Retina III C ...... tips/details....

[Kapa]

Hiya..... I'm a bit of a Retina nubie but am lucky enough to have a grandfather with enough taste to purchase a Retina III C (in Fiji of all places) while on holiday in the late 50's/early 60's....... I've shot a couple of films thru it and they have been a bit "hit & miss".... but when it "hit" the images have been sharp as nails. Do any of you Retina fans have any tips to be more regularly successful...? Also.... does this serial number provide any info as to the unit itself.....? #84822 with Xenon f/2.0 lens & filter......? :bang:

 

[Spider67]

I noticed on my IIc and IIC that sometimes the RF reading was not correct and that the RF double image sometimes "slid" in place. So perhaps the grease in the RF has become sticky and the array just needs a cleaning. Try it out several times if it gives correct distances especially infinity......
Enjoy your Camera not only a jewel in itself but also a family heirloom!

 

[KoNickon]

I'd agree with what Spider says. And the "capital C" is one of the most sought after of the whole Retina range, so you're fortunate.

The trickiest thing with the metered Retinas is learning how to use the meter (I assume yours is working) and not get fooled by its sometimes overoptimistic readings -- a hazard with any selenium meter, actually.

One other thing: Don't let the advance lever swing back by itself, since the shutter cocking mechanism is easily damaged. Guide it back to resting position with your thumb.

 

[JoeV]

Is focus or exposure giving you the problems with your IIIC, Kapa? On my IIIC the meter doesn't work at all, so I use either a handheld meter, or simply sunny 16 in bright daylight, and extrapolate down an EV or 2 for cloudy daylight, etc.

If focus is the problem you could try zone focussing based on estimating the distance to the subject and setting the focus ring according to the distance scale. And of course with small apertures you can take advantage of depth of focus to get your subject in focus, too.

The thing I've really come to love about the Retina is that with the leaf shutter up front, once you've set the EV number on the lens you have presented on the scale all possible combinations of f/stop and shutter speed, so you can immediately choose between narrow or wide DOF, or slow or fast shutter speed, as the subject matter dictates.

~Joe