Yes, actually I was pretty amazed about the quality, despite the basic three-element lens!

Dankesehr - und viel Spaß mit der Nettar :)

What a nice story that you still have that same camera today, and that it still works (except the self timer)! What camera model is it?

The camera is an AKA Rette with a double viewfinder, one for 50mm the other for 75mm. It is made of steel with a Schneider-Kreuznach lens 1:3,5/50 serial number 2721392. ISO (DIN) is 10, 25, 50, 100, and 200, that’s it. No 400 film available in those days. 13cm wide, 7cm high, 7.5cm deep including the lens affixed to the camera. Also has a tripod thread. Has a beautifully made leather encasing with leather strap and a little leather filter pocket on the strap. The sewing of the leather encasing is starting to fall to bits but I’m sure I could take it to somebody and have it fixed. It currently has Fujichrome Velvia 50 in it. This camera is so solid that you could use it as a weapon over someone’s kopf and it would still work. Cheers

Thank you! I hope you'll have a lot of fun with your camera!

@@tomscameras thank you!

Thanks for your feedback, I really appreciate it! And I do hope to do some color photo shooting in spring with this or maybe another of these old folders I have got here!

Hey Paul! Thanks for your comment! I am very happy that you enjoyed my video. I love my Nettars. Also love the 6x6 ones just as well! Cheers to Virginia, Thomas

Oh that is a great idea! Only bring your folding camera and nothing else! I really have to try that as well :)

@@tomscameras yepp, most recommended, I usually get 3 or 4 keepers out of 12, with digital, sometimes nothing after 100s of shots😆

Hey Jeff, many thanks for your feedback! I tried my best to give an overview without going too deeply into detail, because there are so many variants out there. So I'm glad to hear that I could provide some information that helps you!

I agree, these old cameras are still fascinating and also give awesome results if you know how to deal with them! Zeiss also did some nice amateur telescopes that were awesome in the day. But they’re very expensive collectors items today!

Oh, what a nice gift! I wish you a lot of fun trying it out!

Yes ... I took the part where I load the camera for the nightshots, not noticing that I had grabbed the other camera. In the end it's good, cause now I know they both work very well! Actually what I find especially amazing is that the leather bellows are still perfect after so many years.

Thanks! I often used aids to guess focus distance so I guess it is also a matter of practice. I find it's really hard at closer ranges but 10 or 20 metres is surprisingly easy (for me, at least). The lens is soft wide open for sure, but yes I agree, it's better than one would think!

Thanks! It's the Museum for East Asian Art in Cologne!

Many thanks!

Thanks Michele!

Thanks Peter! I‘m a huge fan of your KZfaq channel and so I’m very happy you enjoyed my video! 🤠

oh yes! Even compared to 6x6 ...!

Yes, very nice! The range finder will be a great help. If you find one, just make sure it's properly calibrated. It's of course an easy check!

When I got my Rolleicord, I was afraid to try out the self timer for a couple of weeks. 😀 Showed it to a camera collector friend and first thing he did is run the self timer ... I hold my breath but it did work, thankfully! If the self timer quits and bricks the camera, sometimes it can help to shake the camera or press (not too hard ...) with the hand from the side against the lens/shutter assembly. With a little bit it becomes unstuck. Same goes for sticky long shutter speeds. But yes if you've got similar folders like this with better lenses, why bother. It's kinda funny that there are still soooow many old folders out there!

Hi Tom! Great to hear you own and enjoy these old cameras just as much! I also recently got two old rangefinder attachments, I have to give them a try as well. Yes the Anastigmats can be surprisingly sharp for what they are!

I think the Pentax ME will be just perfect to try out analog, especially now in the autumn / winter season. My suggestion is to get an ISO 400 film for it. I wish you a lot of fun and hope you'll also enjoy trying out your father's Zeiss-Ikon eventually!

Thank you so much Fred. And yes, one needs to establish good habits when using these old cameras to avoid double exposures and such: But in the end, that's part of the fun!

