KIEV 88

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Does anyone know anything about the KIEV 88 TTL? There have been quite a few auctioned off at Ebay. For about $350, the body, 2 6x6 backs, 80mm MC lens (what's "MC"?), TTL prism for the lens waist level finder, strap, lens hood, eyelevel finder, English manual and 10 day warranty. I'm looking for a good medium format camera but I don't want to spend a ton of money either. I've mainly been looking at the Bronica ETRS and ETRSi. I just wonder if the KIEV is a good deal.

-- Mary Frazier (shutterbug_1@ivillage.com), September 06, 1999

Answers

Some consider them unmitigated junk; others find them reasonably reliable. Build quality on the bodies is iffy, though optics seem acceptable. Still, they're rough around the edges(literally), can jam, and only look like an old Hassie. I see ranks of them stacked in second-rate camera shops in downtown Toronto, along with other Russian optical oddities.I'd consider something in the old Mamiya TLR range as a cheap entre to medium format.They were solidly built, had nice lenses, and aren't laughed out of repair shops. Others can probably suggest alternative budget MF systems that give better value than the Kiev line. I think they're a false economy.

-- Gary Watson (cg.watson@sympatico.ca), September 06, 1999.

As Gary said, stay awaw from the Kiev. I had a Mamiya C330 ad three lenses for a short time, sold them to buy some darkroom equipment, and wish I still had the Mamiya system. If you want to try medium format before spending too much money the Mamiya C330 is hard to beat. If you want to spend a bit less and can live without interchangeable lenses, pick up a Minolta Autocord. They have superb lenses and are easy to buy for less than $200.

-- Darron Spohn (sspohn@concentric.net), September 06, 1999.

I would say pass on the Kiev 88. I was once tempted too by this affordable deal, but in the camera world... you get what you pay for. Simple as that.

If $350 is your price range and you want interchangeble backs and lenses, a clean Bronica S2a will serve you much better. I've seen some at camera swap meets for about $400 and used Nikkor lenses are easily attainable for this system.

A Rolleiflex will also serve you better optically and reliably. Those are tanks and you can't beat the lens quality.

$350 for a Kiev 88 is alot of money considering that it may malfunction at any given time. Problems include... irrartic shutter performance, light leaks, wind mechanisms jamming, internal body flare, ill fitting backs.

I used to always curiously played with these cameras at swap meets but had to resist the tempatation of the affordable Hasselblad.

If you do go the Kiev route... the Kiev 60 is actually not that bad. The only common problem on these bodies are the irregular frame spacing issue. There is a webiste that describes a do it yourself technique to correct this. Go to www.delphi.com, and do a search under "kiev report" or "russian cameras" and it'll bring up the forum for Russian and Ukranian made cameras.

-- nhat nguyen (sepiatone@hotmail.com), May 04, 2000.


I like the Kiev it can be a good camera but it depends sometimes on luck or the person you are buying it from.You can though get a kiev cheaper than 350 used on ebay for 500 you can get a new one thats been checked i have gotten two for 150 bucks each. I guess it depends on what you want most to use this camera for. if it is just hobby spend the money on the kiev but if you plan to use it professionally or plan to sell prints then get the ertsi. i am a hobbiest well former wedding photographer but now an ameteur.

-- Joseph Watson (Rcdrv@aol.com), August 27, 2001.

So many fairytales to hear regarding Kiev. Light leak, shutter jam, uneven film advance and other stories. Perhaps my two Kievs do not know all this since they work reliably including reasonably precise TTL meter. In fact, it is so simple that there is no reason why the TTL should not work as long as the battery gives right voltage. Kiev especially with Pentacon Six mount gives you a cheap access to medium format camera and you have an incredible choice of lenses. By the way, there is no other system, which have wider variety of medium format lenses then Pentacon Six/Exacta 66/Kiev 60/Kiev 88 MCU family. Generally all MC lenses from Carl Zeiss Jena are of a good quality, some of them truly outstanding, such as Flektogon 50 and Sonnar 180. Fish eye from Arsat (Ukraine) costs peanuts compare to the Hassleblad (Zeiss) Fish Eye and its quality is at least reasonable (above 60 lines per mm). One should know, how to handle the camera and not to abuse it.

-- pavel (pavel@ime.org.sg), June 04, 2002.


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