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Anonymous
Ron Paul /p/. I was just over at my Grandma's and was looking through their back bedroom which is full of crap. I found this. A Pentacon Praktika MTL3, and three lenses. I have no idea what types of lenses they are however. I tried to read the Wikipedia on Pentacon cameras but I didn't learn much. Here are the numbers on the lenses.

The Big One
f = 135mm
1:2.8
Hanimar Auto Lens

The Medium One
f=35mm
1:2.8
Hanimar Auto Lense

The Litlte One
No f marking
1.8/50
Comment too long. Clickhereto view the full text.
>> Butterfly !xlgRMYva6s
you have a:
135/2.8 (good for face only portraits and some nature/spoort)
50/1.8 (prime lense, looks like your eyes do, good for portraits and general use)
35/2.8 (wide lense, good for landscape and buildings)

Yeah probably better than the EM if you only have one lense for it. They look like MF lenses tho, enjoy your full manual photography.
>> Blackadder !!bSWRwu/NqzQ
Ten seconds with Google: http://www.praktica-users.com/cams/l/mtl3.html

Get the manual there.
>> Anonymous
>>110598

All three are prime lenses, not just the 50mm, silly.
>> ac !!VPzQAxYPAMA
All of those lenses are manual focus. None of them are zoom.

The big one is a 135mm moderate telephoto with an f/2.8 maximum aperture, which isn't bad.

The medium one is a 35mm moderate wide angle with an f/2.8 maximum aperture, which also isn't bad.

The little one is a 50mm normal lens with a nice fast f/1.8 maximum aperture.

The Nikon EM is probably better overall--if nothing else, its lenses can still be used easily on modern cameras while I'm guessing this uses a screw-mount. Also, the EM's meter is likely more reliable. Cameras of this vintage generally only want to work well with a mercury battery, which is now impossible to obtain legally new in the US. The alkaline replacement might work (good chance, since you seem to have found one in the camera).
>> Anonymous
>>110599
I have all the original manuals. I even have a flash for it too. A Hanimex X324 with manual. I wasn't interested in so much the cameras actual operation but what the lenses were and how they would be used.
>>110598
Is exactly what I was looking for.

Also was just interested in some general facts about the camera.

Let me try to get a picture of the collars on these lenses because they all say Auto and like I said the one even has a A vs M Slider.
>> Blackadder !!bSWRwu/NqzQ
>>110601

You could get those sorts of batteries online or mail order if you need them. eBay would have them, no doubt.
>> Anonymous
fuck off you moron. you're not even asking about photography 101. this is fucking kindergarten. throw the camera out and kill yourself.
>> ac !!VPzQAxYPAMA
>>110603
You can get replacements through mail order. The CRIS adapter and the Wein zinc-air cells being the best options. But it's illegal to make or import mercury batteries in the US. So while you might be able to score one on eBay (and it's pretty unlikely. They might be illegal to sell at all, even old and used), you're certainly not going to be able to legally get a *new* one there.
>> Anonymous
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See? Isn't this peculiar?
>> Blackadder !!bSWRwu/NqzQ
>>110605

You sure it's not allowed for someone to post one?

Well I doubt they're going to tear open all your packages and bust you for a button battery. I've sent all sorts of stuff to the US and no one seems to care. ;)
>> Anonymous
>>110605
>>110601
Do you guys think that I might be able to obtain the alkeline equivalent at Wolf Camera? I think I might just bring the camera there and see what they tell me about the battery.
>> ac !!VPzQAxYPAMA
>>110606
Hmm. Maybe manual vs. auto aperture setting?
>> ac !!VPzQAxYPAMA
>>110607
Might not be illegal to mail. Too lazy to google. I just know that they're sure as hell not available for sale anywhere. I've got a bunch of cameras that need 1.35V constant-voltage mercuries, so I've done the research on how to deal with the lack.

