I have a plan... a Domiplan

 Back to the Beginning and fixing a Meyer-Optik Domiplan lens

  My very first SLR was an Exa 1A with a Meyer-Optik 50mmf/2.8 Domiplan lens. It’s the only lens that I used with that camera, which I had for about a decade.  As a beginner, I was just happy to have a real camera, and that Domiplan lens served me well - and I had no reason nor the resources to acquire another lens.  I’ve written here before about my early years with the Exa 1a.  It’s not a camera that I would ever recommend to anyone, let alone a beginner.  But in 1973, it is what I had.   I’m sure that if a Pentax Spotmatic been my first SLR, I would have been really over the moon with it.  

If you have been following along for the past couple of years, you would know that I am working on a book about M42 cameras and lenses with emphasis on the Pentax Spotmatic series. I previously shot a Domiplan lens with an M42 body in 2013. Over the years, I have acquired a number of M42 mount Meyer-Optik Domiplan lenses and wanted to use them, but every single one of them had a non-working aperture, forever stuck wide-open at the very modest f/2.8.  That seems to be the major problem with that lens.  I found that I still had two examples of the lens, and I really wanted to see how it performed for me now, over 50 years since I received the Exa 1a.  

Two Domiplan lenses apart. Both were fixed.

So, I did what everyone else does, and looked for repair videos on YouTube! I have two lenses, so at least one of them should be repairable, right? Some of the “repair” videos made me cringe, but two sources stood out as being excellent (this one and this video).  After about 4 hours of working on it, I now have a fully functional Domiplan lens.  The two most frustrating aspects of the reassembly are obviously reattaching the six aperture blades, and the part that controls the aperture pin.  Once I got that done, I was really happy.  The problem with the Domiplan lenses are that over time, oil and grease cause the aperture blades to stick together, and the focus helical also becomes harder to turn.  So, using lighter fluid to degrease the aperture blades the the surrounding parts was an essential part of the fix.

Are Domiplan lenses THAT special?  Not necessarily, but the lens is a Cooke triplet based on a 1883 design by Taylor in the UK.  It is 3 elements in three groups, an inexpensive, yet very workable design also in other lenses.  Meyer-Optik Gorlitz produced the Domiplan and the Trioplan lenses with that formula.  

The Domiplan was the very basic, cheapest lens used on Exakta and Praktika cameras, all in East Germany.  Noted for its “bubble bokeh”, the Domiplan is not a fast lens at a maximum f/2.8 aperture, though it does stop down to f/22.  The complaint with this lens is the “automatic aperture”  design where the aperture actuation pin is depressed only when the lever inside the camera pushes against it at the time of the exposure.  The lens remains wide-open , no matter what aperture has been selected, until the moment of exposure. That makes focusing easier, of course.  It also makes it very difficult to adapt the lens to any other camera that does not have a way to depress the aperture pin, so you digital folks adapting the lens are generally stuck at shooting it wide-open.  Most lenses from that period have an Auto/Manual switch at the base of the lens so you can use them in stop-down mode.   Not this lens, though. 

However, since I am using an M-42 SLR body with this lens, it’s not a problem.  I can use the stop-down metering function that will activate the aperture pin, and allow me to meter the scene, and then just focus wide-open and make the exposure. Right now, I am using a Chinon CS-4 SLR that works well with this lens.  And that’s my goal - to shoot with this lens and see how it performs in a much better camera than that Exa 1a. 

Well, I shot a roll of Lucky 400 color film, and while doing so, I realized that I messed the alignment of the helicoid up and could not focus at infinity, which was one of the warnings in taking the lens apart.  However, I simply shot at f/16 or f/22 to address that when necessary. 

I still have a second Domiplan lens, and after cleaning THAT one, I reassembled the lens, and the aperture blades and focus helical work perfectly.  I’ll try shooting with that one at a later date. Anyhow, this post is about the results from lens #1.  I dropped off my roll of the exposed Lucy 400 at Ball Photo, and they developed the film.  I scanned the film with my Epson V700.

Here are some examples from that roll of film:

I'll try the second lens with b&w film and will post those later.

All photos below taken at the Asheville Botanical Gardens

A good example of the "bubble bokeh"

not as sharp at wider apertures, less infinity focus

When stopped down, no "bubbles"

KONO! Color 400 Film

Several months ago I stopped by my local camera store, Ball Photo, in Asheville.  I purchased some different color films since they were there on the shelf, and of course, they were something that I’d not tried before.  One of the films was a two-pack of Kono! Color 400, which has been described by the manufacturer as:

“KONO Color 400 Color Negative Film is a modern interpretation of a classic German color negative film and provides excellent tonal range, as well as a wide exposure latitude. This versatile film has a nominal sensitivity of ISO 400/27° and can be developed in any lab using C-41 chemistry.”

