Kiev 88 Camera System - Buyer's Guide

The Kiev 88 Camera System
My Opinions and a Basic Buying Guide - April 18, 1999
by Edward Lau

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The Kiev 88 camera is a very good photographic camera, when its rebuilt or recalibated to Modern Standards of Performance. When I say Modern, I mean what most everyone expects of a camera when purchased brand new from a camera store or department store. Some 99.9% of the time, when the Kiev 88 comes out of the factory, it already has frame spacing problems, light leaks between the film back and the rear of the camera body. The exposure meter - if it is within 1 FULL F-Stop, you're lucky. Usually it is 1 to 2 F-stops off. When I say off, just compare the exposure reading to a current Canon or Nikon camera or a Gossen hand held meter and you'll know exactly what I mean. The shutter is also a problem, e.g., 1/60th of a second could be 1/80th of a second.
Well now that eveyone's face is twisted and staring at the computer screen. If you get the camera rebuilt or recalibrated, it will work just fine. The price of this work can run between $200 thru $375 ( USD ). Make sure you get a warranty with the repair. Also there are only a few places in the United States that can really repair a Kiev 88. I'll have a short list at the end of this story.
Stay away from Kiev 88 equipment prior to 1991. From what I've seen, the workmanship was just not that good during the period. The 1996 thru 1999 bodies were better. As for the lenses, the same also goes. Earlier than 1991 the lens diaphram blades were copper or bronze colored, which caused a lot of internal flare. Now I know that a lot of us have heard that the Kiev 88 bodies were the main flare problem. This happens with the early bodies that had no interior black colored flocking. On one of my 1997 Kiev 88 bodies the inside is lined with black velet strips of material that absorb any stray light. My other 1997 Kiev 88 body is a modified version from Eastern Europe. It has a black colored metal shell that encloses the inside of the camera. I also have the black cloth shutter on this body and the hand crank. Yes the shutter does seem more accurate and more quiet than the copper colored metal shutter. By the way, the copper color metal shutter is still the factory standard when the camera is purchased brand new. I have NEVER had any flare problems that were due to the copper colored shutter. The hand crank is nice, because it makes the film advance more easily. The crank sells for between $15 and $150, depending on where you buy it from.
Now let's talk prices. Since I'm in the United States, all prices will be in United States Dollars or USD. Sorry, I am too stupid to convert foreign currency amounts.
First, don't buy a Kiev 88 body used. The current price of a NEW Kiev 88 kit, which includes a body with Kiev 88 lens mount, 80mm lens, two 120 6 X 6 film backs, 1 green/yellow and 1 U/V filter, strap, waist level finder and meter prism finder, sells anywere from $350. thru $450. This 99% of the time does not include a warranty. What it will include is a 24 to 48 hour exchange policy, if the camera does not work. A lot of these types of Kiev kits can be purchased on "WWW.EBAY.COM " on the Internet. That's the current Internet web site were several Russian camera dealers list their items to auction / bid or just for straight sales . Additional NEW 120 film backs sell for about $50 thru $125. Now, the Kiev 88 when brand new has some problems already. It does not make any sense to purchase a used one from someone else, when the brand new kit costs between $350 thru $450. The only exception to this rule would be if you get extra lens or film backs in the deal ( working and not defective ). Plus, why buy someones problems? You get your own built in from the factory.
So let's sum up the above. Purchase a New Kiev 88 kit for $350 thru $450. Have it rebuilt or recalibrated for another $200 thru $375. This brings a New Kiev 88 camera kit up to a cost between $550 thru $825 with hopefully some type of warranty on the repair service. But remember this camera kit is now fully functional and modern. So what are the chances if you buy a new or a used kit for $450 or less and hope everything works fine? Humm.. you have a better chance that someone will die and leave you $10 million dollars tax free. And then you can purchase a Hasselblad and stop reading my boring story. Well for the rest of us, let's continue.
By the way, I have yet to find a dealer within the United States that will repair a Kiev 88 meter prism. I was told by two different repair centers that the amount of work versus the price that is charged is not worth their time. Currently I'm waiting for two of my meter prisms to be recalibrated / adjusted. I had to send them to Europe.
The real saving in the Kiev 88 camera system is in the lenses. I've purchased the 30mm, 45mm, 65mm 80mm, 120mm, 150mm, 250mm and a modified 500mm lens all for less than $2500. Now try to do that with any currently made Japanese or European 120 camera system! The quality of the optics are excellent. They are as good or better than Japanese optics of the mid to late 1980s. The color tones are close to Carl Zeiss lens of the 1980s. The sharpness is excellent around F8 thru F11 on the average. The contrast is VERY high too, but not as high as a current Carl Zeiss lens. The exterior of the lens and camera bodies are not as good as a Japanese or European cameras. But for the price, it is still a bargain.
Now the next item is the Kiev 88 Camera Kits that are sold Brand New and Rebuilt / Recalibrated. Since I'm in the United States, the only place that I know of that sells complete Kiev 88 Camera Kits like this and has several in stock ( not just 2 or 4 on the shelf ) - plus specializies in Kiev 88 repairs - is Kiev / USA. By the way, in the past I've been accused by several readers that since I always suggest purchasing from Kiev / USA, I must be getting a discount or payoff of some kind. Please believe me, I've NEVER received any discount or payment of any kind from Kiev/ USA. I have my American Express and Master Card bills to prove it. The only reason I suggest them is that they have the stock / merchandise, repair facilities and most important replacement parts and of course repair people that are trained to repair a Kiev 88. Kiev / USA is in my opinion the most experienced at repairing or servicing Kiev 88s in the United States. However, they are the most expensive too. But they do offer a FULL 1 year warranty on their repair work and on Kiev 88 kits, lenses and accessories. I have yet to find a dealer in the world that can offer this kind of service. Sometimes the repair could take several attempts, but it will get fixed. One time I had to send a 120 film back back to them three times before they fixed it the correct way. It was a very upsetting experience, since I had to pay the shipping when sending to them each time. There are other dealers, but I always seem to go to Kiev/USA because they have the parts to fix everything. I'm sure there are other good repair centers and Kiev 88 dealers that are honest and true to their word.
Alright, what does a New Kiev 88 from Kiev/USA cost? The last time I checked, it sold between $700 thru $1200, depending upon what features you purchased. Yes, Kiev/ USA sells different variations of the Kiev 88. One of the interesting ones is the Kiev 88 body but with a Pentacon 6 lens mount. This allows using older East German Lens, some made by a firm related to Carl Zeiss, to be used with full functions on a Kiev 88 camera. You can still put on Kiev 88 lenses on this Pentacon lens mounted Kiev 88 body because Kiev / USA sells the Kiev 88 lens with a Pentacon lens mount. They sell both, with a standard 88 mount and the Pentacon 6 mount. Other dealers in Europe also sell items like this. I've heard from some Russian Camera dealers that the Pentacon Lens are equal in quality to Kiev lens. The only difference is softer contrast on certain focal lengths for the German lenses, which is needed in certain photographic situations. Also the color tone of the lens is just a touch different. Sharpness is about equal overall.
As you can see, from reading this article by now the cost of buying used, buying new with no warranty or buying new with a warranty all adds up and nets out sooner or later.
Like I said before the savings with a Kiev 88 camera system is in the lenses. Once you get a fully working and problem free body, everthing else just works out.
By now you have probably said that all in all, for the price of the Kiev 88, you could purchase a USED Mamyia / Bronica or Pentax 6 X 7 camera. Maybe even a used Hasselblad 500 CM. Yes, you could and the body would probably hold up better for professional use. Whereas the Kiev 88 was not made to be a professional full time camera. Just remember that used Mamyia / Bronica and Pentax 6 X 7 lenses, even when used, are a lot more expensive that Kiev 88 lens. Even if you purchased your lenses from Kiev / USA or some other expensive upscale Kiev dealer.
When I said the Kiev 88 was not a professional full time camera, I meant a 120 camera that can handle 10 thru 20 rolls of 120 film each day for 5 to 7 days a week for 1 full year straight. Now that definition is for a professional camera. I used to do advertising photography about 12 years ago in New York City. I used to go thru 10 to 15 rolls of 35mm film a day with my Nikon F2AS with motor drive set at 5 frames a seconds for 5 and sometimes 7 days a week. This madness went on for 1+ years. The Nikon and motor drive never malfunctioned at all. I don't believe the Kiev 88 camera system was designed to handle this type of work load.
Anyway, below are some addresses of Kiev dealers and repair shops plus some comments.
Please feel free to contact me about anything on the Kiev 88 camera system. I might not know everthing, but I do know what I have experienced so far.
Thank you for your time & best of luck to you.
Edward Lau
E-Mail = [email protected]

