虎年
with Chinese cameras.
Made in China.

中国 制造

1. GREAT WALL DF-2 ( 长城 DF-2 CHANG CHENG)

Made by the Beijing Camera Factory.  The Great Wall DF-2 was a basic SLR camera whose design was based on the 1930s KW Pilot-Reflex. It was intended to be an inexpensive but slightly advanced camera for the common masses.  It is constructed of steel and has a very basic mechanism.

The Shutter is a basic rotary guillotine type- the reflex mirror is part of it.  Non-instant return, with four basic speeds (1/30, 1/60, 1/125, 1/200) and “B”.   No flash synch.  The shutter has to be tensed by winding the shutter dial before each exposure. 

Film Advance is by knob wind.  The frames are positioned by lining up the printed numbers on the film backing paper in the red window behind the camera.  Two formats possible:  12 exposures 6X6 cm or 16 exposures 6X4,5 cm.  The latter requires the use of an adapter mask (missing from this camera).  No double exposure or blank exposure prevention.

The lens is a 90mm Tessar type (real four element/ three group, against the common Triplet types prevalent in Chinese cameras).  Front-cell focusing, from 1 metre to infinity.   The lens is removable, but there appears to be no extra lenses made for the Great Wall.  The mount is standard Leica Thread M39.  This was perhaps done as a means to allow the lens to be used in the enlarger for printing.

Viewing and focusing is done through the hooded screen on top. 

2.

SEAGULL 4-B1 (海鸥 HAI OU)

The Seagull TLR is perhaps the best known Chinese Camera.  The Seagull is made by the Shanghai Camera Factory in Shanghai, China.  The model shown here is the most basic of the Seagull TLR family.  This model “4-B1″ is rarely seen outside China.  It lacks the automatic features of the 4B (semi-automatic film frame positioning), and 4-A (automatic frame positioning and crank advance), but otherwise, everything else is the same.  Same Triplet type 75mm f/3,5  “Haiou” lens, same 1-1/300 sec shutter speed range.  Picture quality should be the same in all three models.  Only the efficiency and ease of shooting change accordingly.

Film advance is by knob winding.  The frame is positioned by centering  the backing paper’s numbers on the red windows on the camera’s back door.  Two windows for 12 6X6 cm and 16 6X4,5 cm exposures respectively.  A simple cutout metal mask is inserted on the film gate for making 6X4,5 cm exposures.

The non-automatic Seagulls seem to be the better user types.  There are less parts to fail unlike in the automatic versions.

3. SEAGULL-205 (海鸥 HAI OU 205) and PHENIX-205 (凤凰 FENG HUANG 205)

Fixed-lens, leaf shutter coupled-rangefinder 35mm cameras.  Exactly similar cameras (note same model designation, “205″) but made by different factories:  Seagull by the Shanghai Factory, and the Phenix by the Jiangxi Camera Factory.  The Jiangxi Phenix appears to be made after the Seagull 205 was released.  The 205 appears to be a copy of Minolta or Konica rangefinders from the 1960s.

The lens is a 50mm f/2,8 three-element in three groups “Triplet” type.  It focuses from 1 m to infinity.  The shutter is a leaf type similar to one found in the Seagull TLR and folding cameras.  Same 1-1/300 range, with X flash synch and self-timer.  The leaf shutter is really quiet.

I think the best feature of the 205 is its combined rangefinder/ viewfinder.  It has a projected floating (for parallax compensation) frame line showing the 50mm field. It shows a LIFE-SIZED image, rivaling the Leica M-3 in terms of brilliance and magnification.  The short-base rangefinder is accurate enough for the 2,8 lens.

The 205 is light and quite easy to use.  It is very suitable for street photography.  It has no built in light meter though. 

Even as exact twins, there are some styling detail differences:

Between the two “205s”, the Seagull-205 feels to be heavier and more solidly built.  Its parts also seem to mesh and fit better.  The Phenix-205 feels more tinny and light, but build is clean.  Picture quality -wise, both cameras deliver the same.

