Retina Automatic III: What may I expect?

[Brichma]

Hi there,

Within a few days my newly bought Retina Automatic III will arrive and I'm very curious how this first steps of automation from the early sixties will work out in practice. In rangefinderland I think this is a very interesting period towards full 'Point-and-Shoot" photography in later years. Was this attempt succesful or was this a qualitative setback? F.i. How does the 4-element f:2.8 / 45 mm Retina-Xenar perform? And is this camera a worthy companion to my Retina IIIc? Please share your experiences with me!

Regards, Brichma


"Time flies, and I? ...I fly along..."

Kodak Retina IIIc - Kodak Retinette Ib/Wata Combimeter - Voigtlaender Vitomatic IIIB - Voigtlaender Vito CLR - Olympus-35 ECR - Canonet QL17 GIII - Minolta Hi-Matic9 - Yashica Electro 35 GSN - Petri 7 S

 

[Sonnar Brian]

Mine works well, the Selenium cell is accurate. But- you need to check that the cell in your camera is good, I have about 50% successrate on selenium cells and old cameras.

The lens is a Tessar formula, is lower contrast and softer wide-open than your Xenon. Stopped down to F4~F5.6 it is quite good.

 

[murpograph]

Kodak Stuttgart must have made something right regarding the selenium-cells of their exposure-meters. Of course are some of them dead. But most of them that I had in my hands were still working satisfactory. Most other cameras (including the famous Contax IIIa) of that era have non-working meters. This should give you hope. The performance of the Xenar will be o.k. even for larger prints. You should invest however in a sun-shade and use it.

 

[Sonnar Brian]

The retina meters are sealed units. They are replaced as a unit, cells are well protected against humidity. The Contax meters often stop working because the electrical contacts become corroded. I have brought some of the Contax meters back to life by cleaning the leads.

 

[Brichma]

Alas, meter is dead...

Alas, meter is dead...

Hi There!

Inspite of the fact that this camera would be in full working order, I find the Gossen selenium meter 'dead' when it arrived. Ticking carefully against the housing does move the needle, so I think the meter is not responding to light anymore because of humid circumstances over the years. I could get my money back if I wish to, but this camera looks very nice after cleaning it thoroughly. So I've decided to keep it for display. Nevertheless I would like to drop this question: Is this lightmeter repairable and is there perhaps someone here in the forum who did it previously? A second copy only for repair is rather expensive...

Regards, Brichma


"Time flies, and I? ...I fly along..."

Kodak Retina IIIc - Kodak Retinette Ib/Wata Combimeter - Kodak Retina Automatic III - Voigtlaender Vitomatic IIIB - Voigtlaender Vito CLR - Olympus-35 ECR - Canonet QL17 GIII - Minolta Hi-Matic9 - Yashica Electro 35 GSN - Petri 7 S

 

[Sonnar Brian]

The light meter must be replaced as an entire unit, and there are some complicated linkages. The camera works on Manual Exposure without issue, I would just use it without the meter.