Optics, optics and optics. World class and very sharp. cloth shutter (pre wwII design, very reliable, simple and keeps working) price all manual takes heavy use under plastic body is a basic metal camera

limited shutter speed range if you wear glasses lightmeter is effected by light coming in from by your eye.

This camera is very simple and basic. It takes Carl Zeiss Jena lenses, Pentax lenses and Russian/Ukraine lenses. The camera works at -25f on ski trips. It works in the hot humid weather. It is a great beginner camera and a great for special uses.

Customer Service

if you buy from KievCamera and a few others 1 year warrenty other wise none

Similar Products Used:

Nikon F, Nikkormat, Praktica, Pentax

Fully manual Mc-Helios lens Pentax k-mount (122k) Solid construction DOF preview

Narrow viewfinder Heavy body Shutter Controls could be a little more intuitive (Well ... it's russian)

Subject : Zenit 122k/122 I bought this camera to get started in photography - It was the most affordable SLR at the time , but price , as I soon found out isn't everything. The camera takes great pictures - on some days! The shutter tends to get stuck in speeds above 1/125 , and the photos come out with a dark strip on them . My brother in law 's camera , the 122 , has exactly the same problem , despite of beeing a different body. The 122k body is mostly plastic , but the construction feels very solid whereas the 122 is metal and has a cooler classic look. But looks aren´t everything , and when you can only take photos from 1/125 and lower speeds you get a bit frustrated . The MC-Helios lens however is quite good : It's still running occasionally with my borrowed pentax P30. Don't get me wrong : I did take some great pictures with this camera (BW,Slides,color) , it's just not 100% reliable. I've read that older Zenit cameras used to be great , But this particular model isn't that great. Look for a begginner SLR somewhere else.

Customer Service

None. It would be cheaper to buy a new one.

Similar Products Used:

Pentax P30

Manual Hard Cheap

Shutter speeds (too few) Shutter courtains (too weak)

Cheap and reliable manual SLR. At 70$, you can try a really manual SLR and begin with the study of photography. Not "nice" at all, very few speeds, too slow the higher ones (1/250, 1/500) and too few the slow ones (1/30, 1/60). Slow flash sincro (1/30), shutter of coutains... BUT really iron horse, will be usable under any circunstances, good and cheap optics (you don't need to throw away those incredible Pentax SMC Takumar, even you can try an excellent russian fisheye for already $100...), nice and sharp pictures. If you want to study fotography, and don't want to spend too much money, give a try to this camera. Let the "wonderful" NikonF65 or Minoilta Dynax to those "new profesionals" that think that is the camera who takes the pictures, not the man behind.

Customer Service

None yet

Similar Products Used:

Pentax SP, Yashica TL Electro X, Praktica MTL 50

Manuel Cheap lenses Low repair cost

Shutter Speeds 1/30-1/500 and "B" Curtains Viewfinder Area, about %70 No good zoom lenses for M42

It is an ideal camera for a poor student. I didn't buy it, but the price of it is about 50usd. It is a beginner camera because it is a full manuel camera. Of course it has disadvantages; shutter speed,viewfinder area and the weak curtains. And it is hard to find a good quality zoom lens. But on the other hand, advantages are good and cheap russian lenses from market,low repair cost,cheap extension tubes and bellows.Shutter speeds are ideal for daylight. To brief, it is an good camera for the students, and manual camera users for this price. p.s.: i advice Zenit 122 K, which uses pentax K lenses.

Similar Products Used:

Zenit 12XP Zenit 11 Pentacon 200/4 Sigma xq 18mm

Everything's manual

Low reliability, high level of light inside the body (bad paint), small viewfinder, lousy controls, unreliable shutter, lens quality varies

Well, it's a kind of trip in time, but not a pleasant one. Entry-level full-manual SLR is hopelessly obsolete, with its prewar-Leica-style shutter, absence of slow speed, 67 per cent of frame in the wiewfinder, heavy weight and low reliability. You say, one cannot expect more from a machine that costs less than a primitive focus-free compact. I say, one can expect more from an entry-level SLR. My advice - opt for a used Pentax K1000, it won't let you down unexpectedly.

Customer Service

Get ready to call it!

Similar Products Used:

Ols Zeniths (from 50's Mk I through 12XP), East German Prakticas