A quick appraisal of this truly classic 1960's film SLR + I explain how in my NEXT video I face some issues with the famous f1.4 lens! "Uranium Stock Videos by Vecteezy" www.vecteezy.c...
What, no cathedrals, no monuments, no history channel “stuff”? Good to see you Alan, very interesting (and enjoyable) video. I never got the Spotmatic, my first Pentax was the K1000, which I gifted to a friend when I got the Olympus OM-1 (I'm such a nice guy). I’m looking forward to your “experiment” with the Sony. Be well and stay safe.
I’m enjoying your channel Alan, having recently tried film again after c.30 years! I’ve got the Sony a7 mkii & an a6500 so have been enjoying my collection of vintage lenses on FF & APSC for a while. Have also a Spotmatic loaded, which I’m looking forward to testing.
Thank you David, good to hear from another Spotmatic owner! I hope you can find other videos of interest to you, I have done a couple now featuring vintage lenses.
I have just subscribed, I collect film cameras and one in the collection is a Spotmatic II which I bought new in around 1973. I have two SMC Takumars one is the original bought with the camera and the other a latter rubber grip one bought for use on my a7. I bought an inexpensive Geiger Counter and both of the f 1.8 lenses are also radio active. The 135, 35 and 28 SMC lenses aren't. I only use them. I still use film as well as digital.
First of all, thank you so much for subscribing! As you may gather I have a penchant for vintage cameras, although unlike you I no longer shoot film. I must watch some of your content for that very reason. Good to have you along!
Hi there, excellent content as always. The Sony a7 is perfect for your intended use, but BEWARE, I went down a huge rabbit hole once I got mine. From Argus and Altix to Voightlander (DKL), there are adapters to the E mount, so many lenses.....
I think you read my mind there Clare..! The next 2 - 3 videos will give you an idea of where I'm going with this but suffice to say I won't be investing in rarer vintage glass, mainly less popular/expensive 3rd party lenses (I hope).
Hi Alan, can you please explain how to ascertain the build date of the Spotmatic, you did make reference to it in the vid. The model I have has a speed dial up to 500 but sometime back another reviewer stated that the dial can be turned a notch further to 1000 although no indication on the dial. Stay well , regards Alan
So Alan, you have an SP500 which was introduced in 1971 as a 'trimmed-down' version of the original. It lacks a self-timer and as you rightly say it is marked as having a top shutter speed of 1/500th. However, as you have already seen there is an extra 'click' past that setting which allegedly fires at 1/1000th - although there is a possibility that it may not fire accurately every time. I don't think they were numbered in a way that denotes year of manufacture though. If you are REALLY keen to find out more, there is an excellent book on the Pentax M42 cameras by Gerjan van Oosten ISBN-10 : 907653702X.
I just received a broken SP1000 with an SMC 55mm f1.7 (or 1.8, I don’t have it here). The camera is unfortunately beyond reasonable repair, but the lens is yellowed so I assume it is possible that it is a radioactive coating. Thanks for the video.
There is a deal of confusion over these Ira as (from what I understand anyway), the 55 SMC's aren't radioactive but the early ones with full metal focus ring were claimed by Pentax to include rare-earth glass? It's important to note that it isn't the coating but the glass itself that is radioactive. In any event the amount of radiation given off really is negligible.
Hi Alan, sometimes its the little things, I look forward to your outing with those new lenses, the little thing being your passing remark about the infrared marker on the lens, I had seen them but didn't know what they indicated, anyway a quick web search and I'm now thinking of getting a red filter, for my old lenses, I know you don't think they are ideal, I watched your video with the infrared camera, but I am prepared to go out with a tripod. I was reading a section from an old photography book from around 2012 the author was saying that some digital camera pickup the infrared better than others, he said it could be tested by setting up a camera on the timer and pointing a TV remote at it from a couple of yards away, if the camera sees the remote red-light its possible to get decent infrared pictures with a filter, not every camera will see the light he says. Cheers Alan.
Hi Steve. It is a fact that some (maybe most?) digital cameras DO register a degree of IR light. My E-M1 clearly picks-up the signal from my TV remote on the LCD screen. However, by itself this isn't enough to render useful IR images as most people expect to see them, hence the need for either a conversion, or the use of a separate filter. The Hoya R72 filter will definitely provide good results when you use a tripod as they cut light by about 15 stops.
Lord help us, if a super takumar can do that to a RU-vid video I need to store mine in a lead box at the bottom of the nearest ocean. Alternatively it's yours for free if you're interested in an early 60s 55 1.8, not worth much and never gets used, free delivery!
