converting a 15mm viewfinder to 22.5mm

J

JT2007

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Hi!

I've got a 15mm Heliar and 15mm external viewfinder for it. My problem is that with my Epson R-D1 I would need a 22.5mm external viewfinder but I don't have the money to buy a 21/25mm viewfinder.

I've tried a few tricks like drawing the framelines on a LCD cover plastic and putting it on the eye-side and also cutting edges for it from black cardboard and mounting on the opposite side (with a 1.8cmx1.2cm hole). The latter worked out somewhat but if someone has better idea for a solution I would gladly hear about it. I realize the problem of moving framelines but something even approximatly right would do it for me.

Thanks!

Oh, and naturally if some one is up for a swap 15mm viewfinder for 21/25mm let me know.
 
What would happen to your 15mm Heliar if you swapped your 15mm viewfinder with a 21mm? I suggest you started looking for a Russian 20mm viewfinder which is very bright and normally quite cheap.
 
Thanks for the reply. Not sure what you mean though. I would use my 15mm Heliar lens with the 21 or 25mm external viewfinder on my R-D1 camera (1.5 crop factor).

The 20mm Russar (?) viewfinder would be ideal but I understand that it's not that cheap and easy to find.
 
Look for places selling mainly Russian stuff such as Fed, Zorki etc. and they will probably have one. I bought various bits and pieces of Russian viewfinders and rangefinders years ago in London and cannot really help you right now. I will, however, do some research and get back to you. But no promises as it was really such a long time ago that I bought my Russian stuff.
 
Really appreciate your advice and gesture but I will look after it myself too and also as a matter of fact I'm going to Russia in some time so I'll try to find one there too but it's not that cheap there anymore either. It would be nice though to test this with a more accurate viewfinder even before I get a Russian one so I think I'll continue with my handcraft in the mean time.
 
The Russar finder is much to expensive.
Recently a used 21mm Leica finder was offered for 99 Euro at German Ebay (very cheap). The normal price is 150-200 Euro (sometimes even more).

B.
 
bastian a. said:
The Russar finder is much to expensive.
Recently a used 21mm Leica finder was offered for 99 Euro at German Ebay (very cheap). The normal price is 150-200 Euro (sometimes even more).

B.
Click to expand...

I agree. The one I bought years ago only cost GBP10 and it is exactly the same as the Russar. The viewfinder in my signature photo cost GBP5 and it is a bright 35mm which I shaded to become a vertical 75mm to accommodate the lens. Small rangefinders also cost very little in those days. Obviously the Ruskies have moved upmarket!
 
windscale,

thanks, but don't why would you recommend a doorview as I stated I have a viewfinder for a 15mm lens.

The thing I was asking and needed tips for was exactly the thing you refer as shading. But if black cardboard and tape and just trying to find the right size for the hole is the thing, I've already done it but with so and so results.
 
Voigtlander also sells a 21mm finder. And there is a Voigtlander 15mm D finder for the Epson R-D1 with the crop factor taken into consideration.

Hope that helps.

Cheers,
 
That's what I was gonna suggest too, why bother with a Russian one,
try to get the Voigtlander 15mm D finder for the Epson R-D1,
I have the 12mm with the crop factor taken into consideration.
Works so well for my 12mm.
Geo
 
As I said in the second sentence in my first post i don't have an extra 100+ euros/dollars/anything for a external viewfinder. Still paying for the Heliar 15mm. If I get an extra 100 I'd rather spend it on Jupiter 9 or (food) than an external viewfinder if I can do one myself from the 15mm finder.

So, please, tips for the do-it-yourself?
 
maybe you could use a piece of the adhesive film which is sold to protect touch screens on phones and cameras. cheap, readily available, removes cleanly etc. use a semi-transparent permanent marker in a color other than black, so you can still see what's going on outside the lens field of view?

good luck

rick
 
JT2007 said:
As I said in the second sentence in my first post i don't have an extra 100+ euros/dollars/anything for a external viewfinder. Still paying for the Heliar 15mm. If I get an extra 100 I'd rather spend it on Jupiter 9 or (food) than an external viewfinder if I can do one myself from the 15mm finder.

So, please, tips for the do-it-yourself?
Click to expand...


You can use black tape, white tape, grey tape whatever tape.
If you dont want to go the tape route, when I had my 15mm, I figured out where the "framelines" should be, then dipped a sewing thread in india ink and made the marks on the glass. This allows you to see past the 21mm frame while viewing while still framing correctly. And the ink comes off when you need to sell it again.

Hope it helps, as it costs nothing.
 
I just took a couple of pictures looking through the 15mm finder, looked at them, and figured out how much of a buffer zone would be necessary to figure the right FOV. It's not too hard to get used to--you just become accustomed to framing with plenty of room. It's free this way, and you can use the same finder for film and digital!
 
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