Film cameras
Zeiss Ikon CONTAFLEX Pocket Companion User manual
User manual for Zeiss Ikon CONTAFLEX Pocket Companion. 24 pages in English. Read the original PDF, download or print a copy without registration.
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Document details
- Brand
- Zeiss Ikon
- Model / document
- Zeiss Ikon CONTAFLEX Pocket Companion
- Document type
- User manual
- Language
- English
- Pages
- 24
- File size
- 1.8 MB
- Category
- Film cameras
- Document date
- Not specified in catalog
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Page 6 · Read text
7
I.].2. CONTAFLEXPRIMA,FRONTVIEW I.I.2. CONTAFLEXPRIMA,BACKVIEW
l. R e leosek n o b 10. Exposuresetting disc 16.Comero bock locking 17.Tripodbush 't8. 2. Frome counter l l. Shutter speed/operture key ond film rewind Filmspeedsettingscole
3. Ropid wind lever ri ngs unlocking cotch 19.Comerobocklockingkey
4. Accessoryshoe 12. Locking powl for front
5. Exposureindicotor le n s e le me n t '13.
6, Re w in dk n o b w i t h c r o n k Distonce setting mork
7. Filn type indicotor i4. Lever for X, M, ond V
8. Eyeletsfor corrying strop (self-timer)setting
9. Floshcontoct 15. Viewfinder eyepiece
www.orphancameras.comView original page 6Page 9 · Read text
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l-3.2b. Stereo ottochment
l-3.'lo. Pro-Tessor lens is mokes two holf-imoges on
used on comero to moke H regulor 35mm film frome.
1:l reproductions. I ffi r ffi
€
3.3 Monoculqrqtlochmeni
Zeiss monocular attachment 8 x 308 is a
complete prism monocular and can be used
30mm Pantar f/4 wide-angle component or independently as a telescope. When attached
75mm Pantar f/4 telephoto component. to any Contaflex with 50mm lens, it converts it# the optical system into a tele lens f /L4, 3.2 Stereo ottochment l 400mm. The front lens component remains
a) Operation: Stereo attachment produces in place.
t w o h a l f - i m a g e s , 1 6 x 2 3 m m , s i d e - b y - s i d e
within normal image field of camera. The 3.4 Close-upottochmenls twin pictures are bound like normal slides, H a) Prorar I'enses; 5Omm Tessar lenses
without having to cut them apart. focus down to 27 inches, 45mm Tessar lenses
b) Steritar-A.. For Contaflex I and II; focus down to 36 inches, and 45mm Pantar
held in front of camera lens with special
attachment.
c) Steritar-B.' For use with all Contaflexes
which have 50mm (standard) Tessar lenses.
Attached in place of front lens component. l-3.3. Zeiss 8 x 308 mo-
d) Steritar-D.. For use with all cameras noculorconverts50mmlens
which have 45mm Pantar lenses as standard; into 400mml/11 lens.
attached instead of front lens component.
e) Close-up Steritar-B.. Similar to Steri-
tar-B, but designed for close working dis-
tance of 8 ft. to 27 in.
14
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7
lenses focus down to 40 inehes. For shorter 4.2 Eyesightcorrectionlenses
distances, supplementary lenses (Proxar) can Correction lenses can be mounted to eye-
be slipped onto lens and focused normally piece to compensate for defects of vision so
without affecting any exposure adjustments. that focusing and composition can be per-
formed without the aid of glasses. An opti- Five Proxar lenses are available: 100cm for + distances down to 2L inches, 50cm for dis- cian's prescription is needed.
tances down to lSYz inches, 30cm for sub-
jects down to l\t/+ inches, 20cm for subjects 4.3 Filiers(SeeChopter lllf
down to 63/+ inches, and 10cm for subjects 4.4 Flqshunit (SeeChopter ll) '"_ down to 3r/z inches. Lens apertures should
be stopped down to at least f/5.6; f /8 and 4.5 Microscopeotlochment
f/LL arc preferable. Special attachments and tubes available to
b) Pro-Tessar M 1:1 Lens: A three-com- connect Contaflex to eyepiece of microscope
ponent front element, which, when inserted to make photomicrographs.
into the camera, will make a six-element 4.6 Right ongle finder lens focus to a 1: 1 image scale. For making
black-and-white negatives from color trans- Attachment to viewfinder eyepiece which
parencies but can be used whenever natural enables camera to be held at chest level or
l.: 1 size is desired. lower with eye looking downward instead of straight ahead as at eye-level focusing po-
c) Copaing stand.' An upright arm which sition. Particularly useful when camera is
clamps to a table top. Has a sliding bracket mounted on copying stand or when low
to which camera is attached. Used mainly angles are desired. Also used to take pictures
for copying documents and photographing in one direction while viewing in another,
small objects. without being observed.
