I do like to use wait-level viewfinder cameras for
street photography to capture a moment without affecting the behaviour of the
subjects by explicitly pointing a camera toward them. I have a short spot in me
for TLR cameras, but the 12 or 15 exposure films and the often dim screens
often make me miss that critical moment. Using vintage 35mm wait –level finders
like 1940s Prakticas or 1950s Exaktas is a lot of fun, but the viewfinders are
small and focusing may be a challenge.
Finally, although I rarely use vintage cameras with
light meters, I have never owned a wait-level finder camera that had a light meter.
So, my curiosity to use one led me to modify my
1960s Miranda Sensorex (1,2) from a prism eye finder to a
waist-level finder because the light meter sensor is build behind the mirror,
and taking the prism off still shows the meter needle in the focusing screen.
Yet, it is a 35mm camera with a small view screen.
To make focusing easier, I used a 4x magnifying glass made for close-up
photography for the 1980s Olympus—OM1.
It may not be aesthetically appealing and may look
like a military bunker turret (!) to some, but my goal was to see how I can
have the better of two worlds…
Here is the Sensorex with the contraption I made and
showing the pentaprism I took off. The through the lens picture is bright and
easy to focus, and the meter needle perfectly visible to adjust.
Here is the frontal view
So off I went to testing my “new” Miranda.
I shot a roll of 20 frames by using the camera’s light
meter for 10 frames, and my usual Sunny 16 method for the other 10. The results
were quite comparable telling me that the meter is still working reliable after
60 years.
However, one shot I took without the light meter
came out most delightful, and it is shown atop this page. I used a Kodak
enlarger deep red filter during the printing and exposed the paper for 18
seconds, as the original negative was underexposed.
Not only this photo has all the vintage look and
feel, but it is close to a pencil drawing. So, I took my inspiration to a sheet
of water colouring paper, sharpened my #2 pencil, and let my imagination
dictate the lines based on the feel from the photo.
Now the circle was completed.
(1) https://liveingray.blogspot.com/2022/06/miranda-sensorex-forgotten-almost.html
(2) https://liveingray.blogspot.com/2019/07/national-cowboy-day-in-prescott-az.html
August 27, 2026
© Vahé A. Kazandjian, 2026
