|
Forum: Troubleshooting and Beginner Help
12-29-2019, 11:46 AM
|
| |
Mine, which came in their original Asahiflex stamped box, are only marked on the rims but do not say Asahiflex or have a logo. I added an image to the blog post about my kit showing the rim markings.
Blog post is here,
Rim markings image is here |
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
05-22-2019, 09:13 AM
|
| |
Not sure if I am allowed to promote a sale but I have posted my IIa and IIb parts body with case, 58 mm lens and lens hood in the marketplace.
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
04-26-2019, 03:46 PM
|
| |
I am so glad it has arrived in one piece, and fills a gap in your collection! I can't think of a better home for that lens. EDIT: And the bellowscope too!
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
03-14-2019, 06:09 PM
|
| |
I have been considering pentaxforums for sure - I get a lot from this place and its people, even if I don't participate very much. And ebay has so many landmines lurking.
You too can PM me :).
Pricing is really the sticking point. Some things seem very consistent, others are all over the map.
Sold prices are hard to come by - any pointers on that front would be appreciated. I know I can find some values in the lens and camera databases on this site, but often they don't seem very helpful.
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
03-12-2019, 10:43 PM
|
| |
Thank you!
Next step is pricing. That is the tough part, especially for the Fujitar 35/2.5 for which there is next to no sales (or other) information under any of its guises. Especially with case and caps.
---------- Post added 03-12-19 at 10:50 PM ----------
Thanks for that information. It sounds a lot simpler to list the lenses with hoods/cases/etc - fewer listings is better. I am not sure exactly how to sell it yet. I've never sold anything on an auction site, and am not sure if it is better to determine a fixed value or let those that interested do that for me through a bidding process. Anyway, as I gather data I can sort out how best to go about it. Thanks again for the feedback, much appreciated.
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
03-11-2019, 07:51 PM
|
| |
Thanks Tom,
Sounds like the camera should go with the case? Rather than as a separate item?
What about selling the body alone, no lense?
The body is clean, but the shutter speeds are really slow. I considered getting a CLA including replacing the shutter (which is a bit wrinkly on one half) from the parts body which has a better shutter, but the quoted price seems like it is not worth it in these circumstances.
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
03-11-2019, 10:46 AM
|
| |
Thanks for your thoughts. It is good to have them - I expect that this will be the consensus.
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
03-11-2019, 09:50 AM
|
| |
Hi,
I have an Asahiflex Kit which I believe to be a working kit that has stayed together. I find such kits interesting because they shed light on a previous unknown owner and their photographic preferences, and also have some historical value as to what were considered the best combination of gear at a particular time.
I am considering selling my kit and wonder whether I should try to sell it as a kit, or split it up. What do collectors think about this? The kit includes a IIa body, a IIb parts body, variety of lenses, extension tubes, bellows, hoods, caps, cases, etc. All in pretty nice condition. The camera needs shutter work (slow speeds) and I can't get it done locally. The cost of repair is probably not worth it to me. You can find out more about the kit here: A Complete Asahiflex Kit | burnt embers
I am not really a collector, I like to use lots of different cameras and lenses and thus I buy them to use, not to collect. I don't really understand what collectors are interested in, hence this post. Even though I am not a collector per se, things have got out of hand in the owning department, so it's time to part with a few things.
Thanks for any thoughts you have on this matter.
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
12-23-2017, 08:32 AM
|
| |
I have completed my lens test review on my blog of the m37 Fujitar 35/2.5 that came with my Asahiflex IIa. I am wondering where is the best place to put it in the lens database. I think the easiest place for people to find it is in the m37 lens section, but that is for Pentax lenses only (though it surely would not get cluttered if all 4 or 5 non-Pentax m37 lenses ended up there). Since there is no other m37 section, should it just go into the Third Party>Miscellaneous>Primes part of the lens database? If I put it in the wrong place, can it be moved by a mod?
Guidance would be welcome!
