Analog Therapy: Zeiss Ikon Contaflex II + 1.7x Teleskop + Fujifilm 400 + TTartisans Lightmeter.
Two things got me to this post.
- As mentioned in a recent Instagram post, someone was nice enough to like a blog post about this camera that I posted years ago.
2. Madmen run unchecked, setting the world on fire, and I needed a distraction.
The camera. <Invoke cut and paste from prior posts.>
Do not sleep on these old Zeiss film cameras or lenses. This was taken with a camera that came out in 1954. 1954! With auto absolutely nothing. Has a selenium light meter that still works. And an optional 1.7x zoom adapter. And looks the business and built like a tank.
This is amazing to me. As stated in a 2021 post where much of this text came from I would put the capabilities of this lens up there with the finest film cameras I have used. Many with names with such rabid fan bases that I will not name them for concern of welcoming the wrath of their adherents.
Sidebar: I have really only ever met two types of photography people.
- Salt of the Earth, brand agnostic, pleasant regardless of skill level, light gathering pyxies with which I could go on rambling with for hours discussing the craft of such as well as any other aspects of this thing we call life.
- Know it all, taking this thing way too seriously, brand adherent, “but rather” blowhards that send me scrambling for the exits when a break in their cadence forms long enough for me to insert a, “Hoo. Look at the time. I have got to get going.”, into the fray.
I am here all day for the former. Not so much the latter.
What is so amazing about what I stated above?
This camera cost me less than $50. Scored the 1.7x adapter for less than that on eBay once I realized it existed.
Here is where I cut, paste, and cull my previous 2017 post on this camera and then present my latest thoughts and sample images afterward.
I never knew this camera existed until I perused KEH.com one day and it showed up. A few factors played a part in a quick and easy decision to purchase it.
- Zeiss.
- It was beautiful in the photos and bargain grade… I love KEH bargain grade. Basically means a great deal if you do not mind some scuffs. If you can find any scuffs.
- It was $49.
- And Zeiss. I am a sucker for anything Zeiss, especially when it has a built-in Zeiss Tessar 45mm f/2.8 lens for $49.
Then I received it. It looks even better in person. Spoiler alert. If you want a shelf trophy that actually takes pictures buy this camera. Here is where I gush a bit. This camera was made in 1954. 1954! (I find it funny that I wrote this cadence in 2017 referencing the year of manufacture and then repeated it in the Instagram post yesterday with no recollection of this. I am consistent it seems.) It is not only good-looking, but I cannot adequately describe the quality of its construction in words or even pictures. Its build quality is phenomenal. On par with the finest film cameras I have held.
According to the interwebs, this camera is a mash-up that was created when a post-war Zeiss was looking to get back up and running.
It does have a mirror box so despite its small size you are actually seeing through the lens when focusing instead of matching focus patches. I have nothing against rangefinders at all, but I must admit that this camera’s split prism is fantastic. One oddity. Once the shutter is depressed the mirror does not return until you cock the shutter again. I have read that it is better not to cock the shutter if you do not plan on using it for a while. Internal wear due to prolonged tension on parts or the like as I understand it.
It has a leaf shutter, which also means that this camera can flash sync all the way up to its top shutter speed (1/500s) if you are so inclined I understand.
Two dials on the bottom release the whole back. You load the spools directly. And the bottom looks just like the Kiev 4 I once owned, even down to the film rewind button, which itself is basically a Russian knock off of the German Contax rangefinder. As one would expect all are better implemented on the Contax.
Also that is not even taking into consideration the also affordable and quite fetching Teleskop 1.7x adapter I mentioned earlier.
Most controls are on the lens. Focus, aperture, and shutter speeds are all tightly clustered on this tiny lens.
A bit fiddly at times, but effective. Because of this shallow lens (when the 1.7x adapter is not on) and short height you get the most pocketable SLR I own this side of the half frame PEN FT (whose body is smaller, but whose 40mm lens sticks out quite a bit more). On the upper right shoulder you have the all business knob to cock the shutter and reset the mirror and pressing the shutter is a wonderfully stiff, mechanical experience.
There is the selenium meter that was added on the Contaflex II (The Contaflex released the prior year was the exact same camera sans light meter) and it does seem to work, but since selenium meters usually last only a couple of decades I tend to use Sunny 16 or a light meter. I consider it to be one heck of a well built all manual camera that requires no batteries to operate.
I have covered build, feel, looks, and use. How about actually taking pictures? Image quality? Here is the thing. This is not just a pretty face. That Zeiss lens pays dividends. Sharp, great colors, and on and on are all there as one would expect from that name.
And here is where I update the post after putting another roll of film through it.
My stated main purpose this time was to test the accuracy of the TTArtisand lightmeter.
And it was a success. Worked so well in fact that it will likely be my new compact handheld meter.
<And we are back to present-day ramblings.>
The film.
Fujifilm 400 developed at hme wth Cinestill CS41.
The setting.
A local small town downtown area.
Now on to the images. Some with the adapter and some without.
Thoughts.
A capable little camera that cost me very little.
A very accurate little lightmeter that did not cost much.
Nice.
A fine fit of analog therapy.
Happy capturing.
-ELW
Eric L. Woods 