I am now also shooting a Rolleicord Va (which is basically the same size and design as the Yashica C). Folding cameras are so much smaller yes! It is a little bit more hassle to operate them (because you have to unfold it every time ...) and the viewfinder is often really bad and basic. But for landscapes and hiking, maybe that does not matter so much. And the nice thing is, the pictures you get are just amazing! If you want to get "serious" I would always recommend to find a camera with a four-element lens like Zeiss Tessar etc. Did you see my review of the Voigtländer Perkeo II? That's a fantastic folder and it also has a four-element lens!

Thanks for your feedback! I find 6x6 a nice compromise between awesome image quality and more economy - also the 6x6 format means you never have to change the camera from portrait to landscape which is very practical when used on a tripod :) I love Tessar lenses. I now also got the Voigtländer Perkeo II which has a similar four lens element design, it's also (I think single) coated, and the image quality is clearly better compared to the three element designs. That camera will be featured in my next video!

Congratulations to the Ikonta! Very cool camera! Maybe the rangefinder also needs a thorough cleaning, or inside one of the optical elements got "blind" a bit? I do agree that the old rangefinders are often no fun to use in general. That's a pity cause the folding camera concept is absolutely great!

Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it!

Many thanks for adding this information! In the case of my Nettar, they even bought the lens from some "lesser" company, I think it is definitely not a Carl Zeiss lens. It's a pretty basic lens, even though it still can produce very detailed photos at least when stopped down.

Actually, I got the next best thing to a Vito II ... or maybe even better (for me): two Voigtländer Perkeo's :) ... hope to be able to shoot them very soon!

Merci beaucoup, Hervé! The Ikonta with the Tessar is a very high quality camera. It should give sharper and more contrasty pictures than the Nettar, especially at the open apertures. I am happy you enjoy your Ikonta! Kind regards to France!

Hello Martin! Yes, these folders are a cheap entry into MF fun. The brand maybe doesn't matter a lot and there are also many different brands in different countries. The only points to make sure when buying an old folder is that it doesn't look obviously bent or tilted or in any other way damaged, that focus and aperture still move, that the shutter still fires, and that the bellows unit is tight. And then maybe check if it takes 120 film, because that's the one available today ...

@@tomscameras Yes, Shanghai makes GP 3 in 620, too. But that's basically the same film on different spools. But the also make it in 220 (nothing for most folders because of the red window) but exciting for other MF cameras.

Yes the Super Ikonta's were the top models of their time!

Thanks for your detailed comment. You are so right about the habit. That’s crucial when using these old cameras! I’m still amazed at the quality that these cameras are capable of. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

If your camera works, 15 Euro is still a great deal! I reckon that if you shoot at f/11 or f/16, the quality of these lenses will be basically the same anyway. Enjoy your 6x9 Nettar! :)

@@tomscameras thank you Tom!

Thanks for your feedback!

Hi Mark, at night I set up the camera on a tripod and set it to f/11 or f/16, and shutter to T or B, and use an external light meter to determine the exposure time. I think it was between 30 and 180 seconds. At T the shutter stays open once you fire, and you need to move the lever to close it. At B you have to continuously press the shutter lever, but I use a cable release anyway to avoid any camera shake. Cable releases have those lock screws or other locking mechanisms so they keep the shutter open until you unlock it.

@@tomscameras Hi Tom, thanks for sharing that info. Your photos were really amazing.

@@markandrewhoran Many thanks, and you're of course welcome!

Yes the lens is definitely the limiting factor (well and in my case, the focusing skills on anything that's not static!) ... this is also the case for the Nettar. Still I find the overall amount of detail astonishing for such an old and "cheap" camera! I think I once had a Kodak folder that took 620 film. I cut the edges off the spool of 120 and it fitted! But that must have been back in the 1990s ...

Yes, thanks! :)

That happens either when there is small debris at the film gate of the camera, that scratches the negative while winding on the film. Or it also happens (maybe more frequently) when the film is developed, due to the same basic reason!

