Lost

I shot a roll of Rerapan in the Ihagee Auto-Ultrix hoping that the new (and pricey) film would help me sort out the capabilities of the little 127 camera.  That didn't quite work out as planned.  The camera developed some light leaks which showed up in about half the images. 

I cropped out the light leaks in the shot of doll.  I thought the combination of Rerapan and HC-110 was not very successful, but the lens does seem adequately sharp when the focus is accurate.  The shots I've made so far with the camera may actually represent the best I am going to get from it.  I'll take another stab at it when I've sorted out the light leak issue.
    I've seen som nice work done with Rerapan.  I think I'll try processing the remaining roll in Rodinal.  The film comes in a nice little black plastic tube which will be useful for protecting 127 cartridges.  I'll be able re-use the backing paper with my bulk Portra 160 and possibly with other film types if my film slitter works properly.

Ultrix Progress

My little Ihagee 127 folder is performing pretty well.  The lens and shutter seem to be working as they should.  Greater familiarity in using the camera has increased my confidence in it.  At this point, the main limitation I am facing is with the film.  The expired bulk Portra 160 always provides interesting results, but it would be nice to have a little more predictability in order to further assess the capabilities of the camera.  I had hoped to try out some new film using my diy film spitter, but I have yet to perfect its operation  I considered buying  a slitter that I have seen on line, but then saw a negative review of it.  I'm thinking now that I may just spring for some of the pricey 127 film that is available in order to give myself a better baseline for camera and film performance.

Ihagee Auto-Ultrix 127

I found a small folder on ebay recently which produces 4x6 cm images. That is the size of images on 127 film which Kodak first produced in 1912 and called the Vestpocket format.  The camera, a Ihagee Auto-Ultrix, is smaller than most of my 35mm cameras, but the negative from it is twice the size.  The Auto-Ultrix is extremely well made and features helical focusing, a three-element anastigmat lens and a good range of shutter and aperture settings.

The Auto-Ultrix, in addition to exquisite European craftsmanship, also features several other important design enhancements over earlier folding cameras including a self-erecting lens and a bright pop-up viewfinder which is a big improvement over the tiny reflex finders on many Kodak folders.  While some Auto-Ultrix folders were equipped with top-notch Tessars and Compur shutters, mine has a three-element anastigmat lens in a dial-set Pronto shutter which is self-cocking, with a top speed of 1/100.  The shutter and lens are actually quite good, but the placement of the shutter release lever makes the camera rather awkward to operate without a cable release.

The ebay listing for my camera did not specify the film format and there was no easy way to judge the camera's size.  The happy result for me was that only a couple other people bid on the camera and I was able to obtain it for just $24 plus shipping, about a quarter of the typical price for this type of camera.  Here is an image of the camera paired with my Kodak No.1 Special which illustrates the diminutive dimensions of the Auto-Ultrix:

The first pictures I got from the Auto-Ultrix were disappointingly unsharp.  I thought the problem might be a misadjusted lens, but careful examination and cleaning revealed no problem of that sort.  The next roll showed a few better images, but still left much to be desired. I decided the problem was most likely a combination of unfamiliarity with the camera and some poor technique related to slitting and re-rolling film for the 127 format.  For my third roll of film in the camera I chose to use some of my expired bulk Portra 160 and that resulted in some images that got me closer to my original expectations for the camera.

Still some work to do to get the quality I think this camera will produce, but I'm optimistic at this point.  This is my first example of a Ihagee  camera.  The company produced the Auto-Ultrix in several sizes, as well as a number of other innovative designs including the first single lens reflex, the Exakta, in 127 and 35mm formats.  A thorough history of the company, The Ihagee Story, is available on line.