#14: Medium Format: The Rangefinder of ’51

It was some weeks ago that I decided the Hasselblad needs to be replaced as my go-to medium format camera. I have no fun in focusing with the waist level finder, and taking the prism finder out for a walk is ridiculous. I bought a bright focusing screen and now I have more focus failures than ever because I need a split screen. With a Nikon F4, on the other hand, I can even focus with an ancient 135/2.8 non-Ai attached. Wide open. With kids hopping around.

Needs time, love and understanding: The 500 C/M (First three: Nikon  F2, 55/3.5, Silvermax)

In “My Personal Holga” I wrote about the Agfa Isolette, which is nice, but focusing with it needs the ability to guess the distance right. Is it 1.2 meters or 1.5 meters? Or even 1.7 meters? I’m bad with such things and I don’t like to bother when I need to be inspired.

The Isolette, easy to handle when you’ve correctly guessed the distance

So first I wanted a Fuji 645 – there are several types of them. My favorite choice would be model with the 45mm Fujinon. But somehow looking for a model wasn’t successful. Then I came across the pictures of a hand reconstructive surgeon from Japan who likes to photograph with old medium format cameras. Especially during his trips on a motorbike.

So I decided to get a Super Ikonta, the one with the Zeiss T* coating, because I really like what it does to the Hasselblad lenses.

The 533/16, solid and collapsable

Two sites for further information:

• Cameraquest.com (see chapter Post War Super Ikonta BX (533/16) 1952-57 2nd version)
• Discussions on photo.net

I had to buy it twice. The first model I bought came from Prague and pressing the shutter needed so much force that camera shake blur was inevitable. Plus, the focusing system was so deranged that adjusting it on infinity made the system focus on the area around your feet. So the seller had to take it back.

The second one finally is a success. Smooth shutter action and mechanical system, clean rangefinder glass, the focus is properly adjusted. The selenium light meter has given up working a long time ago, but that was to be expected, more than sixty years after it was made. I am used to work with light meters anyway and most of the time I like to take a general reading and then rely on my own judgements dealing with exposure compensation. 

After some test shots (I show them at the end, together with the out of focus test shots with the Super Ikonta from Prague) I gave it a try and took it with me to the finals of the Chess League. The Zeiss was loaded with Tri-X 400, pushed to 1600. Some of the frames are cropped, I find the results more interesting like this.

I also took the Olympus XA with me and some Delta400. The more I tried different angles and close-ups the more I like the results on 35mm film with this lens. The more traditional frames have not that certain something.

Olympus XA, Delta 400 pushed to 800, I like the backlight results

Post mortem analysis: The 35mm focal length is nice on situations like this

Checking out some lines after the game

It’s easy to get closer with the XA without disturbing too much

ISO 800 was enough with the f/2.8 lens. I even stopped it down a bit.

Following the analysis

A more traditional way to frame the match, but it tells the story

Characteristical pawn chains: The King’s Indian Defence

To keep the chances to win the title, we had to win the encounter, and we did so

Celebrating the season in an Italian Restaurant in Kreuzberg

We celebrated near a famous bridge, where people like to party day and night

Some folks enjoying the sun, waiting for the spring to come

The subway station Prinzenstraße, put into operation in 1902

Some test shots with the first model of the Ikonta 533/16: The first one was focussed on infinity. Another picture shows the tower, which I was focusing on. Or the white car.

Zeiss Ikonta 533/16 (first model): focused to infinity with the rangefinder system

Deranged rangefinder in action

Let’s see if we can focus on the tower here

Focus on infinity

Same here. But a nice curve

Lovely backlight situation, the T* coating is nice

The camera is post war, but not from 1945

Test shots with the second model of the Zeiss 533/16.

The 80/2.8 T* Opton Tessar is a nice lens, and the limitations are defined by the scanner here

Nice details, some say Zeiss shouldn’t have gone for f/2.8 here, but it’s not a Planar anyway and I like the results.

Another focus test

No perspective correction needed. The dark edges are no lens vignetting. They are caused by scanning the film which is not flat enough and I was unable to find the anti newton glass for better flatness

I also give one example with Portra 400. The focus is not spot on here, but this was my fault, because I was sitting right in front of the man and couldn’t get farther away than this. So I fell below the closest possible focusing distance. But I have other examples which show the quality. Haven’t scanned them yet and will add another example later.

William (+ a Canon A-1), showing his photos of the  Chernobyl Exclusion Zone (shot with Ektar)- the face is a little soft, but the shirt is sharp 😉

 

Pollux on 52rolls:

• Launch Status Check: Pollux [Intro]
• #1.0 Neopan 400 & Rodinal
• #1.1 Silvermax
• #1.2 The White Stripes
• #2.0 Fade To Grey
• #2.1 Pushing Silvermax
• #2.2 Know Your Gear
• #2.3 What Took You So Long?
• #2.4 Diary Shots
• #2.5 Compact 28 + Ultramax
• #2.6 On 400H
• #3.0 Hard Boiled
• #4.0 Film Noir
• #5.0/5.1/5.2 Remain In Light
• #5.3 My Personal Holga
• #5.4 The Exhibition Cam
• #5.5/5.6 Portra and 400H
• #5.7 A Peculiar Roll (1993)
• #5.8/5.9 Great Photographer, Wasted Film
• #6.0 Diary Shots, 135mm on the F4
• #6.1-#6.3 Purchasing New Material, Celebrating
• #7.0-#7.2 Concert
• #8.0 Helicopter
• #9.0 Tres Cosas
• #10.0 One Shot per Roll
• #11.0/11.1: Parklife (Nikon F2) 
• #12.0/12.1: Silvermax, F2 (24mm) + F5 (17mm + 210 mm)
• #13: Diary with a Point & Shoot
• #14: Medium Format: The Rangefinder of ’51
• #15: Memories of Friendship
• #16: [Pollux]: Epilogue