C41
Kodak Portra 400
Kodak Portra 400 is a professional C-41 color negative film known for flexible exposure latitude, natural skin tones, and fine grain.
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tlr-medium-format
The Komsomolets (Комсомолец, meaning "member of the Komsomol" - the Soviet youth communist league) is a 120-format twin-lens reflex camera produced by GOMZ (Государственный оптико-механический завод - State Optical-Mechanical Plant) in Leningrad beginning in 1947. It is the direct predecessor of the Lubitel series and shares the same design philosophy: a simple, inexpensive TLR aimed at amateur photographers, built with a bakelite body to minimize cost. The Komsomolets produces 6x6 cm negatives on 120 roll film and uses a scale-focus taking lens paired with a matched viewing lens above. It represents GOMZ's first serious attempt at a mass-market twin-lens reflex after observing the success of simple European TLR designs.
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C41
Kodak Portra 400 is a professional C-41 color negative film known for flexible exposure latitude, natural skin tones, and fine grain.
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Kodak Tri-X 400 is a classic black-and-white film known for strong tonality, visible grain, and documentary character.
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Ilford HP5 Plus is a flexible ISO 400 black-and-white film with classic grain and strong push-processing tolerance.
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About this camera
The affordable Soviet TLR that started the Lubitel lineage — GOMZ's entry-level twin-lens for the masses, 1947.
| Field | Value |
|---|
| Format | 120 (6x6 cm) |
| Mount | Fixed |
| Years | 1947 - ~1956 |
| Shutter | ~1/25s - 1/100s + B, mechanical leaf |
| Flash sync | None (some late variants: ~) |
| Meter | None |
| Modes | Manual |
| Weight | ~650 g |
| Battery | None |
| Taking lens | ~T-22 75mm f/4.5 (triplet) |
| Viewing lens | ~matched 75mm viewing optic |
GOMZ began producing cameras in the 1930s and had experience with simple roll-film cameras before WWII. After the war, there was strong Soviet demand for affordable photographic equipment. The Komsomolets (1947) was designed as a budget TLR accessible to amateur photographers and Komsomol members, fitting the Soviet cultural project of broadening participation in amateur photography. Its name directly referenced the Komsomol youth organization, the intended audience. The camera used a triplet taking lens - cheaper to manufacture than a Tessar-type - and a simple leaf shutter with a limited speed range. Production continued into the early-to-mid 1950s. By approximately 1950 GOMZ introduced the first Lubitel (meaning "amateur" or "enthusiast"), which refined the Komsomolets design with a somewhat improved lens and shutter arrangement; the Lubitel would go on to become one of the longest-lived Soviet camera designs, produced in multiple variants through the 1990s.
The Komsomolets is historically significant as the prototype of the entire Lubitel TLR family. While the later Lubitel cameras are well-known internationally (the Lubitel 2 and 166B are frequently cited in Lomography and toy-camera circles), the Komsomolets is rarer and less documented outside specialist Soviet-camera communities. For collectors interested in Soviet photographic history, it represents an early post-war attempt to democratize medium-format photography. Its bakelite construction and simple triplet lens established the aesthetic and technical template that GOMZ would refine across subsequent Lubitel generations. The camera's name - invoking the Komsomol - situates it squarely in the propaganda and cultural politics of late-Stalinist Soviet society.
C41
Kodak Portra 160 is a professional C-41 color negative film with fine grain, soft contrast, and natural color.
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