Catalogue information
The 'Leningrad' was Russia's most advanced and motorized 35mm rangefinder camera ever made. In 1958 the optical factory GOMZ in Leningrad in the former Soviet Republic was awarded the "Grand Prix de Bruxelles" during the World Exhibition in Brussels with this camera. This prize was awarded to the GOMZ factory because it previously only produced very simple and cheap cameras and with this 'Leningrad' managed to build a very solid camera with a very high degree of precision. The most unique thing about this Soviet camera is that it is equipped with a spring motor mechanism for transporting the film and simultaneously cocking the shutter (as with the famous Robot cameras). When fully wound up, 12 to 15 pictures can be taken without the having to advance the film and cock the shutter. The 'Leningrad' was also used in Russian space travel. The GOMZ factory actually built the unique 'Leningrad' camera for the Russian professional market, but the camera only became a real success when the factory changed its name to 'LOMO' in 1962 and it was also exported outside the Soviet Union. A total of 70,000 units were built from 1960 to 1964, the most common Leningrad cameras being the later models with the LOMO logo and the Leningrad brand name engraved in Crylic script. On this 'Leningrad' camera, however, the brand name is still engraved in Latin script and bears the GOMZ logo, making it an early 'Leningrad' and also somewhat rarer camera.
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