I have a Seagull twin lens like the one in this video.I bought it in 1976,an old school film camera,and to its credit it takes decent photo's. I still have the camera to this day.
@tomscameras
5 ай бұрын
Now that I call a long time first owner! Nice to hear you still have got your camera :)
@ivarhakuse8572
Жыл бұрын
I’ve got one, bought it in Shanghai 1987. Found some pics I’d taken with it recently and was pleasantly surprised at the results. Their sharpness and clarity. I didn’t mind the edges so much as the subjects were always centre placed. It was my way of getting into 6x6 knowing that the big guys were always going to be be out of my pocket range. You just needed to remember to wind the film forward to ensure you didn’t take a double shot. Guess at these prices for film development and printing that we’re all going to learn how to do it ourselves.
@philmartin5689
Жыл бұрын
Multiple exposure was one of the great benefits of this camera. Inspired by John Blakemore, I'd lock it to a tripod and giving multiple exposures, I was able to get sharp images of static subjects, whilst getting wonderfully complex renditions of any adjacent moving subjects - static rocks and walls, compared to moving bushes and trees.
@tomscameras
Жыл бұрын
Yes, one of the great things of the technically more simple cameras such as the Seagull is that you can easily start your own photographic experiments! I admit I hardly ever did a multiple exposure, I really should give that a try as well!
@PhotoYipy
2 жыл бұрын
Nice, I like the pigeon photo, even if it’s slightly blurry. You know, it’s a sign of good luck when birds come to you, if it jumps on you, this indicates that you’re a kind guy, animal instinct is accurate. This camera reminds me of my Chinese friend when I was a student, 6x6 format produces much more detail which is a joy to view and to print. I wish my country’s film price is as cheap as China and Taiwan. The cost of film here is ridiculously expensive, $20 per roll + $16 processing fee that becomes $36 for 12 images, that is equivalent to US dollar $30. But the good thing about costly film photography is that, it forces us to not just think twice but think for half day before pressing the shutter button, hahaha.
@tomscameras
2 жыл бұрын
Yes the nice thing about 6x6 is really how easy you get all the detail. With 35mm it is always a sort of struggle, you have to nail focus, you have to use the best film, you have to do the best scan or really watch your technique in the darkroom. It is a pity that film is so expensive in some parts of the world. At least, today we all have digital to practice a lot ... instead of having to use film for test shots etc. as well :)
@donaldcongdon9095
2 жыл бұрын
Very enjoyable! Another good starter TLR is a Yashica A. Pretty similar mechanically and optically to your Seagull. Actually, I prefer the red window advance system to the automatic crank method. One less thing to fail. Keep up the nice work Thomas!
@tomscameras
2 жыл бұрын
Yes! I didn't shoot it yet but I hear that the older Yashica models are actually the ones to get, instead of the Yashica Mat 124 :) Myself, I'm now really on a mission now to find my "definite" 6x6 camera. And it might be that I'm going for a Rolleiflex. But I haven't really decided yet. There are some other nice 6x6's that I can access right now, and I want to shoot them first. :)
@analogflow
8 күн бұрын
The small red dot is self timer...😀 is quite a decent TLR camera, durable and easy to use.
@operatorpsyduck2035
11 ай бұрын
my dad used to work for Canon in china, the company they hired to manufacture their cameras owns Seagull, that's how i have an A and B model never used in my house! really hoping to find the time to load them up and take them for a spin!
@tomscameras
11 ай бұрын
Many thanks for your comment. I'm sure you're going to have a lot of fun trying out the Seagull!
@MateuMatheu
2 жыл бұрын
*SA-85 HAIOU*, the same taking lens of the 4A-103 that I have: 3 groups, 3 elements. I say that because many suggest that the 4A-103 is the most advanced model but only the 4A-1, constructed in Tessar type, has 4 elements according to the specifications of the triptych-manual. For the rest I believe the 4A main advantage is in the f/2.8 of the viewing lens (also 3 groups, 3 elements) with Fresnel wiewfinder. Decently very bright. More than most Rolleiflex/Rolleicord of the 50s I've tried.
@tomscameras
2 жыл бұрын
Yes, the viewfinder of my Seagull is much more bright than my 1950's Rolleicord. I think it's not just the viewing lens, but also because the screen is a more modern design. (But you can exchange Rolleicord screens, also in the older models, just by removing four screws and taking off the viewfinder assembly.)