4. SHANGHAI-58 II (上海-58II)

The Chinese Leica copy.  The “58″ in the model designation refers to the year 1958, when the “Great Leap Forward” campaign started in China.  The serial numbers of these cameras start with “58″ but they were made until around 1963 or so.  Four variants were made; those shown here belong to the third and fourth.

Made by the Shanghai Camera Factory (as the Chinese characters on the top plate say), which became the Seagull factory.

The first variant is an exact copy of the Leica IIIa.  Separate VF and RF, shutter speeds from 1 to 1/1000 (split at 1/20)  in separate dials, strap lugs, etc.

Then the camera evolved towards simplification.  The VF and RF were combined.  The strap lugs disappeared.  And flash synch was added. The camera borrowed elements from the Canon II and III rangefinders (external styling) and FED and Zorki cameras (internal mechanism).  The combined RF/VF optics were similar to those found in FED-3 or Zorki-5.  The follower cam for the rangefinder was similar to the teardrop shaped cam of the FED-1.

The difference between the third and fourth variants is the accessory shoe style.  In the third variant, the shoe was a spring loaded plate (similar to the Leica IIIc shoe) of about 4 components, and fastened with four screws to the body.   The fourth variant had a simplified shoe- single plate, no loaded spring tabs, and fastened with three screws only (similar to the Leica II or FED-1/Zorki-1 accessory shoes).

The lens (and appears to be the only lens made by the factory to fit the camera) is a 50mm collapsible in standard Leica Thread M39 X 1 mount.  It appears to be coated with a light blue Anti-Reflection coating.  It has a collapsible barrel, lever-set aperture, and locking focusing tab, all similar to the Leitz 3,5/50mm Elmar.  But the similarity ends there, since the lens is a three-element TRIPLET and not a four-element Tessar type.  The diaphragm layout is similar to the Elmar’s though. 

The lens mount will accommodate all other Leica and Canon, as well as Russian LTM 39 lenses.  Unlike the FED or Zorki,  the Chinese workers were more careful in milling the mount- resulting in consistent thread entry points, which in turn lead to a more uniform lens mounting.  The FED and Zorki were so lose in this quality concern.

 Many of these cameras were bought in Beijing, China.  In Beijing there is a sprawling camera shopping mall where all sorts of camera equipment, both new and old are to be found.  Lots and lots of them, at the best prices.  It is located at the Wukesong district:

More detailed articles about these cameras to follow soon.

I had been given an old Studio View Camera of unknown provenance.  A rather nice wood and brass affair. It may be a Korona or some Kodak Studio Camera. Nothing to mend except from some cracks in the bellows lining.  All I needed was a lens and some 4X5 film holders, and I could do the “soft” experiment.

I never thought that it would happen soon.  But it did, thanks to Comrade Bing himself.  Last Saturday, after the Rangefnder Filipinas meeting, someone suggested to “play” with the large view cameras in attendance… there were three around.  Not at all unusual…  Out came Comrade Bing’s Polaroid holder, some outdated Polaroid BW instant film, and I hastily made a cardboard “lens board” and taped my trusty old magnifying glass…

There was no shutter! ISO 400 film (but being outdated, may actually be closer to EI 160-200) would have made exposures impossible in brighter light.   But it was indoors at night.  Not too bright fluorescent lighting.  So little opaque card (left over from the lensboard) held over the lens served as the shutter.  1-4 sec exposures were just right.

Flap shutter in front, covering the lens, as Direk Uro unsheaths a Polaroid sheet  prior to exposure.
Maan, at the back, checking if any prestidigitation is involved…

And the First Result.  JefJac is coërced to become the first Victim/Model for the experiment.  This is how it came out:

The Original, his Copy, and the Camera.

Next two victims:  Drea and Comrade Bing.  Comrade Bing is intentionally bokeh-fied…what better way is there to demonstrate the softened abilities of an ordinary hand loupe than to bokeh-fy the inquirer himself????

Bing & Drea, to the left, posing for the camera.
Focused lens on Drea.  Note card ’shutter’ covering the lens, ready to be unflapped for exposure.

Even Direk Uro was made to sit for one Polaroid softee…

Four Polaroids…four photos shot.

**Thanks to Cent Rubin for the behind-the-scenes photos.