Zorki 6 and Jupiter 8

The Zorki 6 has just about every imaginable improvement over its Barnack-style predecessors: 

• Easy loading hinged back
• Fixed film take-up spool
• Lever advance
• Large combined viewfinder/rangefinder window
• Viewfinder diopter adjustment

My only complaint with the camera's design is the forward placement of the strap lugs.  When you hang the camera strap over your neck the camera is left pointing upward at about 45 degrees.  That results in the lens pointing upward in the direction of the sun and a possible danger of burning holes in the shutter curtain.

I took the Zorki 6 on a walk through Old Town Albuquerque loaded with Kentmere 400 which I processed at home with HC-110b.  What showed up in the results was a remaining intermittent light leak and a bit of shutter capping.  So, still a bit of work to be done on this camera.

I was pleased with the performance of the Jupiter 8 lens which I used on this occasion. 

The last time I used the lens it was mounted on my Leica IIIa.  I had intended to make some shots from the top of the Chaco Hotel, but when I got out of the car there the camera fell out of my pocket and onto the pavement.  The camera was unhurt as the lens landed nose first, but there was a substantial dent in the lens's filter ring.  The Jupiter 8 is probably my best Soviet-era lens, so I decided to get a proper tool to make the needed repair.

The tool straightened out the dent perfectly, and I used it on a couple other damaged lenses as well.  Given my history of dropping things, it seems like a good investment.