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kari · 02-21-2010, 04:08 PM

Ok, so I'm quite young and have never really known anything about film photography. I bought a secondhand lens today on an online auction site (Pentax-A 50mm 1:1.7) and got an old SLR film camera thrown in with the deal, the Pentax MG. As far as I can tell it looks to be in a good condition, I just don't have any idea how it works. I'm about to spend a year on an sub-antarctic island away from all civilisation and bought the K-x recently to capture the beauty of the place. Of course being away from everything means being away from printing labs too. However, there is a dark room at the base...

So, I'd like to know: Is the camera any good? How steep is the learning curve for using a film camera like that for someone who's never used one before? How difficult is it to develop your own pictures.

Thanks

**monochrome** · 02-21-2010, 04:45 PM

Nice lens and a decent camera. Here's a link to the details about the MG, although you may still be benighted by technical information. Try downloading and printing a copy of the manual from Pentax-Manuals.com - its free and a very high quality scan. The password is "Pentax"

The learning curve is no worse than learning the Aperture Priority function of a DSLR. Av is the only function on the MG - there is no manual mode. That should make the learning process fairly easy.

Although you may not want to spend the money, may I suggest you consider having the camera inspected and brought to original spec.'s by this Forum's favorite Pentax technician, Eric Hendrickson? The link sends you to his website, where he describes his business and service - quite excellent and inexpensive for what he does, and no risk to you! Read the estimating information in the right frame.

wlank · 02-21-2010, 05:05 PM

Originally posted by monochrome

Although you may not want to spend the money, may I suggest you consider having the camera inspected and brought to original spec.'s by this Forum's favorite Pentax technician, Eric Hendrickson? The link sends you to his website, where he describes his business and service - quite excellent and inexpensive for what he does, and no risk to you! Read the estimating information in the right frame.

This may not be possible for kari. He seems to reside in South Africa. Maybe he has a friend here that he could send the camera to. But you are right, Eric is the best.

**monochrome** · 02-21-2010, 05:26 PM

Originally posted by wlank

This may not be possible for kari. He seems to reside in South Africa. Maybe he has a friend here that he could send the camera to. But you are right, Eric is the best.

Oops - my bad. Not really ethnocentric, but certainly a continent-o-centric error of a global Forum.

wlank · 02-21-2010, 06:02 PM

Originally posted by monochrome

Oops - my bad. Not really ethnocentric, but certainly a continent-o-centric error of a global Forum.

But at least he can download the MG manual. One out of two ain't bad. Babe Ruth never hit .500.

kari · 02-21-2010, 11:26 PM

Thanks a lot, guys. I'll definitely grab a hold of the manual for that camera.

I'm a 'she', by the way. ;-)

little laker · 02-22-2010, 02:27 AM

Originally posted by monochrome

Try downloading and printing a copy of the manual from Pentax-Manuals.com - its free and a very high quality scan. The password is "Pentax"

There's no password required through Pentax Canada, here's the link.
The free on-line manuals is sure a nice touch

I had the MZ-6's downloaded the day before I bought the camera, even knowing that I'd get the manual with it.

**monochrome** · 02-22-2010, 07:56 AM

Originally posted by kari

Thanks a lot, guys. I'll definitely grab a hold of the manual for that camera.

I'm a 'she', by the way. ;-)

OK - so no more assumptive behavior by monochrome

FWIW, you'll enjoy the camera, especially the viewfinder!

tuco · 02-22-2010, 10:40 AM

You didn't say if you were going to do color or BW. When I look back at my first several years of developing my BW film, they suck to what I do today. In other words, optium results take some practice. But if you expose well and follow the development recommendations, you'll get good results. Are you going to be in snow? Remember, your camera's center-weighted metering will place a really white snow scenes to a mid tone. You'll need to open the lens up several more stops depending on how white a scene is. Since the camera is new to you, I'd bracket all the shots you think are keepers.

harfooz · 02-28-2010, 05:38 PM - **1 Like**

The MG is one of my personal favorites: it's easy to use, was inexpensive, takes all the lenses you could ever want to use, and has been a "strong" camera, in that I can stash it in my tank bag or truck and not worry too much about it. It'll be quick for you to learn on too. The one thing (about all these Pentax manual film bodies) that I am not a fan of, is the method for loading the film. It takes some patience to correctly load the darn thing, whereas my auto-everything cameras make film loading a non-issue.

