Buying camera just because of the lens.

[Ko.Fe.]

Have you ever purchased camera just because you have lens?

I received as the gift Keiv-19 in 2016. Camera itself is better than Zenit; veiwfinder, focus glass is bright, wide and sharp(on pair with OM, IMO).
And Helios-81H (H is for Nikon mount) lens...
It is small, it is all metal, it has shiny aperture blades 🙂, it is MC and glass is with Lanthanum. The way it renders indoors and wide open is impressive. IMO, impressive comparing to OM.Zuiko 50 1.8 which was the lens I started to question high prices of Leica 50mm lenses.

Even if I'm not SLR guy, every time I was looking at previously taken bw images with Helios-81H MC, it was making me using it again. It is what I want for 50mm lens on Leica, but 50 2 from Leica now is something old with problem glass or new, but out of my price range. Yet, Kiev-19 is one kilo brick for my neck. It is heavy for me after FED-2 with J-3 and even Leica with the Rigid is less heavy. So, couple of days ago I paid for Nikon FG-20. Hopefully, it will works on arrival and it will works with this Helios lens.

 

[mich rassena]

I've certainly had my eye on a Helios-81H for a while and wouldn't hesitate to get one when attached to a camera if it were cheaper. Using a Kiev 19 with Nikon lenses might be a novelty in itself. I once bought a Zenit with an Industar 50/3.5 which I now use on micro 4/3, and I haven't been disappointed with that purchase. I've barely used the Zenit, which is among the most primitive 35mm SLRs I've seen.

 

[Scapevision]

I bought a non-working Leica R3 MOT with the 50mm Cron on it, just for the lens. It cost me 60 bucks in the end after selling the body for parts. This beat to f...s up cron is much better than any Canon L i've ever had. I don't know why they keep feeding us with crap lenses. Never bought a body for a lens I've already had.

 

[mpaniagua]

Bought a Fed 5b for the mint INDUSTAR-61 L/D attached to it. Actually, Fed 5b isn't that bad, it just feel cheap but really not that bad 🙂 Problem is it begs to be disassembled and mess up with 🙂 (being cheap and all) so I normally keep it on shelf.


Regards


Marcelo.

 

[Ko.Fe.]

I have mighty and clean Jupiter-3 which came this way to my hands. We were searching for one in Moscow and it was cheaper and better deal ... with Zorki-4 attached to it. 🙂
The camera was actually working, but not my cup of tea...

 

[mpaniagua]

Also, bought a mint Rolleifles sl35e for my QBM lenses. Love those lenses and my prior sl35e was stuck on manual mode (ASA setting knob was broken, but otherwise working just fine). Got other aperture priority cameras but really love how this one feels on hand and a pleasure when they work 🙂.

Regards

Marcelo

 

[farlymac]

The 85mm Nikkor in S mount that showed up in an auction lot was the seed that became my S-2 outfit.

And I was given a DX AF-S Nikkor 18-105mm with a broken mount that eventually became the basis for my APS-C DSLR kit.

PF

 

[Calzone]

Bought a 1958 2x3 Linhof Tech IV with a Zeiss 100/2.8 Planar.

The camera body is a shelf queen, and the camera came with mucho extras: cable release; grip; masks; hood; film holders; instruction manuals. The body and extras alone were worth the $750.00 I paid.

The 100/2.8 Planar has lens separation on the rear element, so the gamble here is whether or not John at Focal Point can repair this lens. I feel lucky...

Pretty much this camera is as old as me and if I can get the Planar repaired I have a killer deal for no money.

Cal

 

[AlexBG]

Bought a Minolta X700 because I had the 58mm 1.4 as a 85mm portrait lens for my X-T1.

 

[pschauss]

I tried to use a Helios 81H on a Nikon N2000 and it jammed. I could not get to seat completely nor could I remove it. From that point on I have mounted only Nikkor or Tamron Adaptall lenses on my Nikons.

 

[unixrevolution]

I bought a 400mm f/5.6 lens at a thrift store. It turned out to be Konica AR and so I bought a body to try it with.

The body wouldn't focus to infinity so I bought another body...

Then I decided to see if it was the lens so I bought a fifty to test with...

then saw a 58 1.4 that looked nice..

And the cool little 40/1.8...

And then I saw the switchablue full/half-frame Konica Autoreflex, and man, I already have some lenses to go with it...

It snowballed. The 400 never did work right. Sold it cheap. Then divested of the rest of the system.

 

[zuiko85]

Good lenses are where you find them. Shooting Olympus half frame Pen VF cameras for several years, the 4 element 28mm f3.5 lens was a fine, scale focus little optic, plenty sharp enough. Then, almost on a whim, I bought a Pen D with the 6 element 32mm f1.9.....wow! So impressed, at about 5.6 resolution seem to go on forever. Of course the somewhat longer focal length probably helps but that cannot be the whole story. Mayhaps my particular sample just happens to be good, I've never tried another, but it's one optic I'll never let go of.

 

[xayraa33]

I've certainly had my eye on a Helios-81H for a while and wouldn't hesitate to get one when attached to a camera if it were cheaper. Using a Kiev 19 with Nikon lenses might be a novelty in itself. I once bought a Zenit with an Industar 50/3.5 which I now use on micro 4/3, and I haven't been disappointed with that purchase. I've barely used the Zenit, which is among the most primitive 35mm SLRs I've seen.

I own the Kiev 19 camera.

The native lenses are good optically but just like the Kiev 60 lenses, the auto aperture gets gummed up over time because of oil in the lens migrating to the diaphragm blades and making them stick open.

 

[jsrockit]

I'm more of a body first type of buyer.

 

[Ko.Fe.]

Thanks for all of the comments, more info and learned lessons provided!
Now if lens will eventually seize or camera will be DOA, I'm not going to buy more SLR stuff, no no no. 🙂

 

[Fraser]

A nikon F3 for a nikkor 35mm ais, still got the lens sold the camera.

 

[xayraa33]

I have mighty and clean Jupiter-3 which came this way to my hands. We were searching for one in Moscow and it was cheaper and better deal ... with Zorki-4 attached to it. 🙂
The camera was actually working, but not my cup of tea...

The Zorki 4 is a great camera, the earlier made, the better.

 

[ColSebastianMoran]

Just found a might-not-work Olympus OM-10 for cheap. Bought it because it had the 50 f/1.4 lens attached, bit of a crap-shoot. Lens is good. I lucked out.

Frosting on the cake: the body is good too.

 

[Contarama]

I've purchased a few lenses knowing that I would eventually get a block for them. That led to purchasing blocks to get a good finder and certain parts and screws to make everything correct. I'm all good now...money goes to film and processing.

 

[lynnb]

I really like the look of a BP Zorki 4...