Medium Format In Your Pocket - Article at CleanImages.com
| Medium Format
In Your Pocket! ©Darrell Young |
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How
would you like to carry a medium format camera in your jacket, purse,
or pocket? Would you be interested if it only weighs a few ounces, has excellent image quality, relative ease-of-use, and instant "snoot" appeal? This type of camera takes standard 120 film, makes a 6x4.5, 6x6, or 6x9 (cm) image, and causes your subject to smile without saying cheese? Is this some new carbon-fiber whiz camera that you've not yet heard about? Is this camera a modern miracle of miniaturization? Is there really such a camera, or am I carrying an RB67 and having delusional fantasies? Well, as bubba might say, "I ain't lyin'." Just ask your grandmother! |
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The
camera I am speaking of with such great fondness, is any one of a series
of early 1940's to 1960's medium format folder cameras. To get these cameras
does require a little work, since they are not generally available in
camera stores. In fact, you might find one at a yard sale or the Internet
more quickly. Your grandma probably took some naked baby pictures of you
with one of these; you know, the ones she showed to all your potential
spouses! The picture at left shows the author's two 6x6cm Agfa Isolette III folder cameras. One is opened and the other closed. Look!...Medium Format in Your Pocket! |
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These
little cameras are easily available at yard sales, flea markets, and at
the world's biggest market, eBay. (Click here to find your camera on eBay)
The best of them have lenses with strange names like Tessar, Solinar,
Heliar, or Skopar, and come with coated, color-corrected, three or four-element
lens designs. They are capable of extremely sharp and contrasty images,
fully up to the standards of many new medium format cameras. And most
of them will slide into your pocket, with room for a roll or two of film.
It is a bit hard to believe, but is very true! Unfortunately, it is hard to find one that is fully in working condition. But, if you can find a nice looking one, it can be rebuilt for around $150.00, and you'll have a medium format camera that is very capable for a very reasonable price. Most of the good used ones sell for $15.00 to $300.00 on eBay, and you can find them at yard sales for less than $20.00. Why not get one for yourself, and have the utility of a quality medium format camera in your pocket? I can tell you from personal experience that it is almost unbelievable how high the quality of the images are, with a good lens and a clean folder body. |
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I
shoot regularly with a Mamiya RB67 Pro SD and the terribly expensive K/L
lenses, along with a Mamiya 645 and the lovely N lenses. But, when I go
somewhere I generally take my little Agfa Isolette III folder. Imagine
seeing an interesting fruit or vegetable at the supermarket and pulling
out a Mamiya RB67 for a quick shot. Why, you'd be arrested on the spot
as a terrorist. The RB67 looks like an alien ray gun, missile-launcher,
or some other weird and dangerous device for those used to little plastic
cameras. But, the little folder cameras look like a camera. They have
a lens sticking out in front, with a shutter release button on top, and
are the normal rectangle that most expect a camera to be. People will
generally come up and ask, "Hey, what kind of cool camera is that?"
(Or they'll walk by making clucking noises at the idiot photographing
the squash and celery...I know!) |
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Recently,
I acquired an Agfa Isolette III made in the early to mid 1950's. It is
a beautifully restored camera, in nearly perfect shape, even though it's
around 50-years old. A fine fellow named Jurgen Kreckel restored my camera
from a $20.00 yard-sale special in sad condition, to a fully functional
beauty. Later in this article, we have an interview
with Jurgen. If you really want one of these beauties, he is the fellow
to see. The image at left shows both of my cameras, with the red bellows being the restored one, and the other being purchased from eBay. |
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How
can I identify a folder camera that is worth buying, and in good enough
condition to use? These are important questions, because with any camera
line there are the good models and cheaper ones. It is best, with technology
this far back, to use only the middle to high-end lenses, unless you are
limiting yourself to black and white images. Remember that color film
really only caught on beginning in the 50's, and was in full bloom by
the 60's. That is why all those old baby pictures are usually black and
white for those of us over 40. You need the mid-range to high-end lenses
to get the necessary coatings and color correcting glass for excellent
color images. Below are listings of easily available camera brands, lenses,
and shutters. All of these can provide unbelievably sharp images. The
mid to high end equipment does so at larger apertures. |
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You
will find that the folders come with the lenses and shutters a bit mixed.
