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Zorki 4 & J-8 or I-61 as "car camera"
I'm mostly a Leica shooter. I also have a Zorki 4 and Jupiter-8 I inherited, and had CLA-ed by Oleg last year. I must admit to a slight fascination with the Zorki, but I much prefer shooting with a Leica.
My workplace has banned cameras completely. If I want to shoot at lunch or on the way home, I must leave the camera in my car in the underground parking garage. I am not comfortable with leaving a Leica in my car. So I was thinking using my Zorki as my "at-risk" camera.
My recent shooting with the Zorki 4 and Jupiter-8 have left me underwhelmed at the J-8. It's an OK lens, but it's very flare-prone, low contrast and a bit soft at the 3 widest stops . Even at narrow apertures, it's no Summicron. At f/4.5 and wider, it's distinctly 1930s. In general, I consider it good for retro portraits, but not up to par for general use. Seattle has many cloudy days when I'd need to open up.
I also have an Industar 61 L/D 55/2.8, which is basically a Tessar lens with lanthanum glass. This lens has an outstanding reputation. Mine focuses significantly to the rear of where the RF says it is on the Zorki. So I don't know yet how good or bad it really is.
I'm thinking seriously of trying to get the Industar 61 adjusted and relubed. Does anyone know of someone in the U.S. who could do this reliably? I don't want to have to send the camera and lens back to Oleg for this. And I don't really trust myself to do it myself.
But I'm wondering whether I should do this with a $12 lens, or simply buy a couple more I-61 lenses until I get one that works. Or try for a better Jupiter-8. I'm also wondering whether I should stop playing Russian roulette and buy a used Bessa R and C/V 35 or 50 for a couple of hundred dollars. Buying more film cameras would cut into the "Someday a Digital Rangefinder" fund.
Thoughts, advice?
--Peter
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