[clickclick]

so is there a battery hiding under the tiny screws in the back?

Well, that is easy to figure out....

[Marcus Rowland]

A good day in the car boot mines, though I won't know how good for a week or two:

A very nice clean working SMC Takumar-Zoom 4.5/85-210 with case, original rear cap, and a skylight filter - the leatherette case is showing its age, the lens is almost pristine, for £20
A nice clean working Tamron AF 70-300 4-5.6 macro for Minolta and older Sony - unfortunately gear in this fitting is rapidly losing its value, but I should make a profit at £10.
A plastic kit for making a tiny 35mm TLR for £3 - unused so should sell for a fiver or more
A Nikon D50 body for £20 - no battery, and the spare I thought I had turns out to be completely dead, so I won't know if it's OK for a week or two.
An Olympus OM winder 2 - doesn't seem to work, I can't try to fix it right now - and two Nikon rear caps for £3 the lot.

Hopefully I'll be well enough to go to two more tomorrow.

[photoptimist]

Like new Lightmeter at the local Goodwill. Not responsive so is there a battery hiding under the tiny screws in the back? Any information on this model?

It seems that the Bertram Amateur is a selenium meter (James's Light Meter Collection: Bertram Amateur) which means there's no battery. Instead, the meter's light sensitive element is a solar cell that directly power the needle movement.

What's strange is that the needle should be visible (hovering around "0") in that picture but it's not. Perhaps the light level was out-of-range but perhaps the needle mechanism has been bumped or is out of calibration. Do yo ever see the needle, perhaps in full sun?

[Aaron28]

What's strange is that the needle should be visible (hovering around "0")

believe the cell is in the middle with the cracked glass and receiving light making the reading.....just a guess....it is a neat little booger though.....have a few of these tiny fellas ferget what manufacturers though....my favorite old school meters are the GE DW58s have 3 that meter just fine!! love them

[monochrome]

Made way for this beast. Notably larger than the K-70 but not uncomfortably so. Feels good in the hand.
Interesting change of perspective with my current crop of lenses... Everything is so much wider! Looking forward to getting to grips with it.

Edit: It has 45,000 actuations but was a steal and is rugged enough to take that in its stride, along with the few photos I'll put on it intermittently. Looks as though it's had an unmodified Sigma lens attached at some point (doesn't bother me) but everything else is pristine really. No scratches or dusts on the mirror or sensor, no scratches on either screen. Joio.

After a decade+ shooting APSc cameras, when I got my K-1 it took me forever to train my eye to quckly find the center of the VF. I don’t have that problem shooting film cameras. If I use my KP for a couple weeks I have to concentrate on where my eye is looking again.

[Benz3ne]

After a decade+ shooting APSc cameras, when I got my K-1 it took me forever to train my eye to quckly find the center of the VF. I don’t have that problem shooting film cameras. If I use my KP for a couple weeks I have to concentrate on where my eye is looking again.

Fortunately, I guess, I’ve not had the issue of a prolonged period with using APS-C cameras but the viewfinder in the K-1 is ‘crowded’. The O-ME53 viewfinder enlarger does help though!

[D1N0]

Oops... Won this lot on a gamble the Adaptall SP 70-210mm 1:3.5 19AH is still usable despite the dent in the zoom ring. The Super-Takumar 50 1.4 (pretty sure it is not 8 element) is bound to still be good, so It is my safety when the Tamron turns out to be a dud.

[luftfluss]

Oops... Won this lot on a gamble the Adaptall SP 70-210mm 1:3.5 19AH is still usable despite the dent in the zoom ring. The Super-Takumar 50 1.4 (pretty sure it is not 8 element) is bound to still be good, so It is my safety when the Tamron turns out to be a dud.

I hope that 19AH works out for you... it's not a great lens, but it is a very good one.

[D1N0]

I hope that 19AH works out for you... it's not a great lens, but it is a very good one.

If it doesn't does anybody know how to adapt a Minolta Beercan 70-210mm F4 to Pentax

[ZombieArmy]

Just got in my Nikon 4000 ED scanner. I managed to get it set up in windows 8.1 relatively painlessly and have gotten some test scans. Though it's pretty obvious that the scanner's mirror is absolutely filthy! So I'll have to open this bad boy up and clean it out sometime next week.

I think the dust is so bad it's making the scanner slightly miss focus.

[luftfluss]

If it doesn't does anybody know how to adapt a Minolta Beercan 70-210mm F4 to Pentax

Just a couple days ago somebody on DPR commented about using the Beercan...

[D1N0]

Can anybody identify this one?



Name ring is missing. It looks like this one in the database Cosina MC Cosinon-T 135mm 1:3.5 Lens Reviews - Cosina Lenses - Pentax Lens Review Database

[SSGGeezer]

It seems that the Bertram Amateur is a selenium meter (James's Light Meter Collection: Bertram Amateur) which means there's no battery. Instead, the meter's light sensitive element is a solar cell that directly power the needle movement.

What's strange is that the needle should be visible (hovering around "0") in that picture but it's not. Perhaps the light level was out-of-range but perhaps the needle mechanism has been bumped or is out of calibration. Do yo ever see the needle, perhaps in full sun?

I have seen it move but only bounces up and it seems to be from moving the meter. No change when I move the dials under indoor light. I get a bounce when I aim my Litra directly at it though. glass is kind of grubby so I will clean carefully and try again. As I never shot film, I bought it on a lark because it appeared to be perfect and is a bit of history. At the price I paid for it, it isn't a big deal but if it works it is extra cool!

[Dartmoor Dave]

Can anybody identify this one?

As soon as I saw the photo, and before I scrolled down to the bottom of your post, I thought: "Hey, that looks like that old Cosina 135mm that I used to have back in the eighties." So I think your research is probably right and that is what it is.

The bad news is that it wasn't a great lens, not very sharp and with low contrast. Although stopped down a bit and with the contrast boosted in pp, it might well work a lot better on a DSLR than it ever did on film.


Edit:
Here's a Kodachrome 64 shot taken with it.



I'm fascinated by that thing that looks like some sort of 200mm preset at the back of your group photo above. Any more info about it?

[D1N0]

I'm fascinated by that thing that looks like some sort of 200mm preset at the back of your group photo above. Any more info about it?

It's a Hanimex 200mm 1:4.5 I found a Soligor Equivalent: Soligor Telephoto 200mm f/4.5-22 (preset) - M42 Lens Database According to the serial number it was made by Kawanon a T2 lens. I think the Chinon was made by Sun and the Pentacon probably by Sigma.

It's looks like you were on the set of Monty Python and the Holy Grail