On this channel you'll find Vintage and Retro Tech, with demonstrations, overviews and the occasional repair or refurbishment. Note, working on mains powered electrical equipment should only be undertaken if you fully understand what you are doing - mains electricity can be dangerous, if you're unsure, DO NOT open mains powered equipment.
There will be vintage Stationary Engines running and powering various bits of equipment. In the future there will be some more technical stationary engine videos with repairs and rebuilds too.
You'll find self penned music tracks to accompany some of the videos - most of these tracks can also be downloaded at GrumpyTim's Bandcamp page (see link in the "About" page).
You will also find vintage photographic equipment tests, the occasional mountain bike, steam engine and any other stuff that takes my fancy......
Hi Malcolm, yeah, I guess it was, and also the Kodak Retina Reflex, which is very similar to the Bessamatic, sharing the depth of field markers, lens mount (well almost, they put an extra little bump on one version so the lenses weren't interchangeable) and Synchro Compur shutter.
I must admit that I can never pass a Voigtlander Vito B and often end up buying them. For a dinky little camera there is a surprising variation in the lenses.
I just like the name Voigtlander, it sounds impressive, so far I've got a couple of Bessamatics, a Vitoret and a Brillant pseudo TLR, but I'm sure a Vito will add itself to the collection at some point. Like you say, there are so many variations on the Vito, it could be a collection all on it's own.
Oops sorry, I didn't spot this one Neville, yep, it's not the best bolted together camera in my collection!!! I've still got more work to do on the Kiev, the light leaks are better, but there were still a couple of occurrences on the third film - I deliberately carried the camera around with the case open so it was exposed to the sun, and the leaks were nowhere near as bad, so I'm getting closer to fixing it. I also noticed on all three films that the frame spacing was a bit inconsistent, in fact it seems to be getting worse, so I'll need to look at the film advancing mechanism, there'll doubtless be some latch that's sluggish or something like that. That's a job for another day.......
Cheers Nedra, it's a lovely little thing and the sound is so soothing as you cook your food. Since I made the video, the non return valve in the bottom of the pump failed - usually you can replace these with the correct tool, but even with that tool it wouldn't budge, so I had to un solder the entire pump, replace the valve and re-solder the complete pump back into the body - it was a bit of a daunting project, but it worked and the stove is back working again.
This particular model was the first Nikon camera I bought and came with the 50 mm F2 standard lens.I paid £80 for mine in 1982 añd still have it as it is too much of a gem to sell. I still think it has all the necessary features and nothing unnecessary to complicate matters. I always wind on before taking a shot so the meter was always ready when I took a picture. Just a shame about the mercury battrey but that is not the fault of the camera.
Hi Jeremy, coo I'd have loved to have one of these in 1982, mind you I probably could have bought one by the mid 80s, but by then I thought that new was best and headed off looking for a shiny new camera... Glad you've still got your Nikkormat. It's a pity there isn't an exact replacement for the old mercury batteries, they had a very stable discharge curve and lasted for ages, whereas most of the current solutions have some sort of compromise.
@@GrumpyTim Thanks for the reply. I got an F3 in the end and it has proved itself although not as precious as my Nikkormat. I have moved on to a D800 now which is on another planet!
Really nicely done video - we'll structured, paced, and a pleasing aesthetic. I bought an Auto-Q 200 last year and one of these came on the back of it. It's been neglected by me and gathering dust at the back of the shelf... until now. Thanks very much for the impetus. Cheers from NZ.
Hi Luzr, quite a few of my film cameras were bought for their lenses, initially so I could use the lenses on digital bodies, but the attached cameras felt so great that I eventually drifted back into film photography, and it's definitely bought back the fun that I used to have taking photos.
@@GrumpyTim A very similar story to mine, and it's such a shame to not put such well-made gear to use. I'm not that far down the rabbit hole yet, but i am aware of the danger. Have a good one and Cheers!
