LOMO LC-A
| ||
| ||
|
The LOMO Kompact Automat (LC-A) was produced by LOMO PLC in St. Petersburg, Russia from 1984 until 2005. This compact 35mm film viewfinder camera was copied from the Cosina CX-2, but lacks its self-timer and swiveling front; and is built with cheaper components. The LC-A used a 3-element Minitar lens with noticeable vignetting, while the Cosina CX-2 had a 5-element lens. It was also rebranded as Zenit or Zenith on export markets.
It was the LOMO LC-A that sparked the Lomographic Society (LSI).
After production ended, LSI contracted with Phenix Optical Company in China to create an updated version called the LC-A+. This features a Chinese copy of the minitar lens but a varient is produced by the LSI, the LC-A+ RL, which features a Russian made Minitar lens.
The LSI have also introduced an ultra wide angled model LC-wide, based on the LC-A+. This features a 17mm ultra wide angle Minigon 1 lens and allows adaptation of frame size.
LC-A Specifications
- Lens: Minitar-1 3 element 32mm 1:2.8
- Focus: zone focus 0.8, 1.5, 3m or inifinty
- Field of vision angle: 63 degrees
- Frame size: 36x24mm
- Aperture: f/2.8 to f/16
- Shutter: electromechanical program shutter
- Shutter speed: 1/500 to 2sec
- Exposure sensor: sits above film speed display
- Viewfinder: Frame lines, parallax error, Battery LED, Low light warning LED (shutter below 1/30sec), focus zone indicators.
- Flash: X-type syncronisation in hotshoe at 1/60. Aperture manually set.
- Film Speed: 25-400ASA (some models rated in GOST)
- Batteries: 3xSR-44P silver oxide
- Standard Tripod mount
- Not threaded for cable release
LC-A+ specification differences
- Chinese copy of Minitar lens
- Shutter speed: 1/500 to unlimited
- Film speed: 100-1600ASA
- No manual aperture control for flash
- Film Display window on rear door
- No focus zone markers in viewfinder
- Threaded for cable release
- Multiple exposure switch
- Fits LC-A+ dedicated accessories like the Krab underwater housing
LC-Wide Specifications
- 17mm Minigon 1 ultra-wide-angle lens 1:4.5
- Angle of View: 103 degrees (full frame)
- Focus range: 0.4m to infinity
- Focus: 2 zones 0.4-0.9m or 0.9m-infinity
- Shutter speed: 1/500 to unlimited
- Film speed: 100-1600ASA
- Multiple exposure switch
- Changeable framesize at film loading only
- Frame sizes: Full (36x24mm), Square-frame (24x24mm), Half-frame (17x24mm)
- Tripod & Cable release threaded
Links
- Lomo LC-A family and LC-Wide pages at Lomography
- Lomo LC-A FAQ at http://www.kataan.org/
- Lionel's Lomo LC-A page
- Lomo LC-A and French user manual on www.collection-appareils.fr by Sylvain Halgand
- Overview of LC-A variations at Sovietcams.com