New Zorki 4 owner, is my lens on properly?

[ImyaVetra]

Sorry if this question has already been answered, but I've just got a Zorki 4, and am not sure if the lens is on properly - I haven't tried removing it, as I heard it's better to avoid that if possible. The red mark in the middle of the lens on the DOF scale doesn't line up with the top of the camera, which makes me think that the lens may not be on properly.

A larger photo is here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/134023040@N03/shares/659pu2

 

[xayraa33]

The red line on the J-8 lens does not line up straight up either on my 1956 Zorki 4.

And my camera is perfectly usable.

 

[fraley]

Gently unscrew the lens if you want to assure yourself that it's on all the way. Although if there's no wobble or give, you can be pretty sure it's on tight.

 

[ImyaVetra]

Thank you! I was worried that the pictures I've been taken would all be rubbish when I develop them. The lens is secure, so everything seems to be fine there.

 

[David Hughes]

Hi,

Welcome aboard.

If it will help, you are not the first person to ask this question, nor will you be the last.

It happens with a lot of bodies and lenses and not just ones made in the old USSR. Mostly we ignore it...

It does no harm to unscrew them and put them back on again. It should be done with the lens focussed at the nearest distance and not infinity, perhaps you heard a version of that rule.

Regards, David

 

[ForestCap]

It's fine as long as the lens focuses to infinity and 1 meter correctly.
I noticed you have a digital mirrorless camera, the Pana GX7. You may test the infinity focusing by adapting the J-8 on it (probably you've done it already), before you burn a roll of film for it.

I have a Jupiter-3 and it screws an extra half turn on the cameras. It makes the lens focuses over infinity. Still fixable though.

 

[ImyaVetra]

Hi,

Welcome aboard.

If it will help, you are not the first person to ask this question, nor will you be the last.

It happens with a lot of bodies and lenses and not just ones made in the old USSR. Mostly we ignore it...

It does no harm to unscrew them and put them back on again. It should be done with the lens focussed at infinity, perhaps you heard a version of that rule.

Regards, David

Thanks David, I came across the focus-at-infinity rule, but also read somewhere that it should be focused at 1 meter. If I take the lens off, I'll do it with focus at infinity.

It's fine as long as the lens focuses to infinity and 1 meter correctly.
I noticed you have a digital mirrorless camera, the Pana GX7. You may test the infinity focusing by adapting the J-8 on it (probably you've done it already), before you burn a roll of film for it.

I have a Jupiter-3 and it screws an extra half turn on the cameras. It makes the lens focuses over infinity. Still fixable though.

I don't have an adapter for my GX7 yet; I was thinking of doing the 'One lens/one camera/one year' thing with the Zorki, which would preclude using the Jupiter-8 on my GX7 for a while. Might be a tad unrealistic to attempt this with the Zorki, but so far I've been shooting with it every day... much more engaging than shooting with my RX100.

 

[David Hughes]

Thanks David, I came across the focus-at-infinity rule, but also read somewhere that it should be focused at 1 meter. If I take the lens off, I'll do it with focus at infinity...

Hi,

There's a lot of instructions on the internet for checking the focus of former USSR made RF's. You start by checking the focus at 1 meter and then at infinity. Probably that caused the mis-understanding.

If you've not got one then you can download the manual for the Zorki 4 here:-

http://www.butkus.org/chinon/russian/zorki/zorki.htm

but don't forget he'd like a donation. 🙂

Regards, David

PS About the one lens etc rule, you'll miss a lot of the pleasure of owning a RF with interchangeable lenses. I can't see the point of one body either, 3 or 4 makes more sense to me. That's one serious with a back-up (F'instance a RF), an alternative (perhaps a SLR) and something to slip into your pocket the rest of the time. I often wonder why they restrict themselves with just one...

 

[ImyaVetra]

Thanks for the link!

As for the challenge, I thought about it and I agree with you. It seems like a shame to forgo my GX7, etc for a year. Sticking with a 50mm equivalent lens is not hard, as that's very nearly all I've used for the past few years.
I think the most important things for me are going to be a) using my camera every day and b) making a print a day (I've never made prints of my photos! All digital files that only get emailed or something).