@MateuMatheu
2 жыл бұрын
It’s funny how sometimes you love a brightscreen viewfinder more than a higher optical quality lens.
@neilpiper9889
2 жыл бұрын
I have this camera. I like it. I am just going to try it with some Shanghai GP3 100 film
@tomscameras
2 жыл бұрын
Sounds you have great fun with it, which is great! :)
@Dahrenhorst
2 жыл бұрын
TLRs are my very favorite cameras and the one camera type I use the most. I have a dozen different ones right now, still can't really decide which is my favorite one. Right now it's a Voigtländer Brillant S with the Heliar lens and Compur Rapid shutter - it has the brightest viewfinder of them all, and it is the smallest and most lightweight of them all - and the lens is in a class of its own among TLRs, not regarding sharpness, but character. But I also really like the Rolleiflex T (which may soon become my favorite again), the Flexaret VII, or the Japanese Koniflex (which also has a Heliar type lens, but much sharper) and Olympusflex B with its 6-element f2.8 lens. I didn't use a Seagull TLR yet, though, but I have two of their 203 rangefinder folders - very underrated cameras. The red pointed lever, btw, activates the self timer, when you push it centered under the taking lens. One hint when you shoot with a TLR: use a neck strap. It not only makes holding the camera significantly easier, it also can be used to better stabilize the camera when using longer shutter speeds: just pull the camera down until the strap becomes really stretched and rigid, and it works like some kind of reverse monopod.
@tomscameras
2 жыл бұрын
Thanks for your hint with the neck strap. After the Seagull, I went on and bought a Rolleicord Va, which is my main 6x6 by now. The Seagull is nice but the Rolleicord is of course nicer! The one thing is that when you've got a Rolleicord, you always think you need a Rolleiflex as well - but I enjoy my Rolleicord so much that the lust to look for a Rolleiflex is well controllable so far. 😃 I've got a Voigtländer Brilliant that was part of a big collection where the heirs asked me for some assistance to sell off all the stuff. Didn't find the time to shoot it yet! And yes, now that I started shooting TLR's - and also shot some 6x6 folders as well as 6x6 SLR's again after a long break ... I absolutely love the TLR's and I believe it's the sweet spot of 6x6 camera design!
@Dahrenhorst
2 жыл бұрын
@@tomscameras The Voigtländer Brillant TLRs are no "normal" TLRs, since they have either no or a very simplistic rangefinder. There are several versions of the Voigtländer Brillant around. Make sure that you get a Brillant S (this is the one where you can use the viewfinder as a rangefinder, you can't actually focus the other ones using the viewfinder), and if possible with the Heliar lens (those are quite pricey, though), although the Skopar lens is not bad either. I avoid the Rolleicords a bit, because I think that the rangefinder is kind of dim and dark, mainly because the lens is only f3.2 (while the Brillant's viewfinder is f2.2). But should I eventually run into a bargain Cord Vb, I would buy it without a thought, although I may never actually use it.
@philmartin5689
Жыл бұрын
My first camera was a Pentax ME Super but for some reason it did not gel with me but I bought a second hand Seagull for a fifth of the cost and then suddenly my photography took off in leaps and bounds. I think it was the discipline of using a fully manual camera and it took remarkably good photographs.
@tomscameras
Жыл бұрын
Yes, these 6x6 cameras demand a bit more of attention. But once you've figured it out, it becomes very easy and natural, and the results speak for themselves!
@Mucklegipe
Жыл бұрын
The B is a fine camera, (with crank) but 6x6 only, where I would like to try 6x4, which only the B seems to facilitate, via a mask.
@tomscameras
Жыл бұрын
Yes as far as I know both the B and C models facilitate 6x4.5cm photos with a mask that you insert. I never tried out that feature, of course it’s a bit inconvenient when using the waist level finder if you want to do a portrait shot. On the other hand, you get 16 instead of 12 photos on one roll of film!
@25myma
2 жыл бұрын
Great and essential as always! Just curious; how is the image quality of this compared to the Nettar you had on your previous video?
