Zorki 4 - Audacity shutter test

[mszargar]

Hello,

I have just bought a 1966 Zorki 4, and since I don't have a CRT monitor at home, I have tried to test the shutter speeds using Audacity audio recorder, measuring the time between the first sound peak related to shutter opening and the first sound peak related to shutter closing (fpofpc). For faster speeds I have measured the time between the last audio peak related to opening and the first audio peak related to closing as well (lpofpc).

These are the results all in milliseconds:

Speed Indicator (Correct Speed) = fpofpc (lpofpc)

1 (1000) : 680
2 (500) : 360
4 (250) : 206
8 (125) : 134
15 (62.5) : 77
30 (31.3) : 43.8 (41.3)
60 (15.6) : 21.65 (19.15)
125 (7.8) : 6.7 (5.9)

Obviously for 250 and above this method is useless.

I know this is not an accurate method, but do you think these are acceptable results for this camera, given that I will never really use any speed below 15? Is there anything I can do to improve the accuracy of the shutter?

Thanks in advance...

[Spicy]

Well, the biggest thing is consistency over accuracy, like if you run the test 10 times, are the speeds roughly the same every time... It's a little odd that the slow speeds are faster than they're supposed to be, but yours, in general, are pretty close to halving/doubling correctly.

Film is pretty flexible - I wouldn't really worry about it, especially if you don't use the slow speeds too often (I rarely do anything less than 1/15, but occasionally).

If you use a meter, just adjust accordingly. I doubt your shots will come out too differently.

[mszargar]

Originally Posted by Spicy

Well, the biggest thing is consistency over accuracy.

This is very true and I had never thought about it (being from DSLR generation I assumed that inconsistency SHOULD NOT exist! lol). Now that I test, I see there is some variation, but given the forgiving nature of the film, I think the variations are negligible.

[David Hughes]

Hi,

Well, um, it is 46 years old...

Regards, David

PS Welcome aboard: I should have said that sooner.

[grapejohnson]

this is a really interesting idea, i was wondering how to test this myself. if i test my '68 fed 4 with this method i'll post the results

[mszargar]

Thank you David.

It already feels like home here!

[Richard G]

Good test idea and good results too. This definitely is the right forum for you. Hope you enjoy it.

[fidget]

Welcome to the forum.
One of the issues we see regularly posted (and often images which show the problem, but not recognised) is one of uneven exposure across the frame or a dark/unexposed strip on the film.

One frame taken right way up, one with camera inverted.



Most would hope for an even exposure regardless of speed accuracy. Hope yours will be free of these issues.


Dave

[mszargar]

Hello again,

Thanks for all the replies...

I had my first roll of film developed, and it seems to be free of any serious anomaly or unwanted artefact. Actually, I am rather surprised by the results, because the only shot that is badly exposed in the whole roll, is the one that I have taken with the lens cap on! As somebody used to a dslr, I would say I am in a dynamic range shock right now (and this, despite having used an expired low-end film and a cheapo cheapo scanner).

I am going out to take more photos today and I will take some notes and make comparative test shots with my dslr to further satisfy my curiosity...

I post some photos from this first roll, just to share my joy with you...

(Kodak GC 400 expired on Zorki 4 - Jupiter 8)

Mah

[fidget]

Nice shots, nothing wrong with them!
Please post more of your work with this FSU kit.

Dave

[Ron (Netherlands)]

Very nice work, your Z4 and Jupiter 8 are fine! love to see more of your work

[mszargar]

Thank you Richard G, fidget and Ron for your kind words.

I have a hard time framing my photos using the Zorki 4. I am through my third roll of film but I am still unsure of what I am including in the photo and what I am excluding from it, due to lack of frame guides in the viewfinder.

Can you explain to me how the borders of my final photo relate to the borders of the image I see in the viewfinder (sorry if my questions is very SLRish, but this is really my first rangefinder)?

[Ron (Netherlands)]

Originally Posted by mszargar

Thank you Richard G, fidget and Ron for your kind words.

I have a hard time framing my photos using the Zorki 4. I am through my third roll of film but I am still unsure of what I am including in the photo and what I am excluding from it, due to lack of frame guides in the viewfinder.

Can you explain to me how the borders of my final photo relate to the borders of the image I see in the viewfinder (sorry if my questions is very SLRish, but this is really my first rangefinder)?

