Combining guns and photography hobbies

Eppie · February 7, 2013, 05:25 PM

Hi Guys,
I ran across this picture and couldn't help but admire the way this guy combined two of my favorite hobbies, photography and shooting.

redhologram · February 7, 2013, 05:40 PM

I can't see the pic..

wogpotter · February 8, 2013, 10:50 AM

Me niether.

Eppie · February 8, 2013, 11:18 AM

Sorry guys I don't know why you can't see it, but I've attached the picture just below the original posting.

**4V50 Gary** · February 8, 2013, 12:31 PM

Good pics. Good enough to get shot at by a cop who is nervous and has poor weapons/threat identification/awareness.

ret.YPD · February 8, 2013, 12:49 PM

It looks like a ZENIT which is a Russian-made camera outfit. I recently saw a similar-looking outfit in an antique mart here in NE Ohio. But it could also be a home-made "gadget" done up by a wildlife photographer.

This outfit, when displayed in public, could be dangerous to your health.

FlyFish · February 8, 2013, 12:55 PM

Quote:

This outfit, when displayed in public, could be dangerous to your health.

I saw something like this many years ago, and had an old rifle stock kicking around that I thought I'd try it with until I thought about it a bit more and came to the same conclusion.

Moby · February 8, 2013, 01:03 PM

I too have both interests and the rifle stock rig has been around for a long time. It is a very stable way to photograph subjects. Don't worry it's highly unlikely a cop will shoot you.

However the only real advantage of that rig is for a long lens. And today, many long Len’s have image stabilizers. So the extra weight becomes cumbersome. I have thought many times about buying the same rig. But I can't justify a 600+ mm lens for the average shooting (photography) I do.

But it sure looks neat.

wogpotter · February 8, 2013, 02:54 PM

Thats a commercial rifle stock home nodded I think. the Photosniper was all metal. There were a few variations of the Zenit (pronounced Ginette, like the girl's name) photsniper rig, they had an interesting history.

They were originally made for the old KGB to use for battlefield surveillance, but they were marketed in the West as a kit for those like ornithologists who needed a combination of mobility & stability.
The original camera was a zenit "B" or "E", a Soviet copy of the old Pentax "SV" cameras. The lens was a 300 mm "Tair" semi-auto diaphragm.

Cameras with rifle type stocks are a lot more common than you'd think. I sold these 600, 800 & 1200 mm monsters for a living once & got busted by the British Special Branch because it was so big I was spotted by a helicopter covering a royal procession.

They thought it was some kind of missile launcher

This loks like the 6000mm, the 800 & 1,200 mm are a lot bigger, about 6' long & 14" wide at the front end. We used to say they were the only thing that made a Nikon F Photomic Tn look like a cheap rear lens cap!

JimPage · February 8, 2013, 03:16 PM

Looks like an assault camera to me.

Eppie · February 8, 2013, 03:51 PM

You're right Jim it is an assault camera. Wait till Diann Feinstein hears about this.

**Spats McGee** · February 8, 2013, 03:54 PM

Lesseee . . . It's got a pistol grip and a sunshade. I think it passes Dianne's two-feature test. . . .

ETA: Is that a folding stock I see?!? Oh, the horrors!

wogpotter · February 8, 2013, 06:30 PM

Oh there's worse horrors.
The standard magazine took 36, then Ilford brought out the 72 shot ones. It was so many shots the counter couldnt keep up.

**Spats McGee** · February 8, 2013, 06:41 PM

Oh, my goodness! A high capacity shooting device! Those should be banned. Nobody needs to have over 10 shots.

February 7, 2013, 05:40 PM	#2
redhologram Senior Member Join Date: January 14, 2013 Location: Southeast AL Posts: 146	I can't see the pic.. __________________ "And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war." ~ Revelation 19:11

February 8, 2013, 10:50 AM	#3
wogpotter Senior Member Join Date: September 27, 2004 Posts: 2,061	Me niether. __________________ Allan Quartermain: “Automatic rifles. Who in God's name has automatic rifles”? Elderly Hunter: “That's dashed unsporting. Probably Belgium.”

February 8, 2013, 11:18 AM	#4
Eppie Senior Member Join Date: January 7, 2010 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 519	Sorry guys I don't know why you can't see it, but I've attached the picture just below the original posting. __________________ Experience is a very bad teacher because it first gives you the test and then teaches you the lesson.

