Franka Solida 6x6

[Harry f3]

New to this forum and finding a wealth of info. Shoot 35mm but have a chance to get Franka Solida lll at a very good price and just wanted to get info about the camera. Can't really find a lot of info on the internet. Ease of use are they built well. This will be my first attempt with med format. Also what is a good B&W film to start with. Thanks Harry

 

[Donald Qualls]

Based on my reading, the Solida is a decent folder. The examples I see on eBay have the Radionar lens, which is a well made triplet -- when stopped down past f/8 it'll produce results almost indistinguishable from a Tessar. There's little to go wrong, with no frame counter (red window only) and no RF (so no linkage, no half-silver to go bad, etc.). It's scale focus, but with a little practice you can learn to hit the focus within a couple inches at distances where it matters.

 

[edzer]

I have one and use it regularly, often when the hassy is too heavy. Shoots great pictures, built like a tank, easy to carry. Mine has a decoupled RF (in a separate view finder window) which I never use, I guess the distance and use that (scale focus). I use Tri-X film, and it's always an adventure to not miss the number on transport when looking through the red window.

 

[outwest]

I have one with the Radionar and it is a well made and "solid" camera. The lens is quite capable as Donald said just past f/8 and scale focus is easy to use. Not sure what a "very good price" is these days but they used to be an incredible bargain. Of course, as with all old folders, just check the bellows for pinholes (which are easily fixed with a drop of black hobby enamel) if there are any. I've found the European folders to have much better bellows than their contemporary Kodaks. I prefer to use 100ish speed film like Kodak T-Max 100 or Ilford FP4 Plus. Just keep direct sunlight off the lens when shooting. Have fun!

 

[Alan9940]

I've never owned a Solida, but I do have a few other folders. They are all great fun to shoot with. Like @outwest, I tend to use medium speed films in mine. The challenge with some films is seeing the markings through the red window because the printing on the backing paper is so light/faint.

 

[Donald Qualls]

The challenge with some films is seeing the markings through the red window because the printing on the backing paper is so light/faint.

On top of price, that's another good reason to use Fomapan or the Freestyle rebranded Arista .EDU Ultra.

But to give some idea how good even a very simple lens can be on a 6x6 folder, I've had a couple Speedex Jr. cameras (6x6 folder with a double meniscus lens) that produced images in which I could count bricks or leaves at a block away. A Radionar ought to be at least that good.

 

[Harry f3]

Thanks for the info. Will get some Fomapan to start my learning curve. The I'll move up to Tri X and Ilford. Also downloaded the manual from Butkus site to guide me on the ins and outs. From what I can tell it is going to be fun using this camera. Also keep the advice and personal info coming in. Thanks Harry

 

[blee1996]

I have its bigger brother, Franka Rollfix 6x9. They are simple yet solidly built camera, and I like the Radionar lens a lot. Wide open (if you get the scale focus right), it produces very interesting out of focus rendering. Stopped down to f/11 and it can be very sharp. Enjoy yours!

 

[Vetus]

Using and choosing an old folder - Film and Darkroom User

Using and choosing an old folder Articles

www.film-and-darkroom-user.org.uk

 

[loccdor]

I have a Franka Solida I with Frankar 75mm f/3.5 triplet lens. Its rendering is something between a Holga and a quality folder. Soft corners or field curvature. The film advance mechanism gives me trouble. I don't use it often. However I do like its pictures.

It's likely they've solved all these problems with the later model which is more popular among seasoned photographers.

f/11?

f/16

f/3.5

f/8 or f/11

 

[halfaman]

I have a Solida with the 80 mm Radionar and it is a very capable camera. It is very compact and its simplicity is an advantage sometimes. Corners sharpness is problematic even stopping down, but the coated triplet gives excellent contrast wide open and it has a nice bokeh.

I tend to use more the Isolette III due to addition of the uncoupled rangefinder in the viewfinder (there is Solida IIIE version with uncoupled rangefinder but in another window), and the better correction of the Solinar. Its price is not very far from the Franka Solida's.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

New to this forum and finding a wealth of info. Shoot 35mm but have a chance to get Franka Solida lll at a very good price and just wanted to get info about the camera. Can't really find a lot of info on the internet. Ease of use are they built well. This will be my first attempt with med format. Also what is a good B&W film to start with. Thanks Harry

Franka solida is a good MF folder with a decent Schneider Kreuznach lens. I doesn't have a coupled rangefinder, so, focusing has to be set manually on the lens distance ring, but that is doable. I suggest Ilford FP4 in 120 to get started. The camera is old enough that the shutter grease may have gummed up;working it withe manual lever a few times usually gets it going again.

 

[nosmok]

You might get lucky and get a Solida with the Rodenstock Triotar, which is better than the Radionar (not that there's anything at all wrong with the Radionar version; I've had both and kept the Triotar).

 

[film4Me]

You might get lucky and get a Solida with the Rodenstock Triotar

That would be rare, haven't seen one yet. The 6x9 Rolfix often has a "Trinar" lens, and the Solida III often has an Ennergon lens, besides the common Radionar.

