visit Fotoua.com

Soviet Cameras 5 - FED-35 / FED-50 / Zorki 10

[Cameras - 35mm - Rangefinder and Direct View]

Probably the best compacts from the former USSR. They’re well made and have very decent optics, the nicely coated four elements Tessar-like Industar-81 32mm F2.8. The camera body is metal made with some plastic parts.

The I-81 is a decent lens, on par with the D-Zuiko 40mm F2.8 and a bit wider. 

FED-35 and FED50 - Image (C) Alexandr Komarov (fotoua.com)

The Fed 35 is the high-end model, with a nice viewfinder and rangefinder. It can work on Automatic, Shutter priority and manual. 

Speeds are from 1/4 to 1/300 + B. The low speeds works just in manual. Speeds over 1/30s can work on shutter priority. Metering uses a CdS cell and doesn't work when in manual mode.

This camera is for me the best pick from all soviet cameras. It's like a simplified Minolta Hi-Matic or a Konica C3.

The FED 50 has no rangefinder and it’s just auto exposure provided by a selenium light meter and of course you can set the apertures for flash photography (speed fixed to 1/30s). The Fed 50 is very similar to the Olympus Trip 35 and other typical Japanese compacts from the ‘70s like the Mamiya 135 and many other ones. See Zorki-10 for auto exposure details.

There's also the FED 35A. It's like the FED 35 but without the rangefinder.

All cameras from this family are very reliable and they are good performers. 

Zorki-10  Image (C) Alexandr Komarov ( fotoua.com )

This camera is a copy of the Ricoh Auto 35V and NOT an original Soviet project. It's a very clean art deco design, and heavy, very heavy.

It's an auto exposure camera, very similar to the Fed-50 plus a rangefinder. The lens is a Tessar type Industar-63 45mm F2.8. I have the impression of this lens being sharper than the Industar-81.

The exposure control is made by a selenium cell around the lens and an internal galvanometer that locks the proper aperture and speed.

Be aware that selenium cells of this age usually give inaccurate readings and if is this the case, maybe you can compensate for the error by setting a LOWER film sensibility. For example, if the reading is 2 stops lower, shift film speed setting likewise.

The exposure range is from 1/30s F2.8 to 1/500s F22. There's also a B setting and a manual flash setting when you set the aperture and the speed locks at 1/30s that can be used if for some nasty reason your light meter stops working.

It's remarkably similar in operation and features to the Olympus Trip-35, and a tough challenger (of course, Ricoh always rocked !)

If you like cool-looking cameras this one is a must-have, but be advised that it's not easy to find one in perfect working order, the light meter assembly is very prone to fail, due corrosion, selenium cell decay, and broken galvanometer.

Soviet Cameras 4 - Zenit 3M / EM / TTL / 122

The Zenit family is large, with many types and subtypes. The last time I searched, I found "just" 26 subtypes. I'll talk about the ones I had. They were mainly made by KMZ near Moscow, but other factories like MMZ (Russia) and Lomo (Belarus) also made them.

Zenit 3M with an Industar 50

This is a cool camera. For me the best looking SLR from KMZ. It's not the first Zenit, but an early model. Older than this are the Zenit 1 and S types and subtypes. There are 14 Zenit 3 subtypes, just to give an idea of how crazy things can go.

The 3M is, like most Zenit SLRs, all mechanic cameras with just the "high" speeds. This means no speeds below 1/30s (maybe one obscure subtype has 1/25s).

The 3M mirror has no automatic return. If the shutter is not loaded, the mirror will be locked up and the viewfinder will be black.

The model above had no focusing aid of any type. No microprism, no split image, just a very murky and dim ground glass and it's a pain to focus with an aperture smaller than F2. This camera also lacks a light meter.

Usually, it comes with an Industar-50 (50mm F3.5) Tessar type lens or a Helios-44 (58mm F2) Biotar type lens, in  M39 thread mount for SLR instead of the usual M42. Be careful, they are NOT the M39 Leica thread mount for rangefinders.

