My "broken" Leica CL film camera

Give Broken Ones a Chance – Shooting a Damaged Leica CL

By Dave Powell

If you had spotted the above Leica CL film camera on eBay, it might have been described like this:

USED LEICA CL (For Parts or Repair)

The camera’s viewfinder is missing its front and rear optical frames. But the lens looks great, the aperture works, and the winder winds. I don’t know if the shutter works properly. And I don’t have film or a battery to test it. So examine the photos carefully, as they are part of the product description.

In other words: “Buy at your own risk.”

A “Lucky” Find

But I didn’t buy the camera on eBay. About 20 years ago, I found it in a Goodwill junk bin, and forked over $3 for it. Regardless of how the camera came to be in that condition, its Summicron 1:2/40mm lens was in gorgeous working order. And that alone made it a steal I couldn’t refuse.

Then years later, after I bought one of Fuji’s first X-Pro1 mirrorless digitals, I decided to adapt the Summicron to the X-mount (and consigned the CL body to a shelf). I was amazed at how much better than my X-Pro lenses the f/2 “Cron” is at differentiating subtle shades of color. And it remains a favorite lens for low-light digital photography.

The Caffenol Effect

Last year, the joys of at-home Caffenol development lured me back to film. So I popped the lens back on the CL, loaded some Tri-X 400, and on a sunny late afternoon, took it out for a short walk. Using Sunny-16 metering, these two images were the only usable ones I got:

Two "noir-ish" early shots from the Leica CL

I do love “noir.” But something other than the viewfinder seemed broken.

Watching the camera’s cloth shutter in action, I saw two problems. First, the slower speeds from 1/30th to 2 seconds appeared to work fine. (Bulb doesn’t work at all). But the faster speeds I’d used for those shots (1/60th second and up) were all timing at around 1/30th. Exercising the shutter at full f/2, I also noticed that its curtains– which move vertically rather than horizontally– blocked the entire upper half of the film gate at the higher speeds. Only the lower half of the aperture passed light to film. It may be what’s called “shutter capping.”

And that’s when I decided to try again, but this time, I would work around the camera’s obvious troubles.

Making a Silk Purse From a Sow’s Ear

Yep, that old farmer’s wheeze is what I decided to do. Without its outer optical elements, the camera’s viewfinder/meter assembly was unusable. Sunny-16 metering for outdoor exposures was a logical solution.

But with the camera’s fastest working shutter speed of 1/30th second, I probably couldn’t shoot bright sunny scenes with ISO 400 (or even 100) film. I could limit my next outing to low-light conditions, but wanted to try a better approach.

Slow Film

I ordered a roll of ISO 50 AGFA Copex Rapid Microfilm that was spooled for 35mm cameras. Its low speed would widen my shooting opportunities to near normal. And Sunny 16 would suggest settings like these for ISO 50 daylight shots:

  • Full sun: 1/50th second @ f/16
  • Bright cloudy: 1/50th second @ f/11
  • Cloudy: 1/50th second @ f/8
  • Overcast: 1/50th second @ f/5.6
  • Sunset/Dusk: 1/50th second @ f/4

However, 1/50th second wasn’t unavailable, and 1/30th at the above apertures would overexpose. But black-and-white films tend to enjoy a bit more light and I decided to use 1/30th at the above apertures.

I also decided to save slower shutter speeds for the low-light, tripod-mounted, interiors that would follow. (I estimated their exposures with an Olympus C-8080 WZ digicam– the same camera I use to easily digitize film for this and other 35mmc articles.)

Added Equipment

The only other bits I needed were a vintage rangefinder accessory (on the table in front of the camera below) and an external viewfinder (mounted in the camera’s flash shoe). I later realized that I didn’t really need the rangefinder accessory. As you also see here, the lens is very clearly marked for Hyperfocal Focusing:

Additional accessories for the Leica CL

Plus a Caffenol Adjustment

Copex Rapid is high-contrast microfilm, so I felt that my usual Caffenol recipe and procedure should be adjusted “downward.” Otherwise, the negatives might suffer severely blocky black/white contrasts. Searching the web for others’ experiences, I tweaked my usual procedure (for one roll of film):

