YouTuber Casey Cavanaugh, whose work has been featured before on DPReview, has produced a handy video guide for those looking for buy their first film camera. Posted on his GxAce YouTube channel Casey runs through five top tips for checking over some of the essential functions of an old film body and lens to make sure it is going to be worth buying.
He shows how to check shutter speeds and ways to spot problems, as well as pointing out the importance of the integrity of the camera’s light seals. He also has useful information on examining the condition of a lens and discussing what is repairable and what should be avoided. Buyers should take a spare battery and a flash light/torch with them, Cavanaugh says, to ensure lenses are clean and that the camera is functioning normally.
If you have an eye on a second hand film body this might help you avoid buying a dud.
Thanks for the wonderful tip about repairing cloth shutters, in addition to the shutterchecks; always look TROUGH the shutter instead of AT.
Nuclear war is neccessary to let lubricants evaporate, haze is caused by residues like chalk left by rain, humid air or cleaning aids not being removed in time....
Buy a Zenith E or EM, Why? They are cheap, made to agricultural standards, they rarely fail, and the there are hundreds of lenses available. Will anyone be able to see a difference from some over complicated offering in a print, Of course not!
I love M42 lenses, but they tend to be on the slower side. If I were to start a film setup now, I would do Pentax K mount or Nikon F mount instead--excellent cameras and lenses. The best thing is that you can also put the legacy film lenses onto digital DSLR bodies natively without adapters.
Woodyz I agree. And Nikon cameras from the ‘70’s and ‘80’s tend to be very reliable as well. But compatibility with modern digital cameras has boosted the price of the older Nikkors. I personally like Canon FD breech mount lenses from the ‘70’s, very well made, solid and reliable - and a bargain. I have probably a dozen and all are excellent. Canon FD cameras are another matter. The A series all used a common cloth shutter which was prone to failure. The T series were mostly awful except for the T-90, but it was prone to failure. Original F-1 and the later New F-1 were bullet proof but the original required the PX625 battery for the meter. Also the EF had a metal Copal shutter (like a lot of cameras) and could be used with or without batteries but the meter from such an old camera is probably not trustworthy. I shoot with a New F-1 and several EF’s but I use a hand held lightmeter with the EF’s.
I like the simplicity of the Canon T-50. I shoot a lot of portraits, so sometimes I just to point and shoot without playing too much with the settings. The T50 has a great AE, and the ISO dial is there to +/- if needed. I also have a Canon AL-1, which has an aperture priority mode... great mode for portraits too. I fixed the battery latches on both cameras, so I hope they won't fail on me in other ways anytime soon.
I took a $20 AS-IS gamble on a T-90 from KEH... it had the EEE error and I couldn't get the shutter to unstick. KEH just gave me refund without even asking for the camera back!!
I would add never buy a lens that has suffered damage to the filter mount, unless the asking price really reflects this. If the impact is sufficient to deform a metal mount there is the chance the lens elements may have been knocked out of collimation
I got my Yashica MAT repaired by Mark Hama a couple years ago. Hama was a builder/assembler at the Yashica factory that built the MATs. He must be like 75-80 years old by now...
If it's a SLR, check out also for scratched focusing screens, i've bought one Yashica FR1, because mine was being broken after decades, beyond repair - and the focusing screen was being scratched.
Check the Shutter Speeds, also check the Electronics, if the Light Meter is still being working - and more important, if you can buy still the required batteries. (Weinman is a good replacement)
I have had fungus even into one of my Sony R1s, which i've bought into early 2006, and oily aperture blades is a classic, FYI, the Yashica ML 35-70 F4 is prone to it, whileas the 28-85 ML is prone to haze inside the Lens, especially behind the front element. Also have had 35/2.8 ML & 50/F2 ML with sticky aperture blades.
After using a specific SLR for many years, one does know all it's flaws, and what to avoid when getting a "new" one second hand. ;)
As being said before, if the camera is worth it, i'd give it a specialist for full CLA. ;) Still, love to shoot my analogue Contax & Yashica SLRs.
Radioactive lenses are very attractive a lot of times, I bought a few very yellow Canon FD lenses for a bargain and 'bleached'' them succesfull with a UV torch.
As long as one can still purchase Acufine developer and Tri-X film, then it is a good idea. My advice for those interested in documentary photography and an occasional intimate portrait (distance 3-5 feet), which implies carrying the camera at all times, is to get your hands on a used Rollei 35 S (40 mm f/2.8 retractable lens). Finding the button battery to run the light meter may be a problem. For accurate B&W rendering of flesh tones, the Tri-X user must affix a yellow filter (loss of one f-stop). Thus, the wisdom of Acufine, which produces ultra-fine grain and higher than normal film speeds. The results are spectacular and easily blown up to 11 x 14 inches. With sepia toning a heavenly glow is brought in. Personally, though, in the digital age, one can get the same or nearly the same results overall with Tri-X film emulation (DxO Film Pack 3) or Tru-Grain (https://grubbasoftware.com) and Silver Efex Pro 2 (https://nikcollection.dxo.com/silver-efex-pro/). Printer: Canon iP100.
