5 Frames With A Voigtlander CLR Rangefinder Camera – By Julian Higgs

By julianhiggs

Antique and Collectable shops have, until recently, not been places I have frequented. However, I have noticed a few old cameras in some, so in a quest to find a gem or two I have started to pop in on the off chance to see what I can find. After my success with the Olympus Trip 35 and my “new” Olympus 35RC I had caught the rangefinder bug. In one I found a Rollei LED, but they wanted too much for it, the FED4 I shot and sold came from a charity shop for £10.00, so I knew they were out there.

Then one day, on the way back from dropping my wife’s car off for a service, we wandered into Mannuccis Antiques Emporium in Dunstable. I didn’t hold out any hope of finding a classic Leica but thought I might find something interesting…

I struck lucky.

Not only were there a couple of cameras there, but they had what has turned out to be a lovely Voigtlnder CLR rangefinder. A quick barter on the marked price bought me the camera for £20.00! Bargain! With it’s match needle meter and 50 mm f2.8 Color-Skopar lens, it looked beautiful in the glass case. On inspection, I found the rangefinder patch a little dim, and the shutter release is in the wrong place for me, but I thought it was worth a go, even if for the Voigtlander name alone.

For its first outing I loaded it with Fuji Superia 200 colour film. I took it to a local classic car rally where my band was playing, and in between sets I went wandering with the camera.

The resulting images were truly amazing; sharp, well exposed, and such beautiful colours.

Have a look and let me know if you agree.

Trunk and Branch
The vein like structure running through the leaves of the tree
Chevy Pick Up rear quarter
The rear quarter of the beautifully patinated Chevy Pick Up
Sally
Sally, owner of the amazing Chevy pick up truck
Floral Tribute
A Floral Tribute left on a bench on Brighton seafront
Dolls Heads
Vintage Shop Chic

Cheers for now!

You can stay in touch with my work by visiting any of the following.

www.julianhiggsphoto.com
www.instagram.com/julian.higgs
www.eyeem.com/julianhiggs

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About The Author

By julianhiggs
A returning film photographer, musician and engineer. Darkroom owner and film lab experimenter. Always looking to see.
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Comments

David on 5 Frames With A Voigtlander CLR Rangefinder Camera – By Julian Higgs

Comment posted: 31/07/2018

You bartered the price before holding the camera? The courage of youth!
I love the "5 frames" short stories!
Thanks.
David
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julianhiggs replied:

Comment posted: 31/07/2018

Well, yes and no. I had it in my hands and played with it a bit. It all seemed to work so thought what the hell. ????

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Scott Edwards on 5 Frames With A Voigtlander CLR Rangefinder Camera – By Julian Higgs

Comment posted: 31/07/2018

VERY crisp... love the shot of Sally and the rear of the truck. They scream vintage.
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julianhiggs replied:

Comment posted: 31/07/2018

Thanks. They do have that look. Love this camera. And NO BATERIES!!

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JimW on 5 Frames With A Voigtlander CLR Rangefinder Camera – By Julian Higgs

Comment posted: 31/07/2018

Useful useable cameras are still out there. And they're enjoyable. Good find. Will you continue to use it?
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julianhiggs replied:

Comment posted: 31/07/2018

Hi Jim, I will, and am, currently loaded with Ilford HP5 as I have not shot any B&W in it yet. This may be the first of my home developed and printed films. I used to do all my own, but just getting back into my own darkroom, nearly finished.

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Nigel Haycock on 5 Frames With A Voigtlander CLR Rangefinder Camera – By Julian Higgs

Comment posted: 01/08/2018

Well done on a nice find. I'm a big Voigtländer fan and have several so always interested in seeing other people with them; your Vito CLR seems to be in great condition.

One small accuracy point which you may want to correct to enable more potential search hits; there is no 'h' in Voigtländer :)

Enjoy your camera
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julianhiggs replied:

Comment posted: 01/08/2018

Thanks Nigel, and thanks for the correction! :-) Fudge fingers.

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Nigel Haycock replied:

Comment posted: 01/08/2018

It;s easily done, I recently posted about my Superb and titled it Voigtlander Suberb! :D

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Kodachromeguy on 5 Frames With A Voigtlander CLR Rangefinder Camera – By Julian Higgs

Comment posted: 02/08/2018

Nice camera, typical beautiful chrome finish and mechanical workmanship. Does the selenium light meter in your camera still work?
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julianhiggs replied:

Comment posted: 02/08/2018

It's become one of my favourites, yes. It has its quirks like the shutter release position and the wind on is so quiet I still think it's not working! The meter is working perfectly it seems, used it for every shot and not one bad exposure. ????????????

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Nigel Haycock replied:

Comment posted: 02/08/2018

I know what you mean about the wind-on. My Vitoret LR is the same; silky smooth and light

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Tobias Eriksson on 5 Frames With A Voigtlander CLR Rangefinder Camera – By Julian Higgs

Comment posted: 05/08/2018

Thanks for sharing your excitement! The old Voigtlanders have great lenses in general. And the ones with rangefinder focusing are just real bargains. The CLR, Vitoret DR and Vito BR etc. So are the zone focus ones but they slow down the process of focusing.
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steve phillips on 5 Frames With A Voigtlander CLR Rangefinder Camera – By Julian Higgs

Comment posted: 24/09/2019

Good to see somebody else enjoying this very solid lump of a camera! I bought one for the same price a few weeks ago. Like yours, the rangefinder patch is pretty well invisible, and the meter might be a bit out - on a "Sunny 16" day it was suggesting f/8. We compromised at f/11 and the results were fine. One thing which surprises me is that the shutter speed ring turns smoothly without clicks at each setting. Reading other reviews, I know the aperture ring does this, but the reviews and the manual mention the shutter speeds moving in steps. Is this normal?
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julianhiggs replied:

Comment posted: 24/09/2019

Hi Steve, it's a great camera, such a lovely lens. You are correct, a stepless aperture ring, but my copy has a soft detent to the shutter ring. I have had an issue with frame advance but I think it was down to me not engaging the rewind knob fully after loading the next film when changing. Be nice to see some of your work with yours! Cheers!

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