Ezzie
E. D. Russell Roberts
Looks very nice indeed. Ziess seldom is a bad choice.
Best Under $50 120 Camera? (no 620 or 127) (no Holga)
- Thread starter Frank Petronio
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Frank Petronio
Well-known
The seller describes the inner lens as being "cloudy"... a little haze won't hurt me but is it user cleanable?
Or is their a good US-based Zeiss expert CLA tech anyone can reccomend?
Or is their a good US-based Zeiss expert CLA tech anyone can reccomend?
coelacanth
Ride, dive, shoot.
Another vote on Nettar.
Shot with $15 Nettar II.
And this is the camera. It's tiny.
Shot with $15 Nettar II.
And this is the camera. It's tiny.
kuzano
Veteran
All of the old Voightlander folders....
All of the old Voightlander folders....
Often overlooked and low priced as a result.
Voightlanders in 6X9 were relatively well built and the bellows were made of very good materials (unlike Agfas and such) so they lasted well. I've had a number of old voightlanders and not ever had a bellows that leaked light and most were supple. They ran from the thirties to the fifties and had various quality lenses in both uncoated and coated. Bottom line lenses were Helomars, Braunschweig and Voightars. Better lenses were Skopars (uncoated) and Color Skopars (coated), Vaskars and Heliars (Heliars were top of the line).
I'm not talking about Bessa I's or Bessa II's here as they bust your budget consideration.
But it's not uncommon to find a working Voightlander in the earlier Bessa's for your budget price. The shutter speed top ranges as you move forward to the 40's and 50's cameras would likely be 1/125th to 1/250th.
I recently purchased a working early bessa, coated lens, 1/250th shutter, good bellows in the dual format WITH the mask. This allows me to shoot 6X9 (without the mask in the camers), and 6x4.5 with the mask. Dual ruby windows on the back. All the old voightlanders were 120.
I paid around $45 on eBay. Usually quite a few old Voightlanders on eBay.
My favorite is a 6X6 Perkeo (French for "pygmy") small folder with a Color Skopar (best lens available on that camera). Shoots very contrasty B/W images and will truly fit in a jacket pocket. I favor the Perkeo I body, but the Perkeo II is where you most often find the Color Skopar lens. I just lucked out and found the less complicated Perkeo I with the Color Skopar mounted.
Love my Voightlanders. I've had Zeiss Ikons and prefer the Voightlanders. Mostly for the price advantage.
All of the old Voightlander folders....
Often overlooked and low priced as a result.
Voightlanders in 6X9 were relatively well built and the bellows were made of very good materials (unlike Agfas and such) so they lasted well. I've had a number of old voightlanders and not ever had a bellows that leaked light and most were supple. They ran from the thirties to the fifties and had various quality lenses in both uncoated and coated. Bottom line lenses were Helomars, Braunschweig and Voightars. Better lenses were Skopars (uncoated) and Color Skopars (coated), Vaskars and Heliars (Heliars were top of the line).
I'm not talking about Bessa I's or Bessa II's here as they bust your budget consideration.
But it's not uncommon to find a working Voightlander in the earlier Bessa's for your budget price. The shutter speed top ranges as you move forward to the 40's and 50's cameras would likely be 1/125th to 1/250th.
I recently purchased a working early bessa, coated lens, 1/250th shutter, good bellows in the dual format WITH the mask. This allows me to shoot 6X9 (without the mask in the camers), and 6x4.5 with the mask. Dual ruby windows on the back. All the old voightlanders were 120.
I paid around $45 on eBay. Usually quite a few old Voightlanders on eBay.
My favorite is a 6X6 Perkeo (French for "pygmy") small folder with a Color Skopar (best lens available on that camera). Shoots very contrasty B/W images and will truly fit in a jacket pocket. I favor the Perkeo I body, but the Perkeo II is where you most often find the Color Skopar lens. I just lucked out and found the less complicated Perkeo I with the Color Skopar mounted.
Love my Voightlanders. I've had Zeiss Ikons and prefer the Voightlanders. Mostly for the price advantage.
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coelacanth
Ride, dive, shoot.
P.S.
My Nettar II has B, 25, 75, 200 speeds, F6.3 - F22. The lens is quite sharp with some corner vignette, flares "nicely" against light, but nothing is over done or overly cheapy toy-camera-like. It's a Holga for grownups. 😉
Size comparison with Hassy and twinmate.
