Zenit-B
The zenith of Soviet camera manufacturer Krasnagorsk, aka KMZ, could rightly be embodied by the Zenit line of cameras, produced from the 1960s through the 1990s. While the Zenit cameras came in many styles and types, the Zenit-B is the one most commonly found today. This all-mechanical SLR was first introduced in 1968 and it's production continued until 1978, with a brief four year hiatus from 1973-1977. During this production run, nearly a million Zenit-B cameras were made.
The Zenit-B is a fairly simple SLR camera that makes use of the wonderful line of M42 lenses. For the time, the Zenit-B was a decent SLR featuring a self-return mirror but lacking any provision for automatic aperture diaphragms. The Zenit-B was the lower-cost successor to the Zenit-E, which had a selenium cell light meter that the Zenit-B is lacking. The Zenit-B has an abbreviated range of shutter speeds, beginning with 1/30th of a second and topping out at 1/500, in addition to a "Bulb" mode.
Perhaps one of the Zenit-B's greatest draws is the hope of acquiring it with its original lens. These cameras were initially sold with either an Industar 50mm f/2 or a Helios 44-2 58mm f/2 lens. Both of these lenses are somewhat coveted for the unique bokeh and image rendering they deliver.
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