FED 2b Zarya

My Leica inspired FED 2b and it's offspring, the lesser known Zarya.

 

FED 2b

35mm (24x36mm) Rangefinder Camera

Industar 26M 50/f2.8-22 Single-coated lens

Adjustable diopter

B, 1/25-1/500 sec. horizontal cloth focal plane shutter

Flash-sync, Cold shoe, & Self-timer

Made in USSR (1958-59)

 

FED Zarya

35mm (24x36mm) Viewfinder Camera

Industar 26M /f2.8-22 Single-coated lens

Scale-focusing

B, 1/30-1/500 sec. horizontal cloth focal plane shutter

Flash-sync & Cold shoe

Made in USSR (1959-61)

 

"Zarya was a simplified economy version of FED-2b. It was restyled and simplified top housing without rangefinder, self timer and slow shutter speeds. Intended for the Soviet domestic market. It was normally supplied with an Industar-26m 52mm f2.8 lens, but accepts any Zorki/Fed/Leica M39 lenses."

 

Sometimes we lose context in our critiques and judge these vintage cameras like they are new models on the shelf. It shouldn’t matter now what the comparisons were between them 50 to 100 years ago, or how they may compare to cameras made today. Now they are all beautiful collector items and an important part of history!

Done