Armoured
Well-known
Didn't make it to the factory store, ...
Didn't make it to the factory store, ...
...but did pick up a cheap one with three backs, hood, filters, lens, prism and waist-level finder and a wonderfully cheesy case. First roll turned out fine (okay, some bad exposures, but I was guessing at night in a cafe). Those that were exposed properly are fine (not doing any pixel peeping, mind).
A few thoughts:
-This is (despite the rep) serious kit. A little clunky in operation but functional all 'round.
-The shutter / mirror combo is a wallop. Followed by a weird sound like small gears running out. Not unpleasant - more of an acquired taste.
-The prism finder is far too heavy and makes it non-trivial to handle. WLF much better. Balances surprisingly well with a good-sized flash on the side hotshoe.
-Cassettes a bit finicky - particularly getting the film loaded cassette back in requires a bit of squeezing/struggling. But they work fine once they're on. (Well, waiting for test films to come back to confirm no light leaks, but mechanically).
-Feeling overall of solidity, like most of the FSU gear. Not solid like the German stuff - solid like it seems it's actually a solid block of metal that has been carved 🙂. Not fragile, just ... a bit clunky.
Fun stuff for a (ridiculously) low entry price. I've not used a medium format SLR before. Mirror ka-thump is probably the biggest change in feel. TLRs I have used mostly easier to load, but no changeable backs.
Didn't make it to the factory store, ...
...but did pick up a cheap one with three backs, hood, filters, lens, prism and waist-level finder and a wonderfully cheesy case. First roll turned out fine (okay, some bad exposures, but I was guessing at night in a cafe). Those that were exposed properly are fine (not doing any pixel peeping, mind).
A few thoughts:
-This is (despite the rep) serious kit. A little clunky in operation but functional all 'round.
-The shutter / mirror combo is a wallop. Followed by a weird sound like small gears running out. Not unpleasant - more of an acquired taste.
-The prism finder is far too heavy and makes it non-trivial to handle. WLF much better. Balances surprisingly well with a good-sized flash on the side hotshoe.
-Cassettes a bit finicky - particularly getting the film loaded cassette back in requires a bit of squeezing/struggling. But they work fine once they're on. (Well, waiting for test films to come back to confirm no light leaks, but mechanically).
-Feeling overall of solidity, like most of the FSU gear. Not solid like the German stuff - solid like it seems it's actually a solid block of metal that has been carved 🙂. Not fragile, just ... a bit clunky.
Fun stuff for a (ridiculously) low entry price. I've not used a medium format SLR before. Mirror ka-thump is probably the biggest change in feel. TLRs I have used mostly easier to load, but no changeable backs.
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