>>110608
Oh, sure, they'll have the Alkaline replacement. Even Radio Shack will have those. It's a common battery *size*. It's just the voltage and falloff characteristics that make the mercuries hard to replace--Mercury batteries have the nice characteristic that they maintain a pretty steady stable 1.35V throughout their life up until the very end, at which point they drop sharply down to nothing. Because of this, a lot of camera manufacturers didn't bother to build in the electronics necessary to regulate voltage. So when you stick in a 1.5V Alkaline, you're going to get the wrong exposure readings from the light meter. And it's not a constant wrong reading that you could compensate for--it's a curve, so you'd need different compensation depending on the amount of light. And worse than that, you'd need a different compensation depending on the current life cycle point of the battery because it gets weaker over time. There's a sweet spot where, for a brief and shining moment, an Alkaline will give you perfect 1.35V, but it's not long.

On the plus side, if you shoot color negative film, a lot of this exposure weirdness will be compensated for by the film's inherent latitude. So that's good. But I'd recommend you pop for a CRIS adapter or lrn2sunny16.
>> Anonymous
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>>110609
Ahh yeah thats good thinking. That is probably what it is. Won't know till I get this thing up and running though.

This thing looks like a standard alkaline button cell battery, it's just an abnormal size. Do you guys really think this is a mercury battery?

Camera-Specific Properties:Equipment MakeFUJIFILMCamera ModelFinePix S5700 S700Camera SoftwareDigital Camera FinePix S5700 S700 Ver1.02Maximum Lens Aperturef/3.5Sensing MethodOne-Chip Color AreaMaker Note Version0130Image-Specific Properties:Image OrientationTop, Left-HandHorizontal Resolution72 dpiVertical Resolution72 dpiImage Created2008:01:09 15:32:21Exposure Time0.8 secF-Numberf/3.5Exposure ProgramNormal ProgramISO Speed Rating64Lens Aperturef/3.5Brightness-0.6 EVExposure Bias-1 EVMetering ModePatternLight SourceTungstenFlashNo Flash, CompulsoryFocal Length30.20 mmColor Space InformationsRGBImage Width1600Image Height1200RenderingCustomExposure ModeAutoWhite BalanceManualScene Capture TypeStandardSharpnessNormalSubject Distance RangeUnknownSharpnessNormalWhite BalanceIncandescenceChroma SaturationNormalFlash ModeOffMacro ModeOnFocus ModeAutoSlow Synchro ModeOffPicture ModeProgram AEContinuous/Bracketing ModeOffBlur StatusBlur WarningFocus StatusOKAuto Exposure StatusOK
>> Anonymous
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>>110611
Hmmm :/ That sounds kinda grim. I think it might be fun to at least get a single alkaline for and shoot a roll of film with it even if they don't turn out well. I'm still just taking baby steps into photography and mostly having fun learning to work the cameras. You should see how awful my first roll of film came out :/ I only got one good shot out of it and it's not really that great anyhow. I attached it.
>> Blackadder !!bSWRwu/NqzQ
>>110611

Even if it was I'd bet anything that you could get some European just to pop some in the mail for you. European eBay sites maybe.

Is Cuban stuff still illegal?
>> Anonymous
Yeah I found it amidst all the German in the manual... :/ The automatic exposure control system is powered by a PX 625 mercury oxide element or a corresponding type of 1.35 volt rated voltage.
>> ac !!VPzQAxYPAMA
>>110620
So yeah, you've got two good options:
1. Wein cell. There's a good chance places like Wolf Camera will sell these. They give you the same voltage characteristics as the Mercury cell with the caveat that they die a lot quicker. And they die regardless of whether or not they're being used--they depend on the interaction of zinc and air to work, so there's little holes in the top that are covered by a bit of plastic until you put 'em in the camera.
2. CRIS camera adapter. http://criscam.com/ They sell little widgets that you can cram a silver battery into so that it'll fit into the space and match voltage of the mercury battery it's replacing. Lasts forever (and the adapter itself is reusable, you just need to replace the silver battery in a few years when it dies) and works perfectly. This would be my recommendation. The downside is that it's pricier. Like $30 for the adapter, not counting the silver cell to go in it and shipping vs. about $5 for the Wein cell.
>> Butterfly !xlgRMYva6s
>>110600
I remember a shitstorm we had a while ago over the real definition of prime. I remember the outcome that the correct term was fixed and the most used was a prime.