4. Miscelloneous Accessories
4.1 Lenshoods
Available for all Contaflex lenses, they pre- vent flare and fog in pictures taken against AJAITT E the light. In bad weather they also protect
the lens against rain and snow. They can be
mounted with filters or Proxar lenses in
place. I 1 6 H www.orphancameras.com
Ir ItView original page 10Page 11 · Read text
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1.2 looding film
Chopfer ll a) Attach.ing fiLmto spool: Attach film end
to take-up spool by hooking one perforation
can be done OPERATINGTHECAMERA hole over the small lug. This with spool in camera or in hand. Film cart-
ridge and take-up spool should then be in- Notn: The procedures which follow are +Ie
for the Contaflex Super. Procedures for serted into the two film chambers so that the
the Contaflex prima are identical except two prongs engage the cores of the spools.
for some slight differences in section 2.2, Rotate take-up spool with the right hand
Automatic exposure control. While hand- until the perforations of the film on boih sides
ling of all Contaflex cameras is basically engage the teeth of the transport sprocket.
the same, there are differences from
model to model, and these are explained
at the end of this chaPter.
l. Loqding ond Unlooding
l.l Opening the comerq As Hold camera in teft hand with back facing
upwards. Locking keys at base of camera
should be folded outwards with right hand
and turned away from center of camera' Back can now be removed. $
I
ll-l.l First ste p in o p e n in g
comero is to lift locking
key ond lurn it clockwise. Ht ffi
ll- 1.2o. F ollow this pr ocedur e when looding o roll of new
film into your comero. 1 8 H 1 9
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ll-2.4o. Set footoge indi-
ll-2 .2 a . Au to mo tic e xp o - cotor to 20, f,/stoP scole
sure control is mointoined to 8 for depth of field from 1s tlf-o r5ro
by o lig n in g n e e d le in win - l0 ft. to infiniiY.
dow on top of comero.
exposure setting disc so that the two pointers b) Contafl.er prinLa; Same as Super but
of the exposure meter coincide. Now turn settings arc f /8 and 15 ft. Everything between
shutter speed ring to find most suitable shut- 8 ft. and infinity will be recorded sharply.
ter speed/aperture pairing.
3. Picture-toking
2.3 Monuql settings
a) Contafl"er Super.' Select desired shutter 3.1 Holding the comero
speed first. Then, turn light selector disc until a) Horizontal plctures: Hold camera
desired lens aperture appears opposite indi- cradled in both hands with right index finger
cator mark and shutter speed. resting over shutter release. Hold camera
b) Contafl.er prtma; Select desired shutter snuglt against cheekbone, using it as part of
speed first. Then, disengage coupling of lens support for camera. Legs should be slightly
aperture ring and turn to desired lens aper- apirt, one foot forward for greater stability
ture. in order to reduce iikelihood of movement
during exposure.
2.4 Snopsholsetting b) Vertical positt'ou Hold camera snugly
a) Contafl"er Super; To be ready for the against forehead for added support. Stand as
greatest variety of pictures without having above.
to focus for each one, pre-set the camera for
that shutter speed-f/number combination 3.2 Shulter releose
which includes f /8. F/8 is marked in red. Dis- F'ress shutter release down firmly but gent-
tance should be set at 20 ft., also marked in ly. Do so with a squeezing rather than a tap-
red. Everything between 10 ft. and infinity ping motion. Abrupt pressure on shutter re-
will be recorded sharply. iease might cause movement and blurring of
26 27View original page 15Page 17 · Read text
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2 . 8 4 5 . 6 8 l l
16 84)4E $ n ll-3 .5 b . Clo se -u po f d e p th - ll-3.6. VXM setiing lever ot
of-field scole showin g20 lt. bose of lens is set ot X, in-
s e itin g mo rke d in re d . dicoting use of electronic
flosh. as though it were set at thee"X" setting. The
you an approximate zone of sharpness at any synchro-lever can be set to "V" onty when the
given lens aperture. You can set the camera shutter has been tensioned and the lever
in the ordinary way and then look for the lens depressed.