I loaded a roll into my Chinon CS-4 and used a Vivitar 35-85/2.8 zoom, which is a rather rare lens these days.  It definitely weighs more than the camera, pictured above with a Yashinon DX 50mm/1.4 lens.  I spent a few hours over in the River Arts District of Asheville, photographing around the French Broad River, back in March.  A week ago I finally got around to developing all my exposed color films in an FPP color chemistry (ECN-2) kit.  So, now it’s time to discuss my results.  I scanned the negatives with my Epson V700 scanner.

The greenish film base looks like Orwo NC500

I-240 bridge

Waiting for the Kudzu to burst forth

railroad trestle over the French Broad

White Duck Taco remains closed since Hurricane Helene

I-240 bridge

any vertical surface seems to attract graffiti

the old Asheville Paper Recycling facility

Now, in the past, I’ve shot a couple of different Kono! labeled films and the current ones in their catalog are certainly interesting, due to their range of color implementations.  This film, however, is awfully similar to the Orwo Wolfen NC 500.  Since it’s stated that the film is made in Germany, I am pretty sure that’s what it is.  The greenish base of the film certainly looks the same. The muted colors are also obvious.  If you were expecting something like Kodacolor 400, this film isn’t it.  Much like Lomochrome Metropolis and NC 500, there is a muted look to most of the colors.  Now that’s not a bad thing.  In our current era of everything being super-saturated, maybe being somewhat muted is a good option.  The film isn’t exactly fine-grained, and that can be a plus with the right subject, but the grain isn’t bad, either.  

I think it’s a film worth trying out if you are looking for something different.  I’ll shoot the second roll this summer, with different colorful subjects and see what I get. I’ll know what to expect though, and that will affect my choice of what I shoot.

Hi-Wire Brewery

Hi-Wire loading dock

Building the covered pickleball courts at Hi-Wire

If you like the muted color palette of this film, then it certainly could be the film for you.

A Pentax P3 SLR

Over the past year, I’ve rekindled my love for Pentax K-mount cameras and other brands that use the K-mount, introduced by Pentax in 1975.  I’ve been working on a book about the M42-mount Spotmatics and other brands, so I suppose it’s a natural evolution to delve into the K-mount universe.  My first K-mount camera was a Pentax MG, back in 1982 or ’83.  I used that camera until 2000.  In the past year, I’ve acquired a Pentax KX and some other K-mount non-Pentax film bodies.  Earlier this year, I found a pretty nice example of the Pentax K2.  The K2, KX, and KM were the first wave of K-mount bodies in 1975.  They are all quite different from one another, as it seems Pentax was testing to see what consumers were willing to buy.  The K1000 and subsequent "M" models started appearing on the market in 1976.  Forward to 1985, when camera automation had become widespread, and camera-body autofocus was just starting among SLRs with the Minolta Maxxum 7000.  That’s the year that Pentax introduced the P3 in the US-market (P30 elsewhere in the world).  

The P3 SLR certainly was not breaking new ground, but it was a return to a more traditional manual-style body, incorporating a manual shutter speed dial and auto setting on the top deck of the camera.  The camera uses manual focus. The body incorporated a lot of ABS plastic, but retained a sleek classic appearance.  I think the P3 is a very nice-looking SLR, but there are a few caveats about the camera’s operation.

•  It requires DX-coded film cassettes to set the ISO speed. Cassettes without a DX code will be assigned the default ISO of 100. There is no manual ISO control.
• There is no provision for a remote or cable release for the shutter (later models may have a cable release socket near the lens mount).
• Flash-sync is 1/100 sec.
• No exposure compensation dial.

A very clean design as shown here.

Despite the above, this is a camera that can be easily used almost as a point and shoot in Program mode.  The ISO range for the DX coding is 25-1600.  You can use any Pentax K-A lens in Program mode, which sets the aperture and shutter speed.  If you use the camera with a Pentax M or K lens, the camera’s Program mode defaults to Aperture Priority. You can also shoot in Manual mode.

The P3 has a depth-of-field preview lever on the right side of the lens, and a mirror-lockup button on the left. There is a red LED that flashes when you use the self-timer, which is about 12 seconds.  The on-off and self-timer switch are the the top deck on the left side of the camera.  The hot-shoe on the top of the prism housing allows the use of manual and some automated Pentax flash units.  

I really like the look of this camera.

I purchased my example on the big auction site for $28.00 (not including tax and shipping), and it came with a Rikenon 50mm f/2.2 lens.  The camera was sold as “untested” but it looked to be in excellent condition (and it is).  I popped in 2 LR-44 cells and the camera came to life.  You do need batteries to use this camera. It will not work without power.   I attached a SMC Pentax-A 50mm f/2 lens on the body and set out to shoot a roll of Fuji Acros 100. 

