Baldina

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Balda Baldina

Specifications:

Type: Rangefinder

Lens: Schneider Kreuznach Xenar

Shutter: Compur Rapid

After my experience of using the Baldessa when I saw this advertised I though that this was a must have. It was advertised as having a faulty shutter but that's probably because the seller didn't realise that you have to pop the lens barrel out for it to work, the shutter is actually fine at all speeds. The only flaw is in the viewfinder which is cloudy because the rangefinder mirror is breaking down. This precedes the Baldessa by a couple of years, around 1953/4 and comes with the legendary Schneider Xenar lens.

Oh dear, what a disappointment. I was hoping for some first class shots from this camera but, sadly, this was not to be. I have problems on 2 counts. One is that I have a light leak, I would guess it's from the pop out lens and the second is the sharpness of the lens leaves a lot to be desired. The 2 may be connected in that the light leak will cause exposure problems which, in turn, will affect the sharpness, especially with scanning. I have only managed to salvage a few shots and even those needed some help. I think a strip down and refurbish is in order but that will have to wait.