Lubitel 166

Lubitel 166 (1980 Moscow Olympics Edition) image by Inspiredphotos (Image rights)

Lomo made this plastic-bodied Twin lens reflex medium format camera beginning circa 1976. It is an update of the Lubitel 2 and is very similar to that camera; in turn, it was followed by the similar Lubitel 166B and Lubitel 166 Universal. Of its two lenses, the lower one exposes the film, while the other is used for the viewfinder system. Like the earlier Lubitel models, the 166 has a bright viewfinder comprising not a ground-glass screen but a condenser lens with only a central ground-glass spot for focusing, like the focusing model of the Voigtländer Brillant of which the first Lubitel is a copy.

The Lubitel's coated, three-element 75 mm T-22 lens is a distinct improvement on the toy cameras this camera is sometimes lumped together with; but there is little question the primary design goal for the Lubitel was inexpensive production (Lubitel means 'amateur').

The Lubitel 166 uses 120 roll film and exposes 6x6cm square images. Shutter speeds are from 1/250 to 1/15 and a bulb setting, aperture from f/4.5 to f/22, and the close-focus limit is at just over a meter.