Other lenses are the MIR 1A 37mm F2.8 , the Jupiter-9 85mm F2 and the awesome Industar-61 L/Z. They are fine performers but very prone to flare. Again, pay attention when buying them because they can be found in M39 SLR, M42 SLR and even M39 LTM (except for the Mir 1A). For me, the I-61 L/Z is the best Russian lens by a large margin.

INDUSTAR 61 L/D = M39 Leica thread mount lens

INDUSTAR 61 L/Z = M39 (old Zenit) or M42 SLR mount lens

Mir 1A in M39 SLR

Jupiter-9 in M39 SLR

Industar-50 in M39 SLR

ZENITs models "S", "3" and "3M" uses M39 SLR Thread mount. All other ZENIT SLRs uses M42 Thread mount, except the 122K model that uses Pentax-K mount.

Zenit EM
(C) Alexandr Komarov
(temporary low quality picture)

Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of my own EM, then I borrowed one from my friend's website. This camera was, like the 3M, a VERY solid one. You can hammer nails with it, it's almost all-metal.

The main differences, when compared to the 3M, are, besides the obvious different look, the addition of an uncoupled selenium light meter on the top plate, on the right side with the cell in front of the pentaprism housing, above the lens. Note that this light meter is not a TTL type and it uses no batteries.

This model has an instant return mirror and a so-so focusing screen with microprism aid.

The ZENIT-TTL is the same camera but it uses a CDS light meter with through-the-lens metering instead of the above-the-lens selenium cell. It's rarer than the other Zenits based on the same chassis. The meter is very basic but the film sensibility setting is in GOST/DIN and when converted to ISO gives some very weird values, making it not usable for positive film, but ok for negatives. GOST is about 80% of the ISO value, so GOST 80 = ISO 100.

Zenit TTL with Helios 44M-6

For me, the TTL is the most desirable of the Zenits. It's classy, has a nice old style zero center needle light meter. The main caveat is the focusing screen, it's horrible, dim and with a huge light fall off. Finally, I dared to change it for the original 122 one, and what a difference!

If you plan to change the screen, be advised that it can be a real pain to do the adjustment. In my case, I had to use three Zenit shims (black ones, 2 "thick" and 1 "thin") and three of those aluminum shims above the screen. The original screen is much thicker than the 122's one, maybe 3 or four times more. And to make things really annoying, the screen locking system is made of two springs. This is the most stupid way I ever saw in my life to do this. Be careful to not lose them. I passed a thin copper wire through a small loop the springs have to not lose them.

Zenit 122 50 Years of KMZ Edition
Bought NEW in Saint Petersburg, Russia in 1995

The 122 is a more recent camera, with an electronic TTL light meter with 3 not so very bright LEDs on the viewfinder and a much better (but still not great) focusing screen with both microprism and split image. Otherwise it's the same old formula, but with extensive use of plastic instead of metal but still a tough camera. The lens is a Helios-44-M6 (in M42 thread mount)

So, what's the deal with the Zenits ? Simple, they are VERY cheap and the lens is indeed very good. 

The normally included lenses are the Helios-44 and the Industar-50 but the good thing is they're compatible with any M42 lens, so don't complain. If you don't like former USSR/Russian glass, just put a SMC Takumar, Tomioka, Zeiss or whatever you like on it. There are hundreds of options for experimentation.

There are many Helios-44 subtypes in M42 thread mount. I have two picks: The 44-2 and the 44M-6. The first one is an early design with a preset diaphragm and a cool 8 blade iris. It's a good choice ir you plan to use it on other cameras because of the preset manual aperture. It's a joy to use on a mirrorless system camera. The 44M-6 is another story: Its a fully automatic aperture lens. This means that there's no automatic to manual lever on it. If you plan to use it on other camera systems you WILL need an adapter with a flange to pull the aperture control pin.

Optically speaking, they are exactly the same formula, a six-element Zeiss Biotar, but the 44M-6 has a better coating and better resolution. Think about them like a Zeiss lens with poor quality control. They can be very good or a lemon, depending on your sample.

It's a nice first camera for someone who doesn't want to spend much money on film photography and a very good learning tool. Expect to pay less than $30 with lens.

