mikeinlagardette
Still in good shape!
I realised that although I've owned this camera for quite a few years, I seem not to have put a picture or description of it on Flickr.
Now in her early seventies, the old girl can still turn out useful images on the odd day out, but not without the effort of getting round the 620 business! Shown here with a Series VI filter adaptor and hood, and a little wrist strap. I overhauled this camera when it arrived as it was in well used condition with a cracked screen, and the lenses were very dusty inside.
The lenses proved a puzzle to take apart and an even greater puzzle to put back together again, but patience triumphed in the end! There are virtually no spares for these things, so I replaced the cracked screen with a brand new screen from a Kiev 88, which as well as being brighter than the original, has a split image rangefinder in the centre. Apart from that it's more or less as it left the factory.
Things that set it apart are the fact that the razor sharp taking and viewing lenses are identical, both Anastars, but unlike other Kodak Anastars they are not Tessar types, but Dialytes, a lens formed of four air-spaced elements, of which only the front element moves, and has some similarities to a Sonnar, although this particular design is more often seen in telescopes than cameras! Both are hard coated with magnesuim flouride.
Automatic film spacing which still works correctly, two tripod sockets, one on the bottom, one on the side ( I think this last was actually for the flash bracket), massive die cast aluminium body with steel covers, and a single lever to both load and fire the shutter are all things I like about it, downside is they cannot be converted to use 120 spools without more modification than I am prepared to do, but I can live with this!
1995 Minolta Dynax 600si, f4/35-70 Minolta zoom, +1 dioptre close up lens. Outdated Polypan F in Rodinal 1:100 semi-stand 60mins @20C. Scanned @2400dpi on Epson V500
Still in good shape!
I realised that although I've owned this camera for quite a few years, I seem not to have put a picture or description of it on Flickr.
Now in her early seventies, the old girl can still turn out useful images on the odd day out, but not without the effort of getting round the 620 business! Shown here with a Series VI filter adaptor and hood, and a little wrist strap. I overhauled this camera when it arrived as it was in well used condition with a cracked screen, and the lenses were very dusty inside.
The lenses proved a puzzle to take apart and an even greater puzzle to put back together again, but patience triumphed in the end! There are virtually no spares for these things, so I replaced the cracked screen with a brand new screen from a Kiev 88, which as well as being brighter than the original, has a split image rangefinder in the centre. Apart from that it's more or less as it left the factory.
Things that set it apart are the fact that the razor sharp taking and viewing lenses are identical, both Anastars, but unlike other Kodak Anastars they are not Tessar types, but Dialytes, a lens formed of four air-spaced elements, of which only the front element moves, and has some similarities to a Sonnar, although this particular design is more often seen in telescopes than cameras! Both are hard coated with magnesuim flouride.
Automatic film spacing which still works correctly, two tripod sockets, one on the bottom, one on the side ( I think this last was actually for the flash bracket), massive die cast aluminium body with steel covers, and a single lever to both load and fire the shutter are all things I like about it, downside is they cannot be converted to use 120 spools without more modification than I am prepared to do, but I can live with this!
1995 Minolta Dynax 600si, f4/35-70 Minolta zoom, +1 dioptre close up lens. Outdated Polypan F in Rodinal 1:100 semi-stand 60mins @20C. Scanned @2400dpi on Epson V500