Today's shooting rig ... customized Kodak Retina IIIc-x

Godfrey

Godfrey

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So ... I obtained this Kodak Retina IIIc very inexpensively because it had a dented top cover and a dead meter. Otherwise it worked very well.

"Hmm," I thought to myself, "The IIIc and IIc bodies are nearly identical other than the top cover and meter. Perhaps I can find a for-parts IIc with a good top cover and swap them..."

That became a much longer story, but in the end the swap was very doable and this is the result now:


Kodak Retina IIIc-x
A Kodak Retina IIIc with the Schneider 50mm f/2 lens,
sans meter and fitted with Retina IIc top cover.​

The IIc top cover is slightly shorter than the IIIc top cover, and the whole camera seems tidier and less fussy than the stock IIIc with all the complications of the meter embedded into it. There's nothing wrong with the IIc's 50mm f/2.8 lens, but the IIIc's f/2 lens means another stop of low-light capability and (I feel) has just a hair nicer rendering quality than the f/2.8. It does make this "IIIc-x" just slightly heavier than the IIc.

My first test roll of film is in it now ... One of my remaining Ferrania P30 135-36 batch. I'm exposing it at ISO 40 and will process for 16 min in HC-110 @ 1:99 dilution ...

Fun, fun, fun! Enjoy,
G
 
I was commiserating with the owner of an antique mall one day about the lack of old cameras because everyone was selling them on eBay instead. He told me he had just got a box of camera stuff in recently and wanted to know if I was interested in looking at it as he wasn't sure how to price it all. So, we go to the back of the shop in his cubbyhole, and he pulls out this handmade wooden box which by itself could sell for a decent amount. As he opened it up, I saw lots of little items and some bigger stuff on the bottom. A couple of the larger items turned out to be a Nikkormat FTN, and two Retina cameras, a beat up IIa and a really nice IIIC. I was thinking about whether I should just settle for one or two of the cameras and leave the rest for maybe later when he said, "How about $200 for the lot?" I didn't have that much cash on me, but one of my credit cards had plenty of room.

I've still got the IIIC and Nikkormat, and used the beat up IIa to repair a busted hinge on a friend's camera. So, as you've shown Godfrey, even old beat-up cameras have plenty of use left in them. Enjoy that S-K f2, it's a real sweetheart of a lens.

One of my other cameras in the Retina family.

Kodak Retina Ia by P F McFarland, on Flickr

PF
 
I was sick with a misery of a cold from about Dec 27 to about two days ago. The test roll in the Retina IIIc-x stood at about 8 exposures to go, but I'd completely forgotten what kinds of things I was shooting with it. "Oh, what the heck, let's see what the camera has done..." I said this morning.

I'd loaded Ferrania P30, one of my remaining rolls from the batch I bought a couple of years ago. While it's nominally rated at ISO 80, I have in the past found that to be at least a stop too fast for this emulsion, at least with HC-110, so I used the formula I'd developed for it after the second roll I shot and exposed it at ISO 40. The development was a very dilute HC-110 @ 1:99, temp at 68°F, time for 16 minutes, with continuous agitation care of the Rondix 35 processing tank. It's hanging in the bath to dry right now ... and the exposures look right on the money!

Soon I will be able to see if I made any photographs worth posting. 🙂

G
 
Okay ... The film is all scanned and inverted for viewing. And ... there seem a couple of decent photos on it!

Ferrania P30 even with my modified processing remains a punchy, deep performer. The high silver content give it a striking look rather different from a lot of other films. This exposure popped out at me even before I scanned the exposures:


Woman Having Breakfast - Mountain View 2025
Kodak Retina IIIcx + Xenon 50mm f/2
Ferrania P30 : HC-110, 1:99 @ 70°F @ 16min​

I'm working on a couple others that I think are worth posting. 🙂

enjoy, G
 
I've posted a couple of other photos from this test roll in other threads, here are three new ones:


Machine Wall - Santa Clara 2025


Victorian House with Picket Fence - Santa Clara 2025


Bench by Wall on Sunny Day - Santa Clara 2025

All: Kodak Retina IIIc-x on Ferrania P30
Schneider-Kreuznach Retina-Xenon 50mm f/2 lens
ISO 40, HC-110 1:99, 16 min @ 70°F​