Hello Klaus, actually the Nettar also has the same basic film advance system where you slide open that small window on the camera back and then advance the film until the small number for the next frame appears in the window. Those numbers are printed on the paper back of the film roll itself. This means that frame spacing is never depending on the camera, but only on where the film manufacturers actually print these small numbers! A 6x4.5 camera should yield 16 frames on one roll of 120 film. If you get these 16 frames, then everything is just as it should be!

Hi Tim, after seeing the film, I did have a look at the film window and didn't notice anything that would really cause the scratches. So I didn't do anything more yet than wipe it clean again. But I have to admit that I didn't shoot these two cameras anymore since the video. Basically, since I got my Rolleicord, most of my other 6x6 and 6x9 went back to the shelf, except for making a review video 😇

@@tomscameras a Rollei TLR is a nice item. I have wondered about getting one, as my RB67 is a bit heavy for many situations :-)

YES! However, many labs will return the spool if you tell them to do so. Maybe first inquire if your lab can do that. BTW, all my Nettars work with plastic spools as well.

@@tomscameras thanks for your answer. And once empty, the spool that remains on the right side can't be used as one for the left side? I just bought the camera and know not much about it

@@LeMecMoustachu That works, no problem! The only reason to keep the wooden spools is that they look cool. :) But the normal plastic spools are perfect for use. So yes, you just take the empty spool from the old film and place it in the other side, when loading the camera with new film!

@@tomscameras thank you a lot

True 😂

Basically, yes! You’ve got the distances engraved on the focus ring. What you can do is buy an external rangefinder … those were sold back in the day as accessories and sometimes you still find them sold on eBay or local sales ads.

@@tomscameras great information to know! I am planning on buying a camera like this, can you tell me how to get high resolutions like this? I feel like it's improbable to get such s good picture, teach me your ways! Anything else I should know before I buy one? (120 film of course)

Hey, the Ikonta 521 is a great camera. In general, all the ones that have additional features and better lenses, are more valuable today. "Additional features" include: (1) shutter with more choice of shutter times - the really basic ones often have only three times; (2) four-element lens, not the cheaper three-element design that I have in my Nettar 515. In Zeiss, four-element lenses are usually designated "Tessar", so they're more valuable; (3) a mechanism that prevents unwanted double exposures, again my basic Nettar does miss that; (4) rangefinder. As for the shutter, I personally have a soft spot for those simple shutters that only have a few times. Because more often than not, all those speeds still work well today, even after long periods of storage. Whereas the most sophisticated ones like Compurs etc. with times from 1 - 1/500 second often need a thorough CLA. The question is, how many of those speeds do you realistically need today when you shoot an old folder? Cleaning bellows, I'm not an expert! If it's real leather bellows (mostly pre-war and large format), you can use products for leather care. Some folks use shoe polish. In either case, just use a very small amount, less is more! Most bellows units are in a surprising good shape even after many decades. One big exemption are old Agfa folding cameras that have horrible 1950's plastic bellows that are about 100% broken today and need repair or better a full replacement. Check your bellows for light leaks by opening the film door and then shoot a camera flash from the rear towards the lens. You'll immediately see light leaks this way!

Thanks for the tip! Habits like that can help a lot with these cameras!

If you don’t care about it having a Tessar lens (like mine also doesn’t have one) you can also always look for one with a more basic shutter. The best shutters will have the long times up to 1 second, but these long times often don’t work anymore today. The simplest shutters have only three times but those normally all will work. (Of course, all shutters offer B for long-time exposure in addition.) Then check the lens condition (clear glass) and if the focusing still works smoothly. Happy hunting!