February 8, 2013, 12:31 PM	#5
4V50 Gary Staff Join Date: November 2, 1998 Location: Colorado Posts: 15,418	Good pics. Good enough to get shot at by a cop who is nervous and has poor weapons/threat identification/awareness. __________________ Vigilantibus et non dormientibus jura subveniunt. *Molon Labe!*

February 8, 2013, 01:03 PM	#8
Moby Member Join Date: November 11, 2012 Posts: 86	I too have both interests and the rifle stock rig has been around for a long time. It is a very stable way to photograph subjects. Don't worry it's highly unlikely a cop will shoot you. However the only real advantage of that rig is for a long lens. And today, many long Len’s have image stabilizers. So the extra weight becomes cumbersome. I have thought many times about buying the same rig. But I can't justify a 600+ mm lens for the average shooting (photography) I do. But it sure looks neat. __________________ “A free people ought not only to be armed and disciplined, but they should have sufficient arms and ammunition to maintain a status of independence from any who might attempt to abuse them, which would include their own government.” ~George Washington US Coast Guard 76-86 Semper Paratus

February 8, 2013, 12:49 PM	#6
ret.YPD Junior Member Join Date: November 4, 2012 Location: Youngstown, Ohio Posts: 7	It looks like a ZENIT which is a Russian-made camera outfit. I recently saw a similar-looking outfit in an antique mart here in NE Ohio. But it could also be a home-made "gadget" done up by a wildlife photographer. This outfit, when displayed in public, could be dangerous to your health.

February 8, 2013, 02:54 PM	#9
wogpotter Senior Member Join Date: September 27, 2004 Posts: 2,061	Thats a commercial rifle stock home nodded I think. the Photosniper was all metal. There were a few variations of the Zenit (pronounced Ginette, like the girl's name) photsniper rig, they had an interesting history. They were originally made for the old KGB to use for battlefield surveillance, but they were marketed in the West as a kit for those like ornithologists who needed a combination of mobility & stability. The original camera was a zenit "B" or "E", a Soviet copy of the old Pentax "SV" cameras. The lens was a 300 mm "Tair" semi-auto diaphragm. Cameras with rifle type stocks are a lot more common than you'd think. I sold these 600, 800 & 1200 mm monsters for a living once & got busted by the British Special Branch because it was so big I was spotted by a helicopter covering a royal procession. They thought it was some kind of missile launcher This loks like the 6000mm, the 800 & 1,200 mm are a lot bigger, about 6' long & 14" wide at the front end. We used to say they were the only thing that made a Nikon F Photomic Tn look like a cheap rear lens cap! __________________ Allan Quartermain: “Automatic rifles. Who in God's name has automatic rifles”? Elderly Hunter: “That's dashed unsporting. Probably Belgium.”

February 8, 2013, 03:16 PM	#10
JimPage Senior Member Join Date: February 21, 2010 Location: Rome, NY Posts: 570	Looks like an assault camera to me. __________________ Jim Page Cogito, ergo armatum sum

February 8, 2013, 03:51 PM	#11
Eppie Senior Member Join Date: January 7, 2010 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 519	You're right Jim You're right Jim it is an assault camera. Wait till Diann Feinstein hears about this. __________________ Experience is a very bad teacher because it first gives you the test and then teaches you the lesson.

February 8, 2013, 03:54 PM	#12
Spats McGee Staff Join Date: July 28, 2010 Location: Arkansas Posts: 3,323	Lesseee . . . It's got a pistol grip and a sunshade. I think it passes Dianne's two-feature test. . . . ETA: Is that a folding stock I see?!? Oh, the horrors! __________________ A gunfight is not the time to learn new skills. If you ever have a real need for more than a couple of magazines, your problem is not a shortage of magazines. It's a shortage of people on your side of the argument. -- Art Eatman

February 8, 2013, 06:30 PM	#13
wogpotter Senior Member Join Date: September 27, 2004 Posts: 2,061	Oh there's worse horrors. The standard magazine took 36, then Ilford brought out the 72 shot ones. It was so many shots the counter couldnt keep up. __________________ Allan Quartermain: “Automatic rifles. Who in God's name has automatic rifles”? Elderly Hunter: “That's dashed unsporting. Probably Belgium.”

February 8, 2013, 06:41 PM	#14
Spats McGee Staff Join Date: July 28, 2010 Location: Arkansas Posts: 3,323	Oh, my goodness! A high capacity shooting device! Those should be banned. Nobody needs to have over 10 shots. __________________ A gunfight is not the time to learn new skills. If you ever have a real need for more than a couple of magazines, your problem is not a shortage of magazines. It's a shortage of people on your side of the argument. -- Art Eatman