Pixtus - Photography Forum, Photographers, Photo Tips

t3hx · **NEED HELP!!! 35mm camera -** 11-12-2009, 09:40 PM

I have a question about a voightlander camera
its a bessa folding camera I THINK its a bessa II but on the top of the camera it looks like it has a second II

so it says on the top Bessa II II
it has a skopar 3.5 lens

I found it in an antique shop in humble tx should i jump on it? or is it fake? I cant find anything and i looked in google... its wierd

ronocnikral · 11-12-2009, 09:45 PM

hmmm...not sure this is much help and you have probably already seen...but at least i am tagged. my interests are piqued.

toverman · 11-12-2009, 09:47 PM

I think it is spelled "Voigtlander." This was the first site that popped up with my google: here.

t3hx · 11-12-2009, 09:55 PM

that doesnt show one that has four Is... i want to know about that one... also is $75 a good deal for one?

venchka · 10:23 PM

The Rangefinder Forum is to Voigtlander as The Texas Photo Forum is to DSLR knowledge.

www.cameraquest.com should have some information as well.

Don't buy a camera unless you can verify that it is working. Buy from other photographers.

The Skopar lens was the entry level lens. Is the shutter working? Leaky bellows (letting the dark out and the light in) are a concern. Lots of things to go wrong with a 1950s camera.

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/foru...php?forumid=93

Bessa II

How much? That could be the deciding factor. If Jurgen (Certo6) can make it good as new for $200 or less, it might be worth it.

Can you print or scan 6x9 negatives? They are NICE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Get digital photos and show them at the Rangefinder Forum. There are folks there with PhDs in 120 folders.

Not a penny over $50 and only if it works and it's legit.

http://certo6.com/buy.html

KJ Smith · 11-12-2009, 10:13 PM

http://www.certo6.com/buy.html

venchka · 10:16 PM

what does the lens look like? CLEAN? or polished with a Brillo pad? Fungus? Seperation? Cleaning maks? Haze? Oil in the blades?

venchka added 0 Minutes and 30 Seconds later...Double Post Merged Below

Thanks Kevin. 2 4 1.

KJ Smith · 11-12-2009, 10:19 PM

And just because no one mentioned it.

Its not a 35mm. Its more than likely a 120.

t3hx · 11-12-2009, 10:25 PM

ok ok ok I get it... i dont know cameras :) it is a 120... but is there such a thing as a bessa II II b/c thats what i saw

its cleaner then hell... no oil on blades fires and the billows look great... is it worth more then $75 ... and if so how much?

it has a skopar lens I didnt see any fungus or haze... looked great... Im just not versed in this type of camera

venchka · 10:30 PM

I knew that. The links knew that. It's a 120 folding camera, 6x9 and in later models, also had a mask for 6x4.5. Those models have 2 red windows for reading frame numbers.

venchka added 3 Minutes and 11 Seconds later...Double Post Merged Below

Follow the links. Go back and ask if you can load it and shoot a roll of film. Got a hand meter?

Take it in a dark room. Open the back and aim a small flashlight through the bellows. You'll know if the bellows work. It could be a deal. It could be trash.

6 months ago I thought I wanted a 6x9 folder. That was two newer cameras ago. Now I'm not so sure.

KJ Smith · 10:35 PM

[/URL]

Quote:

Originally Posted by t3hx

ok ok ok I get it... i dont know cameras :) it is a 120... but is there such a thing as a bessa II II b/c thats what i saw

its cleaner then hell... no oil on blades fires and the billows look great... is it worth more then $75 ... and if so how much?

it has a skopar lens I didnt see any fungus or haze... looked great... Im just not versed in this type of camera

Click Here Look at what he gets for them.

You should be able to pick out what you saw.

KJ Smith added 4 Minutes and 11 Seconds later...Double Post Merged Below

From the looks of Certo6 site, He gets $500.

But that is a rebuilt camera in great condition.

If I picked the right model.

venchka · 10:37 PM

Here is more than enough information to accurately identify the camera. No, I've never seen a camera that said "Bessa II II". I haven't seen very many. Could have been a mistake at the factory that went to an employee.

Check the rangefinder too.

Quote:

Bessa II (1950–59?)
This is simply the crème de la crème of 6x9 folders. It has beauty, style, superb optics, a built-in rangefinder, vaunted Voigtländer quality… this is good stuff. Early models did not have an accessory shoe. Only the last model (1956) had the mask for also shooting 6x4.5. Bessa II's usually come with either the Color-Skopar or Color-Heliar f3.5/105mm lenses, more rarely with the APO-Lanthar. The Apo-Lanthar lens is so rare that if you see one, it will surely cost a king's ransom… to the tune of upwards of $1500!

Focusing is by turning a focus wheel with your left hand on the top left... the whole lens / shutter assembly moves to focus, like a view camera. Only a handful of folders would focus this way, most simply rotated the front lens element to achieve focus. That's not a lesser method as most optics today focus that way. On a folder, the Voigtländer (and Super Isolette, Certo Six, Iskra, Super Baldax, Mamiya 6) this method of focus seems to be a tad more precise…. I'm guessing folks, I'm not an optical engineer!

The Bessa optics are first rate, no matter if talking about the 3 element Vaskar, 4 element Color-Skopar, 5 element Color-Heliar, or the 6 element APO-Lanthar. Is a 3 element lens not as good as a 4 element design? Logic seems to say that's true. HOWEVER, I have received emails from USERS (!!!!), not the "coffee-table" crowd with their MTF charts, etc. - who swear by the excellence of their 3 element Apotars, Novars, Vaskars, etc. I even had one customer (a semi-professional photographer) who had bought both a Vaskar Bessa I AND a Color-Heliar Bessa II. He sent me pictures to prove that HIS VASKAR outperformed HIS Color-Heliar. It is possible!

Shutters on a Bessa II are always either a Compur-Rapid or, the Synchro-Compur. On this camera the C-R shutter goes to 1/400th while the S-C goes to 1/500th sec. The other difference is that the S-C shutter has a switch to choose whether you're using flash bulbs or electronic flash. The C-R is simply synched for whatever you attach to the PC post. One other point to make, especially after 50 years… NO Synchro-Compur or Compur-Rapid has a top speed of 1/400th or 1/500th sec. EVERY single one I've had in the shop tested out on an electric shutter tester, at a little better that 1/350th sec… about what the average Prontor S family of shutters will do.

In my own experience, both the Bessa I and Bessa II are deserving of the reputation that they have. The Bessa II is a bit pricy, but you get commensurate quality, built-in rangefinder, and superb optics in the bargain. With the Bessa I you get an excellent build quality with excellent optics..."even" if it is "only" the UNDERRATED VASKAR!