SLR Film Camera 35mm tested Rare ZENIT 4 copy Bessamatic Vintage Cameras USSR 🥇

Description: Camera Zenith-4 Zenit-4 is the basic camera of 3 cameras of a separate line. The lineup included Zenit-4, -5, -6. The cameras in this amazing series were completely innovative and very different from anything we've produced before or since. But first things first. Zenit-4 was produced at KMZ in 1964-1968. About 19.5 thousand of these cameras were produced. When developing the Zenith-4, the Bessamatic camera of the German company Voigtländer was taken as the basis. Soviet designers borrowed a number of fundamental decisions from the German prototype. VoigtlaenderbessamaticHowever, Zenit-4 is not a complete copy of Bessamatic. This is precisely the creative alteration "based on". The picture clearly shows the difference. Who cares, but I don’t blame engineers at all for using best practice solutions. This is absolutely normal. It is shameful - on the contrary, not to know about such decisions or not to be able to use them for your own benefit.Bessamatic contained several innovations that were revolutionary for that time. First, the camera had a central shutter. At that time curtain shutters had reached the limit of their technical characteristics and there was an opinion that further progress of photo shutters was possible only on the basis of central structures. Secondly, the world's first mass-produced Zoomar zoom lens was created for this camera. Of course, they also wanted to release such a lens at KMZ, but the Bessamatic was a camera so specific that it was impossible to copy the lens alone. For the lens, it was necessary to create a suitable camera. It is believed that the Zenith 4-6 line is a one-of-a-kind example of creating a camera for a lens. The Zenith-4 shutter is central, behind the lens. Cameras of the Zenit 4-6 line are the only Soviet cameras with a central shutter and interchangeable lenses. The shutter beats shutter speeds: 1, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/15, 1/30, 1/60, 1/125, 1/250, 1/500, V. This is very good for a SLR that time, but even this is not the most interesting. The camera is equipped with a wired synchronizer. Thanks to the central shutter, Zenith-4 can be synchronized with ANY flashes at ANY shutter speeds. Even now, modern digital SLRs cannot synchronize with a flash (if it does not support a special FP mode) at shutter speeds shorter than 1/250 - 1/320. This mode is supported only by older models of external flashes. Built-in FP flashes are not supported. At the same time, synchronization took place strictly at one shutter speed. Usually 1/30. Therefore, the synchronization capabilities of Zenith-4 were simply fantastic. Lens mount - Z mount. "C" means central. Geometrically, the bayonet is copied from the German prototype. But lenses are not interchangeable with German ones due to different working lengths. I repeat, Zenit-4 was not a complete copy. The bayonet is very comfortable to use. Much more convenient than what was used at the Start. No complaints in comparison with modern designs. Working length - 47.58 mm. The standard lens is Vega-3Ts 2.8 / 50. The lens had to be made from scratch for a new concept. Non-standard in this lens is not only a unique mount, but the visualization of the depth of field. I will write more about the lens in a separate review.

Price: 283.46 USD

Location: Kiev

End Time: 2024-11-29T10:35:14.000Z

Shipping Cost: 0 USD