Zenit cameras are so cheap that IMHO every film photographer should try them at least for one roll of film.

Soviet Cameras 2 - FED-2

[Camera - 35mm - Rangefinder]

The FED-2 is an elegant camera, and very comfortable to use. The rangefinder has a very wide base and good precision, but by no means like the Leica M series ones.

FED-2 with Russar MR-2

This particular camera is fitted with a ultra wide angle, flat field, Russar MR3 20mm F5.6. For me, this combination is a killer. The shutter speed range lacks the "low" speeds from 1s to 1/15s.

In my opinion, the FED-2 is maybe the most interesting of all Soviet "Leica-like" cameras. It has a very good grip, incredibly tough and even having just the "high" speeds, it's my first choice.

Fed-2 custom painted in black with I-61 L/D

There are many sub-models of the FED-2. For more information, please check Fotoua.com

Soviet Cameras 1 - Intro and Zorki 3M

[Camera - 35mm - Rangefinder]

The purpose here is to make brief comments about some Soviet era cameras I own or owned. Those aren’t in-depth reviews, just my own impressions about some interesting cameras. They are cheap, fun and plenty available on second-hand market. 

People tend to exaggerate when talking about the so-called “Soviet Leicas”. Some people says they are even better than the german counterparts  and others says they are total junk. The true is something between the two opinions.

They are all derivatives from the Leica I in terms of mechanics and basic design but they have some pretty evident differences.

What’s good ?

They are affordable. Very.
You can use any M39 screw mount Leica lenses (and compatibles) on them
They’re simple mechanically
They’re usually tough
And durable

What’s bad ?

The rangefinders are not very precise
Some gears are made of very bad materials
Some suffer from a very bad quality control

The good thing is if they break you can buy another one for less than fixing it.
I own/owned all the cameras shown here. Most of them were sold.

Zorki 3M with a nice lens set !

For me, this one is the best looking soviet camera ever made. The one above was custom painted in black enamel and looks really great ! The shutter speeds are B plus 1s to 1/1000s but the shutter speed selector is extremely fragile and has pieces made in aluminum. To be honest it’s not well projected and very prone to break.

The viewfinder is one of the best on soviet made cameras, big and clear.

The objectives, from left to right are: Industar-22 50/3.5 , Jupiter-8 50/2 , Jupiter-12 35/2.8 and Russar MR-2 20/5.6 and it’s related viewfinder.

Important: Always cock the shutter BEFORE changing speeds, otherwise the shutter may break. It's a project flaw of all of those "Leica derivatives" soviet cameras, except for the Zorki-6.

Voigtländer Perkeo I

[Camera - FIlm - 120 - Folder]

Voigtlanders are always fun and interesting. This Perkeo I is one of the simplest, cheapest and more straightforward to use. It uses 120 size film and shoots in 6x6. No rangefinder, no light meter, limited shutter speed choices and a triplet lens, so why bother?

Because it’s lightweight, inexpensive, reliable and can deliver excellent images if used from F8 and beyond. 

Believe me, don’t underestimate this Vaskar lens. Just be careful about flare and proper focusing and you'll be very surprised with the photos. The image center can be extremely sharp and the corners very good from F5.6

The camera is also VERY small for a medium format camera. Some Perkeo I and II use a Color Skopar objective and a Prontor shutter. The Pronto (not Prontor) shutter has a modest speed range. Don't forget the light meter or the exposure table!

This camera is one of my personal picks, and it's very fun to use.

There are plenty of 32mm filters and hoods available from ebay. Try to get the original ones from Voigtländer, especially the metal hood.