aperture number on both sides of the indicator
mark. Opposite the twin aperture numbers,
you can read off the two distance scale num-
bers (or approximate distances between the
numbers) and you will have the near and ll-3.7b. Proper method for
far points of sharp focus. If you prefer, you i n s e r t ni g i n t e r c h on g e o b l e
can predetermine the depth of field desired lens elem ents.
and select the lens aperture needed to obtain
that depth of field.
3.6 Deloyed-octionreleose
At the base of the lens, you will find a
VXM setting lever. At the "V" setting the de- 3.7 Inlerchonginglens components
Iayed-action release (or self-timer) is brought a) Remouing front el"ement; Hold Conta-
into action. When the release knob is de- flex in left hand and press the lock pawl in
pressed, a retarding mechanism is set in mo- .direction of lens with thumb. The milled front
tion which opens the shutter at about 8 sec- ring of standard lens is then turned with right
onds afterwards. Time exposures cannot be hand to the left until it comes to a stop; a
made with the self-timer. If flash lamps are slight resistance has to be overcome. Lift the
connected to the shutter. set to "V" and the front element upwards from its bayonet
delayed-action mechanism will fire the flash mount.
30 . ) 1View original page 17Page 19 · Read text
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5. Contoflex Ropid 6. Contoflex lV qnd lll
These two models preceded the comespond- 5.1 Similoritiesto ContoflexSuper ing later models Super and Rapid. The built-
All physical details of the Contaflex Rapid in exposure meter of the Contaflex IV is not
are the same as those of the Contaflex Super coupled. The Contaflex III has no meter at all.
except for the omission of the exposure meter In general, operation of both these models
and the addition of an exposure value scale. Er is similar to that of the Contaflex Rapid, de-
Accordingly, those steps in the preceding ma- scribed above. Film advance, horirever, is
terial which relate to automatic exposure through use of a knurled knob rather than a
control should be ignored. All other opera- rapid-wind lever. The rewind knob does not
tions, except as next indicated, are identical. have a self-contained crank.
7. Contoflex betq ond olpho 5.2 Exposurevolue system
The built-in exposure meter of the beta is
By pressing the expcsure value setting knob not coupled to the lens. The alpha has no
located adjacent to the shutter speed ring, built-in meter. The lens, shutter, focusing and
towards the body of the camera, the adjacent depth-of-field scales are similar to the Conta-
red dot should be moved until it coincides with flex prima. Film advancing and rewinding'
the required value on the red exposure value are similar to the Contaflex IV and III.
scale. Intermediate or half-values can also be 8. Contoflex ll ond I set. As the ring with the red dot can only be Basic procedures of loading and unloading moved to a limited degree, it will sometimes film, focusing flash synchronization and de- be necessary to move the aperture and shutter TiTI=Flayed-action reiease are the same as for all speed setting ring as well. The exposure value subsequent models. Film advance and rewind is determined from the exposure table packed procedures are similar to those of the Conta- with the film or through the use of an ex- flex IV and III. One minor difference in focus- posure meter which gives exposure value ing is that the front lens cell is turned rather readings. Once the exposure value is set on @ than the entire lens mount. The lens aperture the iens mount, aII aperture and shutter speed
and shutter speed rings are not cross-coupled. settings are coupled so that they can be paired They are set independently. No exposure for desired combinations of lens apertures value scale is incorporated. The front lens and shutter speeds. If manuaily adjusted set- cells are not removabie. A tele attachment tings are desired, independent of the exposure Eq was availabie called the Teleskop converting value system, the shutter speeds should be the standard lens to a 3-inch lens. The Conta- set first. Then, the lens aperture can be set flex II had a built-in uncoupled exposure by uncoupling the aperture ring. meter.
.)a rt) FflView original page 19Page 20 · Read text
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(tonal range). Usually, the faster the film,
Chopterlll the more grain, and the less acutance and
tonal range.