But yes, ill go with prime for all of them.
>> Anonymous
Praktica == Shitty.
But since you know shit about it, it'll be fine for you.
>> Anonymous
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I KNEW it was familiar to me ... so I dug into my old stuff, and here is what I found :D

Camera-Specific Properties:Equipment MakeNIKON CORPORATIONCamera ModelNIKON D300Camera SoftwareGIMP 2.4.1Maximum Lens Aperturef/4.9Sensing MethodOne-Chip Color AreaColor Filter Array Pattern8856Focal Length (35mm Equiv)105 mmImage-Specific Properties:Image OrientationTop, Left-HandHorizontal Resolution72 dpiVertical Resolution72 dpiImage Created2008:01:10 00:19:07Exposure Time1/60 secF-Numberf/5.0Exposure ProgramNormal ProgramISO Speed Rating200Exposure Bias0 EVMetering ModePatternLight SourceUnknownFlashFlash, Compulsory, Red-Eye Reduce, Return DetectedFocal Length70.00 mmColor Space InformationsRGBImage Width4288Image Height2848RenderingNormalExposure ModeAutoScene Capture TypeStandardGain ControlNoneContrastNormalSaturationNormalSharpnessHardSubject Distance RangeUnknownISO Speed Used200Image QualityFINEWhite BalanceAUTOFocus ModeAF-SFlash SettingRED-EYEAuto Flash ModeBuilt-in,TTLFlash Compensation0.0 EVISO Speed Requested200Flash Bracket Compensation0.0 EVAE Bracket Compensation0.0 EVLens TypeNikon G SeriesLens Range18.0 - 200.0 mm; f/3.5 - f/5.6Shooting/Bracketing ModeSingle Frame/OffLighting TypeNATURALNoise ReductionOFFCamera Actuations236
>> Anonymous
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My dad's camera from the old soviet days. He shot with it for his entire life... I don't know what lenses besides this one did he use tho, because I can no longer find them.

Camera-Specific Properties:Equipment MakeNIKON CORPORATIONCamera ModelNIKON D300Camera SoftwareGIMP 2.4.1Maximum Lens Aperturef/5.7Sensing MethodOne-Chip Color AreaColor Filter Array Pattern8856Focal Length (35mm Equiv)202 mmImage-Specific Properties:Image OrientationTop, Left-HandHorizontal Resolution72 dpiVertical Resolution72 dpiImage Created2008:01:10 00:19:25Exposure Time1/60 secF-Numberf/5.6Exposure ProgramNormal ProgramISO Speed Rating200Exposure Bias0 EVMetering ModePatternLight SourceUnknownFlashFlash, Compulsory, Red-Eye Reduce, Return DetectedFocal Length135.00 mmColor Space InformationsRGBImage Width4288Image Height2848RenderingNormalExposure ModeAutoScene Capture TypeStandardGain ControlNoneContrastNormalSaturationNormalSharpnessHardSubject Distance RangeUnknownISO Speed Used200Image QualityFINEWhite BalanceAUTOFocus ModeAF-SFlash SettingRED-EYEAuto Flash ModeBuilt-in,TTLFlash Compensation0.0 EVISO Speed Requested200Flash Bracket Compensation0.0 EVAE Bracket Compensation0.0 EVLens TypeNikon G SeriesLens Range18.0 - 200.0 mm; f/3.5 - f/5.6Shooting/Bracketing ModeSingle Frame/OffLighting TypeNATURALNoise ReductionOFFCamera Actuations238
>> Anonymous
>>110669
Do you know how to get the light meter functioning? I went to Ritz instead of Wolf and they got me a Weincell battery, I installed it, loaded some film but I cannot get the light meter to wake up. It just stays frozen. I can't decipher the instructions however as they are written in very poor english. It seems like it has something to do with the lever just above and left of the lens when you are facing it. It refers to that as the "exposure lever" but pulling it merely activates the diaphram. It kinda shows what effect your aperture setting will have but the light meter lever on the right stays stationary. :/
>> Anonymous
>>110672
If you look in viewfinder, on the right side there's an indicator with "+ o -". When you press metering key, a trail going through those marks indicating exposure appears (+ is overexposure, o is correct exposure, - underexposure). At least that's what I remember. If you press it and there's nothing in the viewfinder, then it might be broken :(
>> Anonymous
>>110675
Eep... I don't have much of a chance without a light meter... :( I can't seem to get it moving.

