william
Can anyone help me with some issues I’m having with the Kiev 88? I’ve got some streaks on the negative and I think they might be reflections from inside the camera or the cassette. On the other hand, that seems unlikely to me. Can’t I attach any photos here? Best regards, Jens
Gast
Hi Jens,
If the light is coming in from the edge, it could be something completely different. I’ve often had this problem with my old Graflex cassettes too (thank goodness it rarely affects the image itself, just the edge).
It was also described once in *Fomag* during a Kiev test.
The problem: the film is wound too loosely onto the second (take-up) reel.
Solution:
- Bend the return spring on the first spool.
- Change the roll film in the dark (at least not in full sunlight, but under your coat), and store the roll film in the dark after exposure (e.g. in a small black paper bag).
A roll film spool is simply not the same as a 35mm cassette.
Regards
Martin
Gast
Hi Jens,
If the light is only coming from one side, it could be caused by the cassette slider.
Have a look at that and try covering that side to see if it makes a difference.
Best regards,
Hans-Günther
william
Hello Martin, hello Hans-Günther, thanks for your tips!
I’ll look into the suggestion about the take-up spool.
The roll films were wound in the dark. They also show no signs of fog or anything similar. I can also rule out the cassette slider, as the effect occurs on the opposite side.
What is simply puzzling is that the fault did not occur during studio shots with flash the previous day, using the same type of film and the same back.
Best regards, Jens
MirkoBoeddecker
Jens,
You can upload photos.
Just click on "IMG" whilst replying to a post.
Was it darker in the studio where the camera was positioned whilst changing the film than it is outside where you usually take photos?
Have you ever tried loading the magazine in the dark and then sealing it with insulating tape (...so you can carry on taking photos outside in bright sunshine...)?
Best regards,
Mirko
william
Hi Mirko, yes, it was the evening before that I wound the film. So, apart from the light in the living room, it was already getting darker.
I’ve attached the images. It’s just a raw scan converted to positive. Perhaps someone has an idea where this is coming from. What’s on the left in the photo, you have to imagine visually as being on the right-hand side in the original shot, and then probably mirror-inverted as well.
- I can rule out the lens, as the same fault occurred with a standard lens.
- Two cassettes were in use (the two pictures and the single picture, one cassette each)
In the two photos above, you can see light on the left-hand edge. This is not the side of the cassette slider. The photo below is from a different film.
Gast
Did you perhaps change the lenses every time the light leak occurred?
It looks a bit patchy, as if you had stray light getting into your Kiev, rather than leaky film cartridges or, at worst, a combination of both.
Try the process of elimination from the back (mask it off and don’t change the lens, then leave it masked and change the lens, and don’t mask it off when changing the lens). Always do this outdoors in direct, directional light.
Regards
Mirko
Gast
Hi Jens,
Just so I’m clear,
- the light on the left-hand edge looks as though the film isn’t lying flat, and the light from the bright subject (which looks like intense stray light within the subject, but seems ‘intentional’) is spilling sideways under the edge mask. If that’s what’s bothering you, I’d say “never mind the edge”, what matters is the sharpness (flatness!!!).
-What I find rather alarming are the horizontal streaks of light between the frames, or fully visible in the last picture, with vertical extensions. If I recall correctly, the curtain on the Kiev 88 runs from top to bottom. Does it close properly??? And every time??? That would explain the streaks running across the film. And then you can paint the inside of the camera black until you become one with it.
In any case, it’s not the overly loose winding I suspected; that would produce light spots that are widest at the very edge of the film (and, in my case, usually end before the frame).
Regards
Martin
william
After several months, I remembered the problem posted here, the solution to which I now know and would like to share here. The cause of the whole issue is a light leak at the junction between the film magazine and the camera body. I haven’t quite got to the bottom of it. In any case, the fault could be reproduced by inserting a halogen lamp into the body from the front. To do this, you remove the lens, insert a small halogen lamp and look from the outside to see where light is escaping. There is also a reflection inside the camera, particularly on the floor.
Conclusion: be careful with the KIEV 88. I have since purchased a KIEV 88 CM, which comes with the new magazine (NT) and has an anti-reflective coating on the inside. This version comes highly recommended. Regards, Jens