I'm not following you around, honestly! 😄 I've been lucky with both my 301 and 501, insofar as they both work! I love them. Solid cameras that work well. For me at least. I found the AF on the 501 could be easily confused. But then it was early days.
Hi Neville, yep, I think the AF on the F-501 is probably more for historical interest than anything, but it works reasonably well all the same. The F-301 and 501 are the camera(s) that I always wanted but couldn't quite afford, and they still excite me now. It's that 80s thing, a bit like people buying a Golf GTi because that was the car they wanted when they were a kid (although you definitely can't buy a Golf GTi for a few pounds these days!!!). It makes me smile every time I use the F-501.
Congrats on your bargain find and on putting out the best scripted and produced film camera review I have seen. For some reason, the Nikkormats seem to stay out of the limelight compared with other brands but I believe they cannot be beaten for quality and usability for 35mm work. I have an FT2 which was bought new in the '70's, an EL bought used in 1980 and an FT3 which I bought mint for £99 about 4 years ago. They are all regularly used and look like and work like new. I would always recommend one over anything else in the genre. For interest, a Nikkormat is slightly heavier than a Nikon F with plain prism, so the build quality is right up there with the F. It's just that you don't get all the F's interchangeability of viewfinders, backs, etc. They are a better bet than the posh rangefinder cameras (you know who I mean), in my opinion, and for a fraction of the cost. Likewise the Nikon lenses.
Hi Michael, I'm still blown away by the quality and feel of the Nikkormat, I was expecting it to be good, but it definitely exceeded my expectations. There does seem to be a bit of snobbery surrounding certain cameras and brands, which may well be justified, but it slightly puts me off ownership in case I found myself looking down at mere mortals with their cheaper cameras - or maybe I'm just jealous/envious!!!
Hi Lars, I tend to buy the occasional old camera magazine to use for reference purposes, it can help finding prices and other details such as when a particular camera was on sale and so on. I haven't got a magazine for every year yet, but even the few that I do have really help.
Hi Guarim1000, all the music I use is my own self penned stuff - the track for the gallery on this video was "Where Was I Going" and the music for the outro was "As Yet Untitled", you can listen to the full tracks on my Bandcamp page grumpytim.bandcamp.com - there's nothing brilliant on there, I just fumble my way through the best that I can!!!
The diagonal split screen is so easy to use. Most things we photograph have either vertical or horizontal focal points which makes the diagonal split simpler. The same system is used on the older, cheap and cheerful Ricoh SLRs as well. I have three of them.
Hi Paul, yes, the diagonal split screen seems like a completely logical idea, I'm surprised it didn't appear on more cameras. I quite like the Ricoh cameras - my main SLR was a Ricoh XR-X for many years, right up until I went digital in fact - can't remember what the viewfinder/focusing aids were like on that model, I'll have to check.
Ah, you're a local bloke then. I recognised a lot of those shots. I'm betting I know where that fair was. I once picked up a bag containing a Canon A1 with four lenses there for £10.00. Sadly I've not been able to repeat that sort of luck. Although, I have found some good ones.
Hi Neville, I bet you can guess where one of my regular vintage camera hunting grounds is if you recognise some of the locations in the photos - the shots on the old bridge were taken about two days before it fell down!!! Your Canon bundle was a bit of a bargain, as you say, unlikely to be repeated, but there are still some little gems to be found from time to time.
Hi Martin, there are probably a few different battery options, obviously if you could travel back in time and get the correct Mercury batteries, those would be the best. My 675 (Blue Tab) hearing aid batteries give about the correct voltage once they're under load in the camera, but they probably only last about a month or two in the camera, so if you're slow to use up your films like I am, then you'll be replacing the batteries a few times. I'm sure some people will get away with using a pair of LR44's or better still SR44s (because the voltage is more stable with the silver oxide batteries) but I haven't tried that myself. The meter on my camera isn't that accurate anyway, I think the CDS cell (or it might be a pair of CDS cells, I can't remember) is tired, so I mostly use a hand held light meter. I'm less of a fan of inserting a diode into the camera to reduce the voltage from the new 1.5 volt batteries - to get that right you really need to measure the load drawn by the light meter at the correct voltage in order to select the correct diode, and then you ideally need to use only Silver Oxide batteries because that have a better discharge curve than Alkaline batteries. I am quite strict with myself and I remove batteries from any camera that's not in use because it's so easy for them to leak, causing much more hassle.