This Just In: What the fuck do you know. I'm sitting there thinking... That Weincell battery was pretty small compared to the old one. Maybe it's not making contact, so I have a Hershey bar in front of me. I rip off a big peice of the foil, wad it up and stick it in there. Bam, working light meter. Woot Woot
>> Anonymous
>>110676
That's cool :) enjoy shooting with it. I might find some battery and try it too, now that I found it in the cave of antiquities.
>> Anonymous
>>110677
The battery was only 5.25 USD at Ritz camera. Just remember this little hack since the weincell is way smaller than the original. I'm down right excited to get this roll done and developed!
>> ac !!VPzQAxYPAMA
>>110678
Awesome. Rock out. :)
>> Anonymous
>>110671
Don't be surprised if he never DID shoot with another lens.

Put a 50 / 1.8 (or better) on your camera, leave it there, you're set.

All the cool people are doing it. Except people who are too fat to walk towards something to take a picture of it. And people with no power to walk through buildings to get really wide shots.
>> Anonymous
>>110680
Got my first roll back... :/ The camera works, I don't. Not a single good picture in the bunch. Many of them have odd tints to them however, yellows and greens. I'm not sure how white balancing works for film cameras. Also I almost every picture is blurred and I dont have those problems freehand shooting with my digital. Maybe I'll have better luck with it outdoors. I think I may take a roll and go out to the woods somewhere and just take some photos and see how I do. By the way I'm not sure if it matters or is helpful but I'm shooting with Kodak Gold 200.
>> elf_man !!DdAnyoDMfCe
>>110756
That film is balanced primarily for daylight. Most film is balanced for daylight, unless marked otherwise, although different films will do better or worse with other lighting. Tungsten and flourescent especially will cause problems.
Otherwise, did you do any long exposures? Can you post a couple so we can see what the color tints look like?
>> Anonymous
>>110760
Would... pictures... of the pictures work? I have my digital here but I'm not sure if our scanner still works. I didn't get the CD for these because they had a coupon for one hour processing. I did that instead.
>> Anonymous
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>> Anonymous
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This is one of the long exposures I took. This one is a 1 second I think.
>> Anonymous
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The turtle also kinda came out cool. But for the most part they look like that first 4 picture compilation I posted. :/
>> Anonymous
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This one came out awful. See how insanely warmly tinted it is though? Also, I mean I know it's blurry, I suck at hand holding but... Why did he turn out like... Infared? I dunno it looks crazy over there.
>> elf_man !!DdAnyoDMfCe
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>>110774
That one looks like a white balance problem, dim tungsten lighting turns out orange like that. Pic related, gold 100, ae-1.
The others, I don't know. Anything you shot inside, that wasn't daylight, will probably have white balance problems.

