For a long while I had a thought that I would like to try out a TLR. At first I was thinking about a MPP Microflex, a Rolleiflex copy. But they are quite rare here in the Nordics, and it seems they are not that very well made either.
I then came upon a Rolleiflex that had some minor issues. The leatherette was gone, the shutter was in need of a service, the mirror had a chip, etc. But I got it cheaply. It has a CZJ Tessar with T coating which is, from what I understand, quite rare for this model.
I started with ordering a new leatherette from Aki in japan, and a new mirror from the states, and while I was waiting for the items to arrive I sent the camera in for service to Analoga Kameror here in Sweden.
Got it back, everything up and running, except for the knob on the film advance lever. I 3d printed one myself, since a new lever would have cost as much as the entire camera did.
I had to read the manual to understand how it worked in full, and I have to say, it’s a darn clever camera. It has a lot of small details that make you go “hah! that’s neat”. Like the sports finder that you can get by flipping down a part of the top hatch. Or the magnifier that’s hidden inside the same hatch. You got stuff like not having to align any arrows when loading film, you just turn the lever until it stops and you’re ready to go. (It detects the change of thickness when it’s not just backing paper but backing paper PLUS film)
The original ground glass is dim and difficult to focus with. I don’t think I have managed to nail the focus EVER when shooting wide open. I wouldn’t recommend this camera for anything where you really want to nail the focus, like studio work or anything where a shallow depth of field is desired. Where it does shine is as a walking around camera, or street photography stuff. Turn the aperture down to f16 and you will get crisp and sharp images. Having a waist level viewfinder is really nice too for that kind of stuff.
The ergonomics of the camera is a bit funky, it takes some getting used to. I had a lot of issues with camera shake at lower shutter speeds. Normally I can do 1/60 just fine on a medium format camera with an 80mm lens. But on the Rollei.. it’s just blurry every time. I think there’s something with the placement of the shutter button that makes me tilt the camera at the same moment as I press the shutter. Getting used to the dials for shutter speed and aperture is a bit strange at first, but after a while I really liked it. Since the camera is down by your waist anyway, it’s easy to see what settings you have by just looking down. As long as it is during the daytime.
There is something strange that happens with every camera that I use. It feels like every camera makes me shoot in a different way. The Lomo LC-A makes me try out things, spontaneous, a bit wild and crazy. The Hasselblad makes me slow down, shoot sparingly. I noticed that I went through a roll of film quite quickly with the Rolleiflex. It was such a nice feeling taking a shot, advancing the film, looking through the viewfinder. So I took a lot of pictures. I had it with me on walks with the dog and took just random pictures of the dog, of the ice and snow. Of a nice rock. And suddenly the roll was finished. Sometimes this is a good thing, there is no point in slowing down all the time, just for the sake of slowing down. Photography should be fun, and that is something that this camera does achieve.
That is it for this time. Please take a look at the store to see if there is something there you like, and support this blog!