Great video, Tim! I have a black FT3 with a pancake 50mm that somehow always ends up with film it, despite my having way more Canon FD and Pentax SLRS!
Cheers Zed John, it's funny how you end up gravitating towards certain cameras, in my case there are some cameras that just make me happy when I'm using them, so those ones are rarely without film. Thanks for watching.
"Just want it gone.." prices are awesome. Was at a flea market couple weeks ago and there were a Nikkormat and F sitting on a table. How much? Five dollars. I grabbed the F and the guy next to me took the Nikkormat. Each for five bucks. There will be another rash of good deals when I croak, and my wife "just want it gone...". Cheers!
Wow Ray, that makes my Nikkormat seem expensive!!! In reality it works for everyone, the folks wanting to clear stuff get rid of it without either having to throw it away, or worse still, having to pay someone to remove the stuff, and for us enthusiasts/collectors/hoarders (select whichever applies) it's like Christmas has come early.
Excellent review. I've had two Nikkormat cameras for many years, an FT2 and FT3 with black bodies. They have taken thousands of photographs in all kinds of harsh conditions and have been absolutely reliable, not a single malfunction. Both of these versions take 1.5V batteries and the FT3 is designed for Ai lenses with an index lug that can be folded back for pre-Ai lenses, like the FM that replaced it. Very robust and beautifully engineered cameras that I still use. '""
@@GrumpyTim The FT2 went over to silver oxide battery rather than the older mercury type. It also added a hot shoe. The FT3 was identical to the FT2 except that it used the. Ew ai indexing system. The ai coupling tab could be folded back to allow non-converted pre-a lenses to be fitted, and used with stop down metering. The FT3 was only in production for a few months, until the FM was ready for release. There were three cameras with electronic shutters, the Nikkormat el and elw, the latter could take a power winder. The final camera in the range was the Nikon el2. They had dropped the Nikkormat name but it was basically a Nikkormat Elwood but iththe new ai indexing system. Like the FT3 it was short-lived until the FE wa released. There were two versions of the cold shoe for the FS/FT/FTn. Both had the standard ISO shoe on top, butone version had a sort of groove running front to back on each side below this. These could take a flash designed to be used with the special shoe on the F and F2 without an adapter. These were the SN7e electronic flash and a bulb flash with a folding reflector and a special holder which could take three different types of bulb. I can’t remember the name of that one. Since the Nikkormat shoe was a cold shoe a sconces cord had to be used with these flashes when fitted to the Nikkormat, unlike on the F and F2.
Hi Stephen, it was quite an exciting time for camera development around then, lots of interesting developments. I'd heard about the Ai coupling tab that could be folded out of the way when using pre Ai lenses - a definite Gold star for Nikon by accommodating the use of older lenses on the next generation of camera. I had wondered what the additional groove and tension spring were for on the cold shoe, just below the standard shoe bit - clearly it was there to mount something, but I didn't know what......and now I do, cheers.
@@GrumpyTim The ability to mount pre-ai lenses was continued with the FM, both early and later versions, and the Fe, but was removed on the FM2, FE2 and later cameras. It was provided on some of the professional models, but I’m not sure which ones. It could be provided as an option on the F6, and was actually a standard feature on the Df.
I have a few Nikkormat's, including the FTN, but also I have 2 of the rare close to mint and working, black FT3. Only 60,000 of them were made in black and 140,000 in silver, so there couldn't be very many good working examples left world wide out of those original 60,000 in black because the FE came out the same year of production. These cameras were well built.
