Ihagee Exa
Made by the Ihagee Dresden company starting in 1951. Based on the serial number this one was part of the second production run made in 1951 or 1952. Most of the Exa used a waist level viewfinder as the standard. This one has prism view finder with a meter. The view finder is removable. The interchangable lens is the venerated Carl Zeiss, Jena Biotar T 5.8cm f2.
In use the Exa is an interesting early SLR. The focus is with out the benefit of a focus patch or split focus. The top speed of this version is only 1/150th. This one had a prism view finder with a meter. The meter seemed to still react to light but presumably not still accurate. The internal mirror moves up after the film advance and drops with the Sutter release. In use this requires the film to be advance before the shot can be composed. The shutter release is on the left front of the body, not a natural placement for most uses.
My Take:
It is unfair to expect a Nikon F-1 experience from the Exa. It was an interesting camera that definetly took some practice. The focus was just adjusting till it looks most in focus. Not bad for ininity, but not very good a near focus. I generally started with a zone focus then tried to fine tune. At the smaller aperatues the viewfinder was a bit dark. Fully open there was better light to focus, so I’d start wide and adjust after focusing. I did not use the meter that sits on the viewfinder.
The need to advance the film before you focus, got me almost every time. I would bring it to my eye to see if I like the subject enough for a shot and was greeted by darkness. Then after focusing, there is still the challenge of finding the shutter release.
The Exa is a fun old camera but not a camera that anyone should pick as a primary shooter today. The real find here is the lens. The Carl Zeiss Jena Biotar is a legendary lens that has design roots in the 1920s. This version is desitable for the sharpness and bokeh it delivers. It is a lens that seems to translate will to use on digital cameras. This camera and my first role did not do a very good job highlighting the lens. I will be looking for an adapter to give this lens a better test.
Lens: Carl Zeiss Jena Biotar 5,8cm f2
Film: Fujicolor Superia X-TRA 800