I have two Kiev RF's, a 4m and a 3. They're OK instruments, but nowhere
near the sophistication of a Leica M; or the finish and workmanship of a
Contax. But as was pointed out, they are only $75-100 from E.Europe, with a
50mm lens. It's a nice diversion for a good price. I also bought a 35/2.8
Biogon copy made in the USSR that works great on these cameras. You can
also get new Voigtlander lenses that fit these cameras if you want to pay
$5-600 (21, 25, 35).
The RF baseline is indeed longer than the longest M camera, the M3. But you
have to use the "claw" technique to hold the thing. Your natural right hand
position will almost always cover one of the rangefinder windows. This
camera was an exact copy of the Contax II/III, and the post-war Contax
revisions (the IIa/IIIa) solved this problem by decreasing the baseline and
moving the RF window closer to the center of the camera. They are a LOT
easier to hold. The best thing for a Kiev/Contax II/III is to have a grip
or EV case to hold onto.
Skip
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From: Winsor Crosby <wincros@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Reply-To: olympus@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
To: olympus@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: [OM] Rangefinder?
Date: Sat, 24 Nov 2001 11:34:48 -0800
like good old OMs... think first, shoot after...
I had never heard of one, but I found this page:
http://www.geocities.com/vienna/7139/kiev4m.htm
Interesting camera. The rangefinder base appears to be longer than
an M series Leica, but not twice. Maybe twice the one on the F
series.
--
Winsor Crosby
Long Beach, California
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