GX617 fall off issue with centre filter

[mattlaudergallery]

Hi All,

 

I recently upgraded my G617 to a GX617 with a 90mm lens. I have owned it for about three months and there are a

few issues I am having with it.

 

I sent it off to have the body shutter release looked at (the shutter plate was replaced) and while it was there I had it

cleaned as well. On its return I noticed that in 80% of the shots there is now visible fall off on shots even when the

centre filter is on. Depending on your scene the fall off strength varies. The fall off even extends down the left and

right of the film and not just on the cornors. This wasnt happening prior to me sending it off. The Tech said he didnt

dismantle the lens at all, just cleaned it.

Any ideas what would be causing this, all my exposures are correct so it isnt that. I spoke to the camera tech and

he is also puzzled but is looking into it. My exposures are shot mostly at F11 / F16, pressure plate is correct for the

film I am using (220).

 

My other problem with it is on its return from being repaired (body shutter) the camera failed on it's first roll with what

I sent it off originally for. The problem was: I fire my lens off at the body and then you have to fire off the action on the

body in order to roll on. Well the problem is the body shutter wont fire to let you roll no. I kind of locks. I did a recent

trip to Ayres Rock in Australia and when ever I moved my camera to a new location the body shutter would fail and in

order to get it working I had to knock the body with my knuckles near the body shutter release and then it would

work, until I moved to a new place. At the end of a 3 day tip mu knuckles were brused as you can imaging.

 

I sent it back to the tech and pointed out these two problems.So far the feed back isnt good, he said he has just run

30 - 40 rolls of film through the camera with out it failing on the body shutter once.

 

I am at a total loss with this camera. Any help or thoughts on it's problems would be greatly appreciated. The tech is

a well respected one in Sydney and I dont doubt his repair skills. The fall off concerns me more as a body shutter

mechanism can be replaced.

 

Thanks

 

Matt

[jlineen]

Could the fall off be more apparent because the 90mm is a wider angle lens than the 105 on the G617? The centre filter should correct for this though. Are you using other filters on these shots?

[mattlaudergallery]

Hi James, No the fall off is not normal, especially with having the centre filter on. I knew of the problem before my trip but I was committed to flights so I couldnt put it off to have the problem looked into. I put it down the the lee filter system so on the trip I took all my shots when using a ND grad with it held against the lens and not in a holder. The problem is not filter related, the fall off is being caused by something else. As shot without any filter still have the problem.

[User_503771]

<p>Could the filter have been swapped somehow?</p>

[mattlaudergallery]

<p>I have thought of that and I will inspect on it's return. I also thought that the lens hasnt been placed back on the body correctly. Though Im not sure how that can be done. It really dosent make sense how this fall off can suddenly occur when the camera has been returned after being serviced and fixed for an unrelated issue.</p>

[paul_owen]

<p>Hi Matt. Any update on your Fuji problem? I still can't come up with any useful ideas sorry!</p>

[mattlaudergallery]

<p>Wish there was Paul. The camera is still with the repairer and even he is puzzled. Even the body shutter issue is working perfectly for him as well and he cant find the cause of that. It is a mystery illness.</p>

[mark_denton]

<p>Matt - hope you are well. Did you get this sorted? <br>

You're probably aware that the CF's for the 90mm and 105mm lenses are different, the 90 obviously being stronger. Was the correct one on the lens?<br>

That was the only possible cause I could think of apart from a light leak.<br>

kind regards Mark</p>

<p> </p>

[mattlaudergallery]

<p>Thanks for the input Mark, but the problem isnt really resolved. I spoke to the last owner (a mate) and he acknowledged that he had seen the same issue on this own images but thought I was normal. A work around is shooting at a smaller f stop so now I shoot it at f22.<br>

The camera repairer looked at is an said he couldnt see any problem either, but fall off on your images dosent lie. It's a pain in the ass but not much I can do now. I got myself a Fotoman 6x24 and I like it, might even look at getting the 6x17 fotoman and keeping the GX617 as a pack up.</p>

[mark_denton]

<p>It's a strange one Matt. If the aperture makes a difference I wonder if the shutter is slow on release or closure. Does length of exposure make any difference? See if the effect is lessened on long exposures...<br>

I also wonder if there is a hidden problem with the CF. Is the fall off uniform, as you would find if you didn't use a CF? Has the dye on it faded? Can you borrow another CF to try it?<br>

Yes, a love my Fotoman, hopefully will have a full 617 system soon. I think they unfairly get lumped in with some of the Chinese rubbish. Send me some 624 samples, I may have to try that sometime! Not sure if I have your email these days.<br>

Mark <br>

http://www.markdentonphotographic.co.uk/</p>

<p> </p>