I stumbled upon a fascinating camera called the KMZ Horizont and I must say it is pretty amazing.
It is a gem of the Soviet Union, manufactured by KMZ (Krasnogorsky Mechanichesky Zavod), whose main purpose was to take fantastic panoramic photos. You may know them for their line of Zenit camera.
It gives you great wide-angle shots with its rotating lens design. It's like a rocking dance of your camera, rotating to cover a full 120 degrees of motion. This means you can capture everything from epic landscapes to busy cityscapes. What's really great is that in the early days it was often used for aerial photography, like from a plane or a helicopter, so you know it had some great capabilities.
It's a bit like a "poor man's Widelux," a more expensive and better-known panoramic camera. While the Widelux may have more bells and whistles, the Horizon lets you experience the panoramic magic without breaking the bank.
If you're into vintage photography or just want to experiment with something different, the Horizont Panoramic Camera is definitely worth checking out. Who knows, you might just discover a new way to see the world through your lens!
Please note, this version is called "Horizont" and so called by the manufacturer, the later versions are called "Horizon"
Camera Specifications:
Frame size: 24×58 mm
Width of perforated film: 35 mm
Number of frames: 21
Exposure times: 1/30, 1/60, 1/125, 1/250 sec
Angular field of the lens:
horizontal -- 120°
vertical -- 45°
Lens: OF-28P
Focal length: 28 mm
Relative aperture: f/2.8 to f/16
Optical viewfinder: eyepiece magnification -- 0,4x
angular field of view -- 110×44°
Width of perforated film: 35 mm
Number of frames: 21
Exposure times: 1/30, 1/60, 1/125, 1/250 sec
Angular field of the lens:
horizontal -- 120°
vertical -- 45°
Lens: OF-28P
Focal length: 28 mm
Relative aperture: f/2.8 to f/16
Optical viewfinder: eyepiece magnification -- 0,4x
angular field of view -- 110×44°
All in all I am very impressed any the quality of the pictures! They are all in focus and sharp! After using a fixed focus camera once, with many pictures out of focus I was a bit afraid, but needless to say there was no reason to be. I can't wait to test it more, now that I know it works!