  1. Boil 60ml of filtered water in a Pyrex measuring cup.
  2. Stir in 8 tsp of non-decaf instant coffee for about 3 minutes (or until fully dissolved).
  3. Add 65ml of cold filtered water.
  4. Continuously stir in 3 tsp of non-hydrous soda ash for about 3 minutes (or until dissolved).
  5. Top up the developer with 125ml of cold filtered water and stir until everything is mixed.
  6. Add 1 tsp of vitamin-C powder and stir until the fizz fully dissolves.
  7. Add one or two ice cubes and stir until an instant-read thermometer reads 20C (68F). Then remove remaining ice. You should have 1 cup (or slightly more) of Caffenol developer.
  8. Pour the Caffenol into the developing canister with the film.
  9. Do 10 slow agitations and stand the canister on the counter with a good tap (to dislodge any air bubbles that may have formed on the film).
  10. Then do 3 slow agitations every 3 minutes for around 16 minutes (again tapping the canister on the counter after each trio of agitations).
  11. After 16 minutes, pour the Caffenol down the drain.
  12. Pour tap water into the canister to “stop” development, agitate, and pour down the drain. Repeat 3 or 4 times until the discarded water is colorless.
  13. Fix the negatives with a 3-minute slow agitation of 1 part Ilford Rapid Fixer to 4 parts water– and save the used fixer in a sealed, light-tight container for future use.
  14. Pour tap water into the canister and invert 5 times to begin rinsing out the fixer. Fill again with tap water and invert 10 times. And finally, fill with clean filtered water and invert 20 times. (I use filtered water for the last cleaning because our “hard” tap water has high mineral content.)
  15. Then, I hung and weighted the film with medium-sized binder clips, and gently squeegeed it front and back with a soft-edged silicone spatula (to remove water).

NOTE: My general impression from this was that the Caffenol fluid was more coffee-dense than I used for faster black-and-white films. But the agitation procedure was shorter and more gentle. Iodized salt was also omitted from this recipe because Copex Rapid isn’t a high-speed film, and theoretically, shouldn’t suffer “fogging.”

Decent Results!

Though this was my first time developing microfilm, the negatives came out nicely. And it’s good that I like contrast!

NOTE: My only post processing for these photos was cropping for visual interest and re-spreading their grayscale tones across the full spectrum using my photo editor’s Levels command.

Snowy front yard, early morning
A snowy early morning (1/30 sec @ f/16)
Snowy deck chairs
Deck chairs (1/30 sec @ f/16)
Branching tree
Branching tree (1/30 sec @ f/11)
Old rock wall and snow
Snowy woods and old stone wall (1/30 sec @ f/8)
Pole lamp and snow
Snow-capped lamp post and Japanese lantern (1/30 sec @ f/8)
Lamp and two vases
Then later that night, a grain basket, night table, lamp and two vases (1/15 sec @ f/2.8, tripod mounted)
Lamp and Mexican vase
Night table, lamp and Mexican vase (1/4 sec @ f/4, tripod mounted)
Groton Hill (Mass.) Music Center
The following day, we attended a neighbor’s piano recital at the beautiful new Groton Hill Music Center in Groton Massachusetts. (1/30 sec @ f/8)
Detail of new Groton Hill Music Center
Architectural detail of the Groton Hill Music Center (1/30 sec @ f/8)

Final Thoughts

I found a YouTube video about fixing the CL’s shutter problem– but wanted to first shoot around the issue for this article before risking the operation. If I decide to try it (and succeed), I’ll post.

However, giving “broken ones” a chance may be an idea for our times. With prices of vintage cameras rising ever higher, trolling online marketplaces for “as-is/parts-repair/untested/or just-plain-cheap” units could be cost-effective fun. One would, of course, need enough info from sellers to anticipate ways to work around their cameras’ issues. And some listings provide this. Listing photos should also be CLOSELY examined for signs of dirt, damage, battery leakage and lens scratches/haze/fungus.

And a maximum price should be set. For instance, I just searched the “Bay’s” 35mm film cameras, from sellers in the United States, sorted from lowest to highest cost (including shipping), and found nearly fifty interesting possibles for under $20. Some had viewfinder covers with cracked plastic corners. (I already have a couple quite usable cameras with the same issue.) Others had battery doors that won’t remain closed. (Though a bit of a pain, gaffer’s tape has helped me with that before.) And slight battery leakage can be easily cleaned.

It can be entertaining to see what’s on offer for very little. But even more usefully, try searching for a specific camera that’s always interested you. This can be especially effective if the camera also happens to be little-known. I’ve always been interested in (admittedly well-known) Pentax Espio and IQ Zoom cameras. Many of them are relatively new (2001 to 2002) and rather nicely built. When I searched for them, a large percentage were simply “untested for lack of batteries and film” OR just low-priced and in great apparent condition. In either case, if a seller also seems honest and has good reviews, I might take a chance.

