Re: Nimslo/Nishika Cameras

[P3D Gregory J. Wageman <gjw@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Dr. T. comments:

>The Nimslo is more sophisticated (better exposure system) etc.  The Nishika
>has a lot of fake features like a piece of metal to make it feel heavier. 
>I do not know if you can see a difference in prints in terms of optical
>quality. My advise is to look for a used Nimlso at $99 or less or a Realist
>Kodak Stereo (these two especially for slides) for a bit more.

As usual, I agree with Dr. T.'s comments, but I'd just like to clarify
that the Nishika is a *manual* camera, even though it is designed to
look like an expensive automatic camera.  It has one fixed shutter
speed (1/60th second) and three apertures (f/8, f/11, f/19).  There
is no meter, just a "low light" indicator which is essentially
useless; leave the batteries out and save the added weight.  The
Nimslo, on the other hand, has fully-automatic exposure and REQUIRES
the batteries to fire the shutter.

As far as optical quality, I have a Nishika which I bought to take into
situations where I wouldn't want to risk a more expensive camera, such
as onto amusement park rides, roller coasters, etc.  The slides I have
taken with it were acceptably sharp, but not as sharp as a Realist or
Revere.  The fixed-focus lenses do not allow for close work, as they
are out of focus at less than about 4 feet.  Also, because of the
reduced inter-ocular, the images are hypo-stereo, which I found very
disappointing compared to a Realist-format camera.

        -Greg W.


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