Working model of vintage Leica camera ...
 
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AnnieR
(@annier)
Reputable Member
Working model of vintage Leica camera ...

I hope the photos post ok. This isn't done yet but I'm happy and proud about the way it's turned out so far.

This is, or will be, a working model, as in actually takes real pictures, of a vintage Leica III camera. It's all my own drafts, working from photos of originals, and has a Raspberry Pi Zero 2 to control it and a Raspberry Pi HQ camera module to do the image capture. 12.3 mpx.

Right now I got a cheap cctv lens to get it going but over the holidays I'll be looking at some used shops for some vintage 16mm movie camera lenses which will give better photos. 

Anyway, I'll post more on this as it takes shape, but I wanted to show it off now. 

Posted : 10/12/2021 1:17 am
bobstro, Lemsko, karl-herbert and 3 people liked
Chris Laudermilk
(@chris-laudermilk)
Estimable Member
RE: Working model of vintage Leica camera ...

That looks great! I happen to have a Leica I and III, and the photo of your model looks pretty good.

Mini+ (kit) - Revo Micro | Antler Cooling | WiFi (4.4.0RC1)

Posted : 10/12/2021 3:22 pm
AnnieR
(@annier)
Reputable Member
Topic starter answered:
RE: Working model of vintage Leica camera ...

 

Posted by: @chris-laudermilk

That looks great! I happen to have a Leica I and III, and the photo of your model looks pretty good.

Thx Chris. Out of curiosity, are you perhaps on RFF?

Posted : 11/12/2021 7:23 pm
RandyM9
(@randym9)
Honorable Member
RE: Working model of vintage Leica camera ...

That’s really cool! Very impressive work. I’ll be interested to see the final product and hear how the functionality works out.

Best of luck!

Posted : 12/12/2021 5:35 am
Chris Laudermilk
(@chris-laudermilk)
Estimable Member
RE: Working model of vintage Leica camera ...

 

Posted by: @annier

 

Posted by: @chris-laudermilk

That looks great! I happen to have a Leica I and III, and the photo of your model looks pretty good.

Thx Chris. Out of curiosity, are you perhaps on RFF?

Nope. I think I looked over there a handful of times a while back, but I haven't been heavily into those cameras. The Leicas were inherited, one just recently. So, I have a couple in hand, but not used. For doing film work, I am more interested in playing with the medium formats I have over 35mm. I have a DSLR for the 35mm camera body format.

Mini+ (kit) - Revo Micro | Antler Cooling | WiFi (4.4.0RC1)

Posted : 13/12/2021 6:35 pm
AnnieR
(@annier)
Reputable Member
Topic starter answered:
RE: Working model of vintage Leica camera ...

 

Posted by: @chris-laudermilk

 

Posted by: @annier

 

Posted by: @chris-laudermilk

That looks great! I happen to have a Leica I and III, and the photo of your model looks pretty good.

Thx Chris. Out of curiosity, are you perhaps on RFF?

Nope. I think I looked over there a handful of times a while back, but I haven't been heavily into those cameras. The Leicas were inherited, one just recently. So, I have a couple in hand, but not used. For doing film work, I am more interested in playing with the medium formats I have over 35mm. I have a DSLR for the 35mm camera body format.

Just curious, seems like most of the Leica fans I know are also RFF users. My user name there is dmr, my initials but I'm not as active as I was maybe 10y or so ago. 

I still shoot film, don't have a Leica, my RFs are Canon giii and Mamiya SD. I also have Pentax MX and MG and an older K1000. My only MF is a Yashica D which was handed down to me a few years ago. 

I do my own film processing, have the Jobo and set it up when I use it, kinda like the 3d printer. 

Thx 4 the compliments everyone! Turned out really nice so far. I'm now climbing the learning curve with the python programming getting it working. Got it to the point that I can click the shutter button and it will save the image to a file but that's about it. 

All fits together well, guess I took good measurements, huh? Most tricky part was the ribbon cable between the camera board and the Pi board, had to carefully fold it and put it in with tweezers. Glad that's a once in a lifetime experience!

