Horizont KMZ (and some basic existential questions about the camera)

[Gregoris]

The postwoman delivered my Horizont #3 today (third attempt at getting a properly working one) and I haven't yet shot anything with it, but I saw that it came with a green filter still attached to the lens.

I have noticed that green is the only coloured filter that was made for these soviet cameras, and I was wondering why not yellow - for example, which is more common with black and white film.

Anyone knows perhaps? (Oh, and how do I get this thing off?)

 

[sevo]

I have noticed that green is the only coloured filter that was made for these soviet cameras, and I was wondering why not yellow - for example, which is more common with black and white film.

Anyone knows perhaps? (Oh, and how do I get this thing off?)

Green (the proper German term for the correct hue is Gelbgrün - yellowish green) actually is the filter that will give a near-visual representation of apparent colour brightness with panchromatic film, while yellow was sufficient for the same purpose (ignoring the impossibility to render reds) on orthochromatic (which needed no red attenuation).

Pan film looks reasonably good without any filter applied, while ortho without a filter rendered a speckled and blemished skin in subjects without special "film" makeup, so use of a filter was pretty mandatory for amateur use in ortho days. By the time of panchomatic film, use of filters for colour correction accordingly got rare - they mostly were used only to create dramatic clouds, where yellow is more suitable. I suspect that the Soviet Union bundled filters according to the recommendations of a academic advisory board rather than by market request - so they ended up with the proper rather than the popular filter...

 

[Gregoris]

The proper versus the popular. Somehow, I like this approach. 🙂

I guess I'll keep it in there and try a couple of rolls with it, out of curiosity. The other reason is: I just don't know how to get it out. it looks like it has been inserted in a way that requires special tools to get it out of the turret.

 

[Requin]

Hi Gregoris,

if bought new the Horizon has 3 filters in Special holders which are clamped in front of the lens. To take the filter out you have to make a special "filter extractor" which doesn't come with the camera.
I'll add a copy of the filter page from the owner's manual - but I can't read the letters or translate the text because it's kyrillic.

I hope that helps

Requin

 

[Gregoris]

Thanks Requin,

I sure can't read cyrillic either and this diagram is not very clear. I have seen it before on the internet and tried to make sense of it, but I'm failing miserably. Maybe the text really helps explaining the process. Hopefully someone who speaks Russian would kind enough to be able to help us here?

The special "filter extractor" you are referring to, helps to take the filter holder out of the turret, or to remove the actual green filter from the holder and replace it with another colour filter?

 

[Requin]

Hi Gregoris,

it helps to take the filter holder (incl. filter) out of the turret. Normally you don't need a filter. Each filter is in a separate holder.

Requin

 

[Gregoris]

Thanks Requin, I emailed the seller to ask him to explain how to do that. Looks complicated...

 

[Requin]

Hi Gregoris,

I just reread the filter page and found out the following: to "extract" the filter holder you take another filter holder (or maybe yor fingernail) hook them into each other and pull in the direction of the black arrow (top right corner of Picture). Filter holder should come loose.


Good luck

Requin

Requin

 

[Gregoris]

Thanks Requin, much appreciated!

 

[Requin]

Hi Gregoris,

forgot to post the enlarged pic again.


Requin

 

[hkrieger]

I bought a Horizont camera in Moscow in the 1960s. It mosly laid unused until the 1990s. I replaced the rotted rubber light seals with some felt material and cleaned up the camera a bit. There was some light streaking due to the uneven movement in the swing of the lens, but it was not too bad. You can see a series of the photos made with the Horizont at www.efn.org/~hkrieger/panorama.htm

 

[gorbas]

Servicing Horizon 202

Servicing Horizon 202

I just phoned Brian and looks like he is not on this phone number.
Did anybody contacted him recently?
Thank you in advance!

There is a fellow in Canada that does a CLA on these cameras. He did a Horizont for me a few years ago and did a grat job. Almost any camera you buy, that has now been serviced with have the same light leak problems, the seals are just to old.


Brian Martin
5124 - 209A Street,
Langley, BC, Canada
V3A 7K8

Phone 604.532.1166