DavidWilliams
New Member
Well done! you nailed it! congrats.Here's my attempt at Kolchak:
Kolchak: The Night Stalker - His Gear
- Thread starter klung1
- Start date
Old thread I know but:
I have that compass! And yes, I got it as a Boy Scout in the 1970's. Probably about three or four years after the show was on.
Now I just gotta figure out where I put it. I saw it awhile back so I know it's still kicking around somewhere...
I'm almost absolutely sure you are correct that it is the Nikon F2 with the standard eye-level prism. The "bunny ears" on the top rear of the lens are another clue. They mechanically connect to the camera's light meter (if it has one, this one doesn't) to give the aperature info from the lens to the meter.
It could also have been the earlier Nikon F. I wasn't sure until I looked really close. The Nikon F, and the Nikon F2 look ALMOST identical. The two "tells" from the front are:
The Nikon F has a "F" on the prism. (The F2 prism is blank). It's hard to tell, but I don't think I see anything on the prism.
On the Nikon F the shutter release is on the top right (from the photographer's point of view) and is toward the rear of the body of the camera.
On the F2 Nikon moved the shutter release forward to the front of the camera. It's essentially in front of the location where the F shutter release was located.
The Nikon F was THE pro photographer's camera almost immediately from its debut in 1959. It was the first truly successful, widely used, Single Lens Reflex camera which largely replaced the older "Rangefinder" systems. The F was a "system" camera where the user could not only easily swap out lens (using the Nikon "F mount" bayonet mount) but could also change the focus screens and the prism with many options including non-metered eye-level (what Kolchak has on his F2), a variety of metered prisms that were upgraded during the camera's life, and special prisms with waist level viewfinders or extra large "sport" finders. The F is all mechanical, no batteries required except for the meter, and was known for it's ruggedness and reliablity. They were the standard "press camera" for news photographers, war correspondents, etc.
The F was made until 1973. The F2, which is Kolchak's camera, was an improvement on the F which and production in 1971. The biggest differences were improved light meters (for the cameras that had one), relocation of the shutter release to the top front of the camera from the top rear, and a hinged back for easier film loading. (On the F you take off the whole back to load or unload film).
The F2 quickly became the new standard for press photographers and many upgraded as their old F cameras got worn. A lot of F's stayed in use as backup cameras so you'll see photos of photographers with both, often with different length lens attached.
I literally told my wife, "The prop guys didn't do any favors with the camera they picked." I couldn't understand why they didn't give Kolchak a F or a F2. It was a more realistic choice, as the 35mm film would be much better for a reporter/photographer than the smaller 16mm film, and the actual physical size and look of the F2 look better on screen than the smaller 16mm camera.
Interesting to see he had an F2 in the movies. No idea why they didn't carry that over into the series. It would have been a better choice.
I'm especially glad to see he had a F2 because now I don't need to buy another camera for a Kolchak impression. I have a 1972 F2 gifted to me by a family friend along with a few F's.
And, if anyone else plans to cosplay Kolchak with a F2, remember you can actually still get 35mm film and get it developed! So you could really take photos with your camera in character.
Site with F and F2 side by side
Nikon F vs F2: fit & finish
I'm thinking of picking up a Nikon F or F2, but I'm having trouble deciding between the two. The feature improvements of the F2 aren't that important to me — my main 35mm camera is a Leica iif so the "difficult" loading of the F is totally fine, I can't remember wishing I had 1/2000s available...
www.photrio.com
FANATICO
Well-Known Member
I'm almost absolutely sure you are correct that it is the Nikon F2 with the standard eye-level prism. The "bunny ears" on the top rear of the lens are another clue. They mechanically connect to the camera's light meter (if it has one, this one doesn't) to give the aperature info from the lens to the meter.
It could also have been the earlier Nikon F. I wasn't sure until I looked really close. The Nikon F, and the Nikon F2 look ALMOST identical. The two "tells" from the front are:
The Nikon F has a "F" on the prism. (The F2 prism is blank). It's hard to tell, but I don't think I see anything on the prism.
On the Nikon F the shutter release is on the top right (from the photographer's point of view) and is toward the rear of the body of the camera.
On the F2 Nikon moved the shutter release forward to the front of the camera. It's essentially in front of the location where the F shutter release was located.