Nice video and ditto camera and lens! It's quite a coincidence that I looked at this same camera (only with an f1.8 lens) on the 'Dutch E-bay' a few days ago. I passed on it though as they're not cheap, and I only buy extreme bargains when it comes to vintage stuff :)
Hi ohjajohh, I'm much the same, unless there's a particular camera that I want, I wait until I see something interesting at a bargain price before I spend my hard earned cash.
I’m blown away by the Nikkomats. Solid and beautifully made. I ignored them for years until finally trying one, very good cameras. In the leagues of the Canon FTB, Pentax K1000, even equal in mechanical reliability as the Nikon F and Canon F1
Hi Flowermaze, the Nikkormat was definitely a camera that I'd completely ignored, I was aware that it existed but that was as far as it went - very glad I've got one now! My brother has a Canon FTB, that's a lovely camera, I'm quite envious of him having that one.
I have the Japanese version called Nikomat. My camera have an all metal winding crank and does not have split focus screen. Maybe it is older. Very good camera. I fitted a diode to reduce the battery voltage to use 1.5V batteries.
Hi Yat, I'd spotted that some earlier versions don't have the extra plastic bit on the film advancing lever - I guess my FTN is quite a late model if I'm right and it dates from 1973. I suspect the original owner of my Nikkormat bought a few optional extras with his camera, there were various bits like a genuine Nikon filter, lenshood, cold shoe, extension tubes and so on with the camera, so it's entirely possible that he ordered the camera with the split image focusing aid as an optional extra too.
That was a great review/report. The Nikkormats are so nice to use, you can feel the precision and quality throughout. Even the case was of a quality rarely if ever, found today. Ive got the FT2, and its a real pleasure winding the film advance. Thanks for the video.
Cheers Gunther, they really are a beautifully engineered piece of equipment, no wonder Nikon gained such a good reputation back then. Cheers for watching.
Thanks for putting this together. I am struggling with the battery compartment. I noticed that one of the screws that holds the battery contact has a nut on the back but does the other one as well? Any help would be appreciated
Hi Evan, I've just been through me photos and I don't think I took one showing the back of the battery chamber - it's possible that they relied on the bite of the thread into the insulation material for one of the screws, but a nut would seem more likely. Both screws have to be isolated from the main chassis of the camera because the chassis carries the positive side of the battery while the screw on the negative terminal closest to the prism presses against one of the contacts inside the camera to carry the negative side if I remember correctly. if one of them didn't have a nut it would likely be the one furthest from the prism because the spring contact won't be trying to force that one outward.
Hi Ian, I don't think genius is the right word, maybe hoarder would be more appropriate!!! I do find much of this crazy old stuff really fascinating though and it's often difficult to turn down a bargain.....
@@GrumpyTim I just bought a couple of new ones to me, an Ising Isis and a rather tatty Ziess Ikon Contina. so I think that makes 120 cameras, both were £10 each, it is a nasty habit of mine buying cheap in the hope they work or are repairable😇. I was very lucky some weeks ago in finding a Durst Automatica [ the one with the pneumatic shutter button, it "sighs" rather than clicks 😁😉 typical Italian ] for £20 on a charity auction, it is almost mint. Thanks, I will be in touch about the Exa, it is not essential that it works, the main reason for buying was the Carl Zeiss Tessar lens that it was fitted with, it works fine happily.
I'm very much the same, if I like the look of it and it's cheap, it often ends up in my collection - I will usually then get the camera working and put at least one film through it. Mind you, there's a bit of a backlog on the "to be repaired" pile these days, but I'll gradually work my way through them.
