Why is the Spotmatic better than the K1000?

vinzer · 12-26-2008, 06:30 AM

Originally posted by Mike Cash

When two will do the trick, the number at home on the shelf really doesn't matter.

Quote of the day for me. I doubt anyone here will argue that.

Originally posted by Mike Cash

You know, I bought some M lenses thinking I would eventually end up with enough K-mount film bodies to make it worthwhile. As it is, I only have an ME. Using M lenses on digital is (to me, anyway) annoying and I'd rather just use my Takumars.

So I have ended up with K20D, K100D, Spotmatic ESII, and SV......all of which either actually are M42 bodies or which get used by me as though they were. And the only reason I haven't used my ME yet as an aperture-priority M42 body is that the ESII fills that function, does it with open-aperture metering, and has more features to boot.

That a camera can use K-mounts is not something I think of as an appealing feature. I'm far more likely to base further acquisitions on what can make best use of my Takumars.

I wish I could enjoy Takumars as much. Though I'm happy with the lone Takumar I have, the adapter ring I bought from B&H is a pain to use (one of those Bower adapters), and I feel like I'm slowly damaging the lens mount on my K200D each time I take it off. I just wish Pentax would continue to sell their original M42 adapters.

jgredline · 12-26-2008, 09:45 AM

Originally posted by vinzer

I wish I could enjoy Takumars as much. Though I'm happy with the lone Takumar I have, the adapter ring I bought from B&H is a pain to use (one of those Bower adapters), and I feel like I'm slowly damaging the lens mount on my K200D each time I take it off. I just wish Pentax would continue to sell their original M42 adapters.

I found out the hard way to stick with the ''PENTAX'' made one and all is good on planet earth.

I have spent thousands of dollars on my equipment and yet I chose one of those bower things because it was 10 bucks cheaper than the pentax one. What I got was a lens that would not focus to infinity, in spight of the fact they said it would, It was a pain to get on and off, it cost me a month of headaches with the exchanges and ultimatly I ended up breaking it off my K1000 and thankfully I did no damage...

edl · 12-26-2008, 09:50 AM

Originally posted by vinzer

I wish I could enjoy Takumars as much. Though I'm happy with the lone Takumar I have, the adapter ring I bought from B&H is a pain to use (one of those Bower adapters), and I feel like I'm slowly damaging the lens mount on my K200D each time I take it off. I just wish Pentax would continue to sell their original M42 adapters.

They still do - the Pentax web store has them in stock.

PentaxWebstore Mount Adapter B (35mm Screwmount to Bayonet)

edl · 12-26-2008, 09:58 AM

Originally posted by Mike Cash

You know, I bought some M lenses thinking I would eventually end up with enough K-mount film bodies to make it worthwhile. As it is, I only have an ME. Using M lenses on digital is (to me, anyway) annoying and I'd rather just use my Takumars.

Either I'm dumb or don't read the forums enough, but I only recently realized that Takumars and other screwmounts can utilize Av mode, whereas you have to live with green button metering on K and M lenses. I find Av and preset apertures much easier to use than the often inconsistent green button metering.

I've used my J9 and Super Takumar 35/2 much more in the last two weeks after this revelation. The Tak puts out some great results! I think I'll grab a 28/3.5 and 55/1.8 next.

Nick Siebers · 12-26-2008, 10:41 AM

hi edl

Maybe it is just me, but I find I need to up exposure at least a stop, usually 1.5 when using Av and a Tak. Not sure why, but it helps. Do you adjust in this way? Anybody?

séamuis · 12-26-2008, 12:13 PM

Originally posted by Nick Siebers

hi edl

Maybe it is just me, but I find I need to up exposure at least a stop, usually 1.5 when using Av and a Tak. Not sure why, but it helps. Do you adjust in this way? Anybody?

I think the general consensus is yes. but not for all lenses. my Takumars on the telephoto end most surely need it, where as most of my standard length lenses dont. I can use AV with my 55 and never have to adjust EV. this may not be the same case for everyone though.

