Ricoh 500G

The Ricoh 500G is an excellent compact rangefinder. I would put it in the same class as the Olympus XA in terms of being able to produce consistently great quality images with the sharp Rikenon lens (40mm/f2.8). The camera is capable of shooting 25-800 ISO film with shutters speeds of 8/15/30/60/125/250/500 plus Bulb.

Inside the viewfinder, the rangefinder patch is about adequate and the aperture scale is situated vertically on the right side in the viewer. You can run this camera manually or in auto mode. In auto mode, the camera operates as a shutter priority camera. I've found that the camera does a great job of determining correct exposure (even with a modern battery) so I ran it in auto mode for most of my pictures this month. The light meter eye is located in the lens ring so you can use filters without having to compensate for them.

I found this camera on eBay and got it for $20. It was local so I didn't have to pay for shipping.

As I go through this blog project, I've been taking mental notes on which ones I can't wait to focus on when I get back to using any camera I choose. The Ricoh 500G will definitely be one I reach for when I want a compact camera that's capable of capturing impressive images.

Film: fresh Kodak Tri-X 400
Developer: R5 Monobath Developer
Scanner: Epson V550




















Next month's camera: Sears TLS

Ansco Color Clipper

This month's camera is the Ansco Color Clipper. This example was in excellent condition. It came with the original box that included the case, strap, and flash unit. I love the look of this medium format (120 film) camera. The metal body is painted moss green with a wrinkled paint finish. The lens portion of the camera collapses back into the camera when not in use. The shutter release bar is anodized red. The lens can be adjusted for zone focusing. On my example, turning the focus ring doesn't feel like it's doing anything. There's not a lot of resistance but the photos I've taken have proven to me that it is actually focusing (or not focusing as the case may be!). The only other control is the color or b&w selection below the lens.

The camera is very basic. You load the film, set the camera for either color or black & white film, extend the lens (by pulling out on the side indentations), compose your shot, focus, and depress the shutter bar. The bar remains collapsed until you wind to the next frame. It's designed to do this as a way to prevent double exposure. I like this feature. If you are into double exposure photography, you can easily lift the shutter bar back up and this will allow you to take a second exposure on the same frame.

I've had this camera for awhile. I think it's fun and easy to use. I can tell you that the flash is pretty harsh and lead me to create the hashtag #flashbulbsendfriendships. It's blinding. I stocked up on plenty of old flashbulbs so I can offend people for quite some time. Just be aware that using this camera with the flash instantly turns you into that crazy person with an old timey camera. (Note: I didn't end up using the flash unit for any of this month's pictures. But I carried the flash unit around with me just in case.)

Despite its lack of controls, I really like the simplicity of this medium format camera. The fact that you only need to remember to set your focus means that you can quickly compose and snap your photo. Although I'll admit that I'm pretty deliberate when I'm taking pictures so I'm just as comfortable with a "complicated" camera.

I shot these pics on expired Kodak VR-G 100 film from 1988. Processed at home using the Unicolor C-41 Kit. Scanned on an Epson V550 scanner.














Next month's camera: Ansco Titan 20 folding camera

1954 Agfa Solinette

This is the first camera I bought when getting back into analog photography. I liked the design, it looked clean, and it came with its original case so I snagged it off of Etsy. It's completely manual (no rangefinder, no light meter, no auto mode) so you have to figure out the correct settings--aperture, shutter speed, and distance from your subject. It's actually not as difficult as it sounds. Although I did underexpose quite a bit early on because I kept thinking "it sure is sunny and bright out here" so I would set the shutter speed to 300 out of fear.

There are other Solinettes on the internet but they are all folding cameras. I'm not 100% sure where this fits into the scheme of Agfa cameras but I believe it to be from the 1950's. (Update 9/19/17--recent research has revealed that this camera is from 1954.) This camera most resembles the Agfa Silette but has a Prontor-SVS shutter instead of a Vario. The Solinette also has a full compliment of shutter speeds (topping out at 300) whereas the Silette is restricted to four--B, 25, 50 and 200.

I had to make a couple of leather straps for the case when the original ones broke. I was carrying it around for awhile after the strap broke but got tired of doing that so I made my own straps. The camera itself doesn't have any strap lugs but the case isn't too cumbersome so it's not a problem to keep it in the case and remove the top when you're ready to shoot.

All pics were shot on Kodak T-Max 100 film. Developed in R5 Monobath. Scanned using an Epson V550 Scanner.

 

 

Next month's camera: Ansco Color Clipper

1966 Agfa Isoflash Rapid C

For the month of June, I carried around my 1966 Agfa Isoflash Rapid C. I found this camera at Goodwill for $2.99 and it came with a case AND two rapid cartridges. In the store, I didn't think the camera worked because I couldn't get the shutter to fire. But I read that you need to have film loaded in the camera for it to engage the shutter mechanism and that proved to be true. The camera came with its original battery but I replaced it with four small batteries (taped together with electrical tape) to fire the flash cube.


This camera is what is referred to as a simple camera. The only really adjustment available to the user is a sliding switch to select whether it's "sunny" or "cloudy". Outside of that, you frame up your subject and snap away!

You can load regular 35mm film into the rapid cartridges. In a dark room, I reel off two feet of film and gently feed it into the canister. This will give you the right amount to shoot 16 square pictures. That's right--the pictures are square.

For a good tutorial on loading rapid cartridges, I recommend THIS page over at Lomography's website.

This camera is small and inconspicuous which makes it easy to carry around and use without much fuss. I shot 16 pics in color (on expired Kodak Color 400 bulk film) and 16 pics in black and white (on expired Kodak Tri-X bulk film from the late 70's).

Here are the results:

Next month's camera: 1950's Agfa Solinette