Speaking Frankly

From The Keppler Files: January, 1965

What do we mean by sharpness? That's a jolly good question. Oft have I gazed upon a print or slide made by some proud SLR photographer who proclaimed extreme sharpness and oft have I said (to myself), "It doesn't look very sharp to me." And many a picture considered very sharp by me, some other observer thought to be less so.

My Favorite Discontinued Film? You'll Be Surprised

When Forum moderator Jack Howard asked Pop’s website forum members to name their favorite “retired” emulsions, I was pleased at not only the number of replies received (20) but also at the diversity.

Many gave reasons: Agfa Ultra 50 (deep rich colors bordering on the fantastic), Kodachrome 25 (30 year old Kodachromes still have good colors), Kodak Supra 800 (it didn’t cost an arm and a leg), Kodak Tech Pan (for those things it did better than anything else), Kodak  Panatomic-X ASA 32 (no grain), Kodak Ektar 25 (it almost made me switch from slides to printfilm), Fuji MS 100/1000 (great grain structure, superb latitude and really, really nice color reproduction), 120 rollfim Kodachrome 25 ( eye-popping chromes).

Rangefinder Revival

Ed's Note: Is there any rhyme, reason or room for 35mm rangefinder cameras in today's ever expanding digital photographic world? So begins Herbert Keppler's most recent magnum opus comparing the top three rangefinders: Leica M7, Zeiss Ikon and Voigtlander Bessa R2A. We posted it here on the popphoto.com mother site because of its length and use of photos, but after reading it come back to the blog to discuss and add your two cents in the comments section.

Inside Straight: Shoe Fetish

Would you be surprised to learn that the first camera accessory shoe was designed by the inventor of the Leica, prior to 1913? It wasn't used for attaching a flash. When Oskar Barnack put an accessory shoe atop the 1913 prototype Leica, it was apparently for a Leitz Fodis removable, vertically mounted rangefinder.

With the advent of the 1930 interchangeable-lens Leica C, the shoe was needed for accessory viewfinders. The earliest record I have of a hot-shoe for flash was the American-made Univex Mercury CC of 1938. Its accessory flash unit accepted screw-based flashbulbs.