First time MF shooter needs help to get correct exposure.

Before I ask my question I would like to entertain you with a bit of

background.

 

When my wife moved into a new office she told me there was this old

camera in one of the cupboards. I had assumed that it was something

useless but when I saw that it was a �Blad with the standard 80mm

and the 150mm Sonar I went into shock. I dated the camera to be 20

years old and have no idea if it will work. But there wasn�t even a

speck of dust on or inside the camera and I don�t think it�s ever

been used. The company has kindly given me permission to fulfil one

of my photographic life-wishes and use it for �some time�. Believe

it or not no one else has any interest to use it.

 

I�ve bought the 500CM user manual and a Polaroid 100 Back, and have

a Velvia 100 loaded in the 12 Back. Unfortunately my supplier does

not have the instant film and says it may be some time before I can

get it. But I can no longer wait.

 

So, my question is this:

Can I use my Nikon D70 (or F50) to take an exposure reading, make

the right adjustment for ISO 100 and take my chances? Or, is there

a method that I must use in order to get it right? Eg. A light meter?

 

Are there any other issues that I need to know before I start?

 

Thanking you in advance.

> Can I use my Nikon D70 (or F50) to take an exposure reading,

> make the right adjustment for ISO 100 and take my chances?

 

Yes, that will work fine.

 

> Or, is there a method that I must use in order to get it right? Eg. A light meter?

 

A light meter is just more convenient.

 

> Are there any other issues that I need to know before I start?

 

Make sure you re-cock the camera before you change lenses. If you look in the throat of

the camera you can see a small screw-head. This is what drives the lens - and if you don't

cock the camera properly, it will become mis-aligned and effectively lock the camera up.

 

If the camera has been unused for a long time you may find the lens timings are incorrect

(small springs under stress for a long time will go out of spec). Do a series of tests with

different aparture/shutter combos to check for this. You can send lenses off for

adjustment if there's a problem.

 

Find a good lab that can process fast, and invest in some film and processing to learn.

Polaroid is expensive and behaves different to film - if I were you I'd just burn regular film

and get it processed quickly to see what's going on.

 

Try some faster neg film too. Even big prints from Fuji NPH are awesome.

Hello Andy.

 

You can buy an old lightmeter on ebay for $5. A very good digital lightmeter with incident and spot readings will cost alot more, but worth it. Or you can learn sunny 16 and get used to guessing the exposure for whatever film speed you are using. The DSLR set at ISO 100 will work if you use 100 speed film, but the results may not be exactly what you'd get from the DSLR, try it and see. The lightmeter will work better if you have multiple readings, average them to make the shot. The polaroid back should help you find the eaxct exposure you need.

 

Your wife was very quick to spot the camera, use it !

 

Cheers.

As the camera isn't yours I'd be inclined to use the slr. There is some chance that the shutter speeds in the two cameras aren't exactly equal but a test roll (bracketing exposures and using both lenses) is going to tell you that quickly and cheaply, and you can then if necessary apply exposure compensation to the Nikon to achieve the exposures you like best. This isn't a route I'd like to follow for ever, but its a fast and cheap way to get you going till you decide that you have to buy the Hasselblad. If you're used to exposing for high contrast slide film with the Nikons, and get good results, thats another reason to go that route in the short term.

David already spoke a complete list of good anwers to your questions. I have only 2 comments to make: (1) Hassy was designed to withstand long-term cocked shutter. Knowledgable repair people have consistently discounted this notion of "spring stress" as the reason for shutters to go out of timing spec. Timing changes are usually lubrication issues, not weakened springs. If the camera is only 20 years old, the chances are hight that the shutter speeds will still be okay. You'll be able to hear if they are off when "dry firing" the low speeds. (2) Finding a good lab is very important. If there is a real pro lab in your local area, use them. It might be best to seek advise of local pros who still shoot MF (probably wedding photographers) and use the lab that they are using. Oh... and a third item... get a hand-held meter -- you'll never regret it because they are so much more convenient than fiddling with another camera as a meter. That'll work just fine, it's just a bulky solution that may prove to be a bit inconvenient. Okay, how about a fourth... consider putting the Hassy on a tripod. The results will astound you. HAVE FUN!!

The short answer is that you can use your D70 to determine exposure, provided you use it correctly. But let me add that I sometimes find it pretty difficult to get just the right exposure with my D70. For simple scenes, it usually gets it right, and in more complicated situations I will usually get an acceptable picture, at least after considerable bracketing, use of the histogram display, and some masaging in a photoeditor.

 

I've done medium format photography for many years and more recently I do 4 x 5 photography. In certain standard situations one can do very well with simple rules of thumb, even without a light meter. (For example, in bright sunlight, the combination of f/16 at one over the ASA rating of the film comes reasonbly close.) But in complicated situations, I long ago decided I needed a spotmeter. I use a modified form of the Adams Zone system to determine exposure, and I almost always get exposure right on without the need for bracketing.

I used my D100 to meter for my meterless Fuji GW690III, which was filled with 100 iso

Provia. The D200's minimum ISO is 200. So I just made sure the Fuji's shutter speed was

one step slower to compensate.

 

The transparancies came out perfectly.

 

For more portability, I will try the same thing with my now worthless 3mp Olympus 3030.

You can always use the sunny 16 rule. It works very well for ladnscape/outdoor stuff and im

assuming since your using some slow speed velvia thats what you're doing.

 

I used the meter on my 10D for a little while ofr stuff i wasnt so sure about, but it didnt work

out so well for me. I ended up investing 99 dollars in a gossen luna star pro and have had

excellent results thus far.

great deal!!! good luck for you. now you have something good to do with your d70....use it as a light meter. great application for a digital. shoot film!!!!!!!

 

enjoy. yo may never go back. be careful, i see large format on your horizon!

 

eddie

Firstly, thank you for welcoming me into the MF community. It�s clear that no matter how �great� digital cameras become there will always be film shooters.

 

After thinking a lot about your suggestions I am starting to see that a light meter is the best solution if I am to travel on my photography journey seriously.

 

As for using the D70 as a light meter for the �Blad, I guess it�s like trying to enjoy a famous 20 year old bottle of red wine with a beer mug. It can be done, but the thought of it, well�

 

Oh yes, my wife really is on the ball. She said that the sound of the shutter when dry firing was �exquisite�.

 

Again, thank you all for your replies. There were many that I simply hadn�t thought possible before.