I'll post more photos of it and sample shots as soon as the holidays are over, flying out to the Left Coast this week. 

Posted : 18/12/2021 5:54 pm
Chris Laudermilk
(@chris-laudermilk)
Estimable Member
RE: Working model of vintage Leica camera ...

 

Posted by: @annier

 

Posted by: @chris-laudermilk

 

Posted by: @annier

 

Posted by: @chris-laudermilk

That looks great! I happen to have a Leica I and III, and the photo of your model looks pretty good.

Thx Chris. Out of curiosity, are you perhaps on RFF?

Nope. I think I looked over there a handful of times a while back, but I haven't been heavily into those cameras. The Leicas were inherited, one just recently. So, I have a couple in hand, but not used. For doing film work, I am more interested in playing with the medium formats I have over 35mm. I have a DSLR for the 35mm camera body format.

Just curious, seems like most of the Leica fans I know are also RFF users. My user name there is dmr, my initials but I'm not as active as I was maybe 10y or so ago. 

I still shoot film, don't have a Leica, my RFs are Canon giii and Mamiya SD. I also have Pentax MX and MG and an older K1000. My only MF is a Yashica D which was handed down to me a few years ago. 

I do my own film processing, have the Jobo and set it up when I use it, kinda like the 3d printer. 

Thx 4 the compliments everyone! Turned out really nice so far. I'm now climbing the learning curve with the python programming getting it working. Got it to the point that I can click the shutter button and it will save the image to a file but that's about it. 

All fits together well, guess I took good measurements, huh? Most tricky part was the ribbon cable between the camera board and the Pi board, had to carefully fold it and put it in with tweezers. Glad that's a once in a lifetime experience!

I'll post more photos of it and sample shots as soon as the holidays are over, flying out to the Left Coast this week. 

Nice. I've been wanting to get my folders out to play with now that they have been CLA'ed and new bellows (Agfa Isolette III and Voightlander Perkeo II). The film that I have used a bit is the Mamiya 645 Pro. I just inherited a couple of Baby Rolleiflex 4x4, but I'm not sure they are functional since they've probably been sitting in a box for decades. Those might be fun to play with (at least the newer one I can get film for).

I do have most of the gear to do developing, but kids came along so that got set aside. I have a really good local shop that I've used to do developing. Only so much time and too many hobbies & other responsibilities.

Mini+ (kit) - Revo Micro | Antler Cooling | WiFi (4.4.0RC1)

Posted : 20/12/2021 3:01 pm
AnnieR
(@annier)
Reputable Member
Topic starter answered:
RE: Working model of vintage Leica camera ...

My dad used to shoot folders, had the old Kodak Monitor and Tourist models. I'm sure they would be worth quite a bit now, but I really don't know what happened to them. 

Posted : 22/12/2021 7:12 pm
AnnieR
(@annier)
Reputable Member
Topic starter answered:
RE: Working model of vintage Leica camera ...

Quick update, it's alive! 🙂

Having a bit of a challenge getting the focus dialed in but it's to the point that it actually takes pictures!

Posted : 12/03/2022 11:36 pm
bobstro, Lemsko and thm liked
hawai
(@hawai)
Reputable Member
RE: Working model of vintage Leica camera ...

What a fantastic "waste of time" to create something beautiful and cool 🙂

 

Seeing it put a fat smile on my face. Thanks for that!

Posted : 21/03/2022 10:36 pm
AnnieR
(@annier)
Reputable Member
Topic starter answered:
RE: Working model of vintage Leica camera ...

Hey, no waste of time at all! I enjoy doing it. Soon I'll be able to post some pictures from it as soon as I can get some focus issues fixed. 

Posted : 27/03/2022 4:09 pm
hawai
(@hawai)
Reputable Member
RE:

Sorry Annie, there seems to be a slight malfunction of your irony detector 😉

 

I truly admire people who put so much love, dedication and craftpersonship into something that might be considered "a waste of time" by most other people.