The Nikon F was THE pro photographer's camera almost immediately from its debut in 1959. It was the first truly successful, widely used, Single Lens Reflex camera which largely replaced the older "Rangefinder" systems. The F was a "system" camera where the user could not only easily swap out lens (using the Nikon "F mount" bayonet mount) but could also change the focus screens and the prism with many options including non-metered eye-level (what Kolchak has on his F2), a variety of metered prisms that were upgraded during the camera's life, and special prisms with waist level viewfinders or extra large "sport" finders. The F is all mechanical, no batteries required except for the meter, and was known for it's ruggedness and reliablity. They were the standard "press camera" for news photographers, war correspondents, etc.
The F was made until 1973. The F2, which is Kolchak's camera, was an improvement on the F which and production in 1971. The biggest differences were improved light meters (for the cameras that had one), relocation of the shutter release to the top front of the camera from the top rear, and a hinged back for easier film loading. (On the F you take off the whole back to load or unload film).
The F2 quickly became the new standard for press photographers and many upgraded as their old F cameras got worn. A lot of F's stayed in use as backup cameras so you'll see photos of photographers with both, often with different length lens attached.
I literally told my wife, "The prop guys didn't do any favors with the camera they picked." I couldn't understand why they didn't give Kolchak a F or a F2. It was a more realistic choice, as the 35mm film would be much better for a reporter/photographer than the smaller 16mm film, and the actual physical size and look of the F2 look better on screen than the smaller 16mm camera.
Interesting to see he had an F2 in the movies. No idea why they didn't carry that over into the series. It would have been a better choice.
I'm especially glad to see he had a F2 because now I don't need to buy another camera for a Kolchak impression. I have a 1972 F2 gifted to me by a family friend along with a few F's.
And, if anyone else plans to cosplay Kolchak with a F2, remember you can actually still get 35mm film and get it developed! So you could really take photos with your camera in character.
Site with F and F2 side by side
Nikon F vs F2: fit & finish
I'm thinking of picking up a Nikon F or F2, but I'm having trouble deciding between the two. The feature improvements of the F2 aren't that important to me — my main 35mm camera is a Leica iif so the "difficult" loading of the F is totally fine, I can't remember wishing I had 1/2000s available...
Hold the PRESSES!
I believe you found a reason for me to believe that it’s actually the “F” model and NOT the F2!
Since I posted my finding ….I really didn’t see anyone questioning it….in case I was in error…..ya know peered reviewed. So I left it at that…thinking the F2 was the correct model.
I had never saw a direct top view of the F model……until you posted the side by side comparison….that includes the top view of both cameras.
When I was looking for the camera initially ….my eyes were fixated on the “triangle” front of the viewfinder/prism housing. And so I based my post on that…..
Here’s why I now believe it to be the F and not the F2.
Below if you look at Kolchak’s finger on the shutter release button you’ll notice that it appears to be set back from the front edge of the camera body (I see space in front of the shutter release button)….between the film advance lever and the shutter speed dial.
On the F2 of the comparison ….the shutter release button is up front to the camera body edge between the film advance lever and the shutter speed dial!.
I now believe I’m wrong in believing it was the F2.
Any thoughts? Anybody? Am I as wrong as I think I am?
My apologies to anyone that may have purchased the F2 according to my earlier findings….to be fair…anyone else had the opportunity to check me…but that never happened
Thanks for the comparison pic….
Peace……
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Man, it' so hard to tell from the blurry screencaps. I thought I saw the "more forward" F2 shutter release originally. Maybe because I was preconditioned to "see the F2".
But, now that I look again, I think what I originally thought was the shutter release is actually the ISO/ASA dial to the right (from our view) of the shutter release. And that yeah, the real shutter release is to the left (from our view) of that dial and is closer to the back of the camera than the front. The second and third pics seem to show the "forward/to the rear/forward" orientation of the film advance hub, shutter release, and ISO/ASA dial. It's that pattern of the three together that is convincing.
I'd say I'm now about 95% convinced your right, and it's the F with the "more rearward" shutter release instead of the F2 with the "more forward" shutter release. The only reason for that 5% doubt is just because of how blurry the screencaps are. Something just a little bit clearer would remove all doubt and possibly even show the "F" on the prism.
Good eye though! And I'm embarrased I didn't see that since I pointed out the different locations of the shutter release.
huh. Is the picture in a different thread? They were talking about 2 different camera models, an F and an F2. Where, because of blurry screen grabs, it wasn't sure which one of the two was the correct camera.
Okay, seriously, I think the photos were GONE and now they're back. In post #506, you see this picture. It shows the position of the knob and how to tell the difference between an F and F2.
Oh, I believe the F or F2 is the one from the Kolchak MOVIE, not TV series.
