The Kiev 4A: A Brief History and an Introduction

After the end of WWII, the USSR seized the Contax tools and the Zeiss factories in Germany as part of the war reparations. They took the tools and all left over parts, along with a bunch of the German engineers, and transferred them to Kiev, Ukraine. There, the Contax\Zeiss cameras went through a few minor modifications to become the Kiev III and, eventually, the Kiev 4. The Kiev 4 comes in the regular 4 (has a light meter)and the 4A (no light meter).

Check out these stats for the Kiev 4A basics:

Camera Name	Kiev 4A
Manufacturer	Kiev
Place of Manufacture	USSR
Date of Manufacture	1958-1980 (my serial # seems to indicate that it was made in 1977)
Focusing System	Coupled rangefinder (90mm base length; coincident image) 1.0x magnification factor Viewfinder shows 50mm frame of view. Zilch eye relief.
Lens Mount	Zeiss Contax RF bayonet compatible Standard lenses: 52mm f/2 Jupiter-8
Shutter	Vertical slat focal plane shutter 1/2, 1/5, 1/10, 1/25, 1/50, 1/125, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000 of a second and "B". Self-timer
Metering System	None
Flash	External cold shoe PC cable connector on left side 1/25 sec X flash sync
Film type	Type 135 film (35mm standard)
Battery type	none
Dimensions and weight	Body: 150mm x 79mm x 45mm, 560g Body+lens: xx x x x xx mm, xx g (w/ 50mm f/2)

These cameras usually come looking like this, though they can be customized by changing the skin or painting them (shown below).

The sharpness of the basic 35mm, 50mm and 85mm lenses is well established, plus Kievs come with these awesome leather cases (part of which stay on the camera with the attached leather straps, so you feel bad-ass).

This is how you focus on a Kiev.

These cameras even have timers which, based on the effort it takes to get your subject in focus, I find pretty lolzy.

To finish, here are some known quirks of the Kiev 4A model. Firstly, don’t adjust the shutter speed without first winding the camera! When changing to a slower shutter speed, rotate counter-clockwise. This will energize the slow-shutter speed mechanism (you’ll fell it when you move from 1/60 to 1/15 and slower). For B and 1/30 sec (which is the unmarked X-sync speed), rotate clockwise.

In addition, the irregular distance between the individual frames, thought relatively harmless, seems to be another kink.

The final quirk of a Kiev is one I have grown quite fond of; from time to time, these cameras have their dysfunctional moments... It's difficult to explain what exactly that means, but suffice to say that it can produce these odd, once-in-a-lifetime mystifying photos. It's part of the magic of analog photography. 

This is an example of the "magic" I'm referring to. Though it may seem like the back cover of the camera wasn't put on properly, causing some light to leak through the bottom of the film, this possibility is eliminated due to the other photographs in the set looking normal. How could light have leaked into only one shot? The really interesting part, though, is that it looks like the people in the photo are reacting to the light (the woman on the left seems to be shielding her eyes, and the couple on the right seems to be looking towards it), but there was nothing actually there at the time I took the photo... Magic. :-) 

If you are really interested in learning to use a Kiev 4a, please check out this Users Manual at DVDTECHCAMERAS.COM that someone has so graciously taken the time to translate into English, bless their hearts. Original illustrations included! Link below.

http://www.dvdtechcameras.com/manuals/cameras/k4/k4.htm

Street Photography: An Introduction

Street photography is raw, genuine and unrefined. People are and have always been, by far, the most interesting subject to photograph. There is never a shortage of variety, and it`s great for beginners because you don`t have to have great photography skills to make a portrait or street photograph interesting- it`s the subject that draws the eye in.

Even though the photograph itself isn't particularly outstanding, this woman's eyes and pose speak to the camera, making it an interesting shot. 

However, you should be willing to talk to people, as this makes for great pictures (I`m sure you`ve all heard of Humans of New York). There are a few different types of street photography, including: Humans of New York style stuff, where the photographer talks to and gets to know his subject (ie. portraits),  and distance street photography, where the photographer takes a photo of a subject that catches his eye from a distance- brief contact or no contact is made in this instance. These two forms can be summed up as capturing a personality vs. capturing a moment, or getting involved and affecting the outcome of the photo vs. remaining unattached and leaving the moment (mostly or fully) uncompromised, to be captured as is.

Catching someone in their element, like this street performer teaching a little girl to make huge bubbles in Barcelona, Spain, can be magical.

Men dressed as traditional paganistic "monsters" taking a break during a pagan-themed festival in Pernik, Bulgaria.

It's best to dabble in a little of each type of street photography, even with the difficulties of blending in and being a stealth photographer with such an archaic, slow camera! this is a good way to kick your ass into high gear, in terms of learning to take quick photos.  

But first thing's first; an intriguing, eye-catching subject needs to be found. Then, you must decide whether you want to approach or take a shot from a distance (note that distance-type shots don't necessarily have to be from a distance, they can even be close-range, as long as you don`t disturb the moment too much- quickly asking permission is usually necessary if you are standing right next to your target, so you don`t come off as rude or arrogant... But sometimes you'd be surprised at how much people will let you get away with capturing without saying a word, even when you're right in their face! ). With distance street photography, you want to try to talk through your eyes and body language: if they don`t want their photo taken, you`ll know  Otherwise, you`re good to go as long as you make it quick- no one wants someone lingering around them with a camera pointed at them, like a stalker. Knowing how to expertly choose people who seem OK with having their photo taken, and especially knowing whether or not to ask permission from the person, come with time.

