Lonely Playground

Beauty Lite III Biokor-S 45mm f1.9 Fujifim Neopan SS 100 Adox Adonal 1:50 - Riverside Park Lynchburg VA., Christmas Day 2012. Scanned with a Minolta Dimage Scan Dual III using Silverfast SE Plus 6.6.2r4a Scanning sofware.

Non-Hazardous Materials

Beauty Lite III Biokor-S 45mm f1.9 FujiFilm Neopan SS 100 Adox Adonal 1:50 - Somehow I suspect this is a misnomer, these materials look more than a little hazardous to me. A few more images from my Christmas "Beauty," I love this impressive little rangefinder. Scanned with a Minolta Dimage Scan Dual III using Silverfast 6.6.2r4a scanning software.

"Beauty" Exposure no. 4

Beauty Lite III Biokor-S 45mm f1.9 FujiFilm Neopan SS 100 Adox Adonal 1:50 - Another frame from my 1st roll shot with they Beauty Lite III. At its best photography can make us look at common objects in a different way, bestow beauty onto the everyday scenes or items. As a photographer I like to explore for the less obvious subject, the ignored element of a site. The camera. film, light and the photographers decisions all play part is celebrating the subject.

First "Beauty" Shot

Beauty Lite III Biokor-S 45mm f1.9 FujiFilm Neopan SS 100 Adox Adonal 1:50 - The first frame from the first roll with my Christmas gift Beauty Lite III 35mm rangefinder. The Biokor-S 45mm f1.9 lens is crisp and contrasty and there is little to no light fall off at the corners. This was shot against and overcast sky so any fall off would be obvious. More on the Beauty Lite III can be found in my previous post.

The Beauty Lite III 35mm Rangefinder Camera

Introducing the Beauty Lite III 35mm Rangefinder Camera from the Beauty Camera Co. LTD. of Tokyo Japan. Manufactured starting in 1961 this camera was also known as the Lightomatic III or the Lightmatic III. The camera's glass is a fixed Biokor-S 45mm f1.9 fitted with a Copal-SV in lens leaf shutter. Shutter speeds range from 1/500th to 1 Sec with a B setting, aperture range is 1.9 to 16. The camera's other features include a self timer, X and M Flash syncing through a pc flash socket, and a built on coupled Selenium meter. Metering is a single needle centering type, viewable both on the top of the camera and through the viewfinder. Focusing is achieved through a very bright coupled split image rangefinder in the camera's viewfinder.

The Beauty Lite III is extremely well made, with a rugged metal frame and nice fit and feel. Weighing in a just over 1 lbs. 8 oz., the camera is substantial but not bulky. The size and design is similar to the Leicas of the time. Film advance is a very positive single stroke mechanism with the ability to lock the shuttle release by pushing the advance lever flush with the camera body. Shutter Speed, Aperture, focus and ASA(ISO) setting are all controlled via rings on the lens, and though space is tight all controls are easily managed.

Available viewfinder information is limited to framing, focusing and metering needle, but the viewfinder, rangefinder, focusing frame and metering are all bright and easily viewed in all lighting conditions. Film loading is a typical manual slotted take up spool and is very easily achieved. Rewinding is also typical of most cameras of this vintage, with a top mounted rewind knob and a film release button on the bottom of the camera.

One nice cosmetic design feature is the notched rest for the camera's film rewind knob, purely a design flourish, but adds to the overall quality look and feel of this camera. I have an admitted soft spot for rangefinder cameras, as I first learned true photography on my Father's Kodak Retina IIIs, and the Beauty reaffirms that soft spot. The camera handles well and is whisper quiet. The bright rangefinder makes focusing easy and the lens mounted controls puts everything at your finger tips. After shooting my 1st roll, I found the Biokor-S lens to be extremely sharp with nice contrast. Edge to edge sharpness appears to be excellent and exposure is consistent over the entire image area.

Thank You to my Wife for finding this little gem, it made the perfect Christmas gift. I suspect this will become my general "carry" camera, always loaded and ready. The 1st roll through this camera is developed and scanned and samples are to follow.