Chaika (camera)



Chaika (Чайка) was a series of Soviet 35mm half-frame cameras produced by BELOMO from 1965 to 1974. The name came from call sign of the first woman in space - Valentina Tereshkova. Over 2 million Chaika cameras were produced. All models of the Chaika cameras have metal cases.

Chaika cameras share the following basic specifications: Flange focal distance for the lens was shorter than the standard M39 mount used by early Leica and compatible cameras - 27.5mm compared to 28.8mm for Leica - and the lens will not focus to infinity on such bodies. The intention was to use the lens to enlarge the negatives, not interchangeability with other cameras or lenses.
 * Film used — 35-mm in standard cassette (135 type)
 * Frame size — 18×24 mm
 * Lens — Industar-69 (Tessar-type) ... mounted by LTM-like thread of 39 mm diameter.
 * Focal length 28 mm
 * Diaphragm scale from 2.8 to 16
 * Focusing: 0.8 m to infinite
 * Leaf shutter ... behind the lens
 * Adjustable shutter speeds 1/30 - 1/250 sec and "B"
 * Flash synchronisation

Camera models

 * Chaika (1965-1967)
 * Chaika-2 (1967-1972)
 * Chaika-2M (1972-1974)
 * Chaika-3 (1971-1973) with selenium lightmeter and without "B" speed