Do I Miss My Hasselblad Xpan? I think I Do.

Some of my Xpan Shots, With 45mm f4 Lens

 

I used to own a Hasselblad Xpan and 45mm lens. It's the only Hasselblad I've ever owned. I liked it, but didn't love it at the time. It was valuable enough, I decided to sell it. Now, I wonder if that was a good idea. I was just getting into the panoramic composition. I have continued to play with panos, with a few different cameras that give me the option - the Reality So Subtle 6x17 pinhole camera is my favorite. I also have a Lomography Sprocket Rocket, and a 35mm wide (panoramic) back for my Bronica ETR. But, the Xpan was a nice combination of small size, flexibility (it can also shoot normal 35mm frames), and very high quality optics.

 

As I prepare for my upcoming vacation and hiking trip, I'm thinking about the Xpan again. My plan is to take my Fujifilm GS645S medium format rangefinder, and my Lumix DMC-LX100 on the trip. Both are excellent travel cameras. But, an Xpan would be great, especially for the hike.

 

Nick DeMarco of the Rangefinder Chronicles shoots an Xpan regularly. (Click Here) to see a nice post of Nick's work.

 

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Nick De Marco's Leica IIIa

Nick De Marco runs a nice blog called Rangefinder Chronicles. I've featured some of his posts here before.

Image Source: http://rangefinderchronicles.blogspot.com/2014/11/my-1930s-leica-iiia.html

 

I don't know Nick, but with his taste for old Leicas, I'm sure we'd get along just fine.

 

Nick has posted about a recent purchase, his 1930s Leica IIIa with 50 mm f3.5 Elmar collapsible lens.

(Click Here) to read Nick's post on Rangefinder Chronicles.

 

It's great to see that Nick has the same trepidation and worries that any reasonable person would have buying and trying to use an 80 year old camera. Come to think of it, would any reasonable person even do that? Anyway. It's also great to see the fine quality images that the old beast produced in his hands.

 

Yes, I've firmly got one foot in the digital photography game, but my other's still in the past. As long as that means that I get to shoot old machines like Nick's, or my new Leica IIIG (ultimate evolution of the Barnack design at Leica), that's okay with me.

 

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Nick DeMarco Shoots Mamiya Universal and Fuji Pack Film

Nick and His Mamiya Universal Press Camera

Image Source: http://rangefinderchronicles.blogspot.com/2014/07/my-mamiya-universal-first-shots-with.html

 

Nick DeMarco runs the blog "Rangefinder Chronicles." He's a serious Leica user, and shares results made with both old Barnack screwmount and M film cameras.

 

Now, Nick's doing something different. He's picked up a Mamiya Universal (medium format press camera, shoots 6x9 images), with a Polaroid back. It takes the Fuji pack film, just like my old Polaroid does.

 

(Click Here) to see a post about my Polaroid.

 

There's just something about instant print photography. Even for my teenager, who is growing up in the digital age, her and her friends love to watch an instant print come into being. In fact, I've been considering the new Fujifilm Instax Neo as my next instant shooter (see Amazon link below). It's styled in the Fujifilm rangefinder motif, and has some good creative controls. It also uses the more modern Instax film, which I hope will be around a while. The black and white pack film from Fuji (FP3000B) is discontinued.

 

Nick shares several great images he made with his new Universal.

(Click Here) to see them on his blog Rangefinder Chronicles.

 

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Nick DeMarco Interprets the Preparation for the Fight With His Leica Cameras

One of the blogs I regularly follow is Nick DeMarco's Rangefinder Chronicles. Today I'll share one of his recent posts, which I think really shows how a photographer can interpret an event, any event, into something new, sharing how he or she sees it.

Image Source: http://rangefinderchronicles.blogspot.com/2013/07/fight-night-with-leica-m-1-before-fight.html

 

Nick shot his Leica M (240) and M7 with fast Cosina Voigtlander lenses at a Thai kickboxing event. This post is specifically about the preparation of the fighters, before battle.

