Difference between revisions of "Praktica"

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'''Praktica''' started as the name of a model of 35mm SLR from [[KW]], introduced in 1949 and successor to the [[Praktiflex]].
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'''Praktica''' started as the name of a model of 35mm SLR from [[KW]], introduced in 1949 and successor to the [[Praktiflex]]. These cameras were one of the first to use the [[m42_lenses|M42x1]] mount.
  
 
It became a long-lasting series of SLRs produced by [[KW]] and then by [[Pentacon]]. The last Praktica produced was the '''BX20s''', discontinued in 2001.
 
It became a long-lasting series of SLRs produced by [[KW]] and then by [[Pentacon]]. The last Praktica produced was the '''BX20s''', discontinued in 2001.
  
''For a list of the Praktica models, see [[Pentacon]].''
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==Introduction==
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The Praktica series came into existence in the infancy of the 35mm SLR. When the Praktiflex was built, the [[Kine Exakta]] had been out a mere three years, and ten years later when the Praktica was introduced, the Exakta Varex was still one of the preeminent SLR's. It was a cinch that the Praktica line would be influenced by the Exakta, and in many ways, though most of them superficial, the two lines bear a resemblance to each other. Both began with waist-level finders, front-mounted shutter releases and angular, symmetrical bodies.
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 +
But the first Praktica dodges much of the weirdness of the Exakta in retrospect, as it anticipates much of what was to come--it was laid out in the normal manner of later 35mm cameras (following the [[Leica]]), with the canister at the photographer's left and the controls on the photographer's right. Rather than the narrow bayonet of the Exakta, which needed later to be supplemented with a second bayonet on the outer flange, it shares the [[Contax S]]'s wide and simple metric thread mount, what we call '''[[42mm screw lenses|M42 mount]]''', or sometimes "Pentax-Praktica mount," later to become ubiquitous in a way that the Exakta mount would not.
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At the same time, it is certainly not as luxurious as the Exakta Varex line, lacking removable focus screens, a robust interchangeable viewfinder screen, extremely long exposures, self timer et al. Nor is the construction as solid. But these factors, and the commonness of screw-mount lenses, contributed to make Praktica more accessible, and for a time, the line was very successful and was regularly exported to the Western bloc. Many modifications followed, some simple, such as changes to the viewfinder and lens mount, and some drastic.
 +
 
 +
==Overview==
 +
 
 +
The first '''M42''' camera is said to be the original "Praktica," which resembles the Praktiflex but has a redesigned body and viewfinder hood. Versions of the Praktica exist with no flash sync, multiple sets of vacublitz terminals, single PC socket, and/or special terminals recessed in a oval-shaped divot on the bottom of the camera. Some of these blur into later models with specific names, but all are labeled merely as "Praktica."
 +
 
 +
The early Prakticas are fairly typical of 50's SLR's, with a shutter bearing a resemblance to the original [[Leica]] focal-plane shutter: the shutter speed dial rotates in one direction when being cocked, then rotates quickly in the opposite direction when fired. Part of the dial is lifted up and turned relative to the whole to change the setting. Similar to other Leica-type shutters, though with an important distinction, a second timer must be engaged for slow speeds. The difference from, say, the [[Leica III]], is that this timer is engaged with a simple on-off switch, and its settings are on the same dial as the fast speeds.
 +
 
 +
The most consistent hallmark of the series would be the front-mounted shutter release. This placement originates in the Praktica's birth at a time when waist-level finders were standard on SLR's. Top-mounted shutter release would be less ergonomic when using the SLR at waist or chest height. There is a school of thought that the front-mounted shutter release allows a steadier grip and thus sharper handheld pictures.
 +
 
 +
The subsequent named models in the first series of Prakticas all consistently have two types of sync: X, universally, and one of several kinds of flashbulb sync, whether M, F, or "F." which is a delay slightly longer than "F". PC sockets became standard during the lifetime of the FX model, which also exists in a Vacublitz model.
 +
 