Kiev / USA Kiev Dealer & Repair Center 248 Mill Street Greenwich, Connecticut 06830 203-531-0900 http://members.aol.com/kievusa Continent-Wide Enterprises LTD Kiev Dealer, sells non-modified Kiev products 41 Bertal Road Great Prices on Kiev 88 lenses Toronto, Ontario Canada M6M 4M7 416-762-8101 ext. 110 1-800-667-0293 http://users.aol.com/contwide/home.htm Russian Camera Exchange 1635 Scenic Ave., Suite 4 Berkeley, California 94709 510-704-9771 Rare Camera of New York Great prices on various Kiev 88 and other 30 West 26 Street cameras. Also repairs Kiev 88 cameras New York, N.Y. Great guys Felix and Vladimir 212-366-5375 Panorama Camera Center Kiev 88 and German cameras repaired 124 West 30 Street Sometimes has Kiev 88 lens in stock. New York, N.Y. 212-563-1651 Cambridge Camera Exchange Sells Kiev 88 with a Pentacon 6 lens 119 West 17 Steeet mount, and all accessories. Camera is New York, N.Y. 10011 relabeled with Cambron Pro-Six name 212-675-8600 Also is the only dealer in the USA for 800-221-2253 Germain Exakta 66 Model III. Sells a 500mm preset F8.0 telephoto lens for the Kiev 88 and other various 2 < X 2 < cameras (Japanese & European ) for only $399.

rec.photo.equipment.medium-format
From: [email protected]
[1] Re: Opinions sought: USA Kiev 88 vs. older camera
Date: Sat Apr 24 15:59:50 CDT 1999
greg kerr [email protected] wrote:

> Since my recent introduction with my Yashicamat 124G I have become > enthralled with medium format. I will always keep this camera but for my > next step have been trying to research through a maze of Mamiya C330 > vs. Mamiya Press vs. Koni Omega vs. Century Graphic vs. other old MF > cameras. An alternative could be a new Kiev 88 from Kiev USA. What is so > appealing about this possibility is owning a new MF camera and the > relatively cheap price of the lens selection all at a price that I can > afford. I have numerous reports of the lack of reliability of the Kiev > systems although others say that Kiev USA products are considerably > improved. Understand that I am not a pro but a serious amateur and like > to get as high a quality as possible. I would use a MF camera for > portraits, landscapes and the occassional wedding. Any opinions on > whether I would be better off with a good older setup or a new Kiev > system is appreciated.

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