Lens: Voigtländer Vaskar 75mm F4.5 coated triplet
Shutter: Pronto (B,1/25,1/50,1/100 and 1/200)
Film type: 120 (6x6 frame)
Filter: 32 mm snap-in

Agfa Isolette III

[Camera - Film - 120 - Rangefinder - Folder]

Well made, cool, reliable and inexpensive cameras, the Isolettes are a classic. Easily found on eBay. They can be fitted with several lenses and shutters combination. The cameras above are Isolettes III

You will find basically 3 lenses on Isolettes:

• Agnar, the simpler triplet with a typical maximum aperture of F6.3. Agnar lenses are usually associated with a simpler shutter, without the slow speeds.
• Apotar, the "mid-range", also a triplet, usually F4.5
• Solinar, the "high end" lens, usually F3.5. This lens is the Agfa's version of the Zeiss Tessar, with 4 element

The Agfa triplets can be VERY sharp if stopped down to f=8 and rather soft at wider apertures. The creative use of these characteristics can deliver stunning results, especially for portraits. The Apotar, for example, is a nice high contrast lens and very nice for portraits IF you keep the aperture at F3.5-5.6 range. If you stop down it to F8-11 it can be much sharper and maybe not so good for portraits.

Left: This one is fitted with an Apotar 85mm F4.5 single coated triplet and a Prontor shutter with old style speeds from B to 1/300s, old style. This means 1s, 1/2s, 1/5s, 1/10s, 1/25s, 1/50s, 1/100s and 1/300s. Note the 3x factor between 1/100s and 1/300s instead of the usual 2x.

Right: A different combination: An AGFA Solinar 75mm F3.5 (4 element Tessar like, single coated) and a Synchro Compur shutter with “normal” speeds, from 1s to 1/500s + B.

The Isolette III has an uncoupled rangefinder. Note the knob on the left of the flash shoe. You turn it until the focus point, then read the distance and set the focus manually on the lens. Well, better than nothing. Those rangefinders are not great and get pretty gummy with the time. They are easy to fix and clean but you need to be careful to not damage it.

If you need to service it, here is the starting point, on Roland and Caroline excellent website. Also very good information here.

This camera is a bargain and maybe my favorite 6x6 folder. The Solinar/Synchro Compur model combines superb optics and shutter and a reasonably good and usable rangefinder in a very pocketable medium format camera, for an unbeatable price.

Isolette III

Lens: Read text

Shutter: Read text

Film type: 120 (6x6 frame)

Filter: depends on the lens type

- Try to find a lens hood for them. Those lenses are single coated but still prone to flare.

- Double check for holes in the bellows.

Agfa Record II

[Camera - Film - 120 - Folder]

Agfas are always interesting cameras. They are usually cheap on e-Bay and can be fine performers.

This is a very inexpensive 6x9 camera and can deliver a very good punch for the money. It feels cheaper compared to the Zeiss Ikontas, but make no mistake: they are very capable shooters. Cheaper than Zeiss but still well made.

The leatherette with the embossed AGFA logo is gorgeous. I prefer this camera rather than the Royer Teleroy.

Always check for the shutter/lens assembly if it's properly aligned and not bent.

This camera has no rangefinder neither lightmeter.

The Solinar lens is a Tessar type, 4 elements and it's decent if stopped down to F8. Remember it's a 6x9 and it's not easy to keep sharp corners with this film size.


Lens: AGFA Solinar 105mm F4.5 single coated, 4 elements (Tessar like)
Shutter: Synchro Compur (B,1s to 1/500s)
Film type: 120 (6x9 frame)
Filter: 37 mm snap-in

Zeiss Ikonta 521/2

[Camera - Film - 120 - Folder]

It's like the 521/16, but on 6x9 format. Splendid.

Lens: Zeiss Tessar 105mm F3.5 single coated, 4 element
Shutter: Synchro Compur (B,1s to 1/500s)
Film type: 120 (6x9 frame)
Filter: 32 mm snap-in

Note:

Tessar lenses can be very sharp in the mid apertures and rather soft wide open, especially the 3.5 and 2.8 types.

Zeiss Ikonta 521/16

[Camera - FIlm - 120 - Folder]

It’s a classic. Extremely well made, in brass, leather, chrome and black enamel. It’s much heavier than the correspondent Voigtlanders and AGFAs. It simply oozes quality, built to last ! =)

The Tessar 75mm is very good stopped down to F5.6 and beyond. It’s single coated but it’s better to use a metal hood (like all cameras here). The pop up open viewfinder is simple but much better than many small ones, at least it’s easy to clean and BIG. This camera has no rangefinder or light meter.