Quote:

Either I'm dumb or don't read the forums enough, but I only recently realized that Takumars and other screwmounts can utilize Av mode, whereas you have to live with green button metering on K and M lenses. I find Av and preset apertures much easier to use than the often inconsistent green button metering.

that's because you can stop down a Takumar manually by using the auto/manual switch. a manual K series does not allow for that. and I agree abouut the presets. I just recieved a preset 300mm and I found out very quickly how valuble that is for AV and proper focusing.

edl · 12-26-2008, 12:24 PM

Originally posted by Nick Siebers:

Maybe it is just me, but I find I need to up exposure at least a stop, usually 1.5 when using Av and a Tak. Not sure why, but it helps. Do you adjust in this way? Anybody?

Hey Nick, I usually use +0.7 to +1.0 on my Tak 35/2, +0.4 on my J9 85/2.

But in general I'm usually +0.4 to +1 using various lenses on both the K10 and K20, using center weighted average metering.

I find that metering in Av mode with screwmounts much more consistent and predictable than green button metering with K MF lenses. Nevermind the Taks have such beautiful build quality.

Originally posted by séamuis

that's because you can stop down a Takumar manually by using the auto/manual switch. a manual K series does not allow for that. and I agree abouut the presets. I just recieved a preset 300mm and I found out very quickly how valuble that is for AV and proper focusing.

Precisely - back when I was first learning film I had a CZ T135/3.5 that worked the same way. At first I thought it was annoying, but I like how you can focus wide open, and then stop down until you find the DOF that you want. Snap, done!

But of course the K and M series lenses are good with the K and M bodies, so I'll keep them around.

vinzer · 12-26-2008, 06:09 PM

Originally posted by edl

They still do - the Pentax web store has them in stock.

PentaxWebstore Mount Adapter B (35mm Screwmount to Bayonet)

That's just what I need, but it doesn't seem like they ship to anywhere else aside from the US. Good to know they're still in stock, though. Maybe I can try to force the local distributor to get me one. Hope they do.

Thanks for this great piece of information.

Originally posted by jgredline

I found out the hard way to stick with the ''PENTAX'' made one and all is good on planet earth.

I have spent thousands of dollars on my equipment and yet I chose one of those bower things because it was 10 bucks cheaper than the pentax one. What I got was a lens that would not focus to infinity, in spight of the fact they said it would, It was a pain to get on and off, it cost me a month of headaches with the exchanges and ultimatly I ended up breaking it off my K1000 and thankfully I did no damage...

I'm also seeing that with the adapter I got - cannot focus to infinity. Well, at least I got a Spotmatic to tide me over until I can find a way to source the original adapter. I didn't even bother to have it exchanged, since the cost to UPS the darn thing from here might even be more expensive than the adapter itself.

Mine is even more screwy since the final position of the lens is off by a quarter circle, so the aperture selection which should end up on top of the mount ends up on the right side, making aperture selection and turning the auto switch on and off very, very difficult, it's almost laughable.

Originally posted by edl

Either I'm dumb or don't read the forums enough, but I only recently realized that Takumars and other screwmounts can utilize Av mode, whereas you have to live with green button metering on K and M lenses. I find Av and preset apertures much easier to use than the often inconsistent green button metering.

I've used my J9 and Super Takumar 35/2 much more in the last two weeks after this revelation. The Tak puts out some great results! I think I'll grab a 28/3.5 and 55/1.8 next.

You're not alone. That's the first time I've read about that. I'll give that a whirl once I can get my hands on an original Pentax adapter. Good info.

jgredline · 12-26-2008, 10:04 PM

I shot another roll of BW400CN film today with ole Spoty. This fellow is growing on me. Drove 125 miles to the Angeles national forest to find some snow. My kids who are 9 have never seen snow before. I also shot a roll of fuji velvia 100 with my ME SUPER and I love it!!!!

I have discovered the the model of Spotmatic I have, the 1964 version's internal meter only moves at full stops! So basically, I ignored the internal meter and went via the sunny 16 rule and for those tricky shots I used an external light meter.

jgredline · 12-26-2008, 10:09 PM

Here are a few with the ME Super.

vinzer · 12-27-2008, 08:32 AM

Wonderful shots there, Javier. Kudos.