 +
F.X2 redesigns the viewfinder hood, compromising its core functionality somewhat<ref>this finder hood is very short when raised and often requires being shielded with the hand in overhead light</ref> in exchange for being able to put a removable pentaprism much closer to the focusing screen. F.X3 adds a bumper for Contax/Pentax-style automatic lenses, actuated directly by the shutter release. Large fixed prisms were added in the next model, the "Praktica IV," as was a rapid-advance trigger on the bottom plate that was kept through the "V." This trigger is in addition to the winding knob, which maintains its function as a frame counter.
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More drastic redesigns followed. The IV B introduced a built-in meter, the Nova remodeled various aspects of the body, the Praktica Mat introduced TTL metering; subsequent models introduced more and more modern features, moving away from the now-archaic model of SLR that the first Praktica was an example of. The shutter release would be redesigned, while remaining on the front of the camera, the rotating dial would vanish (and not be lamented), and TTL metering would become standard. Eventually the line pioneered the metallized plastic covering that would become standard on Japanese SLR's in the 70's, though with the lag of technology in the Eastern Bloc, the line would never regain its former prestige or place as a high-end cutting-edge SLR.
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For other Praktica products, like compact cameras, 120 rollfilm cameras or digital products, please refer to the [[Pentacon]] pages. 
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__TOC__
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{|class=plainlinks
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||[http://www.flickr.com/photos/eastgermanpics/2355086188/in/pool-camerawiki http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3279/2355086188_a6ac4dfe37.jpg]
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||[http://www.flickr.com/photos/eastgermanpics/2978523956/in/pool-camerawiki http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3223/2978523956_cf64ee6aba.jpg]
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|-
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||Ilafot shop in [[Dresden]] 1984||Dresden, Prague Street, in 1991
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|-
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|<small>images by {{image author|Jim Cooper}}</small> {{with permission}}
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|}
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==List of ''Praktica'' [[35mm]] SLRs==
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=== Praktiflex ===
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* [[Praktiflex]]
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=== Praktica / MX / FX ===
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<div class="floatright plainlinks">[http://www.flickr.com/photos/e-coli/354356290/in/pool-camerawiki http://farm1.static.flickr.com/132/354356290_6b9ee39376_t.jpg]<ref>image of ''Praktica FX 2'' by {{image author|Michele M. F.}} {{non-commercial}}</ref></div>
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* [[Praktica (1949)|Praktica]]
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* Praktica MX
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* [[Praktica FX]]
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* Praktica "Modell III" (FX2)
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* [[Praktica F.X 2]]
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* [[Praktica F.X 2|Praktica F.X 3]]
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{{Praktica SLRs (Pentacon)}}
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== Production issues ==
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Part of the production of Practica cameras was made by state prisoners of the former postwar ''German Democratic Republic'' (GDR, separate Republic in Soviet-occupied Eastern Germany) who were imprisoned in the jail of Cottbus for penal servitude. When that fact became public German distributors stopped selling Practica cameras, except ''Otto mailorder-house'' and [[Foto-Quelle]].<ref>Tagesschau June 15th 2023: "[https://www.tagesschau.de/inland/regional/brandenburg/rbb-hat-der-otto-versand-kameras-aus-cottbuser-zwangsarbeit-verkauft-100.html Did Otto sell cameras out of enforced Cottbus prison labour?]"</ref>
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== References ==
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<REFERENCES/>
  
 
== Links ==
 
== Links ==
 
* [http://www.praktica-collector.de/ praktica-collector.de, all about Praktica]
 
* [http://www.praktica-collector.de/ praktica-collector.de, all about Praktica]
* [http://praktica-b.org/ Praktica B Kameras, Praktica B series cameras, lenses and accessories]
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<!--Commented out link, page no longer present/available, please remove if not returned by 08/2022 * [http://praktica-b.org/ Praktica B Kameras, Praktica B series cameras, lenses and accessories] -->
* [http://www.butkus.org/chinon/  Listing of some 44 Praktica models, with user manuals in PDF or HTML]
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* [http://www.butkus.org/chinon/praktica.htm Listing of most Praktica camera models, some multiple languages] user manuals in PDF format, from OrphanCameras.com
* [http://www.praktica-users.com/index2.html Praktica Users]
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* [http://www.dresdner-kameras.de/praktica/praktica.html normal Praktica variants] in [http://www.dresdner-kameras.de dresdner-kameras.de]
* [http://www.olhares.com/utilizadores/detalhes.php?id=6728 Some photos taken off with a Praktica MTL3]
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<!--Commented out link, page no longer present/available, please remove if not returned by 08/2022 * [http://www.olhares.com/utilizadores/detalhes.php?id=6728 Some photos taken off with a Praktica MTL3] -->
* [http://www.mflenses.com/content/view/67/29/ Genuine Praktica M42 lens list with review and sample gallery]
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* [https://kamerawerkstatt.com/museum Foto Krenkel's Praktica museum] (German)
 
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* [http://www.photo-manuals.com/manual/praktica/film-slr-camera Praktica Camera Manuals : Photo-Manuals.com]
 
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* [http://www.collection-appareils.fr/general/html/listeP_imagettes.php#Pentacon Pentacon] on [http://www.collection-appareils.fr/general/html/francais.php www.collection-appareils.fr] by Sylvain Halgand (in French)
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* [https://cameracollector.net/praktica-family/ Praktica family model list] at [https://cameracollector.net/ cameracollector.net]
 
[[Category: German 35mm SLR]]
 
[[Category: German 35mm SLR]]
 
[[Category: 42mm screw mount]]
 
[[Category: 42mm screw mount]]

Latest revision as of 11:43, 13 March 2024

Praktica started as the name of a model of 35mm SLR from KW, introduced in 1949 and successor to the Praktiflex. These cameras were one of the first to use the M42x1 mount.

It became a long-lasting series of SLRs produced by KW and then by Pentacon. The last Praktica produced was the BX20s, discontinued in 2001.