@@GrumpyTim Forget about about the Exa Tim, I did get it working, but only about one in three windings resulted in a firing, so it has been reassembled for now with a note as to it's condition, but thanks anyway for the offer. I don't care how humble a camera is, as long as it is interesting or novel, one I picked up several months ago was a French Weber-Fex, I love bakelite cameras, it is the only Fex I have seen with a convenional lens. I have maybe 10 cameras dissassembled to one degree or another I have failed to repair or have forgotten how to put then back together or lost my notes, all a part of being ancient 😂😇
@@GrumpyTim The two cameras I got on Ebay arrived. The Zeiss Ikon Contina II was filthy dirty BUT it works really well, I was shocked 🧐🥴🤗 and pleased. The Ising Isis seemed the better of the two at first glance, until I got to the fucus ring, it was jammed solid, it took several hours to free it up. As you would expect they look far from new, but I am happy. Cheers.
Hi Borger, the likelihood is that the camera is already wound on, at which point there is a latch that stops you advancing the film again before you take the shot. I'm presuming that you can't see anything through the viewfinder, in which case the shutter button will have been pressed which starts a sequence of events - the shutter closes, the mirror and a blanking plate flip out of the way, the aperture closes down to the set value, and only then does the shutter open and close to take the shot. On lots of this kind of camera the shutter often gets sticky and doesn't open or close fully, meaning that the camera is stuck somewhere in the middle of that sequence. Generally the only solution is to dismantle the shutter for cleaning and servicing, if you're not used to doing that kind of thing, one of these cameras might not be the best place to start, but if you are used to repairing stuff like this then that's probably your best chance. There may well be some videos showing dismantling of these shutters, have a look for "Synchro Compur shutter disassembly" or something like that, particularly if you find any videos by Chris Sherlock because he's really good, that way you can see the sort of thing you'll be tackling before you decide to dive in yourself. Often you don't need to fully dismantle the thing because the part that's sticking could even be a rotating ring or lever that's external to the shutter itself.
Hi Gluttonite, you should be ok swapping the connector for one that takes a PP3, just as long as you keep the polarity the same way round. Obviously the PP3 won't last as long because it's a much smaller battery, and it may even struggle for power at louder volumes. I'd be tempted to use two PP3s in parallel, in other words, fit two PP3 connectors, keeping both the red leads together and the two black leads together, that way you just get more power but remain at 9 volts.
Hello Tim, like everyone else I am very grateful for these videos, I have two Exa's with the same problem, an Exa500 and a IIa. The problem is, although the shutters wind ok they do not latch or lock in position ready to fire, can you possibly point me in the right direction to solve this? that is, if there is a way ! Thanks Ian
Hi Ian, I'll try to dig my Exa out next week and take a look. In the meantime, if you wind on with the back open, do the shutter curtains move to the top (or is it the bottom, I can't remember which way they wind) and immediately trip, or do they stay still and it's just the film advance sprocket and so on that moves?
@@GrumpyTim Hi Tim, thanks for the prompt reply. I think I may have found the "culprit" although as yet unsure. The curtains go down and up as they should on the 500, rather stiffly at first when it arrived, but is now moving more freely after some judicious lubrication with watch oil, although, as I mentioned, it does not get to the firing stage. I have wound the camera dozens of times watching the mechanism carefully [ the body has been removed 😁😇] , yesterday I noticed a hair like spring doing nothing, it was supposed to hold a chrome lever arm in tension, a very weak and poorly designed arrangement. This lever arm appears to be the "culprit", I repositioned the spring, nothing changed except the spring would not stay in position constantly, the lever arm goes under the bottom of two fine toothed cogs one above the other which rotate clockwise when the camera is wound, I noticed that on the underside of the lower cog there is a small protusion, which I think is supposed to latch onto the end of this lever arm holding the firing mechanism ready to fire 🧐🙃watching it carefully it is "obvious"that they are a hairsbreadth away from doing just that. With a bit if manipulation I got them to latch and the camera fired as it was supposed to, so somehow I have to get the spring to stay in place permanently, and "stretch" the mechanism for the magic to happen 😁. Sorry about the longwinded reply.