Truly love to shoot with this camera. Next roll I take out with it, I'm going to concentrate on using the 35 and 80 mm accessory lenses. 🙂

Enjoy! G
 
Yes, the camera is working perfectly, and the standard Schneider 50mm f/2 lens is outstanding! As I explore this system more, use and experience it more, I am drawn to consider that the Kodak Retina RF cameras from the middle 1950s are of equal caliber and quality to the Leica cameras. Of course, the design places rather different constraints on their versatility — the Leica M is much more versatile due to the design of the viewfinder and the 'whole lens' interchangeability — but within the scope of a three lens system and a simplistic rangefinder, the Retinas are right up there on quality and performance.

And it's kind of amazing how many details Kodak thought out and produced to make the system more convenient in use. For instance: if you want to use the 80mm or 35mm lens, you have to remove the 50mm front component and replace it with the alternative. What do you do with the front component when you've taken it off? As a matter of practice, I was taking the lens off and then swapping it into the bubble case for the accessory lens ... but that wasn't secure or protective enough for Kodak:

IMG_1851.jpeg

They made this little case specifically for the 50mm component lens. It's both a tool to aid in removing/replacing the component and a storage vessel to protect it when not in use. As with most everything in the system, beautiful design and super build quality. I discovered it on EBay for the first time at the incredible price of $15... It works flawlessly, and is practically brand new even if it is nearly 70 years old.

So much fun! I'm looking for a few of the more esoteric accessories for the Retina cameras now. A microscope adapter, a copy device attachment ...

Fun fun fun!
G
 
Kodak spec'ed top quality lenses for all the Retina cameras. The closest equivalent to the standard Schneider 50mm f/3.5 is likely something on the order of a (post-WWII, coated) Leica Elmar 5.0cm f/3.5 ... I've compared the Schneider 50mm f/2.8 on the IIc model to my 1950'ish Elmar and found them to be very close in producing similar look and feel to the photos. A Color-Skopar 50mm f/3.5, like on my Vito II and Vitessa, is also similar but these are not interchangeable lenses that can be adapted to other mounts.

I wonder if a modern Voigtländer Color-Skopar 50mm f/2.5 produces similar look and feel...? It is a classic Color-Skopar lens design, but modern glass, production, and coatings... I have one of those, I should go shoot some similar subjects with it and see how its rendering qualities compare. 🙂 I already know it's a terrific lens! I'll put it on my Leica IIIc and take it out for a spin some day soon.

G
 
Godfrey said:
Yes, the camera is working perfectly, and the standard Schneider 50mm f/2 lens is outstanding! As I explore this system more, use and experience it more, I am drawn to consider that the Kodak Retina RF cameras from the middle 1950s are of equal caliber and quality to the Leica cameras. Of course, the design places rather different constraints on their versatility — the Leica M is much more versatile due to the design of the viewfinder and the 'whole lens' interchangeability — but within the scope of a three lens system and a simplistic rangefinder, the Retinas are right up there on quality and performance.

And it's kind of amazing how many details Kodak thought out and produced to make the system more convenient in use. For instance: if you want to use the 80mm or 35mm lens, you have to remove the 50mm front component and replace it with the alternative. What do you do with the front component when you've taken it off? As a matter of practice, I was taking the lens off and then swapping it into the bubble case for the accessory lens ... but that wasn't secure or protective enough for Kodak:

View attachment 4855350

They made this little case specifically for the 50mm component lens. It's both a tool to aid in removing/replacing the component and a storage vessel to protect it when not in use. As with most everything in the system, beautiful design and super build quality. I discovered it on EBay for the first time at the incredible price of $15... It works flawlessly, and is practically brand new even if it is nearly 70 years old.

So much fun! I'm looking for a few of the more esoteric accessories for the Retina cameras now. A microscope adapter, a copy device attachment ...

Fun fun fun!
G
Click to expand...
I can help you with the accessories. I'll have to dig through some boxes first.

PF
 
Great! I'm only looking for a few things yet...

- the 35mm f/5.6 lens hood
- Kodak Retina Close-up Kit Model B
- Table Top Camera Stand Model B

I found one of the Microscope Adapters, but it isn't something I'd ever use so I decided against it. 😉

thx,
G
 
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