Lomography

The Kiev 4 has arrived
written by pan_dre on May 29th, 2008 , one comment (0 votes)

Suave, classy, sharp yet smooth–these fine qualities can only come from those irresistible Russian Deadstocks who keep coming back to haunt us with their presence!

So roll out the red carpet and make way for another robust Russian rangefinder camera–the Kiev4!

Sleek and elegant-looking, this handsome Deadstock is born with a rich history. Post-WWII, the Russians took over the German Zeiss Ikon factories (makers of the esteemed Contax II and III cameras), as part of war reparations.

They bagged the left-over equipment and personnel, shipped them to the Arsenal factory in Kiev, Ukraine where they set-up the Zeiss Ikon’s Contax line.

It was then when they started producing over a million of these Soviet-era babies ’til the mid-1980s, under the “Kiev” name.

http://shop.lomography.com/go/?where=shop&pro=kfr

Sharing the same genes as the well-renowned Contax family, the Kiev4 boasts not only of its stunning good looks, but top-notching qualities as well

• Jupiter-8 lens
• Self-timer
• Shutter speeds from 1 sec–1/1250
• B setting for long exposure
• Frame size 24×36mm
• Focal range: 0.9m to infinity
  

Fans have raved about the Kiev4’s reasonably quiet shutter, and the combined rangefinder & viewfinder – which make focusing and framing very convenient! The long rangefinder base (9cm.) also ensures precise focusing – so you get brilliant, sharp photos every time.

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What makes the Kiev4 different from the other Russian darlings in our lineup? The Kiev4 hails from the Contax family; the Feds and the Zorkis are descendants of team Leica. (Yes, it all boils down to the good ol’ Contax vs Leica rivalry!)

FED 3:

• Industrar 61 F2.8/52mm lens
• Shutter speeds 1 sec-1/500
• Viewfinder dioptric coupled RF
• Focal range: 1m to infinity
• Double cloth curtain shutter
• Frame size 24×36mm
• B setting for long exposures

http://shop.lomography.com/go/?where=shop&pro=fc3

Zorki 4:

• Jupiter-8 lens
• Self-timer
• Shutter speeds 1 sec-1/1000
• Clear rangefinder marker
• Variable flash sync delay
• Frame size 24×36mm
  *B-setting for long exposures