I have to reacquaint myself with the sunny f/16 rule and hone my guesstimation skills. Seems like I rely too much on DSLR metering nowadays. It would be nice to not have to whip out the external light meter for each and every shot I take with film bodies.

jgredline · 12-27-2008, 07:16 PM

Thanks Vinzer. I missed the exposer on the black and whites by a tad, but next time I know how to set it up. User error more than anything.

séamuis · 12-28-2008, 07:04 AM

Originally posted by jgredline

Thanks Vinzer. I missed the exposer on the black and whites by a tad, but next time I know how to set it up. User error more than anything.

using my spotmatic has pushed me to get a hand held meter. I always find myself setting up shots and just generally moving slower with my Spotmatic, so I think a meter would be a great thing to have.

woof · 12-28-2008, 07:41 AM

Originally posted by séamuis

using my spotmatic has pushed me to get a hand held meter. I always find myself setting up shots and just generally moving slower with my Spotmatic, so I think a meter would be a great thing to have.

I recommend quite highly the Sekonic Flashmate 308s. It does a beautiful job of metering both ambient and incident, and it is a flash meter as well. It really is the best meter I've ever used and I picked it up for < 125.00 used but like new on eBay. Fits nicely in a shirt chest pocket, and it goes everywhere with me.

woof

séamuis · 12-28-2008, 07:42 AM

Originally posted by woof

I recommend quite highly the Sekonic Flashmate 308s. It does a beautiful job of metering both ambient and incident, and it is a flash meter as well. It really is the best meter I've ever used and I picked it up for < 125.00 used but like new on eBay. Fits nicely in a shirt chest pocket, and it goes everywhere with me.

woof

thank you very much for the recommendation, I will look into that today.

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12-26-2008, 06:30 AM	#46
vinzer Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Philippines Posts: 1,399	Originally posted by Mike Cash When two will do the trick, the number at home on the shelf really doesn't matter. Quote of the day for me. I doubt anyone here will argue that. Originally posted by Mike Cash You know, I bought some M lenses thinking I would eventually end up with enough K-mount film bodies to make it worthwhile. As it is, I only have an ME. Using M lenses on digital is (to me, anyway) annoying and I'd rather just use my Takumars. So I have ended up with K20D, K100D, Spotmatic ESII, and SV......all of which either actually are M42 bodies or which get used by me as though they were. And the only reason I haven't used my ME yet as an aperture-priority M42 body is that the ESII fills that function, does it with open-aperture metering, and has more features to boot. That a camera can use K-mounts is not something I think of as an appealing feature. I'm far more likely to base further acquisitions on what can make best use of my Takumars. I wish I could enjoy Takumars as much. Though I'm happy with the lone Takumar I have, the adapter ring I bought from B&H is a pain to use (one of those Bower adapters), and I feel like I'm slowly damaging the lens mount on my K200D each time I take it off. I just wish Pentax would continue to sell their original M42 adapters.

12-26-2008, 09:45 AM	#47
jgredline Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: LosAngeles, Ca. Photos: Albums Posts: 10,628	Originally posted by vinzer I wish I could enjoy Takumars as much. Though I'm happy with the lone Takumar I have, the adapter ring I bought from B&H is a pain to use (one of those Bower adapters), and I feel like I'm slowly damaging the lens mount on my K200D each time I take it off. I just wish Pentax would continue to sell their original M42 adapters. I found out the hard way to stick with the ''PENTAX'' made one and all is good on planet earth. I have spent thousands of dollars on my equipment and yet I chose one of those bower things because it was 10 bucks cheaper than the pentax one. What I got was a lens that would not focus to infinity, in spight of the fact they said it would, It was a pain to get on and off, it cost me a month of headaches with the exchanges and ultimatly I ended up breaking it off my K1000 and thankfully I did no damage...