My blog review compares the lens to a S-M-C Takumar 35/3.5 and a Nikon Series E 35/2.5. It can be found at: Fujitar P.C 35mm F2.5 Asahiflex Lens Test | burnt embers
This is the lens:
And it's case:
 |
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
12-18-2017, 06:19 PM
|
| |
My father is still (65 years later) very clear that the Praktiflex he owned in the 50s should not be called a Praktica, even though many people use that shorthand :)
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
12-18-2017, 05:34 PM
|
| |
If you want to shoot black and white I would suggest starting with Ilford XP2 - it is a C41 process film which means the purists don't like it, but also means that it is cheaper to process and that processing can be done anywhere that does colour print film. And, the purists are wrong anyway, it is great film. It is extremely forgiving with a ~5 stop range (50 to 800ISO) without the need for changing the processing, so if your meter is feeling tired you might still get useable images.
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
12-18-2017, 05:22 PM
|
| |
I bought a complete ME camera kit that was assembled and used in the 70s or early 80s. The flash that the two bodies came with was a Braun 340 SCA-100 Vario-Zoom - it is a big and very capable flash. More about that kit here: A Photographer’s Kit | burnt embers
More recently I bought an ME Super from the original owner - it came with an AF160 that she had bought at same time as camera.
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
12-18-2017, 05:04 PM
|
| |
IF it is an Asahiflex, then it has to be either the IIa or IIb, since the I and Ia do not have an instant return mirror. The IIa has other features not found on the IIb (like slower shutter speeds), so if you have a choice, and if it is an Asahiflex, then go for the IIa.
However, I see nowhere in the post anything that suggests it was a waist-level viewfinder camera like the Asahiflex. Liking a camera where the mirror returns on taking the picture is probably a generational thing as 35mm mirrors did not return, with a few exceptions, until the mid-50s, and not generally until the late 50s and early 60s. The way I read it it could even be a mid 60's Pentax that he appreciated because an earlier camera of his did not have an instant return mirror, or because a salesman made a big deal of it when taking his money.
Also, keep in mind that the name Pentax did not come into use until models that followed the Asahiflex, so that should be considered as well - they may be in the same family, but were Asahiflex cameras called Pentax by users in the 60s?
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
12-16-2017, 09:03 PM
|
| |
Thanks Pepe - I will post it over in the lens review section too. I too shoot film mostly, so you will be seeing some film shots around here when the camera is serviced.
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
12-16-2017, 08:08 PM
|
| |
Hi Pepe, I guess I was confused by the answers I got to my question about where to post.
So, I will ask again: Is it OK to post the same post in two different parts of PentaxForums? If so, I would be fine with moving it over.
I was taking my lead from the OP who wrote in the original post "So please share photos of your collection, your stories and also some photos taken with either the cameras or some of these great lenses." But I can see that he might have intended general shots, not specific lens tests.
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
12-16-2017, 02:52 PM
|
| |
Thanks for the information a.a.t. My shots so far have had a fairly bright background - a window, but not brightly lit by any means as we have low light at the moment. I will have to run another set of tests with a dark background and see what happens, now that the rain has stopped and I can move back outdoors.
It is a dream kit :) I love finding a kit put together by a user at the time a camera was in its heyday - it can sheds lots of light on how they were used.
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
12-16-2017, 11:56 AM
|
| |
Thanks Pepe - I should have included this page from the Asahiflex II manual that came with the camera:
 |
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
12-16-2017, 10:23 AM
|
| |
I have recently posted on my blog tests of the Asahi-Kogaku Takumar 58/2.4. In that post I compare it also with shots from an SMC Takumar 55/1.8 and Helios-44-2 58/2. The post is here: Asahi-Kogaku Takumar 58mm f2.4 Lens Test | burnt embers
Below are the 58/2.4 images from that post which were made at f/16, f/5.6 and f/2.4, including same-size crops from the center and lower and upper left corners. The images were made with a full frame Canon 5Dii. The adapters included a m37>m42 inside a variety of m42>EOS adapters. There are no gaps for light leaks in this combination of adapters. I used live view full magnification to focus; the focus point was the washer on the steering post just below the nut that can be seen in the centre crop. In my post I give more details about methods and outcomes. My conclusion though is that this lens is sharper than the other two. The light is quite flat so I am can't really comment on other aspects of colour rendition, flare and so on, though in these conditions it is every bit as good as the others. In a few days I will do similar posts for the 135/3.5 and Fujitar P.C 35/2.5. When the camera comes back from a shutter repair I will post some film shots made with the camera and these lenses.