Hi Ian, When I get the chance I'll take a look at mine again, if you want to email me I'll see if I can take a photo of my camera to show how that spring sits, which might help work out why yours isn't doing what it should. grumpytimchannel@gmail.com
What an awesome piece of kit this is...Many thanks for showing it to us! 🪙🇬🇧😁 I'd just like to point out 07:45 though; Yes, a cheap electronic calculator or smartphone app is a much cheaper way of doing it...But where might I have found a *cheap* electronic calculator¹ or anything capable of running a smartphone app in 1968? 😋 (¹ - Electronic calculators were available at the time, but they were damned big and heavy things that were plugged in to the mains, used valves, and definitely would _not_ have been cheap! The first transistorised pocket calculators were the iPhones of their time, and were sold at prices roughly equivalent to that if not more. 💸)
Cheers Dieseldragon6756, glad you liked it. When I was talking about the relative price of the Sterlicon I was just meaning that the £77.25 current price is good for a nicely built thing like the Sterlicon but it doesn't compare well to a current cheap calculator or phone app, I wasn't intending to say you could get those in 1970 when The Sterlicon was around. I do have quite a collection of old calculators and adding machines, both mechanical and early electronic, and they're lovely things. By 1970 valves were a thing of the past as far as calculators were concerned, with chips already taking over from the earlier discreet transistor based units. I'll drop a link below to one of my rather nice 1970s electronic machines if you fancied a look. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-00vAkeb3cb0.html
Great video! i Useful tips and information. Thank you for the tips. I liked the information about the liquids, sterilized water and oiling. I am interesting to find information specific for the chemical liquids for repairing old cameras Ex: the best liquid oil for remove rust from metal, the best glue that would bond with leather and metal etc. Do you know if there is some specific video for that? I would greatly appreciate it if you have some tip.
Hi SokratesP, I haven't seen any videos that delve into what specific chemicals etc are best for repairing old cameras - I wouldn't be surprised if there's something in the general camera servicing guides at Learn Camera Repair dot com, but I haven't looked for them. I think some of the products will vary form one location to another - many people recommend a glue called Pilobond for gluing shutter curtains to the drums on the camera or for re attaching the leatherette after servicing a camera, but I've never come across that glue in the UK - I did see some online for sale at a stupid price, which I didn't buy!!! If you do find a list of recommended products, you may need to track down alternatives that are available in your location.
@@GrumpyTim Thank you very much for the answer. I have to search forward and make a list off products that other people use, as you sugest. Keep up the good work!🙏👍
Hi Ivanbogush, the manual I was using came from Learn Camera Repair dot com, and it's the "Canonet Repair Manual 1962" (it's on page 2 of their big list of Canon service manuals). It's not necessarily the easiest manual in the world to follow, but it had the bit of information that I needed regarding the orientation of those shutter blades, so it was worth having.
I have kindly been given 2 of these manual Burroughs calculators - on both of them all keys are locked/stuck(?) as is the pulling of the handle. Can anyone help me to unstick/unlock the keys and handle please?
Hi Dennis, the machine in the video was one that I was fixing for a friend so I can't take a look at it now. If I remember correctly, and this is the case on most similar machines too, there are various spring loaded latches to prevent things like pressing two keys on the same column and pressing a key once you've started cranking the handle. It's more than likely that many or all of the spring loaded latches (they're like a metal rod with cut outs on the under side of the keyboard plate) are stuck with dirt and old oil. Also, I think there's some sort of lock out that won't let you pull the handle again until the machine has finished the previous calculation - in theory this should happen automatically as soon as you move the handle back to its rest position, but again, there will be some sort of spring loaded part that is probably sticking. If I get the chance I'll take a look at my friends machine next time I'm over there, but for now you could do worse than simply removing the case and observing the mechanism, giving the handle a little jiggle and seeing what moves and what looks like it should move. Don't use force, but you can try to gently jiggle individual parts with a small screwdriver to see if they're moving freely, and applying a small drop of oil to and pivots that seem sluggish and so on.