For instance, in the past I have owned an Isolette II with an Apotar lens,
and a Compur-Rapid shutter. My two current Isolette III folders are a
mix-and-match also. One has the Solinar lens and Synchro-Compur shutter
(image left), the other has an Apotar lens and Prontor shutter (image
below). The Synchro-Compur shutter uses a more modern design with synchronization for both bulb (M) and electronic flash (X). So, if you can, get a Synchro-Compur. They are harder to find, but worth it. |
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It
is still possible to find folder cameras in usable condition. They generally
have pretty simple designs, so are very reliable as long as they are used
from time-to-time. Sitting around on a shelf somewhere is bad for any
camera, since the shutters tend to become less accurate with lack of use.
In some cases you can "exercise" the shutters on the old cameras,
and they will return to normal function. When I bought my Isolette III
from eBay (image right), its shutter stuck on any speed below 1/25th.
I exercised the shutter by firing it over and over, helping it close by
lightly pushing on the cocking lever, and after a while it started working
by itself. |
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This
works with some cameras, but with those that have sat around unused for
many years, it may not work. In that case, it is time to call a restorer.
The Isolette III that Jurgen Kreckel restored for me has an extremely
accurate shutter. He really works these cameras over, and brings them
into "like-new" condition. These older cameras may never have
the absolute shutter accuracy of an electronically controlled shutter,
even when restored. But, they are plenty accurate. I have used Provia
F slide film in my restored Isolette III, and have found no exposure errors
at any speed. The most common problems found on these older cameras are: 1. Holes in the bellows, 2. Slowest shutter speeds sticking or inaccurate, 3. Focus ring very stiff or stuck, 4. Dirty lenses, 5. Leatherette coming loose, or other cosmetic problems. |
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Sure,
you can find one that's in good working condition, but this means that
it was actually used by somebody, and not allowed to sit around for 20
or 30 years. I bought my second Agfa Isolette III, with the mid-range Apotar lens on eBay for about $70.00, and after exercising the shutter it works well. My favorite one, though, is the one rebuilt by Jurgen Kreckel, since it has a new red bellows, the extraordinary Solinar lens, and has been Cleaned, Lubricated, and Adjusted (CLA'd) to normal specs. You can have your bellows replaced with several colors. I have seen red, blue, black, and green bellows on Jurgen's cameras. In a sense, you can have your camera personalized by selecting colors, lenses, shutters, etc. |
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I
carry my Solinar lensed Isolette for color, and my Apotar lensed Isolette
for Black & White. Could you afford to carry two medium format cameras,
just to have a choice of films? Most couldn't due to the extremely high
cost. But, with these excellent folders, you could carry half a dozen
of them for the average cost of a used RB67 lens. For medium format on
a budget, without loss of quality, consider a folder or two for yourself. Most of the really clean ones have been at the top of grandpa's closet for the last 40 years. Although beautiful, they usually will have two or more of the problems mentioned above. But, these camera can be restored back to pristine condition, and you will have a real medium format camera that is the envy of all your photographer friends, and allows you to surreptitiously photograph fruit and vegetables at will, not to mention sunsets, people, and landscapes. On the right is a comparative image of three of my favorite cameras. On top is the Mamiya RB67 ProSD, in middle is the Mamiya M645 1000S, and on bottom is the Agfa Isolette III. All three use the same 120 film. Which do you think I carry with me daily? (Clue: It has a red bellows) When I fold up my little Isolette, I have a medium format camera that I can put in my pocket. It shoots 12 - 6x6cm (2 1/4" x 2 1/4") images, the same as a Hasselblad. In my humble opinion, it even rivals the Hassy in image quality! Cost: Less than $250.00 fully restored. (Chuckle, chuckle!) |
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Now
let's interview the well-known folder restorer, Jurgen Kreckel of Saylorsburg,
Penn., USA. Mr. Kreckel buys a lot of folder cameras, and brings them back to pristine life. He says that, even though they are fifty+ years old, that when he is done with them, "they are ready for another fifty years of use!" He sells quite a few folders on eBay, and will even make a great deal with you directly. His informative website is: http://www.certo6.com. Find him on eBay by his username certo6. As I mentioned earlier, I bought an Agfa Isolette III from Jurgen. It looks a lot like the brass version with the red bellows in the picture, only mine's still chromed. This little camera goes everywhere with me. I cannot believe the quality of its images. Now, let's see if we can obtain any jewels of folder buying knowledge from Jurgen. |
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Q.
