Exposure affected by DA-2 ?

[wen_lin]

I have been using a F3 with a DA-2 and I most of my shots seems to be

really under exposed. I am using Tri-x 400 rated at 200 and I have

been using the 85mm f1.8.

 

I use T-Max 1:4 develop for 6 min at 17C

 

I was wondering if light coming from the DA-2 would be affecting the

light meter in the camera.

 

Thanks

Wen<div></div>

[david_h._hartman]

Put the camera on a tripod. Check the exposure with and

without a cover over the DA-2. This will give you your answer.

Stand in the same position as you would when hand holding the

camera. Try setups where the sun is behind, to the side and in

front of you. You might even consider the color of the clothing

you wear. If you are wearing white the finder might gather

reflected light. Ive never owned a speed finder.

I might buy one for my F3.<br>

<br>

My Nikon F2As, F3 and F5 all have eyepiece shutters. Ive

never used them much. Ive started using matrix metering and

aperture preferred more with my Nikon D2H and Im using the

eyepiece shutter when shooting from a tripod as I noticed

problems from time to time. In the past I used FE2(s) a lot and

they do not have eye piece shutters so I almost always used

manual exposure on a tripod.<br>

<br>

Hope this helps. Not many buy axially finders like the DA-2 so

you many not get many responses. Its a shame. The Nikon F6

no longer has these. Folks dont know what they are missing.

I have a DW-4 for my F3 and DW-31 for my F5.<br>

<br>

Regards,<br>

<br>

Dave Hartman.

[richard_cochran]

Yep, I've got the DA-2 and I've found that light leaking in

through the eyepiece can definitely affect exposure

readings. The effect is stronger with slower lenses. You

can see it yourself by watching the meter as you shield

the eyepiece. As an experiment, a dark cloth, as used by large

format photographers, can shield the eyepiece to get an

accurate reading; then you can compare that to the reading

you get with your eye very far from the eyepiece. Use a towel

if you don't have a "real" dark cloth.

<p>

I use the DW-3 and DA-2, and find them very useful in certain

situations, but care must be used to shield the camera from

light entering the wrong way if you want to use these finders

with autoexposure. Often, manual exposure is easier to use,

as you only have to shield the finder for the one time you take

a reading, and then forget about shielding until the light

changes and you want to take another reading. A handheld

meter might even be more convenient in some situations.

[lex_jenkins]

Yes, it's very likely that light entering the eyepiece or waistlevel finders can affect exposure accuracy.

 

Occasionally I notice a slight exposure discrepancy even with my D2H if strong sunlight reflects off my cheek or around my head (I tend to keep nearly an inch distance between the eyepiece and my eye). Same with the F3.

 

It's not nearly as bad as my OM-1, which requires that all extraneous light be blocked from the eyepiece to ensure accurate metering.

[wen_lin]

Thanks for your answers guys! The conclusion is due to the viewfinder...gotta get myself a de-2 or 3 and dw-4 then.

 

thanks