retrocam
Too many 50mms
I like the way it looks but have not found helpful reviews. Is the Vito B any good?
Thanks.
Thanks.
Voigtlander Vito B
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john_van_v
Well-known
Hi Annie,
Yes, all voigts are good cameras. There was the bad spot beteen the times when they succumbed to Leica, and when Cosina took over, but the Voightlander and Sohn company was the real stuff. Before photography they made microscopes and telescopes, and they also made compasses and sniper scopes for the other team during WWs I and II.
I actually don't happen to own any original voigts but I am working to fix that problem.
There is a thread that discusses the vito b and vito clr in full.
My only perplexion is that they didnt put 2.0 lenses on these cameras made in the days of sloooow film.
I would have started buying sooner if they had. In the time have been looking on eprey, I have seen prominents and bessamatics double in price, but I still keep epraying for one and/or the other.
The vitessas, prominent, and bessamatics get high praise (and dollars), and the med format cameras go for a song.
HTHs (oh geeky for hope this helps)
Yes, all voigts are good cameras. There was the bad spot beteen the times when they succumbed to Leica, and when Cosina took over, but the Voightlander and Sohn company was the real stuff. Before photography they made microscopes and telescopes, and they also made compasses and sniper scopes for the other team during WWs I and II.
I actually don't happen to own any original voigts but I am working to fix that problem.
There is a thread that discusses the vito b and vito clr in full.
My only perplexion is that they didnt put 2.0 lenses on these cameras made in the days of sloooow film.
I would have started buying sooner if they had. In the time have been looking on eprey, I have seen prominents and bessamatics double in price, but I still keep epraying for one and/or the other.
The vitessas, prominent, and bessamatics get high praise (and dollars), and the med format cameras go for a song.
HTHs (oh geeky for hope this helps)
Last edited:
fidget
Lemon magnet
Hi Annie,
I liked the look of them too, I picked up a nice Vito B at a car boot sale. It's build quality is very good. I was so impressed that I had-to-have the an RF version. A very good condition CLR fell into my hands, and an "accidental" CL (mistook the description for a CLR). I have run a couple of films through the B and the CLR, both of which have the Color Skopar lens. I found that the images they produced were pretty far short of what I hoped for, being quite soft even at reasonable apertures (5.6, 8).
Perhaps this was down to my examples, but they both turned in a similar performance, the 2.8 lens of the CLR being less soft maybe. I've not tried the CL and have no plans to do so.
Dave....
I liked the look of them too, I picked up a nice Vito B at a car boot sale. It's build quality is very good. I was so impressed that I had-to-have the an RF version. A very good condition CLR fell into my hands, and an "accidental" CL (mistook the description for a CLR). I have run a couple of films through the B and the CLR, both of which have the Color Skopar lens. I found that the images they produced were pretty far short of what I hoped for, being quite soft even at reasonable apertures (5.6, 8).
Perhaps this was down to my examples, but they both turned in a similar performance, the 2.8 lens of the CLR being less soft maybe. I've not tried the CL and have no plans to do so.
Dave....
john_van_v
Well-known
fidget said:
There was a more pricey lens sold in this line, maybe that one was better. Voigt has had such a good reputation, especially for its prominent and vitessa lenses that I figure that the Vito line may deserve more inquiry.
S
Scarpia
Guest
I have a Vito CLR and find the Skopar 50mm F2.8 very sharp except at the extreme edges even at f11. See my photo "Accident Watchers" in my gallery.
Kurt M.
Kurt M.
fidget
Lemon magnet
I like your gallery Kurt, nice work.
The CLR is a really nice camera, I liked using it very much and was disappointed when I found that the lens performance (or at least sharpness) fell short of the FSU glass I was using. I expected that it would outperform my Industar/Jupiters. The problem was easy enough to see on scans and very apparent on 8x10 prints. As I posted at the time, my digi P&S blew it away in this respect.
I will keep my eye on Fee-bay for an exotic lens version.
I hope that you have a better example and that you enjoy using it....
Dave....
The CLR is a really nice camera, I liked using it very much and was disappointed when I found that the lens performance (or at least sharpness) fell short of the FSU glass I was using. I expected that it would outperform my Industar/Jupiters. The problem was easy enough to see on scans and very apparent on 8x10 prints. As I posted at the time, my digi P&S blew it away in this respect.
I will keep my eye on Fee-bay for an exotic lens version.
I hope that you have a better example and that you enjoy using it....
Dave....
fidget
Lemon magnet
This thread has re-interested me in my Vito clutch. I've gone back to my negs from my few rolls in my "B" and the single roll from the CLR. I must correct what i posted earlier and say that some of the negs from the CLR are considerably better than those from the "B" (Color Skopar 3.5), which had been consistently poor.
I will print up a couple from the CLR.
So maybe I DO have a poor model B or one that has been worked on in the past.
Dave....
I will print up a couple from the CLR.
So maybe I DO have a poor model B or one that has been worked on in the past.
Dave....
bob338
Well-known
i have a vito b that a friend cla'd and gave to me. i think it's a wonderful camera! great for outdoor daytime shots and small enough to fit in a pocket.
my .02
my .02
john_van_v
Well-known
There are quite a few CLR and Vito B shots out on Flickr. One collection is from Scotland and shows cirrus clouds as well as trolley wires fairly clearly. Both come out pretty clear.
I am so glad Fidget has amended his review, now the world can function normally again, lol
I am so glad Fidget has amended his review, now the world can function normally again, lol
Leigh Youdale
Well-known
I bought a Vito B new around 1960 and it had the (near standard) f3.5/50 Color Skopar which I think was a very similar design to the Tessar. I had good results from it for several years but you must realise it was priced as a consumer camera and not as a rival to the Leica or maybe even the top line Zeiss cameras of the day. I don't think the lens was as good as my folding Kodak Retina 1 with the f2.8/50 Schneider-Kreuznach lens. That was a good camera, and very small!
I rather wish I still had it but I don't get to use my Perkeo II, Bessa ! or the Vitessa L as much as I should so another camera is not really needed!
If you want a Vito, try to get the later model with the rangefinder and brighter viewfinder, but don't expect Leica quality.
I rather wish I still had it but I don't get to use my Perkeo II, Bessa ! or the Vitessa L as much as I should so another camera is not really needed!
If you want a Vito, try to get the later model with the rangefinder and brighter viewfinder, but don't expect Leica quality.
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