Tag Archives: Fuji Superia X-tra 400

{Getting to Know You} Sears 35rf

August 14, 2018 10:18 am ⋅ 2 Comments ⋅

I really like it when I find a camera at a thrift shop that I’d never heard of before.

(this photo was taken with another 2017 thrift shop find: my Yashica T4)

I’ll set the scene for you:

I was making my weekly thrift shop run and about to call it quits when I saw saw this camera on a shelf in the paltry electronics section of a particular store that usually doesn’t yield many “finds.” It was so tiny that I couldn’t believe it was actually a rangefinder, even if “rf” was part of its name!

But it was $6.59. I decided that I really didn’t need to buy the camera since I’d spent $3 here and there on random point and shoot cameras throughout the course of 2017 and was feeling pretty guilty about that. Like, had I not bought those silly cameras, I could have this one. So, I left it.

I left the store, drove down the road to go home, regret set in, and I turned back around to get the camera.

Success!!

It even came with its original case, with the stylized “SR” ( Sears and Roebuck) butterfly logo. I accidentally shot case upside down though, so I inverted the logo separately so you could see it  😀

Some of Sears 35rf’s specs:

  • Rangefinder focusing (.9m/3ft – infinity)
  • 40mm f/2.8 lens
  • Shutter-priority auto exposure and manual exposure 
  • Shutter speed range from 1/500s-1/8s, plus Bulb
  • Aperture range of f/2.8-f/16

In a move thoroughly unlike me, I immediately set about replacing the foam light seals. They were such a gunky mess that I figured I might as well get it over with.

In the meantime, I found out a little about the camera. It’s a rebranded Ricoh rangefinder (500 series.)

I shot a very quick test roll to see if I had done an okay job with the seals and if everything was functioning well mechanically too. I got it developed right away (also unusual for me as of late.)

I shared these on Flickr and Instagram (because I wasn’t sure when I’d put together a blog post for it here!) But hey, everything looked fine for the light seals and the camera seemed to be functioning fine!

(Shot on Fuji Superia 400)

I fell in love with this camera as soon as I saw the results from my test roll. I even took it on family vacation with me a few weeks after I got it. Here are some of the photos from that trip that I originally shared on my blog post about our vacation.

(Shot on Fuji Superia 400)

When I got home from vacation, I finished up the roll of Kodak Ektachrome 320T that I’d started shooting on vacay. Here are some of those photos (and these haven’t been shown anywhere before now!)

(Shot on expired Kodak Ektachrome 320T, cross-processed)

Then, I loaded the camera with the roll of JCH Streetpan I’d been holding onto for awhile. The results made me turn into the heart eyes emoji!
(I also haven’t shared any of these photos online previously 😉 )

(Shot on JCH Streetpan 400)

I LOVE the Sears 35rf. I cannot believe I was blessed to find it that day in a thrift shop that rarely yields any scores. The camera’s lens is nice and sharp, it’s little (though not so lightweight since it’s mostly made of metal,) and it’s now a prized member of my camera collection <3

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{Redscale Zoo}

September 9, 2016 11:52 am ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅

I recently made some DIY redscale film with Fuji Superia 400 that expired in 2007 (thrift shop film!) The majority of that roll was shot at the Memphis Zoo this summer, and I honestly am in love with the results. I like to shoot my redscale film at a much lower film speed than is indicated on the film box so I get more muted tones than deep reds and oranges. I guess the age of this roll of film meant it was harder to get enough exposure to keep the shots from going red and orange, but I feel it really worked in this scenario.

My new favorite redscale photo

Kiev 4AM • Helios-103 53mm f/1.8

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Nikon N80 {Two Rolls In}

April 25, 2014 9:13 am ⋅ 2 Comments ⋅

This is basically going to be a dual review of both the Nikon N80 and the Sigma Super Wide II 24mm/2.8 lens…

I like to call the Nikon N80 “The Camera Who Waited.”*

 

These beauties: Nikon N80 and Sigma Super Wide II

When I first became interested in photography, I used to thumb through the camera store ads in the backs of photography magazines. I could never afford any of the cameras listed in those ads, so it was like window shopping or daydreaming for me. One camera that I really REALLY wanted though was the Nikon N80. It cost hundreds of dollars, and all I could afford was a $50 Ricoh Singlex TLS.  Now, all these years later, here is one more instance when I’ve benefited from the “demise” of film photography.** I have been able to obtain a camera I wanted, but which was out of reach for many years, at a price so low that it was downright obscene!