12-26-2008, 09:50 AM	#48
edl Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: San Francisco Posts: 457	Originally posted by vinzer I wish I could enjoy Takumars as much. Though I'm happy with the lone Takumar I have, the adapter ring I bought from B&H is a pain to use (one of those Bower adapters), and I feel like I'm slowly damaging the lens mount on my K200D each time I take it off. I just wish Pentax would continue to sell their original M42 adapters. They still do - the Pentax web store has them in stock. PentaxWebstore Mount Adapter B (35mm Screwmount to Bayonet)

12-26-2008, 09:58 AM	#49
edl Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: San Francisco Posts: 457	Originally posted by Mike Cash You know, I bought some M lenses thinking I would eventually end up with enough K-mount film bodies to make it worthwhile. As it is, I only have an ME. Using M lenses on digital is (to me, anyway) annoying and I'd rather just use my Takumars. Either I'm dumb or don't read the forums enough, but I only recently realized that Takumars and other screwmounts can utilize Av mode, whereas you have to live with green button metering on K and M lenses. I find Av and preset apertures much easier to use than the often inconsistent green button metering. I've used my J9 and Super Takumar 35/2 much more in the last two weeks after this revelation. The Tak puts out some great results! I think I'll grab a 28/3.5 and 55/1.8 next.

12-26-2008, 10:41 AM	#50
Nick Siebers Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Madison, WI Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,165	hi edl Maybe it is just me, but I find I need to up exposure at least a stop, usually 1.5 when using Av and a Tak. Not sure why, but it helps. Do you adjust in this way? Anybody?

12-26-2008, 12:13 PM	#51
séamuis Banned Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Savannah, U.S./Baguio City, P.H. Posts: 5,979	Originally posted by Nick Siebers hi edl Maybe it is just me, but I find I need to up exposure at least a stop, usually 1.5 when using Av and a Tak. Not sure why, but it helps. Do you adjust in this way? Anybody? I think the general consensus is yes. but not for all lenses. my Takumars on the telephoto end most surely need it, where as most of my standard length lenses dont. I can use AV with my 55 and never have to adjust EV. this may not be the same case for everyone though. Quote: Either I'm dumb or don't read the forums enough, but I only recently realized that Takumars and other screwmounts can utilize Av mode, whereas you have to live with green button metering on K and M lenses. I find Av and preset apertures much easier to use than the often inconsistent green button metering. that's because you can stop down a Takumar manually by using the auto/manual switch. a manual K series does not allow for that. and I agree abouut the presets. I just recieved a preset 300mm and I found out very quickly how valuble that is for AV and proper focusing.

12-26-2008, 12:24 PM	#52
edl Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: San Francisco Posts: 457	Originally posted by Nick Siebers: Maybe it is just me, but I find I need to up exposure at least a stop, usually 1.5 when using Av and a Tak. Not sure why, but it helps. Do you adjust in this way? Anybody? Hey Nick, I usually use +0.7 to +1.0 on my Tak 35/2, +0.4 on my J9 85/2. But in general I'm usually +0.4 to +1 using various lenses on both the K10 and K20, using center weighted average metering. I find that metering in Av mode with screwmounts much more consistent and predictable than green button metering with K MF lenses. Nevermind the Taks have such beautiful build quality. Originally posted by séamuis that's because you can stop down a Takumar manually by using the auto/manual switch. a manual K series does not allow for that. and I agree abouut the presets. I just recieved a preset 300mm and I found out very quickly how valuble that is for AV and proper focusing. Precisely - back when I was first learning film I had a CZ T135/3.5 that worked the same way. At first I thought it was annoying, but I like how you can focus wide open, and then stop down until you find the DOF that you want. Snap, done! But of course the K and M series lenses are good with the K and M bodies, so I'll keep them around.

