The Beautiful Canter Beauty

      Why the Taiyodo Koki Camera company would name one of its cameras the Canter Beauty is a mystery to me. I always thought that horses canter. But the folks at Taiyodo did get it right when they selected "Beauty" for inclusion in the name of this sturdy little instrument, which is as carefully crafted as it is pleasant to use.
     Manufactured in 1957, the fixed lens Beauty was offered in two versions. One version featured a 2.8 lens; a second version sported a 1.9 lens. Both lenses use Lanthanum glass, which was discovered by Leitz Optical. I think this type of glass is used in Russian lenses as well. The Beauty features a ten-blade iris that is superior to the irises found in many other cameras.

     At just about five inches in width, it's one-half inch narrower than, say, a Barnack Leica. But it's

somewhat taller and therefore appears to be a bit squat. Viewed from above, the film advance lever on the right--which also cocks the shutter--contains a film counter and a film type indicator. The film counter resets itself after you open and close the back of the camera. As with most other cameras, the shutter release is just to the left of the lever. Adjacent to the release is a small gizmo that pops up and down as you cock and release the shutter.  What its purpose is I don't know.
    The combined viewfinder/rangefinder window is at its usual position on the left, as is the rewind knob. The rewind button is on the bottom plate of the unit.

    The Canter Beauty is a minimalist's delight. The shutter speed dial (blue) is positioned near the front of the lens barrel. The aperture is set using the dial marked with red. Yellow indicates the depth of field scale. Green marks the focusing ring. You can see the focusing knob, in the first photo (above).
   "But what about the part marked with a white bar," you ask. Well, I think it's supposed to be covered by a threaded ring that accepts filters.  Too bad the ring is missing on this little beauty.   But as one of the characters in Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath said, "It don't hurt the runnin'." Luckily, as shown in the photo (left), the missing ring doesn't have a negative effect on the camera's ability to function perfectly.

     The only problem I had with this camera involved the focusing mechanism, which was extremely stiff and difficult to operate when I received it. That was nothing new, however, because I've had the same experience with other fixed lens cameras in my collection. That's why I always keep a can of lighter fluid (naptha) handy. In this case all it took was a few squirts of the fluid to fix the problem.

COMING SOON: the Royal 35-M

The Konishiroku Konica III

   It's interesting to note that when World War Two ended in 1945, I was just ten years old.  At that time, my pals and I thought the Japanese lost the war because their airplanes were made of wood; they used bamboo spears instead of rifles; and they had very poor vision and had to wear Coke bottle eyeglasses. Of course, that wasn't true.
  That said, it's even more interesting to note that, while their economy was still recovering from the war just a few years later, Japanese craftsmen were producing the wonderful Canon, Konica, Leotax, Nicca, Yashica, Ricoh, Petri, Minolta, and Aires rangefinder cameras, to name just a few. Shown here is the Konica III, several versions of which were produced from 1956-1958.

    The third Konica RF produced after the Konica I and II, this camera utilizes the traditional, basic layout of controls. In the photo (left) red marks the shutter speed dial (B-1/500); blue denotes the aperture adjustment dial (2.4-22); white shows the adjustable light value scale; yellow shows the focusing dial; black marks the depth of field indicator..
     Not traditional, however, is the double stroke left-hand lever (green), which you depress with your thumb. Designed to allow the photographer to advance the film and cock the shutter without removing the camera from his eye, this certainly is an improvement compared to the earlier Konica I and Konica II.

     In addition to the double-stroke left hand lever, the Konica III has several other interesting features that weren't common in many other cameras at the time. For example, the back swings open for easy film loading. To do so, you twist the D ring to "O" (photo, right)  and push down on a little spring loaded gizmo (just visible near the "O" in the photo). What's more, this unique camera has an f2.4-f22 Hexanon lens. f2.4 you say? Well, I've seen many f2.8 lenses, but I can't recall ever seeing any f2.4 lenses.  Finally, unlike the two earlier models of the Konica III, this one has strap lugs.
     Although the viewfinder on the camera shown here is bright and clear, the rangefinder patch is a bit dim. I suppose that's because because of its age. Even so, I would still recommend the Konica III to any photographer who enjoys shooting film with one of those wonderful old cameras from the '50s.

COMING SOON: The Leidolf Lordomat Standard

   

The Extremely Capable Konishiroku Konica I

    If you're a minimalist like me, you probably drive a car that has standard transmission and very few whistles and bells. That's why you'd  enjoy capturing images with the no-frills Konica I, a lovely little camera that was manufactured in Japan from 1947 to 1960. Some of these units were made for the U.S. Army. Inscribed "U.S. Army Signal Corps" on their top plates, they are worth much more than the one shown here. Occasionally referred to as the Konika Standard, this camera was produced some time after 1951. How can you tell? That's when the 2.8 Hexanon lens; shutter speeds from B-1/500; and K-type synch post were introduced to this little gem.  As expected, everything on the camera is manual. 

        The shutter cocking lever is located just to the right of 12:00 o'clock on the lens barrel. The aperture pointer  (f/3.5-f/22) is just to the left of it. The shutter release is at 9 o'clock; the synch post is at 7:00 o'clock; and the focusing knob is at about 4:00 o'clock. The film advance knob, of course, is at the upper left in the photo. At the rear of the camera is a little button that you must depress before you advance the film. The viewfinder is bright, as is the rangefinder patch.