The reason I say this is “The Camera Who Waited” is because I bought the camera body in June 2013. I did not buy a lens for it until October 2013. Immediately, I began kicking myself for selling my N8008 with a 50mm/1.8 attached to it in 2012 – having that lens would have kept this camera from “waiting” so long! I did a lot of research as to the first lens I’d like to have for my N80 and bided my time until just the right one presented itself. I thought I’d skip buying another 50mm at the moment and go for my favorite wide angle focal length instead. I chose the Sigma Super Wide II 24mm/2.8 lens. I liked the results I’d seen from the lens around the internet and was intrigued by the len’s macro abilities.

About the Nikon N80:

It’s the fanciest film SLR I’ve ever owned, so there are lots of features I could detail here. There’s a whole series of custom settings you can dial in. One thing that I love and immediately turned on were on-demand grid lines. It’s an awesome feature for me, because I feel like I am bad at getting photos straight when using wide angle lenses (such as the 24mm I’m using on the N80.) Grid lines really help with that!

Roll #1 was expired Fuji Superia X-tra 400

Testing the macro on this TINY slice of a vegan mini pear pie I’d made. If you can fill the frame this much with a 24mm lens, you KNOW it truly focuses close up!

THIS! This right here. This shot made me say, “Yup. This lens is a keeper.”

Why all the photos of a tree stump? 1. Testing the Sigma’s macro abilities again 2. I didn’t know how else to document/convey the destruction our power company left behind when it gutted a section of my family’s property to put in power lines for a new neighbor. It was devastating to unexpectedly come home to this.

An impulse purchase the same week I got the Sigma Super Wide II

The mini pumpkin I painted back at Halloween. Pre-paint can been seen in my Konica Big Mini review.

My sister’s black and gold “ombre” mini pumpkin


Twig we used as a stir stick for paint my niece used on her pumpkin

Roll #2 was Kodak Gold 200

Christmas tree in one of the offices at work. Really close focus for a 24mm lens!

Normally these photos would have gotten a blog of their own, but as this roll was part of my testing the N80, here are some “bonus” photos from my Jobes-Shields family shoot at Christmas:

Ezra and some stuffed animals. Love the fox one!

I actually cropped this one because I thought it was cuter this way 🙂

Lionel, Lisa, and Rob (baby, mommy, and daddy)

(I know this one has motion blur, but I love it!)

I COULD NOT get enough of the “Lionel asleep with his bunny” photos!

Pretty cardinal ornament my mother had on her mantel at Christmas

Shiny new coffee maker for Christmas!

Riding to Pho Hoa Bihn with Mallory

Lovely, lovely tofu with pineapple at Pho Hoa Bihn

And those were the first two rolls with my Nikon N80 and Sigma Super Wide II lens!

Conclusion?

LOVE it. Love the camera. Love the lens. The Nikon N80 is the quietest SLR I’ve ever used. You can barely hear the shutter/mirror action at all! And the lens, while a little noisy itself, yields such beautiful results! I mentioned earlier in this post that 24mm is my favorite wide angle focal length. I’m also addicted to taking “details” shots, so having a wide angle lens with the ability to focus down to about 7 inches is a real winning combination for me. I can’t wait to further test both the N80 and the Sigma Super Wide II (and get MORE lenses for the camera!) I’m sold!

*This is a Doctor Who reference. If you get it, you get it. 

**I say “demise” of film photography in jest. I and all the other film photographers are making out like bandits while people sell off their film gear cheap as chips! If you ever want to see how “alive” the film photography community is, just go search the hashtag #believeinfilm on Twitter!

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