First Roll Through an Old Russian

I recently bought a 1956 Kiev II rangefinder. These are the Soviet version of the Contax cameras. After WWII, the USSR took over many German factories, one of them being the Zeiss factory that made the Contax cameras.

Anyway, I just scanned in my first roll shot through this camera. Shot on Foma 100 b&w film and developed on Pyrocat MC for 9 minutes. I don't know if it's the film or the camera, but these turned out a little soft compared to what I am used to for 35mm, though I've never shot Foma 100 in 35mm before so it just might be the film.

1956 Kiev II by Andrew Marjama, on Flickr

Kiev II First Roll 1 by Andrew Marjama, on Flickr

Kiev II First Roll 2 by Andrew Marjama, on Flickr

Kiev II First Roll 3 by Andrew Marjama, on Flickr

Kiev II First Roll 4 by Andrew Marjama, on Flickr

Kiev II First Roll 5 by Andrew Marjama, on Flickr

That seems to be a bit more soft then i would expect, could it be that the rangefinder focus mechanism is off? A common problem with them.

But as the name indicates, it is no Russian camera...

Soft in some, but charactered. Were you considering getting it CLA'd? Where were you shooting that day, btw?

Normally a good sharp lens, it's not the film giving the softness, either the rangefinder is way out or there's a lens issue.

Ian

Thanks guys. I believe it's a lens issue too, the reason being that even at f8 and infinity focus, like in the landscapes, the photos are very soft.

I did buy a Helios 103 from another Ukrainian dealer, so I think I'm going to put that lens on and try it out. I LOVE the camera itself, it is a very clean example and the shutter is accurate at all speeds. I think it must have been built when the Kiev was using many of the Contax parts still.

TSSPro said:

Soft in some, but charactered. Were you considering getting it CLA'd? Where were you shooting that day, btw?

Click to expand...

It really doesn't need a cla as the camera is clean and the shutter is accurate, I'm going to see if it is the lens that's the problem.

These were shot on the Chasm Lake Trail up in Rocky Mountain National Park. The Kiev was used just for quick snaps as I used my Zone VI 4x5 for my main work.

How curious. I bought one of these as well, though mine is from '64. And I too bought an Helios, NOS from another seller.

But unlike yours, the lens is sharp, even though its got cleaning marks on the front element, and is not the red "P" version, which is supposedly better. And my shutter was dragging badly, wouldn't even complete the cycle on the slower speeds without help.

Since I had bought it mostly out of curiosity, I thought "what the hell, it's built quite crudely... lets see if a crude job will fix it..." So I did the WD-40 trick, although I used Würth "Rost Off!". And, lo and behold, it is within about 1/3 stop across the board! Even the 1/1250, which I fully did not expect. Even the self timer which seems a weak link in these cameras.

Only issue is there seems to be a slight horizontal RF misalignment, not an issue past 6-8m or so. But I'll try to adjust it in the future, I think the problem lies in that someone disassembled the lens mount and focusing assembly, and assembled it back "on the wrong notch", ie. one thread groove too far out, which would also explain the slight wobbliness of it with the lens set at infinity.

The Helios has even better contrast; I'm amazed at the glass. Loads of character.

For your lens, inspect it thoroughly for scratches and/or marks on the outside. I've seen some that were partially disassembled for cleaning and were scratched internally and/or assembled with one of the elements not fully seated, sitting slightly off-center, that kills sharpness very fast.

But looking at pic #1, I'd say it is either a RF alignment issue, or the bayonet mount not being exactly where it should, like mine. You can see that the focus is improving going out the frame on the right.