Thursday, June 18, 2020

INSTANT MAGNY 35 - AN INSTANT FILM BACK FOR LEICA M FILM CAMERAS




By Heinz Richter

It used to be the case that owning a Leica meant that just about anything you might need for your camera, lenses as well as accessories, had to be bought from Leica.  That is no longer the case.  For instance, there are several aftermarket lenses offered by a variety of companies.  The same goes for accessories.

Every once in a while we come across an aftermarket accessory not available from Leica, one that appears to have some merit.  Such is the case with the Instant Magny 35, an instant back for 135 SLR & rangefinder cameras.  The fact that it is available for rangefinder cameras caught my eye.  Could that possibly mean Leica M cameras?

The answer turned out to be a ‘yes’ with restrictions.  The back is only available for the Leica M film cameras.  Enough news to warrant a closer look.


The Magny 35 is remindful of the Speed Magny Polaroid back introduced by Nikon in the 60s.  That was designed to use the old Polaroid peel-apart films from Polaroid.  The new Magny 35 utilizes the Fujifilm Instax Square films.  These result is a smaller final image, but it also allowed the Magny 35 to be substantially smaller.


Operation is very simple:

·       Detach the original, folding camera back of the Leica M camera
·       Install the Instant Magny 35's enlarging optics film back onto the camera
·       Then, attach 3 parts properly.
·       Pull the dark-slide on the Instant Magny 35
·       Proceed to take the picture as usual.  Press the film ejection button and take the film out to develop


The system allows for unlimited double exposures since the film is not automatically ejected, and to keep track of the number of film sheets used, the back has a film counter LED that tells the user the number of film(s) left.

One potential drawback is the fact that all images taken will be right/left reversed.  This is due to the design of the Magny 35, which projects the image from the camera lens via a mirror onto the film.  A pentaprism, like in a SLR viewfinder, could prevent this, but that would make the unit substantially larger and definitely a lot heavier.

Needless to say, this is not for everybody, but to some it might very well be a welcome addition to their Leica system.

The projected retail price is $179.00


Specifications

·       Film: Fujifilm Instax Square
·       Exposure area: 62mm x 62mm
·       Enlarging lens construction: 2 Groups 5 Elements
·       Enlarging lens aperture: f/4
·       Maximum effective aperture: f/4 (If using aperture larger than f/4, the incoming light value will remain at f/4. Yet, you can still get the narrow depth of field effect.)
·       Reflex Mirror: Front Surface Mirror
·       Power Supply: 4 x AAA batteries
·       Film Feeding Out: Automatic
·       Others: LED film counter, tripod socket, dark slide

Dimension:

·       Film Ejection Unit: 118 (L) x 123 (W) x 34.8 (H) mm
·       Aluminum Lens Barrel: 96 (L) x 96 (W) x 62.64 (H) mm
·       Leica Enlarging Optics Film Back: 50 (L) x 89.5 (W) x 51.8 (H) mm

Weight: Approx. 485g (without battery and film pack)

For complete information go here


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Tuesday, June 16, 2020

REALISTIC REAL WORLD LEICA LENS PERFORMANCE





By Heinz Richter

A while ago I showed a photo on social media.  It was a cropped version of the original image.  A viewer thought it was quite good, considering the crop, and asked to see the original.  That gave me the idea to write about it here, with some additional examples.

I have shot film as well as digital, but I do prefer digital because it is substantially easier to work with.  At the end, however, it is the results that count.  For that reason I have always been a fan of slow films like Agfapan APX 25 or similar.  Obviously, that is too slow in many situations.  In those cases I used to shoot occasionally with Agfapan APX 100, but my first choice then was Ilford XP-2 Super.  It allows to change film speed in mid-roll without the necessity of any development adjustment.  Another advantage is that, when shooting at slower speeds, the film displays noticeably finer grain.


Reggi Anderson, Artist
Leica M6, 135mm f/2.8 Elmarit, Agfapan APX 25

I rarely, if ever, do use a tripod, on location as well as in studio.  I feel it eliminates some of the advantages of the Leica by adding considerable bulk.  It slows you down and eliminates the spontaneity the camera offers.

Subsequently some of the examples in this article are not of an ultimate quality in terms of sharpness and detail, but they are examples of what one can reasonably expect under real world shooting conditions.  I should also mention that not all of the shots are necessarily focused with utmost accuracy.  Especially when shooting on location, I mostly use hyperfocal settings on my lenses.  It allows the fastest possible shooting, without the time necessary for rangefinder focusing or, if it were available, automatic focusing.


Melanie
Leica M6, 90mm f/2.8 Elmarit, Ilford XP-2 Super @ ISO 100

Especially in situations where speed is of the essence, we are not always able to frame a photograph to its best advantage.  Later cropping is often necessary to obtain the best possible result.  This is where Leica lenses offer substantial advantages.  Even severely cropped images often show a wealth of detail.  This has from time to time allowed me to create different photos from one and the same initial image; to some extend this it could be considered a substitute for a zoom lens.  Of course this extra performance also offers the possibility to make rather big enlargements, often with results that rival those from medium format cameras.


Statue at Chamberlain, South Dakota
Leica M8, 28mm f/2.8 Elmarit

There are a lot of good cameras and lenses on the market.  Shooting with Leica equipment definitely does away with the worry if another camera possibly might have given better results.  The old adage still applies; you get what you pay for.


Veronika
Leica M3, 50mm f/2 Dual Range Summicron, Agfapan APX 25
There is some fine detail in this enlargement which is not visible in the full frame example


Cindy
Leica M6, 50mm f/2 Summicron, Agfapan APX 25


Lou Bellami, Founder and Director "Penumbra Theater" St. Paul, Minnesota
Leica M6, 135mm f/2.8 Elmarit, Ilford XP-2 Super @ ISO 800, Stage Lighting


Harbor of Duluth, Minnesota
Leica M8, 28mm f/2.8 Elmarit


Bavaria, Germany
Leica M240, 28mm f/2.8 Elmarit


Franklfurt, Germany
Leica M240, 28mm f/2.8 Elmarit


Vilsheim, Germany
Leica M240, 50mm f/2 Summicron

Leica M240, Novoflex 200mm f/3.8, ISO 800, 1/350 sec, f/8, handheld


Cropped detail of the same file

For more on this go here


For other articles on this blog please click on Blog Archive in the column to the right

To comment or to read comments please scroll past the ads below.

All ads present items of interest to Leica owners.

_______________________________________________________________________

Woman wears brown elk-leather camera strap around her shoulders.
      www.eddycam.com        

      


Buy vintage Leica cameras from 
America's premier Leica specialist 
www.tamarkin.com

                          
           http://www.tamarkinauctions.com/               http://www.tamarkin.com/leicagallery/upcoming-show



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