Why Kiev camera never made 1s at slow speed ?

kl122002 · Oct 29, 2023

Topic question .
I have seen Kiev 4A, Kiev 60, 80, 88 noticed all have no "1s " option in speed but 1/2s . Why ? Is that because 1/2s is easier to make , or avoiding cloning ??

Sirius Glass · Oct 29, 2023

0.5 seconds is the default time, shortest time, that the timing mechanism is designed for. To have 1 second would require a redesign or complete replacement. That would require a major overhaul of their manufacturing system and probably not worth the cost to change over especially, in their eyes, because adding 1 second does not have enough demand.

koraks · Oct 29, 2023

I'm going to hazard a guess: exposures of 1 second and longer can be timed manually using the Bulb setting with adequate accuracy for most purposes. So there was likely simply no practical necessity for this shutter speed.

BMbikerider · Oct 29, 2023

I don't remember that the Contax from which it was cloned even had a 1 second time shutter, although the top speed was 1/1250

Pioneer · Oct 29, 2023

BMbikerider said:
I don't remember that the Contax from which it was cloned even had a 1 second time shutter, although the top speed was 1/1250

My Contax II certainly does not have a 1 second speed. If I need it, which is rare, I set the shutter speed to B, then set the timer lever on the front and release it. Once the timer comes to the end and fires the shutter in the B setting the exposure is actually pretty close to 1 second. I suspect the same thing can be done to a Kiev as they are the same basic camera.

EDIT - I have never actually tried this on the Kiev but it should work.

neilt3 · Oct 30, 2023

Pioneer said:
My Contax II certainly does not have a 1 second speed. If I need it, which is rare, I set the shutter speed to B, then set the timer lever on the front and release it. Once the timer comes to the end and fires the shutter in the B setting the exposure is actually pretty close to 1 second. I suspect the same thing can be done to a Kiev as they are the same basic camera.

EDIT - I have never actually tried this on the Kiev but it should work.

Your probably correct , but I've never tried this .
A word of warning to folk though is that using the self timer on some old , unserviced or just plain dodgy mechanical cameras can cause them to jam up .

I have several Kiev cameras , and I would consider them all three of the above!

If I want to fire the shutter on them remotely or longer than the longest shutter speed , I either use a cable release ( and manually release and close the shutter ) or one of those screw in mechanical timers for a preset time , or cover the lens after counting the exposure in seconds .
These wouldn't work the same as plunger would stay down until you release or reset it .

Pioneer · Oct 30, 2023

I'm pretty sure that the Kiev is based on the Contax II mechanism so it should work, but I really don't know how reliable their timers are. I guess owners should be wary if they have not been serviced in some time. Like I said, I have only done that with my own camera a few times but it was a handy little technique when I needed it.

BrianShaw · Oct 30, 2023

Do those cameras offer a cable release socket? If so, that and B might be the best option.

neilt3 · Oct 30, 2023

Pioneer said:
I'm pretty sure that the Kiev is based on the Contax II mechanism so it should work, but I really don't know how reliable their timers are. I guess owners should be wary if they have not been serviced in some time. Like I said, I have only done that with my own camera a few times but it was a handy little technique when I needed it.

The Kiev 4a is , the others are based on the Hasselblad 1600 .
It's not the basic design that's the issue , it's quality control that's the issue .
Friday afternoons and Monday morning cameras being the worst!
Basically not being very well put together and a grease left over in the factory from building tanks to lubricate them is what gives the problems . When it dries out , it becomes quite solid .
A good service would prevent these problems .
Most haven't been serviced.
It's not just FSU cameras that can run into problems when using the mechanical self timer release .
I've come across Japanese ones as well .
The only self release timers I use are on electronically controlled ones , unless the cameras I'm using have been serviced.

BrianShaw · Oct 30, 2023

… and German selftimers too. Don’t leave them out of the list of ones that can freeze up when not freshly serviced!

Pioneer · Oct 30, 2023

I must be lucky. I have only had one timer cause me any problems and I have owned a LOT of old cameras of all brands and nationality. I can't say I've used the the timers on all of them, and I have had a few that didn't work properly and needed to be helped along their way, but have only had one shutter stop and not work because of a bad timer. That was a shutter on an old Crown Graphic if I remember right. I frequently use timers when the camera is on a tripod in lieu of the shutter cable I am always forgetting to carry with me.

Pioneer · Oct 30, 2023

BrianShaw said:
… and German selftimers too. Don’t leave them out of the list of ones that can freeze up when not freshly serviced!

I have two Contax IIs and two Contax IIas and all 4 timers worked just now when I tested them. Two have been serviced, though not recently, and two have not while I have owned them. Not a really big sample but maybe Zeiss did a better job with their timers??

Sirius Glass · Oct 30, 2023

When I took a lot of available light photography, I used the B setting and a remote timer that I calibrated to 2 seconds.

Why Kiev camera never made 1s at slow speed ?

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