I’ve wanted a Zorki 4K for many years, and finally got one this year for a very reasonable £20 at a camera fair. It is in very nice condition and apart from being maybe a little slow on the slowest shutter speeds. It looked to be usable in daylight at the faster speeds though.

The 4K was made by KMZ between 1972-78, with my example from 1976 fitted with the allegedly excellent Jupiter-8 50mm f2 Zeiss Sonnar clone lens. KMZ made millions of cameras including Zenit, Zorki and several others. The Zenit E being the highest produced camera with more than three million units. A respectable half a million Zorki 4K’s were made.

Feeling like HP5 would suit the camera, it was loaded and chucked in the bag…

With no plan other than to experience the Zorki, it just stayed in the car until the film was finished. The first thing I did noticed was the rangefinder mirror was loose and wobbled every time the camera was moved and didn’t seem accurate, so I focused with the distances on the lens rather then what was shown in the viewfinder. As the majority of shots were at infinity anyway this was not an issue.

This barn was such a random find - located miles from the nearest town, down a small country lane and someone has painted a massive Gorilla on the wall! Not something you expect to see in rural Wiltshire for sure.

I have to say it is a nice camera to use, and as with many of the old Soviet rangefinders is very good. People mock these Russian cameras for being unreliable and not built like a German one, but unless you have shot with one you just wouldn’t get the appeal. I’ve not used any of my Soviet’s for quite a while (and have a lot) and forgot how good they are - not just in image quality, but the general experience. I have owned the Zorki 1, 5, 6, 10 and 11 - the 10 is still one I want to use.

Early morning walks are great for exploring, with no distractions of people - just the place while most are still sleeping.

To finish off the roll, I went for a stroll around my home village looking for interesting cars to photograph in their environment - surprisingly I found quite a few…

Although the Zorki was a good experience - I do prefer Kiev cameras. They do feel better to shoot - probably personal preference as I have no evidence to say they are any better.

The Jupiter-8 is indeed a great lens with excellent detail and contrast, and the 4K is easier to use than the 4 that has a wind knob rather than the single stroke lever on the later K version. I’m glad I finally got to use one after looking at them for so long.

I think it is overdue that I run a film through my Zorki 10 next as it has been sat in the cupboard for a few years waiting!

Zorki 4K - Ilford HP5…

Fujica DL-20 - Truprint 200…