 

(Click Here) to see Nick's entire post with several pictures.

 

I am always interested in how good photographers go beyond simple documentation to put their own thoughts and feelings into their pictures. I particularly like what Nick says about this next image:

 

"...even though it was dark, low contrast and the back of a few heads. The coaches were taking one of the boxers down the fire exit steps for his fight, but somehow it makes me think of taking a prisoner to be hung, or Jesus to his crucifixion."

Image Source: http://rangefinderchronicles.blogspot.com/2013/07/fight-night-with-leica-m-1-before-fight.html

 

I look forward to seeing more images from Nick as he covers the later action.

 

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Rangefinder Chronicles Blog - Results from Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f1.5 on Leica M3 (Film!)

 

Nick DeMarco's Leica M3 and Nokton

Image Source: http://rangefinderchronicles.blogspot.com/2013/07/the-new-50mm-nokton-f15-vm-on-film.html

 

Rangefinder Chronicles is one of the many blogs I read regularly. Nick's forays into rangefinder (Leica and other) photography are usually quite interesting.

 

In a recent post, he shares a lot of gorgeous film images, shot on his Leica M3 and Voigtlander R3M, both with a new Voigtlander 50mm f1.5 Nokton. I'm impressed with the images.

 

The new f1.5 Nokton is styled after classic Noktons of the past. (Click Here) to read about this lens on cameraquest.com.

 

(Click Here) to see them all.

 

He shot with iso 100 film, in order to allow him to open the lens up all the way, exhibiting its strengths. As he says, why buy a super fast lens if you don't want to shoot wide open? Here's an example I particularly like, partially because it shows the lens performance at wide aperture, and partially because I like the subject (I do mean the cameras; not that the lady is unappealing):

 

Image Source: http://rangefinderchronicles.blogspot.com/2013/07/the-new-50mm-nokton-f15-vm-on-film.html

 

Nick tells us that he has a lot of 50mm lenses, including a Summicron f2 and Zeiss Sonnar f1.5. It's not clear to me what the Nokton does that the Sonnar does not. While both lenses are manufactured by Cosina, I imagine the optical designs to be different. It would be very interesting to see a comparison of the two lenses.

 

In any case, the Nokton does look like a winner. I love seeing it shot on vintage film bodies like the M3. Nice job, Nick!

 

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How About Those Russian Leica Copy Cameras?

 

Image Source: http://rangefinderchronicles.blogspot.com/2013/04/a-day-at-races-with-fed-2.html

 

Most of us have heard the stories of how the Russians copied high end German cameras. Some of this went on before World War II, starting in the 1930s. After the war, some factory equipment, specifically from Contax, was moved to Russia, where production began again, albeit under different (lower) quality control standards. I have a Zorki 1, which is a very respectable copy of a 1932 Leica II rangefinder. It was produced starting in 1948. Zorki reportedly means "sharp-sighted" in Russian.

 

(Click Here) to read about Zorki cameras.

 

Russian copies of Leica were usually named either Zorki or Fed, depending on the factory where they were built. My Zorki 1 is a really neat camera. While it does look like an old Barnack Leica, it has a decidedly louder "clunk" when the shutter releases. That said, the Russian lens on it really performs quite well. I haven't had the Zorki out in years; I guess I prefer to shoot the genuine Leica product, since I'm lucky enough to have access.

 

In any case, the blog Rangefiinder Chronicles recently featured a post on using a Fed2 at the horse races in England.

 

(Click Here) to see the full series of really impressive black and white images from the Fed.

 

Maybe I'll drag my old Zorki out for a future "Skeletons From The Closet" exercise. I would be worried about it continuing to work for a full month, but after 65 years, it can probably make it.

 

If you're intrigued by Russian cameras, I say go for it. They're pretty cheap, and do a nice job if they're well-preserved.

 

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