       One of the nice things about the Konica I is that it has a collapsible lens, shown here in the photo on the left. This makes it very handy if you're walking around capturing images on the street. The photo on the right shows the camera with the lens extended. Note that on this unit a strip of the covering is missing. You can see this on the shiny metal strips in the photos. Another positive characteristic of this camera is that, unlike other RF cameras of its time, it has a back that swings open for easy film loading. This is a major "plus."

      I think I paid about $65 for this camera. The Collectiblend website values it at much more. When I received it, the shutter was sticking, but I remedied that with a bit of naptha (lighter fluid). Although I never used it, I really like this camera. Obviously,the Konica I isn't a camera for beginners. But if you are fairly accomplished and like to shoot with a basic, no-frills instrument, you'll probably enjoy working with the it.

COMING SOON: The Konica II

The Positively Unpretentious Petri 2.8 Color Corrected Super

 

    
   It's too bad Kuribayashi Camera Industry, Inc., went out of business back in the 1960s. That's because Kuribayashi posted a hard-to-beat guarantee on the inside back cover of its cameras. If I could still take advantage of that guarantee, I could have had my ailing Petri 2.8 Color Corrected Super perked up for free. The problem, you see, is that, like many other fixed lens rangefinder cameras, the lubricant in the focusing mechanism on this unit had thickened. As a result, it didn't operate smoothly. I treated it with lighter fluid (naptha), and that loosened it up quite a bit.
     This is one of several cameras in my collection that I've owned for a long time and actually used, at least until the last five or six years. It has a 2.8 Orikkor lens; shutter speeds from B-1/500; f stops down to f22; distance markings in feet; M/X synch capability; and a self timer.
    The film advance lever operates smoothly, and the leaf shutter is whisper quiet. The shutter release feels just right when you depress it. There's a neat ASA reminder on the top plate.      
    Although I've used many other  RF cameras--Leica, Voigtlander, Retina, Ricoh, to name a few--this nifty little camera has been one of my  favorites. Small, light, quiet, and nimble, it's perfect for street photography. See the photo at left, for example. I don't think, however, that it's a camera for novices. But if you've mastered the basics of photography and understand how a rangefinder operates, you'll be very happy shooting with a Petri 2.8 Color Corrected Super.

   Kuribayashi manufactured more than one version of this camera. Seen in the photos shown here is an identically named earlier ver-
sion. Although this camera shares the same lens as the one shown above, there are many differences between the two. For example, the shutter on this Made in Occupied Japan <EP> model has a top shutter speed of 1/300 as opposed to a top speed of 1/500  on the later version of the camera. The viewfinder is markedly different as well, and so are the top plates. Also, the <EP> version is about one-half inch shorter. Finally, this earlier model has no strap lugs. You have to wonder what the camera's designers were thinking when they omitted the lugs!

COMING SOON:The Konica I Standard

   

What About Those Russian Lenses?

I was in the eighth grade in 1948 when I started snapping photos with an old box camera. Since then I've owned scores of cameras and captured many thousands of images. But now that old Father Time has caught up with me, I've switched from using cameras to collecting them. For a complete listing of my collection visit Collectiblend.
      Because I don't have an unlimited budget, I bought all the interchangeable lens cameras in my collection "body only." Then I added inexpensive Russian lenses to them.

    Truth to tell, I haven't been actively engaged in street photography for several years, but when I was, I used the Russian  Industar and Jupiter screw mount lenses with good results. And many times (horror of horrors), I mounted them on a Leica. Here are two images that I captured with an Industar 61 lens mated to a Leica M3.

   

      And here's one of several versions of the same lens. This is an Industar-61 with a focal length of 55mm and an aperture of 2.8. There are several other versions, as well as one that's retractable. Interestingly, of the more than three dozen lenses I've bought not one of them has been plagued by scratches or fungus.
      Of course, the build quality isn't up to that of Leitz or Canon L39 lenses,and there are many problems with quality control, but the low price makes up for that deficiency. At this writing, you can find these lenses for less than $25 (plus shipping) on eBay. Although shipping from Russia or Ukraine is costly, you can sometimes score one with free shipping. And you can get an even better deal if you buy in bulk. For example, I recently bought seventeen Industar 61s from a Russian eBay dealer for just $140 postpaid.
      And now for the bad news. Although the optics are good, it seems that much of the time these lenses arrive with focusing mechanisms that are gummed up with a lubricant that has hardened and makes it difficult to focus the lens. Luckily, however, the fix is easy--even if you're as mechanically challenged as I am.
      Here's how to restore a sticky lens to its original smoothness. At the bottom of the photo (above) you'll see a knurled knob with markings on it. This is the focusing knob. When you loosen the three small screws that hold it in place, you'll be able to slide it forward (up in the photo) and remove the gunked up grease. Then you can apply a drop of lubricant--I use mineral oil-- and your lens will function like new. If you want more detailed information about this process, you'll find it on the Internet.
P.S. If you run into  photographers who think that it's verboten to use anything but Leica glass on a Leica camera, please don't tell them about this blog.

COMING SOON: The rough, tough Zorki 3C