[lynchpin]

Hi gang! I was absolutely chuffed to receive my Pentax 67 recently, and I've been out shooting with it but unfortunately there seems to be an issue with it.

It appears quite minor, but I'm worried it's related to the shutter based on other posts I've seen here and elsewhere on the web. Please see below for sample images.

It's subtle, but you can see that the left third of each exposure is slightly darker than the rest. These were all shots with even lighting, and I trust the lab that I'm using enough that I doubt it's an issue with their scanner (though I will ask).

I was just wondering if you might have any thoughts about what it could be? I'm in a bit of a quandary as it's otherwise in great nick, and it cost me some $ in tax to import it from Japan, so I'm loathe to return it. I'm hoping I can get it fixed, but was curious what you thought about how severe an issue it might be, or what it could be. I have tried different batteries, and I'm waiting on the scans back from a roll that I shot with a silver oxide battery (as opposed to alkaline), but I don't have a second lens to test. The sale was listed as having been CLA'd, so I'm hoping it might just need some use after the service, though that might be wishful thinking.

Any thoughts or guidance would be much appreciated!

Attached Images

           

[Silent Street]

G'day.
Hmm. Those pics look to have a distinctive, very recognisable Australian flavour!


There is insufficient across-frame evidence to characterise it as vignetting.

The lighting in the pic of the derelict house and graffiti-scrawled factory wall is very contrasty.


What exactly was undertaken with the service on the camera while it was in Japan?
In the absence of seeing the negatives on the lightbox, I suspect this has something to do with scanning, with the darkened edge not being quite flat before starting. Examine the negatives and determine if that area of lesser exposure is visible on them. If the "stripe" is not on the negatives, it is with the scanning. If the "stripe" is on the negatives, we can switch attention to the camera.


This is one of the times I'd be looking to include a second lens in the kit to make a comparison test to rule out any lens fault (I doubt it's a lens fault though).

[lynchpin]

Hi Silent Street,

Right you are! Adelaide here.

Language barriers have proven difficult to navigate, all I know is it was sold as having had a CLA. I will attempt to ask about what was done during the service.

I'll check the negatives and go from there. I ruled that out just since the film was developed across a period of a roll a week for about 3 weeks, and I figured that sort of issue wouldn't persist in a lab for that length of time. You're right though, it definitely pays to check and I'll take a peek tonight.

I might swing by a local shop and see if they have any 67 glass they might let me shoot a test frame with. I'm with you on the lens, it looks absolutely mint and I don't think it's that but who knows! Thanks for your thoughts!

[tuco]

Perhaps a sticking shutter curtain. One person posted a similar but more severe situation not long ago. He videoed the shutter curtain action and found fault with it.

[gofour3]

It's subtle, but you can see that the left third of each exposure is slightly darker than the rest. These were all shots with even lighting, and I trust the lab that I'm using enough that I doubt it's an issue with their scanner (though I will ask).

You could try shooting a roll of E6 if you want to eliminate scanning issues.

Slide film is WYSIWYG....

Phil.

[pentaxus]

Different shutter speeds?

[lynchpin]

Thanks guys. Yep, different shutter speeds yielded the same issue with around the same severity - it didn't vary much. I looked over the negatives, and I couldn't see the effect but it would also be very hard to see without a loupe. I'll try scan some negs using a different scanner to double check.

Appreciate the help! I might need to try using my phone's slow motion setting to see if I can capture the shutter curtain moving.

[desertscape]

I'm thinking that the two shutter curtains are not travelling at the same speed. Agree with this sentiment above.

[Silent Street]

I'm thinking that the two shutter curtains are not travelling at the same speed. Agree with this sentiment above.

The very suggestion of a fault makes me squirm considering the effort involved in getting the camera from Japan to Australia, and only to have something like this show up, even after a major service. But we cannot be sure at the moment. It brings to question just how we are to effectively deal with the obvious language barriers and shortfalls with sellers based in Japan (I've had a fair share of hiccups and 'blank looks'), who are well known to 'template' their online equipment descriptions and not struggle with individualised, accurate description of each piece they are selling. If equipment is described as MINT, then it must not have scratches, dents, bruises, touch-ups, replacements or whatever else! Equipment described as working after a CLA should at the very minimum be supplied with a test certification from the servicing facility.


