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.

Damn the Variables – Full Speed Ahead!

I've just about got the Zorki 6 sorted out.  I put a plastic washer on top of the film cartridge and the images showed no tilt in the film gate.  I'm not entirely sure that was the right solution, however.  I noticed that I really also needed to push the film leader firmly downward on the take-up spool.  So, I may just try that next time without the washer.

The film for this quick test shoot was some Gekko MW100 from about a dozen rolls that were given to me some time ago.  I was somewhat skeptical about its capabilities given the 2007 expiration date, but it seemed worth a try given the current cost of film.  I shot it at box speed and gave it an extra minute in Ilfotec DD-X on the theory that it is rebadged Efke.  I was pleased with the outcome in terms of grain and tonal qualities, and I'm looking forward now to using the whole batch.

The Ilfotec DD-X was also a gift from a friend from about a year ago.  I finally got around to trying it out because I noticed that it is one of the developers Ilford recommends for Kentmere, one of my favorites.  So that is on the schedule too.

I used my Jupiter 8 lens on the Zorki 6 on this occasion.  It is a Sonnar copy and maybe the best of the bunch of my Soviet lenses.  I wish it had click stops for the aperture like the Industar 61-LD, but I can't complain otherwise.  My plan is to move next to trying the Zorki 6 with the Jupiter 12 and either the collapsable FED 50 or the Industar-21. Those are both Elmar copies and seem just as sharp to my eyes.

I think the Zorki 6 is handsomely designed.  It is probably not functionally superior to a lot a lot of similar rangefinder cameras, but I think that it incorporates a lot of the best features of the long Soviet Barnack line and it was the last model before the slr takeover. And, last but not least, thirty bucks!

Lens Choices

I've enjoyed using the Leica and the Summitar in part because it has encouraged me to look more closely at the era in which the camera and lens were produced in response to the challenges met by the camera and lens designers in those days.  The issue which came to the fore in the late 1930s was lens speed.  The good quality lenses up to then such as the Tessar with its four elements in three groups were typically capable of being stopped down to f3.5.  In the post-war years Tessar designs became available which enabled an aperture of f2.8, but that was the ultimate limit permitted with just four elements.

The solution devised by Leitz and the other major lens designers in the 1930s was to add more glass lens elements.  The Summitar has seven elements in four groups, allowing a maximum aperture of f2.  The Zeiss Sonnar used six elements in four groups to produce f1.5.  In the post-war years those designs were enhanced with anti-reflective coatings which helped overcome the contrast problems which came along with more glass surfaces and air spaces between lens elements.

The Jupiter 8 lens on my Kiev IIa is a copy of the Zeiss Sonnar design; it is coated and has a maximum aperture of f2.  I have not made a lot of pictures to date with this Soviet camera and lens combination, but I hope to make better use of this resource as it can produce really excellent results.  The Jupiter 8 was also made with an M39 screw mount, so I may have to find one of those to use with my Zorkis and the Leica as well.

One reason I have not made more use of the Jupiter 8 is that I also have an excellent Jupiter 12 for the Kiev IIa; it is a copy of the Zeiss Biogon 35/2.8 which often seems a better fit with my way of seeing the world.

I recognize that my frequent preference for the wide-angle 35mm lenses is likely due in part to habit rather than any innate superiority, so I am going to make a determined effort to give the 50mm normal lenses a better chance to show their capabilities.  That goes not only for the Jupiter 8, but also for the extraordinary six-element Schneider-Kreuznach Xenons on my Kodak Retinas.

Eight Minutes

I'm getting interesting results with Kentmere 100 in PMK Pyro, though not yet exactly what I am looking for. This last batch was processed for eight minutes at 20C, and I omitted the pre-soak and post-fix immersion in the exhausted developer. I got some spotting on the negatives that makes me think I should go back to a minute or two of pre-soaking. The highlights were easier to control with eight minutes, but I seemed to be losing a bit of shadow detail. I did come across some suggested processing times for 100-speed film in the form of a photo class handout based on the book by the PMK originator, Gordon Hutchings. The suggested 10.5 minutes at 70F(21C) is pretty close to my first trial at 12 minutes and 20C. So, I'll probably go for eleven minutes at 20C in the next round.

Farolitos

I started off shooting this last roll of Kentmere 100 on a neighborhood walk with my Kiev IIa with the Sonnar-copy Jupiter 8.  The next day I shot mostly with the 35mm Biogon-copy Jupiter 12 in the course of a short road trip up State Highway 14, known as the Turquoise Trail, which goes from east of Albuquerque up to Santa Fe.  It is a great two-lane, winding through some of New Mexico's nicest hill country.  Makes me wish I still had a motorcycle.

Turquoise Trail

I went as far as Cerrillos where I stopped to photograph the church and then the old cemetery just outside of town.

St. Joseph Parish Church, Cerrillos

Campo Santo, Cerrillos

On the way home I stopped in Cedar Crest for lunch and made the mistake of visiting the nearby thrift store where a sign announced that everything in the place was half off.

So, sixty bucks later I've got a Nikon F2 and a couple lenses.  I don't know if I'll get the meter working , but the shutter is perfect and I'm looking forward to finding a waist-level finder for the camera.  The 35-85 Sigma Mini-Zoom has something rattling around inside, but the Nikkor-P 2.8 105mm is a beautiful lens and has a good rep as a portrait shooter.

Neighborhood Parade

My Kiev IIa is a 1956 Soviet copy of the Contax II and possibly the best quality rangefinder camera I own. I haven't used it as much as I should as it is a bit bulky compared to some of my other good 35mm cameras.