The Carl Zeiss company was formed in 1846 in Germany and remained at the forefront of optics for many years. The company's lenses were used for professional-level cameras such as Hasselblad. When the company was merged into a much larger conglomerate before World War II, it began producing twin-lens reflex cameras that featured its lenses. These cameras also were produced following the war in both medium format and 35mm styles.
Instructions
1. Load the camera with film. Open the back of the camera, move the empty spool to the top and insert the film spool on the bottom. You need to pull out the knobs on the left of the camera (from the back) to get the spools set. Remember to reset them when you are finished. Once the spools are in place, thread the film up and insert it into the empty spool. Make certain it moves up as you turn the film crank. The shut the film door.
2. Open the viewfinder at the top of the camera. When you lift the back part of it, the waist-level viewfinder should pop up. For most photography, you will shoot by looking down into the lens from chest- or waist-level. In some models, there is a pop-up magnifier you can use to focus more accurately. Pop this up, then hold the camera up so you can look directly into the viewfinder. You also can use the viewfinder as a "sport" viewfinder by opening the front and back and looking directly through. This works best for distant subjects, since you cannot focus the camera this way. Just set it to infinity with the focus knob on the left and shoot.
3. Set the shutter speed before cocking the shutter. In some models, the shutter speed control is on top of the "taking" or bottom lens, while on others it is on the bottom. It will have a series of numbers, typically from "B" to 1/500th of a second. Some models also have built-in light meters to help you determine the aperture (set on the focusing knob on later models) and shutter speeds. If the meter is absent or does not work, you can use a hand-held light meter.
4. Cock the shutter. The cocking device is typically to the left of the lens and must be used before the shutter will fire. There are multiple precautionary measures built into the Ikoflex cameras to prevent you from misfiring the shutter. For example, you must have the film counter set somewhere before 12, you must have the viewfinder open and you must cock the shutter.
5. Focus the camera with the knob on the left. Compose your image and snap the shutter. Remember to advance the film for the next shot.
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