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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
01-18-2014, 03:23 AM
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Hi,
thank you very much for your answers, it is very interesting to get more insight into this. Unfortunaly a bit too late to make suggestions to the manufacturer.
I previously did not know that not showing the chosen aperture and not having an exposure lock was "a pentax thing" on so many models.
 Quote: [...]the body truly does not "know" what aperture is set on the lens. What it does "know" is the offset from maximum. As for that, maximum + offset -> your chosen aperture.
And it has to know, how else to calculate the exposure time with open aperture metering?
At least thats the only logic I can come up with.
The Fuji cameras actually had a more elegant solution to the problem, offering the same functions.
Between the lens bayonet and a single contact pin is a resistor - corresponding to the maximum aperture of the lens. The chosen aperture is transmitted via a mechanical feeler. Full time aperture and speed are displayed.
I am planning to buy another Super-A body and investigate the possibilities of manipulating the "Frame 1" lock switch and the viewfinder illumination. Maybe I can turn this into a how-to thread :)
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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
11-24-2013, 09:51 AM
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Hello fellow pentaxians!
I own and extensively use a Super A, which i bought as a step up from two very unreliable Fujis.
The Super A is a great camera for general use and produces very appealing results.
However, with time, I stumbled over some shortcomings and I was wondering, if anybody else recognized these and maybe - improved them.
- Is there any way to get rid of the 1/1000 lock before frame 1?
- Why is the aperture only shown in "P" Mode in the viewfinder? The camera knows it anyway.
- The camera officially only meters up to 15 s, but mine did expose longer, (blinking "15") although this is documented nowhere. (Once measured about 30 s)
- Why no exposure lock? Instead of fiddling with exposure comp., I would just move the frame a little, meter, hold the shutter button, frame and fire.
Battery consumption
On average, I get only about 10 rolls before "ooo" is shown, with about 2-3 long (>1s) shots on each roll.(I used quality cells) Keeping the shutter open for long exposures drains the battery, sure, but is that normal?
LCD-Backlight
As many noted before, the backlight is almost useless and drains the battery as well. Has anyone ever tried replacing the bulb with a bright, low current LED? (Perhaps SMD)
Since the camera works on 3 Volts anyway and its only used for a second a time, this should be fairly easy to accomplish?
The points mentioned here would really improve the shooting experience a lot, and I wonder why, though this camera is perfect in some ways, its creators overlooked these features. (especially exp. lock and aperture in viewfinder) Considering the Super A was an upmarket, enthusiast model.
I am very interested in your opinions, or advice maybe, if the problem should be behind the camera.
Thanks in advance, SMC-A
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