visoflex on zm

[1ScrewLoose]

I searched the forum, and found that Tom A. had used a Viso on his SW... but no specific mention of putting one on and ordinary ZM. Thought I'd share the experience for anyone else contemplating the move. Apologies if this duplicates some post I missed.

I finally found the courage to mount a Viso III on my ordinary ZM, listening carefully for the sound of delicately machined metal shearing into eensy weensy shards. No such sound. It works. Really, really well. (OK, maybe "really really well" and Visoflex don't belong in the same paragraph. But if you're the viso type, you know what I mean.)

The arm doesn't quite come down on the shutter release, but the "soft release" by Tom A. does the trick exactly. Auto exposure appears to work brilliantly (there may be some adjustment involved -- I did have one exposure run absurdly long, perhaps because the mirror flipped back before the camera though the shutter should close -- not an issue if you're working from permanent lock-up, though).

The Viso body does wind up very, very close to the frame preview lever on the ZM -- I'd be nervous about whacking it if I were mounting the Viso in a hurry, or with very cold hands.

Otherwise, a great success -- turning an elegant 21st century rangefinder into a godawful cold-war quasi SLR.

 

[squirrel$$$bandit]

Otherwise, a great success -- turning an elegant 21st century rangefinder into a godawful cold-war quasi SLR.

That's what it's all about, baby!!

 

[Tom A]

I do use it on the SW mainly because I have one and keep the ZM for "normal" stuff (alluding to the fact that using Viso is not normal!). I have used it on my ZM too and it works fine. I particularly like it with the Bellows. The longer extension of the bellows makes exposure calculation a headache! Now, just pop up the mirror and let the camera handle the math (and you can blame it if it didn't work).

 

[Oliver H]

... boah, sounds pretty cool. Could you both please send some pictures of your Zeiss / Visoflex cameras?

Regards,

Oliver

 

[1ScrewLoose]

Will do, as soon as I can bring one of them digital thingys to bear on it.

Though I fear seeing a Viso/SW combo will give me a terminal GAS attack.

 

[Al Kaplan]

Now you need a 400mm lens...LOL

 

[1ScrewLoose]

LOL yourself... sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.

Do you think that with the way the 400mm Telyt unscrews, Santa could get down the chimney with it?

 

[Al Kaplan]

I never said "Telyt", just "400mm". It's a Sterling-Howard Tele Astranar f/6.3, very similar to the Spiratone and a bunch of other under forty dollar 400mm lenses of the era. A little creative engineering turned a T-mount 400 into a Visoflex II mount 400 with perfect infinity focus.

 

[1ScrewLoose]

I apologize for my hasty conclusion, and bow in reverence to your creative engineering.

Under $40... hmm... that might work even better for Santa. It's not so much the diameter of the chimney this year, as the financial resources of the elves. In truth I'll be happy to get a spare battery for the ZI and a roll or two of Velvia in my stocking this time around.

 

[Al Kaplan]

I described the Viso conversion in detail before but if anybody wants I'll do it again. And these lenses were cheap years ago. I'm not sure what a used one would sell for these days.