But back to my poor Leica CL. It lacked nearly everything— no usable viewfinder, no trustworthy meter, and a cobbled shutter. But its lens was perfect. And the only thing it needed to capture nice photos in a WIDE range of lighting conditions was slow film and one or two cheap accessories.

So just for fun, try sorting online camera listings from lowest- to highest-cost and see if any broken bargains happen to come your way. Just don’t pay a lot for them.

–Dave Powell is a Westford, Mass., writer and avid amateur photographer.

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About The Author

By Dave Powell
Trained in mathematics, physics, cosmology, computer programming and science journalism. Retired mathematician, award-winning technical and journalistic writer. Past winner of an international business-journalism equivalent of the Pulitzer Prize. And past author and editorial advisor for Sesame Street... where I regularly worked with Jim Henson and Kermit!
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Comments

Philip on Give Broken Ones a Chance – Shooting a Damaged Leica CL

Comment posted: 27/03/2024

The 40mm Summicron f2 is a very good lens, one of my favourites. If you like film buy a Voigtlander film camera with M bayonet mount to do the lens justice.
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Dave Powell replied:

Comment posted: 27/03/2024

Funny you should suggest that Philip. I prefer to use compact (even pocket-able) cameras, and have been researching Vito II folders. But, naturally, it wouldn't take the Summicron f2. Any recommendations for a "smaller" M-mount camera (other than a Minolta CLE or "good" Leica CL)? Many Thanks! Dave

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Michael Sherman on Give Broken Ones a Chance – Shooting a Damaged Leica CL

Comment posted: 27/03/2024

Great article - inspiring searches. Beautiful photos! You certainly found a great workaround.
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Dave Powell replied:

Comment posted: 27/03/2024

I'm so glad you liked it, Michael! I was amazed at how much it helped to simply look at the broken camera from a different point of view (i.e. as a slow-film shooter). I'd also feared that Sunny 16 wouldn't work as well for low-speed film... but that surprised me too.

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Geoff on Give Broken Ones a Chance – Shooting a Damaged Leica CL

Comment posted: 27/03/2024

I love this! Beautiful pictures. Having just replaced a dead capacitor in Minolta X300 that I picked up for next to nothing, I think it's time to be a bit more adventurous...
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Dave Powell replied:

Comment posted: 27/03/2024

Well, Geoff, having no electrical talents myself, I think replacing capacitors is marvelously adventurous! I'm so glad you loved the article!

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John F. on Give Broken Ones a Chance – Shooting a Damaged Leica CL

Comment posted: 27/03/2024

Good article, good find! It reminds me of a conversation I was having with a friend about how we tend to have greater creativity when there is a measure of restriction imposed upon us. Do you find the limitation from the malfunctioning camera enhanced your creative efforts? Either way the shots came out great!
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Dave Powell replied:

Comment posted: 27/03/2024

You've hit an important nail right on the head, John! The value of restrictions extends to many art forms. I studied poetry writing for 10+ years, and its sometimes "restrictive forms"-- like Haiku, Pantoum, Villanelle-- can often focus one's efforts. A very good point!

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Gary Smith on Give Broken Ones a Chance – Shooting a Damaged Leica CL

Comment posted: 27/03/2024

Thanks for the article Dave, you example shots look great. Maybe I'd be more inclined to tinker with a $3 investment than one costing hundreds. Food for thought as I continue to resist the "collector" label.
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Dave Powell replied:

Comment posted: 27/03/2024

Glad you like the shots, Gary... But I suppose my search suggestions won't help you resist becoming a collector!

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Gary Smith replied:

Comment posted: 27/03/2024

I'd be interested to hear your take on what the JWST is doing to our cosmology model.

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Dave Powell replied:

Comment posted: 27/03/2024

Who boy, Gary... that's a huge question... and I'll try to keep my answer brief and general !! But first, to relate this to 35mmc's photography focus, there's a reason why the James Webb Space Telescope's 21.5-meter (unfolded) mirror is coated with 48.25g of gold-- about the mass of a golf ball, and on its own, worth about 3,400 USD. NASA wanted the telescope to see back in time 13 billion years-- to almost the beginning of the universe 13.8 billion years ago (though some scientists think its age should be nearly doubled). To look back that far, the telescope had to be able to see though "cosmic" quantities of intergalactic dust. Infrared radiation passes right through dust that would block visible light, and the JWST mirror's gold-plating focuses IR wavelengths onto the telescope's cameras. For a BIGGLY digital-IR peek back into time! But now... to your question. In a way, the last time cosmologists thought they truly understood the origin and nature of the universe may have been in the 1920s, when Edwin Hubble "discovered the expansion of the universe." And rewinding the cosmic clock, his discovery implied that the universe must have been born in some sort of gigantic "Big Bang" But over the decades, each peek deeper into space (and farther back in time)-- using visible light, radio waves, microwaves, IR radiation and even (someday) gravity itself-- has raised more questions than it answered. And the JWST's biggest contribution to our growing cosmological confusion may be its observations that put the very idea of an original Big Bang in doubt. For instance, its photos reveal a higher density of mature galaxies and massive black holes near the universe's birth than cosmologists expected. For if the universe was born in a single central blast, then matter should appear more spread-out at the outer limits of the initial shock wave... and more concentrated near ground zero. Just like shrapnel spreads out from a bomb blast. In other words, the Webb discovered galaxies and black holes that-- at our universe's "cosmic dawn"-- were fully grown adults when they should have been babies. Another JWST mystery was its more exact measurement of the "Hubble Constant"-- the expansion rate of the universe. It's way off from previous estimates... and makes cosmologists think there's more going on around us than we know. Again, that's all extremely general wording. But all along, cosmologists have debated many other ideas about the universe that they hope the JWST may help resolve. For they distinguish between TWO different universes: the "local" visible one that we see and the "global" or "topological" one that includes-- but stretches far beyond-- our vision. Every experiment that cosmologists have done suggests that our local visible universe is a flat, zero-curvature, 3D space that would extend into infinity in all directions. But our measurements are not yet fine enough to know for sure. Instruments like Webb (and others to come) may well detect the signs that everything we see is only a tiny, SEEMINGLY flat, portion of the much larger 3D surface of a higher-dimensional sphere. (Or perhaps even part of an immense, negatively curved, saddle-shaped space.) For now, though, all measurements indicate that we live in an infinite, flat universe. But that idea brings its own difficulties. For that reason, a current alternative theory suggests that the universe may not have originated in a single Big Bang explosion. Instead, all of its energy may have blasted into existence throughout the ENTIRE universe, and all at once. It's an intriguing notion that might play well with some quantum theories about the universe (especially one called Loop Quantum Gravity). But I'll stop there… it's a whole other can o'worms! Bottom line: The more cosmologists study the universe, the less they feel they understand. And the Webb telescope has already given them LOTS to loose sleep over!

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Dave Powell replied:

Comment posted: 27/03/2024

I'm sorry Gary that the new system currently removes paragraph breaks from comments!

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Peter Roberts on Give Broken Ones a Chance – Shooting a Damaged Leica CL

Comment posted: 27/03/2024

Great article, Dave.
I rarely resist to temptation to rescue a battered heap of junk from a charity shop (aka thrift store in your part of the world). There's a great satisfaction about squeezing at least a few decent shots out of them. And there's always the chance that you'll strike lucky, quite a few of mine have become favourite regular users.
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Dave Powell replied:

Comment posted: 27/03/2024

Thanks Peter... and I think the Leica CL has become my favorite "slow-film" shooter!!

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Paul Quellin on Give Broken Ones a Chance – Shooting a Damaged Leica CL

Comment posted: 27/03/2024

Just great that Dave, full of helpful detail. I have only done Caffenol once and determined to make some more soon (I don't drink coffee so it seems like more of an effort). Really liked the results from this and a broken camera... amazing. I particularly liked the branching tree. I enjoyed the part about tracking down bargains. I make a habit of this and its becoming a little like a gambling addiction. I tell myself I have become skilled at spotting what is genuinely good and what isn't. In reality, I have bought some bad cameras as well as getting really lucky sometimes. I currently have a couple where I have to work around known defects, it does challenge you. The main thing is its all great fun... I just need more space now. Thanks
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Dave Powell replied:

Comment posted: 27/03/2024

Much appreciated, Paul! And you probably wouldn't want to drink the coffee that's often best for Caffenol. The usual recommendation is cheap, strong, non-decaf instant. In short, the LESS drinkable, the better! I too found myself a bit addicted to the searches. There's always "What about THIS camera?" or "Maybe THAT model?" One certainly needs more space... and time! Thanks Paul! Dave

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Ibraar Hussain on Give Broken Ones a Chance – Shooting a Damaged Leica CL

Comment posted: 28/03/2024

Always a fascinating and insightful read followed by great photography!
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Dave Powell replied:

Comment posted: 28/03/2024

I'm so glad my friend!! I don't know when I'll finish it, but am working on a short series about half-frame photography that could be great fun too!

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