Lens testing isn't my thing, but if there is something I am doing all wrong then let me know so I can do better in future tests. Thanks!
At F/16:
At F/5.6:
At F/2.4
 |
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
12-15-2017, 06:07 PM
|
| |
But presumably not in both? Just trying to figure out the better place.
Also, do you have any experience with the Tele-Takumar 135 losing contrast at f8/f16? Mine seems to, though I may need to test it more to be sure.
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
12-15-2017, 09:27 AM
|
| |
What a great collection. From what I read that 83 is superb. I have just been testing my 58 on a full frame DSLR and if the 83 is even better then it must be a special lens.
I made a blog post today (A Complete Asahiflex Kit | burnt embers) about my intact and apparently contemporaneous Asahiflex kit. Over the next few days I will post lens tests for the 58, 135 and Fujitar 35. The 58 post will include comparisons to an SMC 55/1.8 and Helios-44-2 58/2.
Would this be the proper part of Pentax Forums to post some of the lens test images? If not, where should I post them?
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
11-21-2017, 08:00 PM
|
| |
The guy that sold me this kit got in touch today. He had found the case for the Fujitar (it is labelled Fujita), some filters, the Asahiflex manual, and a second Asahiflex body - this one a slightly unusual model IIb - it has open triangles on the top like the IIa, not filled ones like most of the photos I have seen. The body is parts only, it is missing the ground glass and the threaded rim for screwing lenses into, and the waist level viewfinder surrounds are a bit mangled. But the shutter looks a lot better condition than in the IIa though it too is slow. Anyway, the kit just got more complete, which was a wonderful surprise, at no additional cost :)
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
11-19-2017, 12:41 PM
|
| |
Thanks! Rubber band seems like a good place to start, lots of them in the kitchen drawer. I will be shooting on a Canon 5Dii so there will also be an m42>EOS adapter involved. Not sure how it will look for light leaks until I see it. I'd like to see how the lenses look with film too, so once I get a feel for the lenses I will shoot some film - perhaps with a Spotmatic. I like the idea of trying the 58/2.4 as a portrait lens due to it being a Heliar type design, so perhaps will try that on a crop sensor too. Obviously I am going to need to take some macro shots as well, with all that close up gear. Can you tell I am planning on having some fun? I'll be writing it all up on my photo blog as well, but will bring some of that to these pages as well.
---------- Post added 11-19-17 at 01:42 PM ----------
Hearing numbers like that makes me feel good about my kit :)
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
11-19-2017, 11:18 AM
|
| |
Thanks for the response. Full frame photos through these lenses will be posted! The adapter I have ordered has no flange, so I am glad to hear I did the right thing in that department.
I agree that 400 seems pricey for camera with 58 and 135, though the 135/3.5 lenses are often listed for well over 200 (not that they necessarily sell for that) so in that world 400 might not be totally out of line.
|
|
Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
11-18-2017, 09:21 PM
|
| |
A couple of weeks ago I picked up an Asahiflex IIa with lenses and accessories. I thought I would share a photo of the group as apparently all these items were together when bought by previous owner, I think at a garage sale. Overall the condition is excellent except the shutter speeds are shot. I am waiting for a m37->m42 adapter so I can try the lenses on other cameras, and eventually will get the shutter serviced. It is interesting to see what a kit would have had in it:
Asahiflex IIa with leather case
Asahi-Kogaku Takumar 58/2.4 - hood (with leather case), but no caps
Asahi_Kogaku Tele-Takumar 135/3.5 - hood (with leather case), both caps, leather case
Fujitar P.C 35/2.5, both caps, labelled around rear element "FOR ASAHI FLEX IIA IIB" (I understand this same lens is known to be labelled with other names including Fujita, Tower and others)
Set of 4 extension tubes in original box
Asahiflex Bellowscope, original soft case
|