You have highlighted a problem not often raised. Dyed-in-the-wool film photographers will have honed their skills using specific film/developer combinations. Now, not only may they have lost their favoured film, but the developer also. For me, it was Aculux.
For a moment you got me. Some film cameras do have a card slot. It was for then piece of card that came with the film packaging. You would tear off the flap of the packaging and slot it in to remind you of what film was loaded.
IR1234, fact is stranger than fiction. A couple of Minolta film cameras did take cards. This was a form of memory card that was pre-formatted for subject types e. g. sports, landscape, portraiture, and adjusted various settings automatically. Also, I understand that Nikon incorporated an SD card slot in one of their top end F cameras and this was to record exposure and other information, something we take for granted today with our digital cameras.
Good tips which help when checking out a camera from a private seller directly or in a store. But less helpful when ordering online which happens more often these days. Rule of thumb: for older or less used rangefinder or SLR cameras, add to the purchasing price the amount for a full CLA (Cleaning-Lubrication-Adjustment) service. First symptoms that a CLA is absolutely needed is a stuck film winder and/or shutter (or that the rangefinder focus is off which I didn't encounter myself so far).
Excellent comments. We've by and large lost the biggest advantage for protecting ourselves from dodgy purchases - our friendly local camera shops where we could get good advice and physically check over any camera before purchase.
@guyfawkes: I made some good purchases regarding used camera gear in local camera shops which don't exist anymore. Only just a few months ago I bought a mint looking medium format camera in a local store for a decent price deal - in the past I found that used cameras were often overpriced in local stores compared to reputable online dealers. This has changed in recent times with the higher demand online for analog camera gear and increased prices there whereas local stores might be actually very competitive now.
Tip #6 -- On mechanically timed cameras with unknown service history, NEVER engage the self-timer, unless you are prepared for the possibility of having a CLA done on the camera (assuming you can find someone to do a CLA on that particular model). The self-timers have never had regular use to keep them unbound and working, which means they are more likely to bind up than the main shutter timer; testing the self-timer runs the risk of freezing up an otherwise working camera.
Doesn't everyone now-days look to add light leaks to image or under exposure and faulty colors - to add random creativity ? Why fight it by looking for flaws in camera body ?
@Akpinxit. Very true, but many people want to put light-leaks on files made with expensive digital cameras. They buy software to make faux light leaks. For those who shoot film you can buy pre-light-struck film from Dubblefilm https://www.dubblefilm.com/
I check my shutter speeds with an app called ‘Shutter Speed” It uses the microphone on your phone to check shutter speed. The app creator also makes an optical sensor that you can purchase for better accuracy. I found the audio based app works great for shutters up to 1/500 of second. I found that just checking the 1 second shutter isn’t enough and that it can get progressively worse as it get closer to 1/500 of second.
I use Ronson’s Lighter fluid for cleaning oil on aperture blades (the same fluid used for Zippo lighters). You can essentially pour the whole bottle on an old Compur shutter and clean it out of any old lubricants and debris. If a shutter appears to kind of work, there’s a good chance you can recover it by flushing it out. After you clear it, just add back some high quality white lithium lubricant (Hellicoid Lubricant is one of my recommendations).
Checking focus on a rangefinder cameras. I keep a piece of frosted acetate around. You can put a camera into bulb mode, open up the back and put that frosted acetate right directly on the film plane (shiny side facing you - just like having the emulsion towards the lens). Focus the lens, and you may need to hood the back, but you should see an inverted image on the little acetate window to verify focus. If you’re so brave to tune a rangefinder you shouldn’t. I recommend a professional to do that.
Carrying batteries is not a bad idea, but one of the problems is the older the camera, the more likely it was using mecury lead acid batteries. Those batteries unlike alkaline batteries sustained a more consistent voltage. If you can research the camera you’re looking at getting, find out if it is of that era or sensitive to voltage changes like alkaline batteries. Someone might say that a light meter is faulty and there is always a chance that it’s just the use of alkaline batteries in it.
Bring fresh batteries with you and test. If the lightmeter or camera operates well, that’s a good sign, however you will likely need to get specialized batteries to keep it running properly. Wein batteries are mercury free and last up to a year once they are exposed to air.