Solida III Radionar with uncoupled rangefinder. Kodak Pro 160

Same camera and lens, B&W, Ilford FP4

These images are much sharper than what you see here.

 

[film4Me]

Franka Solida 1 - Not sure of the film, but probably 160. Lens: Frankar Anastigmat. Zone focus, but I used a pocket rangefinder. Depth of field can be a problem with this camera, the only real answer is to practice holding the camera still and use the slow speed 1/25sec, or use 400-800 ASA film.

 

[Donald Qualls]

Depth of field can be a problem with this camera, the only real answer is to practice holding the camera still and use the slow speed 1/25sec, or use 400-800 ASA film.

I think this applies to all medium format cameras, by comparison to 35 mm. The longer focal length gives shallower DOF compared to a "normal" 40-50 mm lens on 35 mm film.
FWIW, I've never had significant complaints about DOF with any of my 6x6 or even 6x9 folders -- but I compose and shoot with awareness of what an 80 mm or 105 mm lens can do, and I pay attention to the DOF table or focus ring marks (and treat them as optimistic). I also learned half a century ago how to hand hold slow shutter -- brace against object, or elbows against ribs, or at a minimum camera pressed into face (braced against my own head). When these cameras were designed, what we'd now call ISO 50 film was common and ISO 25 wasn't unusual; they were intended to work well with a slow shutter.

 

[film4Me]

I think this applies to all medium format cameras, by comparison to 35 mm. The longer focal length gives shallower DOF compared to a "normal" 40-50 mm lens on 35 mm film.

True. I'm acclimatizing myself to these 50s folders and always conscious of camera shake and therefore I tend to use the higher shutter speeds, which of course result in shallower depth of fields. I think the old story is that if a subject needs a long depth of field, use a tripod to compensate for a long shutter speed, and avoid potential camera shake.

 

[Arthurwg]

Wow! Have not heard of this camera. Very impressive.

 

[Donald Qualls]

use a tripod to compensate for a long shutter speed, and avoid potential camera shake.

That's the method to use if you have a tripod with you and have time to set up.

If you don't, see my previous post above. Hint: a waist level viewfinder is much easier to hold for slow shutters than eye level, but I've got LOTS of nice, sharp negatives in 6x6 and 6x9 that just required good holding technique and a method of releasing the shutter without pushing the camera around. A cable release can help even for hand holding...

 

[nosmok]

film4Me said: That would be rare, haven't seen one yet. The 6x9 Rolfix often has a "Trinar" lens...

D'oh! That's it, a Rodenstock Trinar! The Triotar is a Zeiss lens, and while the companies did do business (the excellent Pantar lenses on the Zeiss Contaflex Prima were made by Rodenstock, iirc), they probably wouldn't share lens names themselves.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

True. I'm acclimatizing myself to these 50s folders and always conscious of camera shake and therefore I tend to use the higher shutter speeds, which of course result in shallower depth of fields. I think the old story is that if a subject needs a long depth of field, use a tripod to compensate for a long shutter speed, and avoid potential camera shake.

welcome is also the built-in stand of the Solida, so, it can rest easily on a flat surface. That, in combination of the self timer has often replaced a tripod for me.

 

[film4Me]

D'oh! That's it, a Rodenstock Trinar! The Triotar is a Zeiss lens, and while the companies did do business (the excellent Pantar lenses on the Zeiss Contaflex Prima were made by Rodenstock, iirc), they probably wouldn't share lens names themselves.

Here's a Franka Rolfix, the big brother to the Solida 6x6. This Rolfix has a Trinar lens and I love going out taking shots with it. I always attach a handle bracket for extra steadiness when using it hand held.

A few pics from it on expired color negative film, C41 home processed.

Airshow

Airshow

Landscape

A B&W shot on Kodak Plus X Pan expired in 1986, taken about 2 years ago.

 

[loccdor]

I believe the first 6x9 I tried was a Rolfix if I remember correctly. Its lens wasn't parallel to the focus plane, a very common and frustrating problem in old folders of many makes and models. Sometimes people force the camera shut when the lens isn't focused to infinity, or just drop it. They're not as rigid as non-collapsible cameras.

 

[film4Me]

welcome is also the built-in stand of the Solida, so, it can rest easily on a flat surface. That, in combination of the self timer has often replaced a tripod for me.

Yes, very welcome, but almost mandatory for a side opening front door as on a Solida III. Cameras such as the Solida 1 with downward opening doors naturally don't need a stand. The door itself is the stand.

 

[film4Me]

if I remember correctly. Its lens wasn't parallel to the focus plane

That was a big problem with a Rolfix I received once, and I was going through the "Return item" procedure when the seller offered a substantial partial refund. I took it, then tried to straighten the shutter/lens up, mostly succeeding but only just. The photos in the listing failed to show the problem, but it became very obvious once the camera was in my hands.