Introduction

The Praktica series came into existence in the infancy of the 35mm SLR. When the Praktiflex was built, the Kine Exakta had been out a mere three years, and ten years later when the Praktica was introduced, the Exakta Varex was still one of the preeminent SLR's. It was a cinch that the Praktica line would be influenced by the Exakta, and in many ways, though most of them superficial, the two lines bear a resemblance to each other. Both began with waist-level finders, front-mounted shutter releases and angular, symmetrical bodies.

But the first Praktica dodges much of the weirdness of the Exakta in retrospect, as it anticipates much of what was to come--it was laid out in the normal manner of later 35mm cameras (following the Leica), with the canister at the photographer's left and the controls on the photographer's right. Rather than the narrow bayonet of the Exakta, which needed later to be supplemented with a second bayonet on the outer flange, it shares the Contax S's wide and simple metric thread mount, what we call M42 mount, or sometimes "Pentax-Praktica mount," later to become ubiquitous in a way that the Exakta mount would not.

At the same time, it is certainly not as luxurious as the Exakta Varex line, lacking removable focus screens, a robust interchangeable viewfinder screen, extremely long exposures, self timer et al. Nor is the construction as solid. But these factors, and the commonness of screw-mount lenses, contributed to make Praktica more accessible, and for a time, the line was very successful and was regularly exported to the Western bloc. Many modifications followed, some simple, such as changes to the viewfinder and lens mount, and some drastic.

Overview

The first M42 camera is said to be the original "Praktica," which resembles the Praktiflex but has a redesigned body and viewfinder hood. Versions of the Praktica exist with no flash sync, multiple sets of vacublitz terminals, single PC socket, and/or special terminals recessed in a oval-shaped divot on the bottom of the camera. Some of these blur into later models with specific names, but all are labeled merely as "Praktica."

The early Prakticas are fairly typical of 50's SLR's, with a shutter bearing a resemblance to the original Leica focal-plane shutter: the shutter speed dial rotates in one direction when being cocked, then rotates quickly in the opposite direction when fired. Part of the dial is lifted up and turned relative to the whole to change the setting. Similar to other Leica-type shutters, though with an important distinction, a second timer must be engaged for slow speeds. The difference from, say, the Leica III, is that this timer is engaged with a simple on-off switch, and its settings are on the same dial as the fast speeds.

The most consistent hallmark of the series would be the front-mounted shutter release. This placement originates in the Praktica's birth at a time when waist-level finders were standard on SLR's. Top-mounted shutter release would be less ergonomic when using the SLR at waist or chest height. There is a school of thought that the front-mounted shutter release allows a steadier grip and thus sharper handheld pictures.

The subsequent named models in the first series of Prakticas all consistently have two types of sync: X, universally, and one of several kinds of flashbulb sync, whether M, F, or "F." which is a delay slightly longer than "F". PC sockets became standard during the lifetime of the FX model, which also exists in a Vacublitz model.

F.X2 redesigns the viewfinder hood, compromising its core functionality somewhat[1] in exchange for being able to put a removable pentaprism much closer to the focusing screen. F.X3 adds a bumper for Contax/Pentax-style automatic lenses, actuated directly by the shutter release. Large fixed prisms were added in the next model, the "Praktica IV," as was a rapid-advance trigger on the bottom plate that was kept through the "V." This trigger is in addition to the winding knob, which maintains its function as a frame counter.

More drastic redesigns followed. The IV B introduced a built-in meter, the Nova remodeled various aspects of the body, the Praktica Mat introduced TTL metering; subsequent models introduced more and more modern features, moving away from the now-archaic model of SLR that the first Praktica was an example of. The shutter release would be redesigned, while remaining on the front of the camera, the rotating dial would vanish (and not be lamented), and TTL metering would become standard. Eventually the line pioneered the metallized plastic covering that would become standard on Japanese SLR's in the 70's, though with the lag of technology in the Eastern Bloc, the line would never regain its former prestige or place as a high-end cutting-edge SLR.

For other Praktica products, like compact cameras, 120 rollfilm cameras or digital products, please refer to the Pentacon pages.

List of Praktica 35mm SLRs

Praktiflex

Praktica / MX / FX

Praktica IV / V

Praktica nova

Praktica PL nova

1st L-series generation

2nd L-series generation

3rd L-series generation

4th L-series generation

Praktica B-series

Praktica BX-series


Production issues

Part of the production of Practica cameras was made by state prisoners of the former postwar German Democratic Republic (GDR, separate Republic in Soviet-occupied Eastern Germany) who were imprisoned in the jail of Cottbus for penal servitude. When that fact became public German distributors stopped selling Practica cameras, except Otto mailorder-house and Foto-Quelle.[7]

References

  1. this finder hood is very short when raised and often requires being shielded with the hand in overhead light
  2. image of Praktica FX 2 by Michele M. F. (Image rights)
  3. image of Praktica nova by bottledog (Image rights)
  4. image of Praktica PLC 3 by bottledog (Image rights)
  5. image of Praktica MTL 5 by Martin Taylor (Image rights)
  6. image of Praktica BCS by Uwe Kulick (Image rights)
  7. Tagesschau June 15th 2023: "Did Otto sell cameras out of enforced Cottbus prison labour?"

Links