Kodak Retina II - a Xenon in your pocket
Posted: Sun Sep 25, 2016 8:19 pm
The first serious camera I could call mine was a Retina II. At the tender age of 9 or 10, my brother and I got a well-used one as a birthday present to be shared between the both of us.
At the time, nobody wanted a folder. Japanese RF were the rage, and large, rectangular cameras were the norm. The Retina was a different, quaint instrument. It was well suited to our small hands, and we soon noticed that it gave superb images if handled with care. We learned all the Retina quirks; the camera went with us in a few school trips and brought back a lot of nice memories, if not memorable pictures. At the time I was already developing B&W and doing wet prints, with Father's help.
Many years later another Retina II crossed my path and I could not resist trying it again. I love the concept of a Xenon in my pocket. The camera is eminently portable, but heavy metal by current standards.
During the last few weeks I exercised the Retina II again. Besides the usual test ground (fishing harbor) it went to Colonia del Sacramento, where I had to travel for a meeting last week.
Enough talk, time for some pictures. First, a sneaky selfie in an old window in Colonia's old city.
Overcast sunset in Colonia, the negative is really burned, and I cannot find a drop of flare.
As Joyce Kilmer wrote about 103 years ago, trees are lovely.
Usual subjects - a little boat had come in from the cold River Plate.
Thanks for looking!
Film is still Pan F+, in Beutler. Getting used to the lower speed after many cans of FP4+.
At the time, nobody wanted a folder. Japanese RF were the rage, and large, rectangular cameras were the norm. The Retina was a different, quaint instrument. It was well suited to our small hands, and we soon noticed that it gave superb images if handled with care. We learned all the Retina quirks; the camera went with us in a few school trips and brought back a lot of nice memories, if not memorable pictures. At the time I was already developing B&W and doing wet prints, with Father's help.
Many years later another Retina II crossed my path and I could not resist trying it again. I love the concept of a Xenon in my pocket. The camera is eminently portable, but heavy metal by current standards.
During the last few weeks I exercised the Retina II again. Besides the usual test ground (fishing harbor) it went to Colonia del Sacramento, where I had to travel for a meeting last week.
Enough talk, time for some pictures. First, a sneaky selfie in an old window in Colonia's old city.
Overcast sunset in Colonia, the negative is really burned, and I cannot find a drop of flare.
As Joyce Kilmer wrote about 103 years ago, trees are lovely.
Usual subjects - a little boat had come in from the cold River Plate.
Thanks for looking!
Film is still Pan F+, in Beutler. Getting used to the lower speed after many cans of FP4+.
