Out and about with the Weist again

As you may remember from a previous post, I came across a strange, unknown camera and bought it cheaply at a thrift shop. The Camera is an M42 mount SLR, and I tried it out with a roll of StreetCandy ATM400 a few weeks back. The other day, I took this camera out once again with a roll of Ilford FP4 Plus in it, and my aim was to test the depth of field and the sharpness of the Weistar Lens.

I went for a shot walk this day, just a few kilometers, and I chose to look for opportunities for shooting at apertures bigger than f4. I did some nice shots around Elgsjøen, where I both tested the DOF on a little branch with leaves close to the water, and on some stumps that were spread around for people to sit on.

Reklamer

I was taken somewhat aback of the incredibly pleasant bokeh this lens produces. In addition to this, the subject is pin sharp and has a crisp tone to it. I must say that this lens surprises me, and I am looking forward to playing with this as a portrait lens at some point. (Stay tuned)

Weist SL35 and Super Weistar 135mm f2,8. Here with he beautiful grain provided by Ilford FP4 Plus at box speed in Xtol stock.

If you ever come across a package like this. Don’t hesitate. Don’t doubt. Don’t walk away. Buy this camera and lens and shoot happily ever after.

Sunny day at Dokka

Today, I had a portrait assignment in Dokka, a little town nearby, and I brought the Voigtländer with an Ilford Delta 100 loaded in it.

I had the Voigtländer well placed in its leather casing.

The location for my assignment was at a defunct railway station now used for rail bikes. I arrived a bit early to enjoy the sunshine and, hopefully, make some great images. I was not the only living creature enjoying the sunshine this lovely day. I also met some very social and eager horseflies and mosquitoes. A part of the Norwegian summer.

A little tip for shooting in Norway where light isn’t that bright; think «Sunny 11» not «sunny 16». The lighting conditions in Norway are not as bright as further south in Europe.

Maybe not in mint condition, but for sure a great model. And after all, the BMW still is on its wheels.

Since the Voigtländer is not a rangefinder or markfinder, the focus is based on guessing distance. Not too difficult for street photography and the lens is really interesting. Looking through the pictures after scanning, I can see that I should have used the sun shader following the lens.

I developed in Xtol 1:1 for 8 minutes 20 sec in 21 degrees chemistry. Then rinse and stop in water, and seven minutes fixer.

New for this development cycle was that I used a new termometer, as my last one died an Xtol death from falling into the tank of stock. RIP.

An old-camera adventure

The oldest camera I own is an Argus C21 from 1947. I bought this one rather cheaply last summer and it was in «unknown» condition. I tried a film in it back in last summer, but the back lid, fell off and the film got ruined. Then i forgot all about the little Argus.

Today I brought the old Argus back to life with a Kentmere 100, and brought it along as I went for a little drive.

A little documentation image of the Argus C21 and the film.

When the negatives came out of the tank, they looked farily evenly developed and exposed, but when scanning and working with the negatives, it is clear that the lens sufferes from some hazing and probably build-up of dust.

That said, I am really intreagued by the results, and they show that the old Argus still has a sharp eye.

Also, the Kentmere 100 shone with its traditional grain structure, and gives the images a really old fashioned look, even in Xtol. The development cycle for this round was Xtol 1:0 9 minutes 45 seconds at 18,5 degrees. Then I used a water stop, six minutes fixer, rinse and photoflo. Images turned out ok.

The camera does also scratch the film slightly as you can see in this photo. It might be mendable, but I do not mind a few scratches from a camera this age. Especially not at the price I payed, around 15£.

Also, I like how the Argus focuses, It gives a really sharp middle of the picture focus and a gentle unsharpness at the edges, making a vignetting effect which is pleasant.

As always, images in this blog are untouched by Adobe. Straight from the Plustek-scanner.

My first adventure with a Zenit E

A bit more than a week ago, i bought a rather cheap Zenit E Olympic edition off eBay. It arrived in the mail today and I loaded it with the first film I found, an Ilford HP5, and went for a spin at an old school building.

The lighting conditions were a bit demanding, so I decided to go for pushing one step to 800 ISO, and shooting at shallow apertures, to really play with that amazing Bokeh of the Helios 44, f2 lens that followed the camera.

I decided to develop in my favourite solution, Kodak HC110 1+31, and at slighgly above 20 degrees water, I used 9 minutes 15 seconds.

I got a little surprise when the negatives came out of the tank. Some frames were immensely overexposed, while others were close to perfect. I used the same light meter app, and followed it carefully, so all frames shloud theoretically be equally over or underexposed. I’ll fiddle a bit more with it and familiarise myself with it. Maybe the main issue is the photographer not the camera.

An example of the amazing image quality I got

All in all, I am very satisfied with the results from this adventure, and I cannot wait for the next adventure with this little, Russian friend. The Bokeh and sharpness from the Helios 44, combined with the sturdy feel of the camera inspires me.

I also really love the look of HP5 at 800!