FILMSAND FITTERS 1.2 Slow films
For biggest enlargements, sharpest image
l . B l o c k - o n d - w h i t e F i l m contours, finest grain. Amp1e sensitivity for vast majority of pictures in daylight. Ten-
t.l Film chorocteristics dency toward being contrasty; poor with
contrasty subjects but good for subjects of a) Fttm speed';Faster films more sensitive Iittle contrast. to light; require less exposure under identi-
cat c"onditions than slower films' Slower films Nom eof F ilm ASAExposureIndex
image grain and sharpest finest have usually Adox KB-14 4A are grainier, usually films Faster contours. Agfa Isopan-FF 25 lose contrast.
b) Graininess: Smoothness or coarseness Ilford Pan-F
of tonal areas of film when enlarged or pro- Kodak Panatomic-X 40
jected. Fine-grain film smoother texture than Perutz Pergrano-14 50
.t".t"-gtain film. Fineness of grain helps
preserve image details. 1.3 Medium films
c) Contour sharpness (acutance): Refers Best all-around films. Excellent grain. Very
to sharpness of tonal separation between good contour sharpness. Best tonal scales.
aarf. light objects' Sharpest is knife- For practically al1 daylight subjects, flash
t"p"rati-on."tta In poorest, tonal areas soften and some indoor lighting.
"Jg"inio each other' Good contour sharpness
heightens effect of image sharpness apart Nom eof F ilm ASAExposureIndex
from fineness of grain. Adox KB-17 BO
d) FiI'm contrast.' Contrast refers to range Agfa Isopan-F 100
most and dense least between difference of Gevaert Gevapan-27 64 jumps film Contrasty areas' (or dark) dense
irom tight to dark in very few steps' Film.o-f Perutz Peromnia-21 100
i;; colntrast has shorter tonal scale with I.4 High-speedfilms
rott"t gradation. Films are popularly char-
acterized by their speed, grain structure' For wide variety of conditions, leaning to-
acutance, contour sharpness, and gradation ward adverse lighting. Best "available light"
ary 36 EA
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f i l m s ; r e a s o n a b l y f i n e g r a i n , g o o d i m a g e H jectionb) Dwecttransparenciespositiue fiLrns.'whenFordevelopedpositive pro-ac- contrast. cording to manufacturer's instructions. Kodak
N o m eo f F i l m ASAExposurelndex Direct Positive Panchromatic ASA exposure
Adox KB-21 r25 index 64.
Agfa Isopan-SS 200 c) Infrared fil.ms: Used when important to cut through haze, when nighttime effects de-
Gevaert GevaPan-30 I25 sired during daylight exposure and for spe-
Gevaert GevaPan-33 250 cial medical and scientific purposes. Infrared
Ilford FP-3 t25 filter required. Notn: After finding distance
Kodak Plus-X Pan 160 through rangefinderr or physical measure- ment, use "R" on lens mount as pointer to Perutz Peromnia-25 250 desired distance.
1.5 Ultro-high speed films 2. Blqck-ond-white Filters
Unusually sensitive, for adverse lighting' 2.1 Purposesof B-W filters
such as dusk outdoors, indoor lighting with- Colored filters hold back complementary out flash, street illumination. Grainy, rela- colors. Thus, green filter holds back red light tivelv low contrast. thereby making red objects darker and green
N o m eo f F i l m ASAExposurelndex objects lighter in final print. Conversely, red
fiIter holds back green and renders red ob-
Agfa IsoPan Ultra 400 jects lighter, green objects darker. Certain
Agfa IsoPan Record 1250 filters exclude excessive ultraviolet radiation
Ansco SuPer HYPan 500 which otherwise creates haziness.
Gevaert GevaPan-36 500 FILTERTABTE (Blqck-ond-white ft lms) Ilford HP-3 400
Ilford HPS 800 Filter Uses FiIlerDoyfoclor
Kodak Tri-X Pan 400 Yellow Darken blue sky, bring
out clouds, other light 1.6 Speciolfilms objects against blue sky. E=r Snow: reduce excessive a) Copying fil"ms.' For copying line mate-
rials. Very contrasty. Not recommended for biue sky reflection.
other putpcses. Generally available is Kodak Reduce haziness of dis-
High Contrast CoPY Film. tant scenes. 1.5-2
39 :i8 tr=rView original page 21Related documents and language editions
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PDF verified 2026-10-10.