Posted : 02/04/2022 11:39 pm
Lemsko
(@lemsko)
Eminent Member
RE: Working model of vintage Leica camera ...

amazing, great work! 😎 😍 

Posted : 03/04/2022 2:28 am
bobstro
(@bobstro)
Illustrious Member
RE: Working model of vintage Leica camera ...
Posted by: @annier

This is, or will be, a working model, as in actually takes real pictures, of a vintage Leica III camera. It's all my own drafts, working from photos of originals, and has a Raspberry Pi Zero 2 to control it and a Raspberry Pi HQ camera module to do the image capture. 12.3 mpx.

There are a lot of retro computer projects that use Raspberry Pis to breathe life into old computers that can't be salvaged, usually just keeping the case. I wonder if there are similar old cameras that can't be restored, but could be used to house similar projects.

What software are you using on the RPi? Are the buttons functional?

 

My notes and disclaimers on 3D printing

and miscellaneous other tech projects
He is intelligent, but not experienced. His pattern indicates two dimensional thinking. -- Spock in Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan

Posted : 03/04/2022 6:00 pm
AnnieR
(@annier)
Reputable Member
Topic starter answered:
RE: Working model of vintage Leica camera ...

Yes, buttons work, so far for such things as graceful shutdown and flash on and off. 

I'm somewhat disappointed in the image quality of that so-called HQ Pi camera module. My images are quite soft compared to the sample pictures they claimed were shot by it. I've tried both a cheapo video camera lens and a c mount wide angle lens for a Bolex movie camera that I picked up at an antique shop over the holidays. Neither one gives cell phone camera quality images. 🙁 I've done both test targets and real life images and soft and fuzzy is the best it seems to do. 

The other day I got a come on for a start up that claims to have a 64 mpix Pi camera module and I may try that instead. 

I dunno about trying to stuff a pi and a camera module in an existing camera body? I shoot film cameras as is and enjoy it that way. I  did this more as a project to model something that I would never ever have and use. 

Posted : 24/04/2022 4:33 pm
AnnieR
(@annier)
Reputable Member
Topic starter answered:
RE: Working model of vintage Leica camera ...

Oops, sorry, forgot about the software question. 

It's not really software, just a script to look at the shutter button, then capture with the pi camera program, save it to a file, rinse, repeat. There is supposed to be a new camera library with the latest version of the OS but I haven't tried it yet. 

Posted : 24/04/2022 4:44 pm
jsw
 jsw
(@jsw)
Famed Member
RE: Working model of vintage Leica camera ...

I've done a few novelty vintage computer projects on the 3d printers, mainly as a diversion during the pandemic.

The Mini-Mac, the Micro-Mac, and a Mini Heath 89.

I have a working (full-size original) Imsai 8080, but I have thought of a mini model of it as well, with working front panel, of course.

All use a Pi of various types.  The Mini/Micro Macs run the appropriate Mac OS and the H89 runs both CP/M and HDOS, all under emulators on the Pi, of course.

The latest Hackspace magazine has, among other items, an article on modeling vintage computers.  It should be viewable on line at no charge.

Posted : 25/04/2022 12:20 am
jcjames_13009
(@jcjames_13009)
Estimable Member
RE:

Hi @AnnieR

Don't know where you are in this project but I just realize that there is a contest still open in Prusa site -> https://www.printables.com/contest/75-cameras-and-accessories

Sure you're model will have a chance to win it 😉 

JC

Prusa MINI+ at home / Prusa MK3S+ in the Fab Lab / You can have a look at my designs here printables.com

Posted : 26/07/2022 12:18 pm
AnnieR
(@annier)
Reputable Member
Topic starter answered:
RE: Working model of vintage Leica camera ...

Thx, but I'm not really into contesting. Doing it mostly for the love of doing so. I'll gladly share the files with anyone who wants them but I really don't feel like writing it up and formally posting. 

Hope you understand. 

Posted : 26/07/2022 11:07 pm
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