Hi Paul, for this lens you'll need a Canon FD to Micro 4/3 lens mount adapter - you should easily find one on Amazon or wherever you prefer to shop. The K&F Concept adapters are usually pretty good, they're not the cheapest or the most expensive but the ones I've used have been excellent. I think the Super Ozeck lenses were also made with other camera mounts, so you'd need to be sure that yours was a Canon FD mount before getting the adapter - the Canon FD version has the breech lock ring at the back to lock the lens onto the camera.
Cheers Jimmy, much appreciated. Helicoid grease, now there's a thing - the stuff I use is Polar Bear Camera helicoid lube, soft - they did various different grades and ideally I should have bought several different types, but I'm tight, so I just make do with the one. It's about right for most of the metal double helicoid lenses (ie, where the front of the lens doesn't rotate as you focus the lens), but it's a bit on the light side for some of the single helicoid lenses. It just looks to me like some sort of synthetic grease, and I'd bet you could substitute many other greases that would work just as well. Lots of old lenses used all kinds of mineral greases, many of which become solid when they get old and dry out, theoretically a modern synthetic grease should last longer but only time will tell. The only real worry is how the grease degrades because it can be the deposits from degrading grease that end up on the internal lens elements causing haze.
I understand those points and I honestly find them more valid in regards to a T70 which offers proper T90 operation in a humble cut down size.. I have a T90, only replacing my broken T70 to try something new. This and my FTb are the full auto and mechanical successors that I like to use with my FD lenses depending on the mode of operation I feel like and are honestly the better options. Love your review, actually made me appreciate it despite my own choices.
Hi Ingrained, I agree, my preferred choice is always either a fully manual camera or at least one that offers manual as well as auto. Of my cameras that do have various auto modes, I will occasionally use aperture priority auto but never program mode. It's possible, from my own point, that I'm applying a bit of snobbishness by saying that "I always shoot manual", or "I never shoot in program mode", but being forced to shoot in program mode on the T50 (because that's all it has), reminded me that program mode isn't all bad, and I should maybe give it a little more credit now and then. Theoretically, the T50 should really be able to shoot in aperture priority mode, and I can only presume that Canon omitted that feature to ensure enough people went for the more expensive T70.
Hi Nigel, I guess it slightly depends on what other cameras you're using - I've been using a KMZ Start, Kiev 4 and Argus C3 recently, all of which have their charm but they could also be described as ergonomic disasters, and in comparison the T50 is pure luxury. Love that TR6 in your thumbnail by the way.
Your summary of this oft maligned camera is spot on. I bought one from a charity shop years ago, mostly for the 50mm FD 1.8 lens. When I finally used it, I loved it for all the reasons you stated. Using this camera and lens combination with Ilford Delta 100, I achieved images to match anything 35mm I've ever owned or used.
Hi Mr Standfast, I'm definitely guilty at times of dismissing "auto only" cameras because I don't have the level of control that I usually like, but I've loved using the T50. I've already put 2 films through it (I just haven't taken the second roll to the lab yet) and now I've got the video out of the way I'll be putting a third roll in.
I couldn't think of an imaginative title for the video - I was stuck at "Canon T50" and it needed more words - I might change the title sometime if I get inspired with something a bit more interesting.
Hi Jackie, I'm sure there must be a decent source of replacement ariels, but I haven't tracked it down yet. I needed a replacement ariel for one of my other radios and I couldn't find anything, so I just repaired what I had as best as I could so I could use the radio.
Hi Fettarme, I haven't got my notes with me today, hopefully I'll have written down what I did to remove the aperture ring, I don't recall it being too difficult - I'll try to have a look at my notes next week and let you know.
Hi Andrew, yes, it is just that, a point and shoot SLR, and a surprisingly good one at that. I didn't realise how much fun it would be to use, I expected to be frustrated at not being able to adjust the exposure but instead it allowed me to relax a bit more. I've already put a second roll of film through it, just haven't taken that roll to the lab yet.