Smena 8 and 8M

Simple question to Smena collectors: why Smena 8 and Smena 8M are so different but bare same model number? While let say Smena 7 and Smena 8 so looks alike but have different models number?

I'll try to answer your question. The main reason is the popularity of Smena-8 version, I guess. The millions of soviet people grew up together with Smena camera changes. The S-8 was the top model for almost decade and Lomo constructors were afraid 'cos of inertness of soviet customer. That's why Smena-35 beeing modern cheap camera was many times less popular than 8M.

Talking about Smenas 5-9 they all are similar, but do have some onenesses. You should go to my website to see those differencies:

http://www.sovietcams.com/index.php?-1609999277

Best Regards,
Aidas

You have simply remarkable Web side Aidas! I salute you! I have to admit I was using it for few years always founding something new for me there!
Concerning Smena 35, I think it did not enjoyed such huge success as Smena 8 or 8m only because it was in stores something like 15 years to late :). In 90-th when one-time cameras was readily available it left no room for Smena 35, never the less they are sell.
Let face it Smena line is basically 60 years old design if not older. Shatter inspired by almost 100 years old Compur and lens by same age triplet. I can only wonder what a remarkable pictures this camera can do. Smena, not Leyka, not FED not Zorkiy not Zenit, but Smena put photography in peoples hands in Russia. Every Photo Club at every school, at every Pioneer’s camp(Russian boy scouts ) use it. It did not cost a lot, it work when it cold and when it hot, in rain and mud. Very simple and elegant. Even child can use it. In fact it was designed for kids and teens.
Like Volkswagen Bug it never die and will be in hearts of many generations.
Considering model changes, I’m not completely convinced, why authorities what tend to change model number with every new screw, but refuse to change it after complete make over of the camera.. To me bigger model number tell that this is new and improve camera and make me buy one. But after making Smena 9, LOMO by some reasons get back to Smena 8 with M.? And then despite even bigger success of Smena 8M never use this model again. Something is fishy here. Don’t you think?

Also remember that the M is for Modernized, meaning that 8M is a new model of 8. Like Nikon has SLRs from F to F6, Leica has M's up to M8 etc...
It may be odd though that 1-4 looked similar, then 5-8 again same basic design, but from 8M on they all did look different.

http://www.cedricfan.sivut.ws/Juhani's%20website%20ORIGINAALIT/

okynek,

I like your point of view indeed !

And only now I recognized you - you were the first international person to say good words about my new website, many thanks! If you visit my site sometimes you should notice, what I'm changing old images of cameras with new ones time by time. So always welcome back ...

Best Regards,
Aidas

You Web side deserve more then few nice words, Aidas!
Same going to Vlad!!!

Thank you, but I got a long way to go to reach Aidas's level... I'm still using his site as my bible (easier than to whip out Princelle's book and page through it :) ).. Plus most of the descriptions on this site is all Aidas.. if it weren't for him I had no idea what would've happened to this catalog :)..

I also gotta admit for my own collection that I host on Squirl, I add the camera right away as soon as I buy something new so I don't lose track of it, and I've been stealing Aidas's images from time to time as placeholders until I shoot my own, because I don't always get good photos at the purchase time. Sorry Aidas! I promise I'll replace all stolen images in the very near future!

Vlad

As I have told before, I'm trying to replace bad quality images with better ones to make my site more attractive. The bad thing is, after Vlad opened his site I'm feeling lack of visitors ...

Maybe the problem is both sites are becoming identical ...

Smenas are describesd in various topics of our forum for instance at http://www.ussrphoto.com/Forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=59 there are a lot of description and discussion about.
I suggest to reunite all abount this very interesting and fascinating simple camera.

Aidas I assure you I still go to your site almost everyday! Post more links to your site from this one! especially in catalog entries. This site is not meant to take away traffic from other sites, but to actually generate it. So if you'd like - hotlink all entries that have your content in them to pages on your site.

Vlad.

Vlad,
It was typical lithuanian joke indeed ...

jokes aside, I do not want you to lose any traffic, your site http://www.sovietcams.com is a tremendous resource. . I will be happy to promote it here, just tell me if you have any ideas on how.. I'll be happy to promote anyone's non-commercial site here if it's a useful tool.

Vlad

Vlad,
Thank you. To say the truth I have never paid a big attention to popularize my site widely. That's why I still have no imaginations about numbers of visitors weekly, monthly ... etc. To have this information I need to pay additionally, but I prefer to pay for cameras, not for statistics ...

Two reasons I have created my own site: first of all, I wanted to catalogize my own collection. I have no possibilities to display the entire collection locally, so it took too much time to find out the camera I want to. The second (and main) reason to find alter ego persons to share my hobby. And I was lucky to find all of you plus many many others, who are "sick" by the same diagnosis ...
That's why I have never tried to commercialize my site. And I'm very happy that you, Bill, Luiz and many many friends among as are thinking the same way. That's why I found your initial idea to create the new site very positive indeed! Only please remember my warnings in the very beginning ...

Best Regards,
Aidas

quote:

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Originally posted by Luiz Paracampo

.... I suggest to reunite all abount this very interesting and fascinating simple camera.

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Luiz,
I would be very happy to talk about Smenas more and more. I very appreciate your positive point of view and amazing comments indeed!

Best Regards,
Aidas

What warnings would those be again? Sorry there were so many!

Warning No.1 - don't loose youself within your cameras ...

Ah! Wise words! Trying my best not to, but it's a hell of a fun hobby!

I had same reasons on my website than Aidas: far too often someone asked me to send a picture of something that I have in my collection or that I have seen, so it was much easier to put the pictures in web. And as I also have a lot of car & bike enthusiast friends, same goes for those categories.
In the beginning I was too lazy and too stupid (computerwise) to add texts, so it is only pictures. Now I know how to add text easily, but haven't found time to do it yet. On the other hand there already exists Aidas website, with all the next that I should/could write
What I absolutely should do is a bit of reorganizing, as it has been almost two years since I did that and "2006 files" look odd now. And adding text to my chinese cameras (well over 30 ones and none TLR which I do not collect) as those have not yet a good explanatory website...

http://www.cedricfan.sivut.ws/Juhani's%20website%20ORIGINAALIT/

Juhani,
You are the only person in the world to harmonize cameras, bikes and cats within one website .

I indeed like your site!

Aidas