Thanks Claudio! Yes you are actually right: Back then, most of those cameras were sold with three or even four different lens options. Zeiss-Ikon often offered f/6.3, f/4.5 and f/3.5 triplet lenses. I don't have the Nettar 515/2 with the f/6.3 lens that you have, but one of my 6x6 Nettar cameras is an f/6.3 as well. About the quality of the lenses: They all are triplet lenses. That means they're not that sharp when open. I didn't notice a big difference between my f/6.3 and f/4.5 or f/3.5 triplets when shooting them at the same aperture, for example f/8. My advice is you use open aperture when you want to play a little bit with the vintage look, or the depth of field, and are not overly concerned about sharpness. But having said that, the f/6.3 triplet at f/6.3 will definitely be sharper than the f/3.5 triplet at f/3.5! If you practice a bit, you can get pretty good at guessing distances. It's kind of fun! I mean, id you do long step, it's almost exactly one metre for most people. But there are of course more precice ways to measure the distance. Back when these cameras were new, they sold small seperate rangefinders that you slip onto the accessory shoe, or can connect somewhere else on the camera, or just use hand-held. Maybe you can find one of these on ebay etc. ... you can also buy a cheap modern laser distance meter, they're not expensive. Or, as I said, learn to guess distances. My advice for sharp landscape shots is to use f/16 when light permits. In summer, f/16 is no problem when you use an ISO 320 or ISO 400 film. In winter, you'll maybe want to bring a tripod, or just place your camera somewhere on a solid surface.

@@tomscameras Thank you so much Tom for your so clear answer! I have to take practice with it. Is better tri-x 400 or TMax 400 films ? and can I use a traditional meter instead the rangefinders? Thank you again for all!

Both films are very good for this camera. The T-Max 400 is a very fine grained film. For an old 6x9 camera, the grain doesn't matter so much. I would personally simply take the film that is cheaper. You can also look for Ilford films, they're also great! (If I shoot 35mm cameras, then grain matters much more and i absolutely prefer the fine grain of T-Max and Ilford Delta for 35mm cameras. But again, for 6x9 it doesn't really matter so much.) Meter: You mean to meter the light / exposure? Or the distance? Any light meter is good to meter the light. You can also download light meter apps for your Smartphone. This is all about exposure. Distance: Then a rangefinder or a laser distance meter helps!

@@tomscameras Big Thanks!!!

You're welcome, have fun with your Nettar camera!

Yes you just need to push it. But you can maybe push first at the joint of the two chromed bars that keep the „door“ open so that they more easily fold back together! Hope this helps!

Haha, yes, once a guy even asked me if film is available when I was walking around with my Nikon FM2 ...

Aachener Weiher: Dann wird Dir eins meiner nächsten Videos sicher auch gefallen! 😀

Oh yes, the TT Artisan 23/1.4 is definitely very interesting! I am trying to get my hands on one as soon as possible to make a review!

That sounds a terrific set of cameras. A 6x9 with a 65mm lens? The Fuji GSW690? I have to admit that I never tried it out so far for myself!

Sounds a nice little collection!

Absolut! 😀

@@tomscameras Ab nächster Woche werde ich eine Nettar haben, ich bin auf den Zustand gespannt

You can support the front of the camera e.g. with the left hand at the folding door, or with the right hand but then place your hand more under the lens, just make sure that small lever doesn't get in the way when you fire the shutter. If you hold the camera in your hand and have a look at the lever, it's easy to find a good position for your hand. The thing is i kept forgetting about that lever, and I suppose if you're not often shooting such a camera, that can happen very easily.

Yes, we once had a great camera industry over here. Today, at least Leica remains! (And of course Zeiss and others still are in the business of designing lenses and optics ...)

Many thanks for your great feedback, I really appreciate it! 🙏

Unfortunately, I never shot an Ihagee Venus so far. It was made since around 1916 and uses sheet film. Sorry, but I don't have any practical experience with such cameras.

Films are still readily available, especially black & white films. Analog is enjoying strong user support these days!

Of course you are right. There are many great and important female photographers!

I'd say go complain somewhere else. Take life easier buddy and don't get offended by this simple stuff.