Why did you start rebuilding folder cameras? A. Like many things, that's a long but somewhat uncomplicated story. Many moons ago I got interested in hunting and guns, but being just out of college and newly married, I couldn't afford the guns I really wanted. So I decided to make my own; eventually drifting into muzzleloaders. At that point I was creating all my guns from scratch.... and making enough of them that I began to have clients in North America, Europe, and Australia/New Zealand as well. I became one of the primary sources for 16 - 17th century firearms. What does that have to do with cameras, you ask? Well, about the same could be said for cameras. I couldn't afford medium format cameras so I had to make do with old folders. Following my adage that "what one can screw together, I can screw apart......... and put back together again!" I guess my years of gunsmithing was a natural when I decided to "play with medium format folders." Actually, I've been a "photographer" much longer than a hunter and gunsmith. I really got started restoring cameras about 6 years ago when a good friend of mine, Frank Frazetta, asked me to fix his cameras. He's sort of a collector and user so he'd somehow muck up a camera every now and then. |
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I
just had a knack for making them right again. I refurbished an Isolette
for him and myself, and pretty much have been doing so ever since....
only during the last two years with any kind of seriousness, and with
the help of eBay. Medium format folder cameras are such pure and simple photographic devices. Its just you, your imagination, the film, and a lens to create an image. To me, these folders have a design simplicity and honesty that aesthetically doesn't exist with our modern electronic "let me calculate it for you" cameras. |
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| Q.
What do you do to a camera, in general, when you overhaul one?
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Q.
Do you have a favorite folder camera? A. Well, when I was about 14 my dad gave me his old camera, his new one was a Minolta SRT101, so that kinda tells ya when it was! It was an Agfa Isolette with Vario shutter and an Agnar f4.5 85mm lens. This was my camera for about 5 years until I could afford one of those new SLRs, a Praktica Super TL which I still have. I don't know how many pictures of girl friends, and other stuff of course, that I took with my Isolette, but I can remember that very few of them came out less than very good! One thing I liked to do with my B&W matte prints in the sixties, was colorize them with simple color pencils ... just enough to give them that 1910 pastel artsy look... pretty cool! |
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So
which is my favorite folder in 6x6? That is hard, since there are so many
good ones. I'm partial to the Isolette because "it was my first camera."
I guess I'd have to say that the best medium format 6x6 folders have to
be the Agfa Super Isolette and the Zeiss Super Ikonta IV. I've tested both side by side and there is no clear winner. The Agfa by a shade maybe because it feels so much better built and engineered. The Mamiya 6 Automatic is a pretty nice camera too .... but less long term reliability because of its complex winding system than the former. |
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For
6x9, cheez.... until VERY recently, I never paid any attention to it.
Now I have an Agfa Record III, a Russian Mockva 4, and a Voigtlander Bessa
II. As a precision instrument, the Voigtlander wins hands down.... its
the Rolex compared to the Moskva's Casio. But they both tell the same
time.... hmmmmmmm. Q. If I wanted to buy one for you to overhaul, which type should I buy? A. That varies according to the format. Overhauling a 6x9 is not much different than the 6x6s. In 6x9, the best buy is still the Agfa Record III with the Mockva 4 and 5 right up there. With the Mockva though, it's more of a risky proposition if you don't have a "sound" camera to begin with. |
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is one of the handicaps of buying Russian equipment, some of it is very
good, and some of the same model are not. Q.
We know that you rebuild the folders, but how do you use them yourself? <<<>>> We
appreciate Jurgen's allowing us to interview him. Check out his eBay ads,
and communicate with him at this e-mail address: jurgenk@epix.net.
Below you will find a series of images taken with folder cameras.
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| Sample Images | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Below
are several images taken with my Agfa Isolette III in Tennessee. These
are highly compressed full frame scans from a 5x5" print, not the
Fuji NPS 160, 6x6cm negative. I cannot express to you just how sharp and
contrasty these images actually are. I tried to make a series of blow
ups from one of the images to let you see how well the detail is captured.
In the actual image, the detail stands out in great depth. Notice the
edge-to-edge sharpness and lack of light falloff. I was completely blown
away the first time I saw these images. You will be too, when you get
your folder! |
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If you would like to discuss this with others, check out the new Folder Discussion Forum |
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Find your
folder camera today on eBay...Click
Ad Below: |
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| For
more information on folder cameras see the following websites: Classic Folding
Rollfilm Cameras: http://homes.jcu.edu.au/~zlraa/Campix/folders.htm |
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| Copyright ©2004 by Darrell Young, All Rights Reserved |
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