12-26-2008, 06:09 PM	#53
vinzer Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Philippines Posts: 1,399	Originally posted by edl They still do - the Pentax web store has them in stock. PentaxWebstore Mount Adapter B (35mm Screwmount to Bayonet) That's just what I need, but it doesn't seem like they ship to anywhere else aside from the US. Good to know they're still in stock, though. Maybe I can try to force the local distributor to get me one. Hope they do. Thanks for this great piece of information. Originally posted by jgredline I found out the hard way to stick with the ''PENTAX'' made one and all is good on planet earth. I have spent thousands of dollars on my equipment and yet I chose one of those bower things because it was 10 bucks cheaper than the pentax one. What I got was a lens that would not focus to infinity, in spight of the fact they said it would, It was a pain to get on and off, it cost me a month of headaches with the exchanges and ultimatly I ended up breaking it off my K1000 and thankfully I did no damage... I'm also seeing that with the adapter I got - cannot focus to infinity. Well, at least I got a Spotmatic to tide me over until I can find a way to source the original adapter. I didn't even bother to have it exchanged, since the cost to UPS the darn thing from here might even be more expensive than the adapter itself. Mine is even more screwy since the final position of the lens is off by a quarter circle, so the aperture selection which should end up on top of the mount ends up on the right side, making aperture selection and turning the auto switch on and off very, very difficult, it's almost laughable. Originally posted by edl Either I'm dumb or don't read the forums enough, but I only recently realized that Takumars and other screwmounts can utilize Av mode, whereas you have to live with green button metering on K and M lenses. I find Av and preset apertures much easier to use than the often inconsistent green button metering. I've used my J9 and Super Takumar 35/2 much more in the last two weeks after this revelation. The Tak puts out some great results! I think I'll grab a 28/3.5 and 55/1.8 next. You're not alone. That's the first time I've read about that. I'll give that a whirl once I can get my hands on an original Pentax adapter. Good info.

12-26-2008, 10:04 PM	#54
jgredline Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: LosAngeles, Ca. Photos: Albums Posts: 10,628	I shot another roll of BW400CN film today with ole Spoty. This fellow is growing on me. Drove 125 miles to the Angeles national forest to find some snow. My kids who are 9 have never seen snow before. I also shot a roll of fuji velvia 100 with my ME SUPER and I love it!!!! I have discovered the the model of Spotmatic I have, the 1964 version's internal meter only moves at full stops! So basically, I ignored the internal meter and went via the sunny 16 rule and for those tricky shots I used an external light meter.

12-26-2008, 10:09 PM	#55
jgredline Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: LosAngeles, Ca. Photos: Albums Posts: 10,628	Here are a few with the ME Super.

12-27-2008, 08:32 AM	#56
vinzer Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Philippines Posts: 1,399	Wonderful shots there, Javier. Kudos. I have to reacquaint myself with the sunny f/16 rule and hone my guesstimation skills. Seems like I rely too much on DSLR metering nowadays. It would be nice to not have to whip out the external light meter for each and every shot I take with film bodies.

12-27-2008, 07:16 PM	#57
jgredline Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: LosAngeles, Ca. Photos: Albums Posts: 10,628	Thanks Vinzer. I missed the exposer on the black and whites by a tad, but next time I know how to set it up. User error more than anything.

12-28-2008, 07:04 AM	#58
séamuis Banned Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Savannah, U.S./Baguio City, P.H. Posts: 5,979	Originally posted by jgredline Thanks Vinzer. I missed the exposer on the black and whites by a tad, but next time I know how to set it up. User error more than anything. using my spotmatic has pushed me to get a hand held meter. I always find myself setting up shots and just generally moving slower with my Spotmatic, so I think a meter would be a great thing to have.

12-28-2008, 07:41 AM	#59
woof Inactive Account Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: In the present Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,870	Originally posted by séamuis using my spotmatic has pushed me to get a hand held meter. I always find myself setting up shots and just generally moving slower with my Spotmatic, so I think a meter would be a great thing to have. I recommend quite highly the Sekonic Flashmate 308s. It does a beautiful job of metering both ambient and incident, and it is a flash meter as well. It really is the best meter I've ever used and I picked it up for < 125.00 used but like new on eBay. Fits nicely in a shirt chest pocket, and it goes everywhere with me. woof

12-28-2008, 07:42 AM	#60
séamuis Banned Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Savannah, U.S./Baguio City, P.H. Posts: 5,979	Originally posted by woof I recommend quite highly the Sekonic Flashmate 308s. It does a beautiful job of metering both ambient and incident, and it is a flash meter as well. It really is the best meter I've ever used and I picked it up for < 125.00 used but like new on eBay. Fits nicely in a shirt chest pocket, and it goes everywhere with me. woof thank you very much for the recommendation, I will look into that today.