 I'm pretty sure this man noticed me taking a photo, but didn't care and kept doing what he was doing.

If you end up wanting to speak to someone, get to know them, and take a portrait, you need to really know how to pick them because this is much more intimate than shooting from a distance. Read the energy, body language, etc. and always make sure to make your intentions clear regarding what you want to use the photo for. Don`t pressure anyone into having their picture taken- don`t be that guy.

This woman approached me to complain about her sister living abroad.

The best places to take to do street photography are usually festivals (everyone takes photos there, you will fit right in), public street performances, outdoor concerts, dog parks, and the like; basically any public place where people gather of their own free will.

Remember, street photography is meant to capture human nature. It's raw and unrefined, and, in my opinion, so should your photos be. No Photoshop!!! Though I would be surprised if I saw a true film photography enthusiast using that garbage- it defeats the whole purpose of the art!

Knowing the Limitations of Your Old Film Camera, and Using Them to Your Advantage (Part 1)

I’ve stuck to using the same 1974 Kiev brand camera, which belonged to my grandpa, for a few years now. I love the feeling of getting re-acquainted with it upon picking it up after a long dry spell, and I love even more that it`s truly mine; no one else knows its unique quirks, its kinks, its advantages and especially its limitations.

A Kiev camera 4a model, like mine.

                                                     

As great as they are, these old film cameras just aren't capable of doing certain things that digital or instant cameras can do. To get the most out of a camera like this one, you should get acquainted with its limitations.

Firstly, the F-stop on these cameras can`t be adjusted... Because there isn't one. If you want to take a far-out shot like a picture of a whole city, it will look great. If you want to take a portrait or a shot of someone standing in front of something, it should also turn out good. However, if you want to, for example, take a photo of a person with mountains behind them in the distance, and have both the person in the foreground and the mountains in the background be fully focused, you`re out of luck. Simply put, you can focus on the foreground or the background, not both.

Here is a man sitting down. Note the slightly blurry people walking behind him, even though they aren't that far in the background.

Note that if something is within about 1-2 meters of what you are focusing on, it, too, will be sharp. But, as mentioned, if the distance between them is significant, then you have to choose one or the other to focus on.

Since the cats outside of the shop are so close to the shop and the cat inside, they are all in focus.

Though this is a limitation to some extent, I think it's actually an advantage: this is what makes film photos come to life, because of it they look more 3-dimensional than the flat photos produced by their automatic and/or digital counterparts. If everything is equally in focus, like with most point-and-shoot cameras, nothing can stand out.

Here's a good example of the foreground slowly fading into the background, with no harsh contrast of focus \ blur like in the preceding shots.

A city view shot of Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, as another example.

To be continued...

Knowing the Limitations of Your Old Film Camera, and Using Them to Your Advantage (Part 2)

In addition, cameras like this can`t be put on automatic mode. They are strictly manual, with the focus having to be customized for each shot, as well as the shutter speed adjusted for the time of day, different locations, or varying weather conditions (ie. based on varying lighting). The shutter settings themselves are not hinted at whatsoever on my personal camera, they are learned by trial and error (just make sure to record your attempts soewhere, lest you forget!). however, some other models of the time do have a light meter to help out with this.

It's also good to know that, if you don`t have flash (like I don`t), forget about taking photos indoors, or late in the evening when the sun starts setting, or at night- like, ever. Although this is the way it is with most cameras, I feel like it's worth mentioning again because we've become so accustomed to built-in flash that we tend to forget that cameras without flash even exist, let alone how to use them. However, on the other hand, some people like that "gritty", grainy look of dark film photos, which is great if that effect is what you're going for... But, if not, you will be highly disappointed.

Here's a photo of someone (from behind)shooting at a paper target at an indoor shooting range. This is the unpolished, gritty look that I was talking about- the contrast had to be turned up so much that it made the photo even more grainy. Because of the distance between the target (focal point) and the shooter, it's a bit difficult to tell what's what in the foreground (the white things are earmuffs, btw). 

The film, too, needs to be wound up manually before each shot (with time, I`ve learned to just do it after each photo I take so I`m ready for the next one). So, if you want a camera that looks "old school" because it's cool, but also want to be able to point and shoot, then go raid an Urban Outfitters nearby, you douche bag hipster. If you want the real deal because you want to learn the hands-on, orginal artistic aspect of taking photos, get an old film camera.

Though this shot isn't as focused as it should be, it has its charms. Plus, the lion statue pops, which would be harder to achieve with digital film.

It's important to also keep in mind that these cameras can`t take close-ups. Anything closer to the lens than a meter won`t turn out. It will just be one big, indistinguishable blur.

Unfortunately, a shot like this is only possible with a digital camera- with film, the street lamps at the front would be so blurry that they would be indistinguishable. 

Lastly, it is very difficult to successfully capture elements in motion. It`s not impossible, but it takes a lot of practice. The shutter speed needs to to be set on a higher number (250ths of a second, for example) for the moving object to stand a chance of not being blurry, and for such a high shutter speed to be possible without the shot ending up under-exposed, it needs to be really sunny. Like, seriously glaring sunshine. Then there is the focusing aspect- are you practiced enough to manually focus in on a moving target before it gets away and/or hits you (ie. trams and the like)? Basically, the stars need to collide for this shot to happen... But when it does, it is so rewarding! In fact, I find using film cameras (especially older ones) to be much more rewarding than using digital cameras, simply because it takes more patience and skills to achieve a good shot with film. Acquiring and developing said skills enables us to further cultivate our artistic abilities.

Girl Running in Sarajevo- one of the most difficult shots I've made.