@tomscameras
2 жыл бұрын
Thank you ! Well I don't really want to make a direct comparison cause I shot different films actually. I would however say that the Nettar lens beats the Seagull lens a little bit. Maybe just due to the even bigger format. In the end, both lenses have their real weakness in the borders and corners because they are just triplet designs. I don't blame them for that. I'm now shooting a 6x6 Voigtländer Perkeo II which also has a Tessar-type lens (Voigtländer Skopar 80/3.5) to find out how good these actually are!
@25myma
2 жыл бұрын
@@tomscameras yeah, also the lens glass looks a lot bigger on that.
@Herzblut08
9 ай бұрын
Schönes Video sehr sympathisch. Ich besitze das 4a Modell aber was ich an der 4b besser finde ist die Möglichkeit 6x6 und 6x4,5 zu schießen. Bei der 4a wüsste ich nicht, dass 6x4,5 möglich ist da die Transportkurbel den Film ja immer gleich weiter transportiert. LG
@tomscameras
9 ай бұрын
Dankesehr für das nette Feedback! Ich persönlich finde 6x4.5 immer etwas anstrengend, das liegt vielleicht daran, daß ich dann gerne und oft im Hochformat fotografiere ... dann bräuchte man also ein Prisma und das macht so eine Kamera natürlich deutlich unhandlicher. Aber wenn das nicht stört, ist das Format natürlich sehr gut und auch praxisnah, immerhin 16 statt 12 Bilder pro Film!
@KevinPan1
5 ай бұрын
perhaps the best Chinese camera
@tomscameras
5 ай бұрын
In contrast to lenses, there’s just not a lot of Chinese brands that make cameras!
@KevinPan1
5 ай бұрын
@@tomscameras Seagull, Great Wall and Phoenix used to make film cameras, and now DJI makes pocket cameras, sport cameras and drones, all of which are Chinese brands.
@tomscameras
5 ай бұрын
@@KevinPan1 sure, there’s also a lot of smartphones made in China, even the iPhones. But I was more thinking in terms of system or stand-alone compact cameras. Many are made in China, but few are Chinese brands.
@KevinPan1
5 ай бұрын
@@tomscameras Yeah, but the brands I'm talking about aren't just made in China, they're designed in China
@KevinPan1
5 ай бұрын
@@tomscameras Although China can not make SLR, mirrorless cameras, but DJI's sports cameras and pocket cameras are comparable to GoPro.
@shred3005
2 жыл бұрын
Wow, i haven’t seen a TLR in use in a long, long time. I have a Lubitel 166B TLR from the early 1980s. Russian copy of a Voigtländer. The Lubitel was famous for being the cheapest medium format camera. Less than £20 new back in the day. It’s controls, film winder, self timer etc all work exactly the same as that Seagull except the construction of the Lubitel is way cheaper than the Seagull (the Lubitel felt like the film door could pop open at any time as just pressed shut, no full clip to keep the door closed) and I understand the Seagull has a better lens. However I had a lot of fun with it, processing my old B&W film and making prints under a red light in my windowless laundry. Fun days. I’ve still got it somewhere. They are selling on eBay and places many times than the original price 🤔
@tomscameras
2 жыл бұрын
Thanks for your comment! I had a Lubitel briefly in my hands, sadly the shutter didn't work well. So I didn't shoot with it. The biggest difference is that the Lubitel has that "clear" focusing screen. And it is a plastic body. On the other hand, it is super light-weight. Actually I also feel that carrying a 6x6 in the city, does create more attention than other camera types. Cause they look so obviously "classic old" to the spectators!
@kevinparkes417
2 жыл бұрын
The first camera I ever bought when I was about 11 years old was a Lubitel 2. As you say a cheaply built camera but I learnt a lot with it. Sadly I sold mine to upgrade to a Zenit B.
@mkshffr4936
2 жыл бұрын
Are there closeup/macro adapters available?
@tomscameras
2 жыл бұрын
I am not aware of any closeup attachments for the Seagull. A quick google search also didn't reveal any.
@blueprint8153
7 ай бұрын
I saw the original lens and yellow filter for close-range shooting on the Chinese e-commerce platform@@tomscameras
@Benjamin-of4ty
24 күн бұрын
You have the most danish german accent
@tomscameras
24 күн бұрын
Hahah, I've only been to Denmark once in my life! But I'll take it as a compliment :-p
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