Clicker · 03-01-2010, 07:50 AM

*note* if at sub Antarctic temperatures, crank film advance slower than normal or else you risk the chance of images with lightening showing up "static" isn't film friendly

24X36NOW · 03-01-2010, 08:18 AM

MG?! Ick!! Must-have-manual-control...

If you shoot slide film, you're likely to find a camera without manual exposure capability to be mighty aggravating.

titrisol · 03-02-2010, 08:03 AM

Nice rugged camera
AE is generally spot on
check my comments on the other thread

Kommitted · 03-08-2010, 04:46 PM

Hmm, I'm a huge fan of film but this sounds like you might really be better off with a digital. Bringing enough film, batteries, chemicals, paper for a year will be a shlep, and quite an outlay in financial terms, too.

OK, it had to be said.

Give your MG a good workout before you leave. I only ever put one roll of film through mine. It came back underexposed, for which I blame the ASA dial. It's plastic and doesn't feel anywhere near as robust as the metal one on the ME.

However, if yours is good and exposes correctly, I agree that it should do well. As has been said, you'll need to adjust exposure for snow scenes, and on the MG that can only be done with the ASA setting. Nothing wrong with that except you'll need to remember to set it back when not needed. Unlike cameras with a dedicated ASA override, there is no reminder in the viewfinder.

unixrevolution · 03-10-2010, 01:33 PM

The MG uses the same frame as the more manual ME and ME Super. My fiancee has one that I gave her for christmas. It has a self-timer and is Aperture-priority AE only. THe Aperture priority is one by twisting the aperture ring, so don't expect your DA or FAJ series lenses to work on it. No Exposure Compensation either, but you can change that by lying to it about what ISO film is loaded

The MG is very light and from what I can tell, not a bad entry level Pentax film SLR at all.

02-21-2010, 04:08 PM	#1
kari Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2010 Photos: Albums Posts: 142	Pentax MG... any good? Ok, so I'm quite young and have never really known anything about film photography. I bought a secondhand lens today on an online auction site (Pentax-A 50mm 1:1.7) and got an old SLR film camera thrown in with the deal, the Pentax MG. As far as I can tell it looks to be in a good condition, I just don't have any idea how it works. I'm about to spend a year on an sub-antarctic island away from all civilisation and bought the K-x recently to capture the beauty of the place. Of course being away from everything means being away from printing labs too. However, there is a dark room at the base... So, I'd like to know: Is the camera any good? How steep is the learning curve for using a film camera like that for someone who's never used one before? How difficult is it to develop your own pictures. Thanks

02-21-2010, 04:45 PM	#2
monochrome Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Working From Home Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 26,276	Nice lens and a decent camera. Here's a link to the details about the MG, although you may still be benighted by technical information. Try downloading and printing a copy of the manual from Pentax-Manuals.com - its free and a very high quality scan. The password is "Pentax" The learning curve is no worse than learning the Aperture Priority function of a DSLR. Av is the only function on the MG - there is no manual mode. That should make the learning process fairly easy. Although you may not want to spend the money, may I suggest you consider having the camera inspected and brought to original spec.'s by this Forum's favorite Pentax technician, Eric Hendrickson? The link sends you to his website, where he describes his business and service - quite excellent and inexpensive for what he does, and no risk to you! Read the estimating information in the right frame. Last edited by monochrome; 02-21-2010 at 04:53 PM.

02-22-2010, 10:40 AM	#9
tuco Pentaxian Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Pugetopolis Posts: 11,032	You didn't say if you were going to do color or BW. When I look back at my first several years of developing my BW film, they suck to what I do today. In other words, optium results take some practice. But if you expose well and follow the development recommendations, you'll get good results. Are you going to be in snow? Remember, your camera's center-weighted metering will place a really white snow scenes to a mid tone. You'll need to open the lens up several more stops depending on how white a scene is. Since the camera is new to you, I'd bracket all the shots you think are keepers. Last edited by tuco; 02-22-2010 at 10:46 AM.

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02-21-2010, 05:05 PM	#3
wlank Inactive Account Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Santa Teresa, New Mexico Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,130	Originally posted by monochrome Although you may not want to spend the money, may I suggest you consider having the camera inspected and brought to original spec.'s by this Forum's favorite Pentax technician, Eric Hendrickson? The link sends you to his website, where he describes his business and service - quite excellent and inexpensive for what he does, and no risk to you! Read the estimating information in the right frame. This may not be possible for kari. He seems to reside in South Africa. Maybe he has a friend here that he could send the camera to. But you are right, Eric is the best.