Camera-Specific Properties:Equipment MakeEastman Kodak CompanyCamera ModelKodak CLAS Digital Film Scanner / HR200Camera SoftwareKodak Digital Central Lab SystemImage-Specific Properties:Image OrientationTop, Left-HandHorizontal Resolution256 dpiVertical Resolution256 dpiImage Created2007:12:29 10:09:02Color Space InformationsRGBImage Width1536Image Height1024RenderingCustom
>> Anonymous
>>110633
Dude, there are perfectly normal and legal batteries that are to be used with the MTL3, no need to get some weird replacement... : /
>> Anonymous
>>110811
When I went to Ritz the WeinCell was the only battery they had for the MTL3. It's working great though. Well don't let the pictures fool you the camera works great... :)

Anyone have any thoughts as to why these all came out so bad? I mean I know my focusing needs work and a few of the hand held ones are pretty blurry but. The colors in them are either so blah or so tinted. If it is true that this film is balanced for out door usage I'm gonna load a roll and go take some pictures around outside somewhere and get them developed to see if its any better.
>> age
>>110592

you find nice stuff in you bedroom full of crap
>> Anonymous
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>>111221
That's not all that is up there, it's just all I took. These are two other cameras that I managed to get a shot of up there. There are many more camera bags and things up there but I couldn't get to them because of all the crap up there lol. Are these anything of interest? I figure the old bulb camera with the big sheet film is probably not worth getting working again but what about this one with the very odd square flash?
>> Anonymous
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>> ac !!VPzQAxYPAMA
>>111339
Oh lawd, is dat sum large-format press camera?
>> Anonymous
>>111348
Yeah, it's a Busch Pressman. The other one is I think, an Argus Matchmatic C3
>> ac !!VPzQAxYPAMA
>>111351
ITT I am jealous.
>> elf_man !!DdAnyoDMfCe
>>111351
Oh that's funny. My parents have a couple argus c4's lying around (aka the brick) and omg are they absolutely horrible to hold.
>> Anonymous
Are shutter cables standard or do you think I would have to get a crazy one for this camera? It is threaded I can see. It has a setting for indefinate shutter and I'd like to try it for some night shots but with my shakey tripod and my shakey hands I ruin the shot when I press the shutter. Help /p/.
>> Anonymous
>>111338
That's no flash boy, no flash.
>> Anonymous
>>111455
What is that thing up top then?
>> Anonymous
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>>111455
It's a space station
>> Anonymous
>>111455
>>111461
I lol'd
>> Anonymous
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I just got back from my first attempt at a photo shoot. I went to a cool lake about a half hour away and took some pictures. I didn't really know what I was doing so I just sorta shot around and tried to find things to experiemnt with. This leaf came out kinda cool. I took my Pentacon Prakticka and my Fujifilm S5700 to shoot some digital as well.

Now I have to sit around and wait for my film photos to be done... I hope these come out better than my first try at film...

Camera-Specific Properties:Equipment MakeFUJIFILMCamera ModelFinePix S5700 S700Camera SoftwareFinePixViewer Ver.5.3Maximum Lens Aperturef/3.5Sensing MethodOne-Chip Color AreaMaker Note Version0130Image-Specific Properties:Image OrientationTop, Left-HandHorizontal Resolution72 dpiVertical Resolution72 dpiImage Created2008:01:11 18:03:50Exposure Time1/100 secF-Numberf/3.5Exposure ProgramNormal ProgramISO Speed Rating200Lens Aperturef/3.5Brightness4.2 EVExposure Bias0 EVMetering ModePatternLight SourceShadeFlashNo Flash, CompulsoryFocal Length34.20 mmColor Space InformationsRGBImage Width1280Image Height960RenderingCustomExposure ModeAutoWhite BalanceManualScene Capture TypeStandardSharpnessNormalSubject Distance RangeUnknownSharpnessNormalWhite BalanceCloudyChroma SaturationNormalFlash ModeOffMacro ModeOffFocus ModeManualSlow Synchro ModeOffPicture ModeProgram AEContinuous/Bracketing ModeOffBlur StatusBlur WarningFocus StatusOKAuto Exposure StatusOK
>> Anonymous
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Camera-Specific Properties:Equipment MakeFUJIFILMCamera ModelFinePix S5700 S700Camera SoftwareFinePixViewer Ver.5.3Maximum Lens Aperturef/3.5Sensing MethodOne-Chip Color AreaMaker Note Version0130Image-Specific Properties:Image OrientationTop, Left-HandHorizontal Resolution72 dpiVertical Resolution72 dpiImage Created2008:01:11 18:13:18Exposure Time1/180 secF-Numberf/4.0Exposure ProgramNormal ProgramISO Speed Rating200Lens Aperturef/4.0Brightness5.6 EVExposure Bias0 EVMetering ModePatternLight SourceShadeFlashNo Flash, CompulsoryFocal Length21.30 mmColor Space InformationsRGBImage Width1280Image Height960RenderingCustomExposure ModeAutoWhite BalanceManualScene Capture TypeStandardSharpnessNormalSubject Distance RangeUnknownSharpnessNormalWhite BalanceCloudyChroma SaturationNormalFlash ModeOffMacro ModeOffFocus ModeAutoSlow Synchro ModeOffPicture ModeProgram AEContinuous/Bracketing ModeOffBlur StatusOKFocus StatusOKAuto Exposure StatusOK
>> Anonymous
I tried to do the same thing as in :>>111723

