Pre WWII Zeiss Contax Rangefinders vs Leica Barnack Screw Mounts

[Erik van Straten]

gelatine silver print (hektor 50mm f2.5) leica II (1932)

Erik.

 

[raid]

Cool! It is the photographer who shines and not the camera. It should not make a big difference whether a Contax or a Leica was used.

 

[Erik van Straten]

gelatine silver print (summar 50mm f2) leica III (1936)

Erik.

 

[Erik van Straten]

Cool! It is the photographer who shines and not the camera. It should not make a big difference whether a Contax or a Leica was used.

I don't understand why nobody shows here a picture made with a prewar Contax to prove that the Contax is a better camera.

Erik.

 

[dexdog]

Late May 2021, flower bed by my front door. Contax Ia AU80859 with 5cm Sonnar f2, CZJ 1398882, Fujicolor Superia 400. I think that this pic has the usual lower contrast of an uncoated lens.

 

[dexdog]

another one from same camera and lens, shot at f2.8, I think. Point of focus is second stem from the left. Flower in question is a US milkweed called Asclepias incarnata. This pic is probably a bit over-exposed.

 

[dexdog]

Mauna Kea, Hawaii 2006. Contax II with 1936 uncoated 3.5cm Biogon. I have posted other shots from this roll in the past. And yes, the sky really is that color at 13,000+ feet. Taken from road just below the observatories on top of the hill.

 

[dexdog]

Great Wall, Badaling section, 2007. Call me a jerk, but I used my Contax II marked "for Manchukuo" and a CZJ 3.5cm Orthometar 2391772 for these pics. Shot most of a roll there, then went back to digital.

 

[dexdog]

I don't understand why nobody shows here a picture made with a prewar Contax to prove that the Contax is a better camera.


Erik.

Umm, I don't think that it is possible to prove that one camera is better than the others. It is just preference in my opinion. BTW, I only own one Leica, a IIIc stepper with red curtain that I bought because it had an LTM Sonnar on it. The shutter will move but is slow and the curtains have pinholes. I keep it around as historical curiosity.

 

[Erik van Straten]

Great shots with the Contax 1 with the f/2 Sonnar! This is the first time I see pictures with such an early Contax. However, I have the impression that the Contax without the long speeds is a more reliable camera than the later ones, less complicated.

I have such an IIIc too. With normal curtains it will be a good camera, but the red curtains are a bit special, so I leave it as it is.

Erik.

 

[Erik van Straten]

gelatine silver print (nikkor 50mm f2) contax I v3

Erik.

 

[Erik van Straten]

I have four Contax I cameras, but only one works as it should. I bought this camera (a v3) from Yves Maxence (if my spelling is right this time), a former executive who worked for the French importer of Leica. I recognized his name because Cartier-Bresson once sent him a thank you note that has become famous. It is my only Contax I camera that works flawless. The picture above is made with that camera.

Erik.

 

[dexdog]

I have a Contax Ia, Ic and If. The Ic was overhauled in 2004 and works great, while the If has broken shutter tapes.

 

[Sonnar Brian]

Contax II. I prefer the combined VF/RF over my Leica IIIa.











Eddy Smolov did the CLA on this camera.

I have ~10 Contax bodies between the II, III, IIa, and IIIa series. Fixed a IIIa myself that had a stuck shutter, the others sent to Eddy Smolov and another person that does mostly DIY and tutorials. I have one Contax II that is not operative, on the shelf. It was $100 with a Chrome nose Tessar 5cm F2.8. I also have a number of Leica III, (two) IIIa, (postwar) IIIc, and IIIf. Fixed a IIIa and a IIIc myself. They all work.

 

[Erik van Straten]

Contax II. I prefer the combined VF/RF over my Leica IIIa.

Eddy Smolov did the CLA on this camera.

I have a Kiev 4 with a light meter that still works. The camera works very well, but I do not like its ergonomics and I have problems with reading the shutter speed dial. The camera works however, even the light meter works. I'd prefer a Contax II or a Kiev without a light meter, but I really do not need one. I only play with my Contaxes and Kiev and use my Leicas for shooting.

gelatine silver print (nikkor h 50mm f2) contax 1

Erik.

 

[Sonnar Brian]

Nikki with her Heelies.



Moving fast. Contax II.

All of the meters in my Contax III and IIIa work, as well as the 1957 Kiev 3. I gave the Kiev a good cleaning and lube. Fixed a light leak in a Contax IIIa. Also did a CLA on an early Zorki that came with a rigid I-22, 1952.

I find it easier to track a subject with the combined VF/RF. I prefer my Nikon SP over the Contax RF's. Kind of like preferring the M3 over the Barnack Leicas. But that would be the subject of another thread.

 

[Sonnar Brian]

Leica IIIa with Summar. I had Essex camera do the CLA on this camera.









I have a perfect-glass Summar, and a perfect-glass prewar 5cm F2 Sonnar. I've compared both on the M9 and M Monochrom. I also have a perfect glass Leitz Xenon and several perfect glass pre-war 5cm F1.5 Sonnars. I prefer the Sonnars.

I found a Black Leica III and a chrome IIIa, with Elmar and Summar, for $15 each in an antique store over 15 years ago. The IIIF with coated Elmar in a grab-bag at a camera store for $50. Remember when film cameras were being given away...

 

[raid]

Contax IIa with Sonnar 50/2

 

[raid]

Contax IIIa

 

[Erik van Straten]

gelatin silver print (elmar 50mm f3.5) leica I (1928)

Erik.