Difficulties with Kiev 4 viewfinder

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tjamu

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Hi all, I've recently gotten into RF cameras and bought myself a nice Kiev 4AM from ebay. All working and in good condition, I think. But I just can't stop wondering if the viewfinder is really supposed to be so "squinty"? I have to almost touch the lens with my eyeball to see the full frame, and still it feels like a rough guesstimate since there are no guidelines. I've shot couple rolls of film now and about half of the pictures were framed totally wrong (framing was way off, mostly to left). Is my viewfinder faulty or is it just so hard to use? Any tricks or tips on using it?
 
Those older cameras tend to have smaller viewfinders. Shoot long enough with one and you eventually will be able to "see" in your head what the camera sees.

The other option is to pick up an external viewfinder.
 
tjamu said:
Hi all, I've recently gotten into RF cameras and bought myself a nice Kiev 4AM from ebay. All working and in good condition, I think. But I just can't stop wondering if the viewfinder is really supposed to be so "squinty"? I have to almost touch the lens with my eyeball to see the full frame, and still it feels like a rough guesstimate since there are no guidelines. I've shot couple rolls of film now and about half of the pictures were framed totally wrong (framing was way off, mostly to left). Is my viewfinder faulty or is it just so hard to use? Any tricks or tips on using it?
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this is the real kiev VF :d

I loved this camera, but it broke :/

by the way, the patch is very good, good contrast and definition 🙂
 
If you plan to buy new lenses in future maybe it is worth to buy universal turret vf ? I used to mine so much that even when i am shooting with 50 mm i am using turret vf than this built-in one. It's much easier.
 
Anything closer than a few metres also starts to introduce parallax errors, check to see if the badly-framed shots are closer ones. Parallax at closer distances is just a feature of any RF so learn to compensate.

An external finder can be a big help if you're struggling and the turret-finder is one of the best IMO; it allows you to see what's just outside the frame too. It's essential to use an external finder with lenses other than 50mm anyway, unless you're very good at eyeballing the framing!
 
Thanks for replies. I'll just need to learn how to adapt to it... The viewfinder is great in other aspects though - focusing is very accurate and good contrast on the focusing square. I'm probably getting more lenses in the near future, at that point I'll need to invest on an external VF anyway. I'm thinking of Helios VF, because it's quite small and it might be possible to draw 50mm guidelines to it as well.
 
bolas said:
If you plan to buy new lenses in future maybe it is worth to buy universal turret vf ? I used to mine so much that even when i am shooting with 50 mm i am using turret vf than this built-in one. It's much easier.
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Once upon a time I made a very very rough measuring about what is the distance from which the parallax byass starts to appear for a 50mm lens and the Kiev viewfinder. I found that the distance was some 1,7m and onwards towards the camera. Let's add some margin for error and we get 2m.

This means that you cannot have parallax errors for subjects standing at 2m and farther. Otherwise my testing will have to be done again.

However, if your images show more or less my test was correct, then the most convenient tool is the Universal Turret Finder, providing you a good correction leverage for short distances. Even the UTF is not perfect here, but you will find it very easy to find the level of parallax compensation to adjust for a 50mm lens, or leave some free space above the head of your subjects, once you compose with the UTF.

In my particular case, like Bolas (and finally I am happy to find a pal on this issue) there is no Kiev without UTF, up to the point that two UTFs are permanently attached to my two working Kievs. And, like Bolas, I will still carry the UTF even if the only lens with me is going to be the standard.

Using permanently a UTF on your Kiev, changes a lot the character of your camera. You will be loosing speed of manipulation against the average Kiev user, using only the viewfinder. On the other hand the viewfinder with its great yellow patch will stop to be the compositional tool on behalf of the UTF, and will remain as a focusing only device. You will be spending more time peering through a high quality glass with almost zero loss of light. In other words, you will take the best of the Kiev viewfinder without paying the parallax tax.

But, of course, the UTF represents some investment, and perhaps you may like to spend some more time with your camera before that.

Cheers,
Ruben
 
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UTF is also a good investment cause it makes framing easier and faster. I've learned it right after i bought mine. Everytime when something will interest you there will be no more need to open the camera case, prepare everything etc ... just to hide/close it when you decide that this frame is not good enough to shoot a picture. I am carrying UTF in my pocket and all the time when something will focus my attention i just pick it up and check the frame. If its worth of taking the camera i am shooting, if not i just going forward 🙂 Same when you got few lenses in your bag ... you can always check the frame only with UTF (for few lenses views) and then decide what to do next. It is useful really. There also usually is a compensation on UTF - two or three settings (1 meter, 2 meters and infinity).
 
I am using russian UTF from Zorki ... it's like a Kiev dedicated one but the turret viewer is on the opposite site. It's not a problem at all. Using Kiev one with Zorki makes trouble with film rewinding, for Kiev both models are quite good and precise. In one single UTF you have viewer for 28, 35, 50, 85 and 135 mm lenses - all types of serial lenses to Kiev.

2_copy131.jpg
 
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