Leica IIIf test roll
Summitar 50mm f/2
Ilford HP5 400
Rodinal/Blazinal 1:25, 6 minutes
Pakon F135

Testing my newly acquired Leica IIIf with Summitar 50/2. Both camera and lens are in beautiful condition, clean, for 70 years young, and the only big issue is the shutter curtain dry and cracked, so lots of pinholes looking at test shots; however, I already have a contact, a former Leica technician, to replace the curtain.

Tags:   ochawan rice bowl miso bowl plates dishes cabinet Ilford HP5 Plus 400 Black and White B&W grain grainy Rodinal Blazinal home developed Pakon F135 Leica IIIf Summitar 50mm f/2 test roll camera test first roll pinholes shutter curtain

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A hot and dry summer.

Leica IIIf test roll
Summitar 50mm f/2
Ilford HP5 400
Rodinal/Blazinal 1:25, 6 minutes
Pakon F135

Testing my newly acquired Leica IIIf with Summitar 50/2. Both camera and lens are in beautiful condition, clean, for 70 years young, and the only big issue is the shutter curtain dry and cracked, so lots of pinholes looking at test shots; however, I already have a contact, a former Leica technician, to replace the curtain.

Tags:   Leica IIIf Summitar 50mm f/2 Ilford HP5 Plus 400 Black and White B&W Rodinal Blazinal home developed Pakon F135 sign warning fire hall summer fire station hot dry

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Leica IIIf with Summitar 50mm f/2

YOLO. You Only Live Once, so since I mainly shoot film, I felt I needed to experience using a Leica film camera in my lifetime. And while M bodies and lenses are beyond my conscious budget, a screw-mount had been in my mind for a while and I finally found a set that looked good and turned out to be a great deal.

I found this Leica IIIf with Summitar 50mm f/2 and case on eBay with a starting bid of $500CDN and BUY NOW of $1000CDN. I ended being the only bidder, so I won the bid at $500, and with taxes and shipping paid $600CDN in total. I think others didn't bid, because listing said pick-up in Ontario, but I e-mailed the seller and he said he could ship. The seller also had no previous sale history, but listing looked legit, so I crossed my fingers everything would work out.

About a week later, the Leica IIIf arrived in the mail! The seller did an awesome job in packaging it carefully, and even included the manual, a genuine Leica yellow filter and flash with sync cables, at no extra charge; he found these bonus items while cleaning his dad's stuff and since it belonged with the camera, sent it to me. Great seller!

The camera of course is a beauty. I think the seller's dad used the camera little, but took great care of it, keeping it in the case most of the time. The camera is clean, with clear viewfinder and rangefinder window; the rangefinder is calibrated; the shutter speeds from low to high are good; and the lens is also clean, with no scratches, fungus or haze, just normal dust. Of course, being a 70 year old camera, I was not expecting it to be perfect. After taking a test roll, I did find that the shutter curtain does have lots of pinholes, so the curtain will be replaced. I was prepared for that, and overall really impressed by the condition, cosmetically and mechanically of the camera.

The camera has now been sent to service. Looking forward to seeing and shooting it again. I figure once work has been done on it, it will last another 50 years.

Tags:   Leica IIIf Summitar 50mm f/2 my cameras camera collection

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My Leica IIIf returned from service, and I am very lucky to know a gentleman locally who was a former Leica technician, so he did a full CLA, plus replaced the shutter curtain. The Summitar was also cleaned.

The camera felt smooth and quiet before, but now is even smoother and quieter; it looks pretty much new and probably mechanically sound for another few decades.

Canon A-1
FD 50mm f/1.4
Kodak 5207/250D @ iso/asa 400
Unicolor (pre-bath/remjet removal with baking soda)
Epson V550

Tags:   Leica IIIf Summitar 50mm f/2 CLA service repair vintage camera classic Barnack Canon A-1 Canon FD 50mm F1.4 Kodak Vision3 250D/5207 remjet baking soda home developed Unicolor Press Kit Epson V550 my cameras camera collection

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Leica IIIf, test after curtain replacement and CLA
Summitar 50mm f/2
Arista 200, Caffenol-C-L, 70 minutes, 20-21°C
Pakon F135

Caffenol-C-L

water 500mL @ 20°C
washing soda 8g
vitamin C powder 5g
iodized salt 3g
instant coffee 20g

Got the shutter curtain replaced on my Leica IIIf, so no more pinhole light leaks. The Summitar was also cleaned, so everything is good!

Tags:   Leica IIIf Summitar 50mm f/2 camera test CLA CLA'd test roll Arista.EDU Ultra 200 Black and White B&W home developed coffee caffenol Caffenol-C-L parallax rangefinder pacman grain grainy film

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