Attachments
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FANATICO
Well-Known Member
Kolchak’s other Camera used…in the Movies….not the tv series
It is in my revised opinion that Kolchak used the Nikon F model camera.
Unless someone else can change my mind ….to say it’s the F2
Peace
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anamorphicWayne
Sr Member
FANATICO
Well-Known Member
Well there were 2 movies made…..perhaps he used the Nikon in one, and the Pentax in the other.
I have not taken the deep dive to try to make a comparison between the cameras used in both movies.
My main camera focus is all about the TV series Rollei.
I was surprised that the Rollei wasn’t used in the movies version……it was…..imo….one of his trademark gadgets.
It was an untypical camera gear for an untypical quirky newsman.
Perhaps someone else will try to do the comparison.
Peace….
anamorphicWayne
Sr Member
I had a look at the two movies and the Pentax was used in The Night Stalker and a camera similar to a Rollei was used in The Night Strangler. It was another subminiature camera, perhaps a Minolta. I haven't found the exact make/model yet. It would make sense for the production to use a lighter camera as a SLR plus the tape recorder would have been heavy to troop around with The Sony tape recorder alone weighs over a pound.
My software enhancement created some artifacting, but still made it clear that this better matches the Pentax. You called that one right.
CKFan
New Member
Hey, all! I came back for some info on Night Strangler specifics (50th Anniversary year!), but looks like there's been some discussion about cameras for The Night Stalker.
The two cameras used in The Night Stalker TV movie (the day camera and the night camera as I think of them) were Asahi-Pentax and Nikon, by brand.
Day Camera
The day camera is tricky—there are a number of Asahi-Pentax cameras that could fit the bill. They are physically indistinguishable from each other without a close examination of lenses and the shutter speed dial. I finally settled on the S1A, as it was released at a time that would have been appropriate for the production of the TV movie (the S3 would have worked, as well). But the Asahi-Pentax S1, S1a, S2, S3, SB, SB2, SV and SV2 were all so similar, I don't know how anyone could make a wrong choice among them. It was not, however, a Honeywell/Heiland branded version of any of these that is seen on screen.
Night Camera
As for the Nikon (night camera), I never knew there was a controversy, here, about which one it was. If you go through the DVD scenes that feature the camera, frame-by-frame (what normal person wouldn't?), you see there are a few frames that clearly show the imprint of the 'F' on the prism. Only one camera had this and the prisms weren't interchangeable between the F and the F2. It was very definitely a Nikon F.
The two cameras used in The Night Stalker TV movie (the day camera and the night camera as I think of them) were Asahi-Pentax and Nikon, by brand.
Day Camera
The day camera is tricky—there are a number of Asahi-Pentax cameras that could fit the bill. They are physically indistinguishable from each other without a close examination of lenses and the shutter speed dial. I finally settled on the S1A, as it was released at a time that would have been appropriate for the production of the TV movie (the S3 would have worked, as well). But the Asahi-Pentax S1, S1a, S2, S3, SB, SB2, SV and SV2 were all so similar, I don't know how anyone could make a wrong choice among them. It was not, however, a Honeywell/Heiland branded version of any of these that is seen on screen.
Night Camera
As for the Nikon (night camera), I never knew there was a controversy, here, about which one it was. If you go through the DVD scenes that feature the camera, frame-by-frame (what normal person wouldn't?), you see there are a few frames that clearly show the imprint of the 'F' on the prism. Only one camera had this and the prisms weren't interchangeable between the F and the F2. It was very definitely a Nikon F.
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CKFan
New Member
I'm certain that the camera was a Minolta 16 EE II (why the fascination for 16mm film?) with a Honeywell Tilt-A-Mite II (not the first Tilt-A-Mite — version two has a red square with 'H' above the circular flash bulb hole and a big red circle in back.) It used both flash cubes and flash bulbs!
It was connected by an aluminum flash bracket, making for the most ungainly photo setup I can imagine. I mean, why use a mini camera if you're going to saddle it with a mounting bracket?? Similar to the bracket below, but not the bracket below.
Now, if I could only figure out what watch he's wearing...
Camera runs about $15 on eBay and the flash about $20(!), plush shipping [October, 2023].
[Edited to include specific camera model and add some reference picts.
]
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drusselmeyer
Master Member
16mm was commonly used at the time for tv news. Processing would be pretty accessible in every city.
LeoCor Replicas
Well-Known Member
Does anyone have a good recommendations for any replicas of Kolchak's hat, or a similar one that could have a correct band added that would fit a 25" head? I have terrible luck when it comes to buying hats. Since I was a kid, I've had to buy adult large-size hats.