Always check the bellows for holes an cracks. It's leather made and they're old, so be advised. Be warned that it's a pain to change it. There's some information here. Basically, you'll need to unbend two tabs that keep the film rail in position. The problem is that they're long and steel made. If you plan to do this, keep calm and take care.



Lens: Zeiss Tessar 75mm F3.5 single coated, 4 element
Shutter: Synchro Compur (B,1s to 1/500s)
Film type: 120 (6x6 frame)
Filter: 32 mm snap-in

Franka Solida III

[Camera - Film - 120 - Folder]

A well made German post-war folder. Not a Zeiss or Voigtländer but still a great camera. It’s a bit chunky and the aperture lever is on a very awkward position, just below the lens. It has a nice depth of field table over the top plate.

The Radionar Triplet can deliver VERY sharp images from F=8 to F=16. the large F=2.9 aperture is interesting and not very usual for this class of lens, especially for triplets from that era. Corners at larger apertures are soft and this makes it cool for portraits, especially with black and white film. It also shows a reasonable light falloff (vignetting) at apertures larger than F5.6.

This is not an expensive camera and you can surely have a lot of fun using it.

Lens: Schneider Kreuznach Radionar 80mm F=2.9, single coated, 3 element
Shutter: Synchro Compur (B,1s to 1/500s) X-Sync
Film type: 120 (6x6 frame)
Filter: 40.5mm x 0.5mm thread

Royer Teleroy

[Camera - Film - 120 - Rangefinder - Folder]

This is a very nice french camera from the '1950s and said to be equivalent of the Zeiss Super Ikonta, but the materials and craftsmanship are inferior.

It’s an interesting camera because it has a coupled telemeter and it’s capable to shoot in 6x4.5 or 6x9 formats with the help of a metal masking plate. The SOM Berthiot objective is quite good stopped to F8, but very prone to flare. It's soft at apertures larger than F4 but nice for portraits.

Better if used with black and white negative film and the proper contrast filters. I love it with Kodak Tri-X, the large negative size makes the ISO 400 grain almost vanish.

My camera has a small misalignment of the lens/shutter assembly that makes one of the corners a bit out of focus, but this is quite normal for this class of cameras, especially this old.

A nice and impressive camera also good as a decoration piece. It was a gift from my old friend Carlos Hemais (RIP)

Lens: Som Berthiot FLOR 105mm F3.5 single coated, 4 elements (Tessar like)
Shutter: Looks like a Synchro Compur (B,1s to 1/500s)
Film type: 120 (6x4.5 and 6x9 frames)
Filter: 37 mm snap-in

Zeiss Contessa

[Camera - Film - 35mm - Rangefinder - Folder]

Zeiss Contessa

This camera is a wonderful example of Zeiss quality. It’s a 35mm folder (bellows), a jewel in chrome, steel and brass. The craftsmanship is absolutely superb, very well finished. In my opinion, by far, the best 35mm folder ever made.

The lens is a classic single coated Tessar 45mm F2.8. It also has a coupled coincidence telemeter and an uncoupled selenium light meter.

The viewfinder is a bit dark but reasonably good and the rangefinder spot very clear. It’s small but quite heavy. I prefer it much more than any Kodak Retinas, including the IIIC.

This one is in my family since the 1950s. It belonged to my grandfather, then my mother and now it’s mine. Yesssss my precioussssssssssssss =)

The only drawback is the selenium light meter and you should expect a very high failure rate at this age. Selenium meters doesn't last forever. Just forget about the light meter because it's very unlikely to be working properly. Take a hand light meter and be happy instead of frustrated.

Oh, the shutter cocking mechanism is not coupled to the film advance. You need to do it manually. The camera prevents double exposures.

Lens: Zeiss Tessar 45mm F2.8 single coated, 4 elements
Shutter: Synchro Compur (B, 1s - 1/500s) with X-Sync
Film type: 35mm
Filter: 27 mm snap in filters