Russian Medium Format

I have been into photography ever since I took a photography class at a local junior college one summer when I was about 15. I still remember that dark room chemical smell.... I love it. Well, I don't develop my own film anymore, but I still love photography. I had been shooting strictly digital for some time, on roughly 3 megapixel fairly compact cameras, and having a good time doing it.

I briefly considered getting the new Canon 20D, but the $1500 price tag stopped me (barely). Instead, I decided to break out my old Pentax K1000 that I hadn't shot a roll with in probably 5 years, and put a few rolls through it. This got me reinfected with the SLR bug, and I have recently purchased several more Pentax cameras of the same era (a Pentax ME, two ME Supers, and a KM). The lenses are all interchangeable, and I love cameras of that era.

In talking to a friend of min e who is also into photography, he recommended that I give medium format photography a shot (no pun intended). For those not familiar with this, it is film which is about twice as wide as 35mm film (it is 60mm wide), with pictures usually either 45mm, 60mm, 70mm or 90mm wide (depending on the camera). Because of these large negatives, the resolution is much higher (exactly like having a digital camera with a higher megapixel count), and this gives the possibility of larger blow-ups.

Because of the new digital cameras with extremely high resolution (above 10 megapixels), a fair number of professional photographers are abandoning film for digital cameras. As these photographers are the main users of medium format, used medium format cameras can be had for less money then ever before. However, for the well known namebrands (Pentax, Hasselblad, Bronica, Miyama, etc...), the prices are still well above my price range. A simple set up with only a single normal lens can easily be over $1000, and often well more, and the lenses can be even more for each one.

In looking on the web, I noticed that several people were talking about relatively inexpensive cameras made in the Ukraine (and Soviet Union before that) that had very good lenses available. These cameras are the Kiev 60 and Kiev 88. The Kiev 88 is a very attractive camera, and is an almost exact copy of a Hasselblad (so much so that some of the accessories are interchangeable). The Kiev 60, on the other hand is...... not attractive. It has been described as a 35mm SLR, greatly enlarged, and then hit with an ugly stick. I find the camera attractive, as it looks a lot like the Pentax cameras I own. But I admit it IS BIG (a Pentax K1000 weighs 1 lb 12 oz, and a Kiev 60 weighs 4 lbs 6 oz).

The problem with the Kiev 88 is that it is more complicated, and has more problems. I therefore decided to get the Kiev 60, which I purchased off of eBay for about $150, including shipping. Since it arrived, I have had a blast using it, and have actually purchased two other medium format cameras. One is another Soviet camera, called the Moskba 5, which was made in 1959. The other is a Ricohflex TLR (Twin lens Reflex) camera. So far, all are working well, and the pictures they create are incredible. The totally manual nature of these three cameras makes you take more time taking pictures, but I love that. If I want to shoot off a bunch of pictures quickly, I'll just use the digital, or 35mm, but when I shoot medium format, I want to take my time.

To see the results, you can go to http://eljusto.smugmug.com/Medium+Format