My Nettar II has B, 25, 75, 200 speeds, F6.3 - F22. The lens is quite sharp with some corner vignette, flares "nicely" against light, but nothing is over done or overly cheapy toy-camera-like. It's a Holga for grownups. 😉
Size comparison with Hassy and twinmate.
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batterytypehah!
Lord of the Dings
I don't have time to look at the actual one you bought but the Nettar is a safe choice. Very well made for the price. I have two (one bought lens-less for $2) and it looks like both folding bed and bellows hold up well. Not so many folders can claim both, in my experience.
I took my 515/2 with f:6.3 Novar to the Grand Canyon last year. Slide film, of course. Don't expect sharpness to the corners but you can always crop. Check the focus before you load your first roll. Easily off after all these years, but just a two minute fix.
I took my 515/2 with f:6.3 Novar to the Grand Canyon last year. Slide film, of course. Don't expect sharpness to the corners but you can always crop. Check the focus before you load your first roll. Easily off after all these years, but just a two minute fix.
batterytypehah!
Lord of the Dings
Ah, not quite. Perkeo is a historical figure, a court jester in Heidelberg in the 1720s. Best anybody can tell, his nickname comes from his favorite saying "perché no?" (Italian for "why not?") whenever someone offered him a glass of wine. Supposedly the same condition that caused his dwarfism also made him permanently thirsty.
This is by no means common knowledge even in Germany, outside of Heidelberg, of course. Always found it an odd name for a camera myself until I bothered to look it up.
patrickhh
GAS free since Dec. 2007
Got my Kiev 60 for 52€ with WLF and 80/2.8 Zeiss Biometar lens. But I admit it was kind of a bargain and I had to adjust film spacing and focus screen alignment (it's fairly easy)
IgalSc
Established
BTW, is Nettar II a RF camera or scale camera?
Frank Petronio
Well-known
Scale apparently
julio1fer
Well-known
IIRC, Brownie Hawkeyes can use 120 in the feed spool. If you develop yourself, you just need to have a 620 spool in the take-up.
Concur with recommendations of folders. The Nettars are scale-focus and most folders under $50 would also be. Some of the Isolettes / Speedex are famous for light leaks in the bellows, so beware. If you like 6x4.5 format, consider a Daichiii Zenobia.
You could also hunt for a TLR with a triplet lens (for instance an Ikoflex with Novar lens). These lenses are the equal of Tessars at f/8 and below, and quite decent all-around. Cameras with triplet lenses go cheap and are excellent value results-wise.
Concur with recommendations of folders. The Nettars are scale-focus and most folders under $50 would also be. Some of the Isolettes / Speedex are famous for light leaks in the bellows, so beware. If you like 6x4.5 format, consider a Daichiii Zenobia.
You could also hunt for a TLR with a triplet lens (for instance an Ikoflex with Novar lens). These lenses are the equal of Tessars at f/8 and below, and quite decent all-around. Cameras with triplet lenses go cheap and are excellent value results-wise.
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bigeye
Well-known
Just bought a Speedex Special on ebay for $27. Will probably have to nail polish the bellows, but we'll see what she can do and maybe treat it to a new one if it does well. I love bow & arrow photography.
I almost bought the pretty Ansco R for sale here in the classifieds today. Mercifully, someone else did. Very nice sample fotos of what an Apotar can do.
- Charlie
I almost bought the pretty Ansco R for sale here in the classifieds today. Mercifully, someone else did. Very nice sample fotos of what an Apotar can do.
- Charlie
David Murphy
Veteran
I had a Toyocaflex Japanese TLR (also called the Skyflex) that made fabulous images until the shutter failed. I paid less than $50, but I can't remember how much. There are some similar ones out there like the Wardflex and others. The Yashica A is often less than $50 and works well.
Kip_S
Member
yashica mats are actually pretty nice cameras.
at least i've had good luck with mine
at least i've had good luck with mine
shimokita
白黒
According to Kodak, there were three Brownie models that used 120 rollfilm:
http://www.kodak.com/US/en/corp/features/brownieCam/
No. 2 Brownie Model F
No. 2A Beau Brownie
Century of Progress Brownie
I have no first hand knowledge but I have read somewhere that the No. 2 Brownie does work with 120 rollfilm, I cannot confirm it...
