Zenit 3M

[Plain Nev]

I've just picked up a Zenit, and it's a little beauty. I can get my head around many high falluting concepts, but I'm told it has a 65% crop through the viewfinder, and this is causing me some agitation. What does this mean in practical terms? And how should I be framing an object in the viewfinder?

 

[AndrewFlannigan]

I've just picked up a Zenit, and it's a little beauty.

It is a pretty little thing - several reviewers at the time mentioned that.

... I'm told it has a 65% crop through the viewfinder, and this is causing me some agitation. What does this mean in practical terms? And how should I be framing an object in the viewfinder?

You need to frame very tightly and guess how much more will be included.

I borrowed one from a friend in the '60s and put a few rolls of FP3 through it. A so-so experience: nice to look at, comfortable to hold but hit or miss when it came to framing. I don't know about the results from the f3.5 lens but the f2 lens I used was very good.

 

[Plain Nev]

By tightly do you mean fill the frame?

 

[AndrewFlannigan]

By tightly do you mean fill the frame?

Yes.

Actually, I found that it's worse than that. Losing 35% of the image means that you often need to go further and cut off parts of the image, in the viewfinder, to get the composition you really want on to the film.

 

[Plain Nev]

Thank you. That's a great help.

 

[sirch]

Zenit

Little

Beauty

,
,
,

3 words not often found in close proximity


BTW I own two ...