I happen to have a physical manual for the P3, but you can find one online at Butkus.org.

Impressions from using the camera

I like the way the camera feels in the hand.  There’s a small grip on the right side that aids in holding the camera.  The metal and plastic film advance sits unobtrusively, but it’s easy to advance the film.  Same for the film rewind - it’s almost flush with the top deck.  It took me some time to get used to the Program mode automatically setting the aperture and shutter speed. I understand that in that mode, the shutter speed goes from 8 seconds to 1/1000 sec.There is also a B setting and 1/100 flash setting. The viewfinder shows about 92% of the field of view.  The split-microprism at the center of the viewfinder is easy to use for focusing.  

As K-mount cameras go, the P3 is a good example of automation without unnecessary features that a lot of people might not use.  For me, the only thing that I really miss is being able to manually set the ISO.  I shoot a lot of hand-rolled film, but it’s not something that the vast number of users would do.  

The P3/30 was quite popular - Pentax sold it from 1985 to 1997, with over 3 million units sold. It was intended for people that wanted an easy-to-use SLR. As a result, there are many for sale online at pretty low prices.  It’s not an ancient camera, so most of them ought to work properly.  

The P3 is one of those cameras that probably don’t get as much love as some earlier K-mount models, such as the very compact ME.  But it does not have the ME’s faults, either.  You can shoot in Program mode or fully manual. The mirror-lockup is a useful feature when you want to make a longer exposure on a tripod and no cable release.   My first reaction to the camera was that it was awfully simple.  However, after shooting with it, I have a much higher regard for it.  Whether you have a P3 or a P30, they’ll work the same, and give you a very solid SLR body that accepts K-mount lenses.  

A few shots from the first roll. All shot near Barnardsville, NC. All on expired Fuji Acros 100.

Ultrafine Liminality Film

A little over a month ago, I saw an announcement from Ultrafine Online about a film stock that they were releasing.  Their Liminality 250 black and white film announcement had all the things that pique my interest. For one, it wasn’t just a rebranding of something from Foma or Orwo, and two, it’s a S.O. Kodak film.  S.O. means “Special Order,” which means the film has some special characteristic that differentiates it from the typical film stocks.  In the case of the Ultrafine film, their description tells a lot:

“Ultrafine Liminality 250 Black and White Film

Kodak Special Order 078 Black and White Film originally utilized in rocket testing technology. A Kodak Special Order (S.O.) film originally designed for instrumentation testing however it yields amazing results when utilized as a 35 mm camera film. Based on the Kodak T-max 400 emulsion with some tweaks in the high contrast range makes for a wonderful film to shoot under a variety of conditions. We have assigned a 250 ISO, given the age of the stock, and the scientific tweaking the film was initially given. The Film is out-dated and has been kept in cold storage and is yielding fantastic results! It is an extremely fine grain black-and-white, having a wide contrast range, and a sturdy Kodak ESTAR (polyester) base, which allows the film to lay flat for handling.”

Obviously, I had to try a film that was used for rocket testing!  I ordered three 36-exposure rolls at $10.95 each.  I think that’s a fair price given the oddity of this film.  I loaded a roll into my Minolta XG-M with a 45mm/2.8 Rokkor.  I set the ISO at 250, and shot the roll within a day or so.  

I developed the film in Kodak T-Max RS developer for 9 minutes at 20°C.  I was really pleased to see that the negatives were perfect. I did not see any base fog on the film, nor any indication that this film was “old.”  Differing from the T-Max 400 films that I have shot before, there was no pink anti-halation dye in the wash water or on the processed film.  The tough Estar base makes me wonder if the film was used in launch scenarios where a camera would have a high-frame rate and large film cassettes.  

The film laid flat in the scanner holder, and my scans were at 3200 dpi on the Epson V700 scanner.  The negatives scanned beautifully, with very fine grain and lots of tonality.  This is a lovely film to shoot with.  

Here are some selected frames from the roll:

 

I like the fact that the Liminality film is something unique and also that it delivered exactly what Ultrafine said it would.  The next roll that I shoot with it will likely be developed with another developer, just to see if the results are any different.  I recommend that if you develop it, use whatever developer type and times posted for normal Kodak T-max 400 film at the ISO of 400.  The Kodak T-Max RS developer yielded excellent results for me.

As I noticed that there was no pink anti-halation dye showing up in the wash, you can see that the film does have some halation on reflective objects, as seen in the above image. Not a big problem, but something to be aware of. 

There are some film stocks that have become popular for street photography, such as JCH Street Pan, and ATM Street Candy 400.  I never liked my results with the JCH film, and the ATM Street Candy 400 was okay.  However, I like this Liminality film, and it's certainly worth a shot (or 36 shots), so I recommend buying some while it is available.