But I missed my focus a bit as you can see that the smaller plant to the bottom-right is more in focus than the central bigger plant. Also the background was way too similar to the plant and so it didn't look nearly as cool as that other one... :/
>> Anonymous
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>>111728
Shit forgot to attach the image...

Camera-Specific Properties:Equipment MakeFUJIFILMCamera ModelFinePix S5700 S700Camera SoftwareFinePixViewer Ver.5.3Maximum Lens Aperturef/3.5Sensing MethodOne-Chip Color AreaMaker Note Version0130Image-Specific Properties:Image OrientationTop, Left-HandHorizontal Resolution72 dpiVertical Resolution72 dpiImage Created2008:01:11 18:15:09Exposure Time1/90 secF-Numberf/3.5Exposure ProgramNormal ProgramISO Speed Rating200Lens Aperturef/3.5Brightness4 EVExposure Bias0 EVMetering ModePatternLight SourceShadeFlashNo Flash, CompulsoryFocal Length30.60 mmColor Space InformationsRGBImage Width1280Image Height960RenderingCustomExposure ModeAutoWhite BalanceManualScene Capture TypeStandardSharpnessNormalSubject Distance RangeUnknownSharpnessNormalWhite BalanceCloudyChroma SaturationNormalFlash ModeOffMacro ModeOffFocus ModeManualSlow Synchro ModeOffPicture ModeProgram AEContinuous/Bracketing ModeOffBlur StatusBlur WarningFocus StatusOKAuto Exposure StatusOK
>> Anonymous
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I got my photos back from Walgreens. Much better than last time! These ones actually turned out. Here are a few that I think were pretty ok out of the set.

Camera-Specific Properties:Image-Specific Properties:Horizontal Resolution240 dpiVertical Resolution240 dpiImage Created2008:01:11 19:55:36
>> Anonymous
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Camera-Specific Properties:Image-Specific Properties:Horizontal Resolution240 dpiVertical Resolution240 dpiImage Created2008:01:11 19:55:37
>> Anonymous
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Camera-Specific Properties:Image-Specific Properties:Horizontal Resolution240 dpiVertical Resolution240 dpiImage Created2008:01:11 19:55:31
>> Anonymous
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Camera-Specific Properties:Image-Specific Properties:Horizontal Resolution240 dpiVertical Resolution240 dpiImage Created2008:01:11 19:55:36
>> Anonymous
Now you need to learn what actually makes a good photograph and you're set.
>> Anonymous
No one else has anything to say about these? I expected even like more "Shit Sucks" or something. No thoughts or comments or anything? Tips? Anything...
>> Anonymous
They're well done, but they lack a central subject. Think of an image of telling a story, or multiple stories based on multiple interpretations.

>>111801
For example, If you had a guy throwing a rock into the lake in the center of that picture, it would be a bit more powerful.