Dry-firing the camera with the back open and observing the shutter travel action at low to middle speeds might be eventful. I would hope the OP has made contact with the seller to let him/her know of a possible problem and get information for return of the camera should this be necessary. This is onerous and risky but may just have to be done.

[lynchpin]

The very suggestion of a fault makes me squirm considering the effort involved in getting the camera from Japan to Australia, and only to have something like this show up, even after a major service. But we cannot be sure at the moment. It brings to question just how we are to effectively deal with the obvious language barriers and shortfalls with sellers based in Japan (I've had a fair share of hiccups and 'blank looks'), who are well known to 'template' their online equipment descriptions and not struggle with individualised, accurate description of each piece they are selling. If equipment is described as MINT, then it must not have scratches, dents, bruises, touch-ups, replacements or whatever else! Equipment described as working after a CLA should at the very minimum be supplied with a test certification from the servicing facility.


Dry-firing the camera with the back open and observing the shutter travel action at low to middle speeds might be eventful. I would hope the OP has made contact with the seller to let him/her know of a possible problem and get information for return of the camera should this be necessary. This is onerous and risky but may just have to be done.

Agree completely, Silent Street! My interpretation of "mint" seems very different to a lot of online sellers. I'm getting some negatives scanned elsewhere today to rule out bad scans, and I have liaised with the seller who seems surprised but open to chipping in on repairs (to what extent, I'm yet to find out). I'll try and film the shutter curtain, which will hopefully be telling (although I'm praying there's something awry with my lab's scanner at this stage!) then take it in to a local repairer and see what they have to say. Appreciate the feedback, everyone!

[lynchpin]

Okay, so I've scanned the negatives elsewhere, and the issue is still present - so it's not my lab. I recorded the shutter as best I could using one hand using slow mo mode on a smartphone, which you can see here:

Youtu.be

Youtu.be

I don't really know what I'm looking at, if I'm honest! Does it look right to anyone who has a trained eye?

[Silent Street]

It looks to me like the shutter aperture, the opening, is skewed — is it??
I have viewed it 3x and there looks like it is dragging, along with the (perceived) skewed angle of the opening. Can you confirm this?
Maybe make contact at this point with the seller in Japan and tell him/her in simple, easy to understand terms that the shutter is not working / something to that effect.

[lynchpin]

It looks to me like the shutter aperture, the opening, is skewed — is it??
I have viewed it 3x and there looks like it is dragging, along with the (perceived) skewed angle of the opening. Can you confirm this?
Maybe make contact at this point with the seller in Japan and tell him/her in simple, easy to understand terms that the shutter is not working / something to that effect.

It does look a little like that doesn't it? Like the opening is faster at the bottom than the top? I have gotten in touch with the seller who is willing to chip in for repairs so I'll see about getting a quote this morning.

[Silent Street]

It does look a little like that doesn't it? Like the opening is faster at the bottom than the top? I have gotten in touch with the seller who is willing to chip in for repairs so I'll see about getting a quote this morning.

I really do hope this works out for you. My own attempts at getting things replaced and/or refunded by Sellers in Japan, nowhere near the value of a P67 (think right-angle finder that was described as mint, but had an active fungal infection!) have been long, tedious and drawn-out, with the inevitable, eventual win-win conclusion being that I get yet another paper crane, delicate bamboo chopsticks, origami hats and pretty pink flamingos.
O Ye, have faith and patience!

[lynchpin]

The plot thickens... or thins? I had a tech look at it today, and he thinks everything is working as it should. He couldn't fault the actuation of the shutter, or anything else. I showed him the video, and he thinks the gap in the curtain appearing to be at an angle is an artifact of shooting it on a smartphone or not being 100% square on with the rear of the camera, and feels that even if that were the case, he'd be able to detect that in play or slack in the curtain or shutter mechanism, and he could find nothing like that. So, back to the drawing board. The only thing I can think to try is another lens and develop the negatives at a different lab.