The whole viewfinder is about what you should get on the pictures if you work with a 50mm lens, no need for framelines unless you would like to use a 85 or 90mm lens. There is very nice FSU turret viewfinder made by KMZ which you can attach in the flash mount and which will provide nice views for the different lenses.
Clockwise, starting with the longest viewfinder element, these are the Russian lenses you might wish to use the finder with....
13.5 cm (Jupiter-11, 135mm f/4)
5 cm (Jupiter-8, 50mm f/2)
2.8 cm (Orion-6, 28mm f/6)
3.5 cm (Jupiter-12, 35mm f/2.8)
8.5 cm (Jupiter-9, 85mm f/2)

[mszargar]

Hello Again Ron,

Apparently my viewfinder works in a very highly approximative way. I miss a lot on two sides of the frame. Any shot framed in a symmetric way comes out chopped on left and top. Please see the photo attached. I am sure I never frame anything like that. Is there any way to fix this, you think? I like the turret finder but I also like to be able to take my camera out without the external finder.

Mah

[Ron (Netherlands)]

Originally Posted by mszargar

Hello Again Ron,

Apparently my viewfinder works in a very highly approximative way. I miss a lot on two sides of the frame. Any shot framed in a symmetric way comes out chopped on left and top. Please see the photo attached. I am sure I never frame anything like that. Is there any way to fix this, you think? I like the turret finder but I also like to be able to take my camera out without the external finder.

Mah

Hello Mah, what might be the case here is that the top of the camera is not precisely matching with the position of the view/rangefinder. This can be caused by an exchange of the top of the camera with that of another. I have seen a Zorki 4 where the viewfinder hole in the topcover did't match the position of the view/rangefinder. You can check easily if that is the case with your camera too.

[mszargar]

You can check easily if that is the case with your camera too.

How can I do that? As far as my untrained eyes can see, the viewfinder is well-centered in its frame. Plus, the rangefinder works perfectly and the focus area is right in the middle of the viewfinder... But is there any more specific technique to check this?

This can be caused by an exchange of the top of the camera with that of another.

I don't reject the fact that this can be the case here (these are rather old instruments, and people may have done anything to keep them alive over years). But I don't give it a high probability either, because my copy is a rare export version produced only in 65-66 and all the details of the body correspond with that. The serial on the main body is 66, the leatherette seems to be of the correct type, all the scripts are in English and engraved on top body and the lens serial number is 66 as well. Maybe it is just too perfect to be true...

[mszargar]

Hello Ron!

I just found out this is the normal parallax error of Zorki 4, that becomes much more visible at the closer distances. Apparently one has to use a parallax-corrected viewfinder with Zorki 4 to simulate the right framelines...

[mszargar]

So far, so good! Except the newbies' parallax-paralysis with antique rangerfinders, everything is going well with my new camera. Here are some shots from my second roll of film (Fuji Proplus II 100 - Expired in 1999).

[Sparrow]

Originally Posted by grapejohnson

this is a really interesting idea, i was wondering how to test this myself. if i test my '68 fed 4 with this method i'll post the results

... this is another way if you still have a CRT

[Eugen Mezei]

mzargar: two different turret finder exist. For the FED/Zorki and for the Kiev. They are practically mirrored. If you use the wrong type you have horizontal parallax.

[MIkhail]

Originally Posted by mszargar

Hello,

I have just bought a 1966 Zorki 4, and since I don't have a CRT monitor at home, I have tried to test the shutter speeds using Audacity audio recorder, measuring the time between the first sound peak related to shutter opening and the first sound peak related to shutter closing (fpofpc). For faster speeds I have measured the time between the last audio peak related to opening and the first audio peak related to closing as well (lpofpc).

These are the results all in milliseconds:

Speed Indicator (Correct Speed) = fpofpc (lpofpc)

1 (1000) : 680
2 (500) : 360
4 (250) : 206
8 (125) : 134
15 (62.5) : 77
30 (31.3) : 43.8 (41.3)
60 (15.6) : 21.65 (19.15)
125 (7.8) : 6.7 (5.9)

Obviously for 250 and above this method is useless.

I know this is not an accurate method, but do you think these are acceptable results for this camera, given that I will never really use any speed below 15? Is there anything I can do to improve the accuracy of the shutter?

Thanks in advance...

---cool---

[tho60]

Originally Posted by mszargar

Thank you Richard G, fidget and Ron for your kind words.

I have a hard time framing my photos using the Zorki 4. I am through my third roll of film but I am still unsure of what I am including in the photo and what I am excluding from it, due to lack of frame guides in the viewfinder.

Can you explain to me how the borders of my final photo relate to the borders of the image I see in the viewfinder (sorry if my questions is very SLRish, but this is really my first rangefinder)?

Please check this link for detailled answer:
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/foru...p/t-96451.html