everyone is home now

[back alley]

the kiev 4am was waiting at the front door today when i got home from work.
very nice shape and it seems to function properly. the lens is clean, just some cleaning marks but that's expected from a lens made in 1960.

so i now have 2 fsu cameras, the kiev and the zorki 4k.

i quite like the feel of the zorki and it's sturdy simplicity but it has no strap lugs!
it has a case but i hate cases.
this i will use to see what it can do and it will become my loaner camera for a possible few friends who are intrigued by my old cameras and want to try one out.

the kiev is very nice, solid squared off and a bit smaller profile with the jupiter 8 on the front. will fit nicely in my day bag. it looks abit sporty with the soft release on it and it makes the 'contax hold' easier to shoot.

the zorki just looked silly with the sr on it. it's too sporty i think.

so i think my carry cams, in the car, the day bag etc will be the kiev w 50/2 and the canon g2 digital.

time and some shooting will tell.

joe

btw, ben is a good guy to deal with.

 

[SolaresLarrave]

My, Oh 😱 My! You guys are going Rusky on me!

No... I don't want to go down that path myself. I spent a long, bitter night arguing with myself, reading never-ending "praise of the FSU camera" websites and nasty diatribes against them...

Joe, I thought you were a commited Canonista!

Oh, well, time to surf over to eBay... 🙁 Go with the flow...

Now that I remember, Oscar has a nifty Kiev. Isn't that the Contax knock-off?

 

[Natalia]

My, Oh 😱 My! You guys are going Rusky on me!

No... I don't want to go down that path myself. QUOTE]

Don't fight it....It's fun😉

 

[back alley]

canon will always be my first true love, especially the 'p'.

but these are kinda fun.
yes, kiev is the contax 'copy' and my fear is that my controlled desire for a contax lla will explode and overwhelm me.

joe

 

[sockeyed]

Glad everything arrived safe and sound, Joe!

I don't think that any of the Zorki 4Ks have strap lugs, but they are the only of that series with a thumb-winder, so it's a trade-off for some people. Actually, only a few of the Zorki-4's have lugs (I had to hunt a while to find one). The lack of lugs is a strange phenomenon in commie cams. You would think that adding them would not be a lot of effort, but many of them just don't have them. These include (from memory) Zorki 1's and most 2's, Zorki 4k's, Fed 3's, 4's and 4's. I'm sure that there are more, too.

Happy shooting, and post of pix from the Kiev when you can.

Ben.

 

[pshinkaw]

It was kind of a design movement in cameras in the 60's (other than the Zorki-1 and Fed-1 which were design copies of pre-war Leicas). A bunch of Voigtlanders, some Zeiss-Ikons, an Exa, and even some Japanese rangefinders were made without strap lugs. I guess the designers thought everyone wanted an ever-ready case. The Soviets just stayed with it a little longer. Most of the time it is a pain not to have lugs, but he Zorki-1 is so small that a neckstrap actually gets in the way.

For some reason my right thumb tends to cramp when I'm holding the Zorki-4, so a strap lug is much more welcome.

My subjective sense is that most Zorki-4's have lugs but that those tend to get bought up first. The only ones that I have seen w/o lugs are those with the ribbed vinyl covering. The old-style vulcanite ones I have seen all have strap lugs.

-Paul

 

[taffer]

Joe I bet you'll love the Kiev, and Francisco, I'm amazed that you don't already own one so far, with all the good things I've told you about them 😀

And I hereby declare this as my #2000 post ! 😀

 

[SolaresLarrave]

Natalia... I fought it looong and hard, and I lost.

So, I'm browsing eBay in search of a nice, looking Kiev that loves walks in the woods, coffee, sunny afternoons and the ocassional roll of Scala. 🙂

 

[pshinkaw]

Unless you are in to nostalgia and retro-50's operations, you may prefer the Kiev-4M or Kiev-4AM versions. I have models ranging from the 2 up to the 4M, and the version with a rewind crank and built-in take-up spool are really the most practical for photography. Since they are newer too there seems to be a better choice of models that are not worn out and need major rehabilitatioin work. Kiev-4AM's also tend to cost a little less since the meter is perceived by many to be a useless appendage. Mine works fine and I 'm glad to have it.

-Paul

 

[back alley]

mine is a 4am and it has no meter. i think thre is some confusion about this whole model designation thing.

francisco, i just came in from a chilly luch time walk, first time out with the kiev. it's gonna take some getting used to but i think i'll like it.

and oscar, congrats on your post count.

joe

 

[taffer]

Francisco, after all, I fell into the dark side first, that is, soon after handling your M6 I ended getting myself a Leica (the CL), but when you grabbed my black Kiev I could see just a *tiny* bit of FSU bug flying from the camera directly to your mind 😀

Depeche Mode already knew the truth, it's just a question of time... 🙄