02-21-2010, 05:26 PM	#4
monochrome Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Working From Home Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 26,276	Originally posted by wlank This may not be possible for kari. He seems to reside in South Africa. Maybe he has a friend here that he could send the camera to. But you are right, Eric is the best. Oops - my bad. Not really ethnocentric, but certainly a continent-o-centric error of a global Forum.

02-21-2010, 06:02 PM	#5
wlank Inactive Account Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Santa Teresa, New Mexico Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,130	Originally posted by monochrome Oops - my bad. Not really ethnocentric, but certainly a continent-o-centric error of a global Forum. But at least he can download the MG manual. One out of two ain't bad. Babe Ruth never hit .500.

02-21-2010, 11:26 PM	#6
kari Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2010 Photos: Albums Posts: 142 Original Poster	Thanks a lot, guys. I'll definitely grab a hold of the manual for that camera. I'm a 'she', by the way. ;-)

02-22-2010, 02:27 AM	#7
little laker Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Photos: Gallery Posts: 5,697	Originally posted by monochrome Try downloading and printing a copy of the manual from Pentax-Manuals.com - its free and a very high quality scan. The password is "Pentax" There's no password required through Pentax Canada, here's the link. The free on-line manuals is sure a nice touch I had the MZ-6's downloaded the day before I bought the camera, even knowing that I'd get the manual with it.

02-22-2010, 07:56 AM	#8
monochrome Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Working From Home Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 26,276	Originally posted by kari Thanks a lot, guys. I'll definitely grab a hold of the manual for that camera. I'm a 'she', by the way. ;-) OK - so no more assumptive behavior by monochrome FWIW, you'll enjoy the camera, especially the viewfinder!

02-28-2010, 05:38 PM - 1 Like	#10
harfooz New Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Photos: Gallery Posts: 15	The MG is one of my personal favorites: it's easy to use, was inexpensive, takes all the lenses you could ever want to use, and has been a "strong" camera, in that I can stash it in my tank bag or truck and not worry too much about it. It'll be quick for you to learn on too. The one thing (about all these Pentax manual film bodies) that I am not a fan of, is the method for loading the film. It takes some patience to correctly load the darn thing, whereas my auto-everything cameras make film loading a non-issue.

03-01-2010, 07:50 AM	#11
Clicker Veteran Member Join Date: May 2008 Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,241	note if at sub Antarctic temperatures, crank film advance slower than normal or else you risk the chance of images with lightening showing up "static" isn't film friendly

03-01-2010, 08:18 AM	#12
24X36NOW Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: CT, USA Posts: 498	MG?! Ick!! Must-have-manual-control... If you shoot slide film, you're likely to find a camera without manual exposure capability to be mighty aggravating.

03-02-2010, 08:03 AM	#13
titrisol Pentaxian Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: In the most populated state... state of denial Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,854	Nice rugged camera AE is generally spot on check my comments on the other thread

03-08-2010, 04:46 PM	#14
Kommitted Inactive Account Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: New England Posts: 2	Hmm, I'm a huge fan of film but this sounds like you might really be better off with a digital. Bringing enough film, batteries, chemicals, paper for a year will be a shlep, and quite an outlay in financial terms, too. OK, it had to be said. Give your MG a good workout before you leave. I only ever put one roll of film through mine. It came back underexposed, for which I blame the ASA dial. It's plastic and doesn't feel anywhere near as robust as the metal one on the ME. However, if yours is good and exposes correctly, I agree that it should do well. As has been said, you'll need to adjust exposure for snow scenes, and on the MG that can only be done with the ASA setting. Nothing wrong with that except you'll need to remember to set it back when not needed. Unlike cameras with a dedicated ASA override, there is no reminder in the viewfinder.

03-10-2010, 01:33 PM	#15
unixrevolution Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Waldorf, MD Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,861	The MG uses the same frame as the more manual ME and ME Super. My fiancee has one that I gave her for christmas. It has a self-timer and is Aperture-priority AE only. THe Aperture priority is one by twisting the aperture ring, so don't expect your DA or FAJ series lenses to work on it. No Exposure Compensation either, but you can change that by lying to it about what ISO film is loaded The MG is very light and from what I can tell, not a bad entry level Pentax film SLR at all.

Pentax MG... any good?

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