Results of Zorki 6 with Industar-50 and why is the VF polarized?

[julio1fer]

I was fooling around yesterday with the Zorki-6 and a collapsible Industar-50. BTW I liked the results and the combo is most portable.

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A funny thing I noticed is that the image seen through the viewfinder in this camera is close to linearly polarized; it cancels reflections in the water when the camera is in "portrait" orientation.

I checked my other Russians looking through their viewfinders at reflections in a glass surface (desk top) - the Zorki-4 does the same as the -6, while the Kiev does not.

Anybody knows why this happens? I had seen polarizer filters, but viewfinders...And then people dare to say that Soviet RFs have no features!

 

[payasam]

Possibly the only coated glass available at the time of manufacture was leftovers from polarising filters. Your sample photo is too small to mean anything.

 

[Joao]

Your sample photo is too small to mean anything.

Clicking on the photo, a short slide presentation will disclose several very nice pictures. They show the possibilities of the Z6-I50 combo, not the viewfinder polarizing features - this would be quite difficult to show in pictures, I guess
Joao

 

[Valkir1987]

The viewfinder of the Z4 and the Z6 have a prism which is made of two prisms semented together. Between the pisms there is a layer which reflects the image of the rangefinder. This is causing the polarizing effect. When you put to viewfinders towards eachother and turn them, the image goes from bright to dark purple.

But if you want to use a filter, you still have to turn the filter before putting it on your camera 😉

When the two prisms break apart the entire layer turns black.

 

[rxmd]

Anybody knows why this happens? I had seen polarizer filters, but viewfinders...And then people dare to say that Soviet RFs have no features!

Interesting observation. I guess it's because of the construction of the viewfinder which has mirrors and half-mirrors in it; the principle behind it is probably polarisation by reflection (Brewster's law), the same reason why light reflected off water is polarized. It depends on the precise angles.

The Kiev viewfinder is built differently.

EDIT: Ninja'd by Valkir before I even posted 😉

 

[julio1fer]

Thanks Valkir for the explanation. I'd never thought that a viewfinder would be polarized.

Forgot to explain that the thumbmail linked to a slideshow presentation.

 

[wolves3012]

Interesting observation. I've just checked mine and found that all the split-prism types (i.e. not the FED/Zorki 1 or Zorki 2) have this effect. It varies, being most noticeable on Zorkis and less so on FEDs and Kievs (still there on a Kiev though).

Any reflection off a non-metallic surface will be polarised though, so there must be at least some glass-reflected element of light through the finder. Unless there really is a polarising layer between the prisms (I didn't think there was and can't see why there should be)...

P.S. Nice pictures there, juio1fer!

 

[wolves3012]

The Kiev viewfinder is built differently.

Not really, in terms of the light path it's pretty much the same. The main difference is in how the path is altered by the lens-coupling. FED and Zorki use a pivoting mirror, as per Leica and others. Kiev uses a pivoting lens to do the job. In terms of the number and type of reflecting surfaces they're the same (for the split-prism models anyway).

 

[raid]

I was fooling around yesterday with the Zorki-6 and a collapsible Industar-50. BTW I liked the results and the combo is most portable.

​

A funny thing I noticed is that the image seen through the viewfinder in this camera is close to linearly polarized; it cancels reflections in the water when the camera is in "portrait" orientation.

I checked my other Russians looking through their viewfinders at reflections in a glass surface (desk top) - the Zorki-4 does the same as the -6, while the Kiev does not.

Anybody knows why this happens? I had seen polarizer filters, but viewfinders...And then people dare to say that Soviet RFs have no features!

Hello Julio,
The images look very nice indeed. I have an identically looking Zorki-6 but I'm unsure whether I have a I-50 collapsible. The polarization issue is certainly interesting.

 

[julio1fer]

Thanks Raid and Wolves for the encouragement - definitely this little lens and its rigid version deserve a better press. I believe that the optics are identical in both versions.

 

[wolves3012]

Thanks Raid and Wolves for the encouragement - definitely this little lens and its rigid version deserve a better press. I believe that the optics are identical in both versions.

I have both rigid and collapsible and as far as I know they are indeed identical optically. Strangely, I've used neither of them much on the bodies they came on (Zorki 5 and 6) but the few shots I did take looked nice and sharp. I agree, it's an underrated lens.