>>3010381I develop myself when it comes to black and white. If I were to shoot color, I would send it to A and I photo lab in Los Angeles.
I just finished scanning and making my notes on this camera and the outcomes. I had a feeling that it wouldn't be without light leaks (even though the eBay seller claimed that he shot it at all settings and it was leak-less - liar), and I was right to be skeptical. Overall, though, I have to say that I almost like the light leaks in some instances, and I think it would be stupid to be too disappointed that a 60 year old Russian camera doesn't perform like an Xpan. It's certainly not tack sharp, but I think its actually pretty damn good for what it is. Looking at Jeff's shots from this thread, I would say that this Russian Widelux knockoff is pretty god damn close to what I see in his work with the real deal sharpness and quality-wise. For $170, I think if one can manage the light leak and poor close focus issues (I like what one poster had to say, it IS all about how you manage distortion), then this will be a good tool to use. I have to mention that one of the biggest drawbacks aside from the light leaks is that It's nearly impossible to get a clear shot of anyting remotely close to the lens at f/2.8.
I shot on Tri-X 400, and developed with HC-110 dilution B at 7 minutes, 68 degrees, agitating for the first full minute and then 5 inversions every 30 seconds. Most (though not all) of these were slightly over exposed due to the shutter speed only going to 1/125, but I compensated by under-developing for 30 seconds. Tri-x is also a forgiving film, with the drawback being that its not the finest grained or sharpest.
This shot was at f/11@125th
