Like the many photographers who still use vintage film cameras, I do get moments when the urge to bring one sitting on the shelf back to action takes over the expected effort it will take to address the issues of long inaction time. But the desire to use an old favorite always wins.
So, as Mothers’ Day was approaching, I recalled when a couple of decades I took my 1954 Rolleiflex Automat with me to Paris to celebrate my mother’s day and take a few photos. Alas, those were the last photos I took of her.
With memories affecting the moment, I flipped the cover and looked through the waist finder glass. I was not sure if it was the dampness of my eyes or indeed, the view was significantly dimmer than I remember. After a few minutes, I realized that taking photos with such a dim view finder had become harder on my eyes…
So I looked through my camera parts box, there were the focusing and magnifying glasses of an old Yashica 124 that I had kept. Perfect, now I could ready the Rolleiflex for action.
It took a bit of doing, though, as replacing the single glass of the old German camera with the Japanese double glass affected the firmness of the internal clips that hold the viewing glass together. That in turn affected the fine tuning of the focusing and required some shaving of the glass and shimming the fit.
After checking that the shutter speeds were still in working condition on this 70 years old camera, I took it to the arts show downtown Prescott on Mother’s Day and went through a roll of Fomapan 100 ASA B&W film.
But first, here is how the “upgraded” Rolleiflex viewing glass compared to my 1961 Minolta Autocord’s.
Even in full desert sunshine, the Rolleiflex (on the left) is dimmer than the Autocord, a TLR camera that traveled around the globe with me for decades with absolutely no issues and great results.
And here is a “portrait” shot of the two cameras. The Minolta is smaller and lighter, but its shutter is louder than and not as smooth as the older Rolleiflex during film advancing. But the brighter view glass and the focusing of the Minolta fit me better during street photography when a split second makes a difference in focusing and clicking.
So, on this Mothers’ Day, I tested the Rolleiflex using three criteria: (1) is it now easier to focus in both well lit and dimmer street moment; (2) if a second shot is immediately needed, is the winding smooth and fast; and, if the Zeiss Opton lens’s iconic Tessar feel is still as charming today as it was 70 years ago.
(I realise that the third criterion makes more sense to a seasoned photographer than anyone else. But it is part of the reasons folks like me still use vintage cameras …)
Based on those criteria, here are three photos I chose:
A) Well lit moment with time for me to adjust the focus. That is the photo atop the page. I saw a sunglass and jewelry vendor behind the mannequins and I wanted to get then all together in my frame. As I was ready to release the shutter, a woman walked into the frame making it more active and impromptu.
All three criteria I was using were successfully met in this shot.
B) Fast winding for a second shot. I saw this young woman in front of the city Court House and wanted to test the Zeiss Opton lens for the feel of texture and transitions of gray one can only truly get on film. So I took a first photo, then I realized that I had kept the shutter speed on 1/100th second which would be too fast for the shady areas of the frame. Thus, I quickly changed the speed to 1/50th second and took a second one. The winding was as smooth as one would expect from a Rolleiflex and the shutter operated flawlessly.
C) Focusing in dimmer light. The painter was sitting on the grass in front of her kiosk for a break. I was about 50 meters away but wanted to capture the moment of respite, as I had noticed her painting standing up in front of her easel. As I was about to focus the frame, a large cloud masqued the sunlight that was already filtered through the large trees shading that part of the square. So, it got even dimmer in the view finder and I missed the focus as it was just short of the infinity mark on the focusing knob.
Will I use the Rolleiflex to replace my Minolta Autocord? No, I have run miles of film through the latter and I have the comfort and feel using the camera. However, in nostalgic moments, the precision of the Rolleiflex mechanism is pure joy to revisit, even when it is not as functionally dependable as the Minolta to yield higher percentage of “keeper shots”.
And, the Minolta will never have the sentimental memories I have taking Mothers’ Day photos.
© Vahé A. Kazandjian, 2025