I was under the impression that the audio-based shutter speed apps are intended for leaf shutters, and only work with focal-plane shutters up to the flash-sync speed? What kind of camera were you testing at 1/500?
The idea of the sun burning a hole in a cloth shutter sounds plausible, but this almost never happens. What does happen is the curtain material itself becomes brittle (it's not just cloth, but a sandwich, because cloth is not sufficiently opaque.) Once pinholes appear, dabbing them with rubber gunk is at best a temporary fix as more holes are usually on the way.
Get a Nikon F3 - titanium shutter curtains last almost forever - my 38 years old is as good as new and uses one 3 volt lithium battery or 2 x 1.5 volt silver oxide button batteries. Actually I did replace the reflect mirror foam shock absorber. It became brittle over the years, easy job.
Wonder how the Sun would damage the cloth shutter - the reflect mirror is there blocking the Sun ray when pointing at it - during exposure the curtains are moving very swiftly across - you would have more problem with film being burnt pointing at the Sun.
Of course many old interchangable lens rangefinder cameras had cloth curtains.
What I meant was, the idea that the sun burns a hole in the center of the curtain, like a kid with a magnifing glass trying to set a leaf on fire is plausible but requires the lens to be uncapped and placed in direct sun for a prolonged period.
That's a possibility, but when you work in a repair department that replaces cloth curtains, what is guaranteed to happen to cloth shutters is that they get brittle, resulting in pinholes scattered across the shutter curtain surface. Still cloth shutters were unmatched for their low noise level, freedom from the "kick" of crappy Copal shutters and no worries about creases with titanium shutters.
There are some camera techs who can install a Nikon titanium shutter in an old Leica, thereby making it impervious to sun holes. It does require a donor body, though. Interestingly, it is just as quiet as the original cloth shutter when installed.
... I got two TOP of THE LINE Canon cams for sale. One is MINT only 30 rolls the other about 200 rolls condition 9.5... in case you are interested to own one of them...
Have an old gifted Yashica A camera I have been thinking of using. Alas the shutter is not cocking and firing. Haven't checked his other four points yet. F.
1. Check shutter speeds - slow shutter speeds exhibit symptoms first on older film cameras. Test 1-second shutter speed. For leaf-shutter cameras, check for oil on shutter blades.
2. Check light seals (light leaks) by checking the edges around the doors. For cameras with cloth shutter curtains, check for holes.
3. Check quality of the lens (fungus, haze, oil on aperture blades). Oil on rangefinder lenses less important because blades don't have to move quickly for each exposure. For cameras with built-in lenses, check rear of lens while keeping shutter open in bulb mode.
4. Check focus accuracy. For rangefinder, check patch and patch vertical/horizontal alignment. For SLRs, check focusing screen projection.
5. Bring fresh battery and flashlight. Battery to make sure camera functions, flashlight for checking into the lens.
6. For any electronically-controlled unit (meaning one where the shutter is timed by some sort of circuitry), open the battery compartment and check for old battery leakage or corrosion.
@Steelhead3: took one minute to read. Video is 9 minutes. This has nothing to do with being visual vs. otherwise. I appreciate @Horshack taking a few extra minutes to summarize as it saves me the trouble of listening through probably five minutes of non-relevant fluff so Casey can earn more credit from YouTube.
Also, reading the summary would have saved me the agony of listening to several minutes of vocal fry. I thought this was only an affectation of young women.
A 9 minute video to slog through what could have been reduced to 5 printed bullet points. I know; hipsters don't know what a shutter-curtain is so have to be shown...
The reason is simple : the longer the video, the more it is viewed then the more the poster makes money. This is the most pervert aspect of Youtube as more and more people are ready to do and record crazy things for that.
I've been lusting after an Olympus OM-4TI so as to use my favorite lenses on a body they were built for: the tiny OM 24mm 2.8, precision OM 50mm f/2 Macro, and fabulous OM 85mm.
Alas, modern digital small-format sensors and accompanying EVFs are just too great to give up, so I'll probably add a Nikon Z6 to my Sony A7 one of these days.
Many avid amateur and professional photographers still own and have interest in film photography. Buying old film cameras can be a great way to experience a slower paced photographic experience and is a great way to see how good technology was even in the dark ages of the early 1950s.
@Sardonic G said: " ...old film cameras can be a great way to experience a slower paced photographic experience..."
I learned photography during the 1960s. I see little difference between film and digital. You still focus, compose and push the button. Navel gazing wastn't a thing until recently ;-) Cameras have been used to capture fast paced action since the 1930s. Baseball, football, prize fights, auto-racing, WW2, Korean war, etc.
I see that we are of the same era; a great period for photography ensued until digital became a viable alternative. Those Grafmatics were incredible, I've kept mine,one with the exposure numbers working, the second one not.
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