Casey
http://www.kodak.com/US/en/corp/features/brownieCam/
No. 2 Brownie Model F
No. 2A Beau Brownie
Century of Progress Brownie
I have no first hand knowledge but I have read somewhere that the No. 2 Brownie does work with 120 rollfilm, I cannot confirm it...
Casey
PMCC
Late adopter.
The Super Ricohflex is a compact gear-focus TLR with a sharp triplet, shutter speeds to 1/200. The Zenobia is a 6x4.5 folder with a sharp Neo-Hesper lens (4 element Tessar) and Daiichi-Rapid shutter with B-1/500 speeds. Both in the price range, both are simple gems worth looking for. Real cameras for the price of a toy.
Frank Petronio
Well-known
An update. I tried the Zeiss Box Tengor and found it too mushy, I am not a Brownie type either, I like focus!
But I did very well with a $53 Zeiss Ikon 6x9 w a 105/6.3 Nettar. Guess focusing to 7 feet, limited speeds (1/125-1/30) but with good f/11-16 light and medium distances I've found it to be a nice shooter. It had an inexpensive and very nice CLA from a helpful forum member (who I won't mention unless he wants more work to do!)
Like this:
But I did very well with a $53 Zeiss Ikon 6x9 w a 105/6.3 Nettar. Guess focusing to 7 feet, limited speeds (1/125-1/30) but with good f/11-16 light and medium distances I've found it to be a nice shooter. It had an inexpensive and very nice CLA from a helpful forum member (who I won't mention unless he wants more work to do!)
Like this:
Roger Hicks
Veteran
Lyubitel TLR. Variable shutter speeds AND apertures. If I can find the one I didn't convert to Polaroid it's yours for shipping and whatever you care to stick in the collection box of the charity of your choice. (I can't guarantee I'll find it and shipping from France is more than it's worth).
EDIT: Just saw the pic. Normally I don't like the 'broken doll' look but that's a VERY nice pic. You don't need the Lyubitel.
Cheers,
R.
EDIT: Just saw the pic. Normally I don't like the 'broken doll' look but that's a VERY nice pic. You don't need the Lyubitel.
Cheers,
R.
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Steve M.
Veteran
You have your camera now, but I just wanted to second the recommendation of the Zeiss Nettars (or really any of the Zeiss Ikontas) and especially the Agfa Isolettes/Ansco Speedex folders. Look for one w/ an Apotar lens, and ask about the bellows condition and the focus (make sure the lens focus isn't frozen). These take excellent photos. Then there's the lower end Weltas. They can be found within your $50 price point, and the Welta build quality is superb. These cameras are usually really beat up because people use them. Excellent bellows.
Here's a shot from my Welta Weltax which sports a Meyer Gorlitz Trioplan 78 4.5 lens. I wasn't able to find much info on the lens, but one roll of film later I can say it's fine wide open for portraits and works pretty well for other things if you stop it way down. It's amazing what wonderful photos some of these $50 and under cameras are capable of.
I tried to sell this camera recently and it didn't even make it's reserve of $30. Glad it didn't sell now.
Here's a shot from my Welta Weltax which sports a Meyer Gorlitz Trioplan 78 4.5 lens. I wasn't able to find much info on the lens, but one roll of film later I can say it's fine wide open for portraits and works pretty well for other things if you stop it way down. It's amazing what wonderful photos some of these $50 and under cameras are capable of.
I tried to sell this camera recently and it didn't even make it's reserve of $30. Glad it didn't sell now.
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Roger Hicks
Veteran
Your camera is on the way, but I just wanted to second the recommendation of the Zeiss Nettars (or really any of the Zeiss Ikontas) and especially the Agfa Isolettes/Ansco Speedex folders. Look for one w/ an Apotar lens, and ask about the bellows condition and the focus (make sure the lens focus isn't frozen). These take excellent photos. Then there's the lower end Weltas. They can be found within your $50 price point, and the Welta build quality is superb. These cameras are usually really beat up because people use them. Excellent bellows.
Here's a shot from my Welta Weltax which sports a Meyer Gorlitz Trioplan 78 4.5 lens. I wasn't able to find much info on the lens, but one roll of film later I can say it's fine wide open for portraits and works pretty well for other things if you stop it way down. It's amazing what wonderful photos some of these $50 and under cameras are capable of.
I tried to sell this camera recently and it didn't even make it's reserve of $30. Glad it didn't sell now.
Proof that it's the photographer not the camera. Nice!
I still find the M9 easier to use...
Cheers,
R.
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