QuotePhotographs eh? he asked him knowingly
Ive had a pair of SLR cameras for a good few years, and theyve been gathering dust on top of my wardrobe pretty much as soon as I got them.
The problem is, Ive got no idea what to do with them. I dont know how to take a picture other than the whole point and click system that one of the SLRs has, and our little pocket Sony camera.
Ive got a Fujica STX-1 which Im guessing will be the better one, as its 100% manual. It needs a battery, but only to run the light meter.
I couldnt tell you what lens it has on it, other than it says x-fujinon 1:19 f=500.
(http://img.atlaspost.com/albumimages/50170/49987_normal_a550e.jpg)
The other camera I have is a Canon EOS 3000v, with a Cosina 19-35mm 1:3.5 - 4.5 ø77 Lens / Hoya Polariser
(http://www.gorgoda.com/yukleme//canon-eos-3000v.jpg)
So. I need pointers. Where to start?
Oh yeah, and Ive just bid on 20 filters for the Fujicas 49mm lens :D
The fujicas lens has f=50mm on the front which means its a bog standard 50mm lens. Maximum aperture (area to let light into camera) is f/1.9.
On the lens itself you have 2 rings, front one is the nobbly ring and goes from 1 metre to infinity (like an 8 on its side). This controls the focusing. Point the camera at something, look through the viewfinder and turn this until it looks in focus.
The second moveable ring on the lens controls the actual aperature. Turning to increase the number will actually let less light in but give a larger depth of field.
On the top, right side winds the film back once you have taken all the photos on the roll. On the left you have the manual wind on leaver which moves the film to the next frame, the shutter button, which might have a lock around it, and the shutter speed.
In these cameras there is usually a built in light meter which will indicate with a pointer somewhere in the viewer and you adjust the speed and aperature controls till the pointer centres, then focus and take a picture.
Issue is if the battery is flat getting a new one. Full manual isnt necessarily an advantage, mostly you just want to point and shoot, which automatic settings provides.
Two things that are important to learn to get the best out of an SLR camera IMO:
Triangular relationship between Shutter Speed, Aperture and ISO and how these effect exposure.
Depth of field control using aperture and position relative to the subject.
No idea about the Fujica but the Canon should TV/AV/P modes that will allow you to play with shutter speed/aperture/ISO and let the camera work out what the other two need to be to achieve good exposure - I found this a good way to start.
Personally, I think youll find it really hard learning photography with a film SLR but best of luck.
All i will say is pay attention to the light meter on that dinosaur or your photos will be rubbish, and keep an eye on it, the slightest drop in light will mean you need to change something
at least its through the lens metering unlike the old zenith E i has... the horror.
Personally id pull the poloriser off the canon and use that to begin with, its more automatic so likely to make the whole experiance much more enjoyable. I run a canon eos 3 35mm film slr and although it has no popup flash its an awesome bit of kit.
Thats a stock picture, My lens has what I wrote on it.
f=500
500mm? must have some serious magnification on it then
Ill just dump the pics off the Sony, and Ill grab some shots of my Kit.
If its f/19 500mm then you are almost inevitably going to have issues with light levels.
Actually Ive never seen such a poor f number in any lens
Pardon moi. It appears I may have been having one of those[/b] mornings.
It is f=50.
Im going to take a punt that theres a decimal point in the aperture number too, as Serious said Ive never seen an f/19 lens and come to think of it, you wouldnt be able to see through a lens that slow unless it was really really bright. Most lenses of that era have a MINIMUM aperture of f/16 or f/22.
a lot of film SLRs from that era have a focusing aid in the middle of the field of view. This is either a split prism, a microprism array or (if youre lucky) both. These work thusly:
When the image is in focus, the microprism array will appear totally transparent, a really good one should disapear entirely. A 30 year old one which was entry level at the time probably wont, but it will be as close as it gets.
The split prism is easier in good light, it will split the image in two, all you have to do is adjust the focus until the two images line up.
The metering is a match needle system, all you have to do is adjust the aperture and shutter speed until the needle is just above the middle.
full manual is easier than most people think. With the Canon youll fire off a lot of frames without learning much, and frankly for the amount youll spend on film you may as well buy a DSLR. The Fujica has a better lens on it (those cosina short zooms are nasty IIRC) and if you keep track of what youre doing with it youll learn more.
(http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4079/4763889381_ee8f1bf6df_b.jpg)
Looks like youve got a standard 50mm prime lens on the fujica - this is basically going to take pictures from a similar perspective as the eye sees them.
On the canon youve got a wide angle zoom - from 17 to 35mm.
Personally Id go around using the 50mm lens to start with - though Im fairly new to photography too. I absolutely love my 50mm on my canon DSLR - tis more like a small telephoto lens on that due to the smaller sensor but tis great for use in low light etc... Also if youre going to practice focusing - try your one at f1.9 - youll have a very shallow depth of field which will pretty much force you to focus properly or else it will be very noticeable.
Quote from: SeriousThe fujicas lens has f=50mm on the front which means its a bog standard 50mm lens.
Yup - though Im not sure I like the term bog standard - not familiar with the fujica lens but the canon f1.8 50mm (available for <£100) can be as sharp as some of the expensive L series zoom lenses costing over a grand.
Quote from: DaveQuote from: SeriousThe fujicas lens has f=50mm on the front which means its a bog standard 50mm lens.
Yup - though Im not sure I like the term bog standard - not familiar with the fujica lens but the canon f1.8 50mm (available for <£100) can be as sharp as some of the expensive L series zoom lenses costing over a grand.
Comparing apples to donuts there tho, prime and zoom lenses are totally different so you cant compare the costs
Point is - youll get quality images out of a prime lens that youd likely not get out of a zoom lens unless you want to pay professional prices.
Yes you lose some flexibility in terms of composition but in plenty of instances you can rectify that by simply standing closer to/further away from something. If I could only have 1 lens then Id happily ditch my 17-55 kit lens and use the 50mm prime.
Indeed, primes for the win.
Was set on getting the nifty fifty for my canon but having tried a mates 50mm f/1.4 at the weekend now Im wavering... is a probably too much money after shelling out on the camera relatively recently though.
I have been thinking about prime lenses but would need 300mm+ and they are.. expensive
Ive got the 1.8 and its still a very good lens! Although Im sure the 1.4 is fantastic ;)
Wouldnt bother with a long prime unless I was a pap personally as I suspect youd lose as much from focusing challenges and subject movement as you gain from the glass unless you were only shooting long-range static subjects.
Quote from: DaveQuote from: SeriousThe fujicas lens has f=50mm on the front which means its a bog standard 50mm lens.
Yup - though Im not sure I like the term bog standard - not familiar with the fujica lens but the canon f1.8 50mm (available for <£100) can be as sharp as some of the expensive L series zoom lenses costing over a grand.
Bog standard as in fitted to virtually every camera until fairly recently as the de-facto standard lens. This says nothing as to the quality of the optics, which are often excellent. While they didnt pay much per lens in development the sheer number of lenses churned out meant that most companies put a lot of effort into them.
On a reduced sensor Canon or Nikon camera a 50mm is effectively the same as an 80mm portrait lens.
Yes theyre very common indeed, though the point I was making was that I wouldnt describe them as bog standard given the quality of the optics when compared with say youre average kit zoom lens.
Yup as Ive already mentioned they are like a small telephoto lens on a crop sensor - which makes them great for portrait shots. Ive also found mine useful for taking pictures at a gig in low lighting opening it up to f1.8 - in other pictures my friend has had taken at gigs etc... the photographer used a rather expensive zoom but had to convert to black and white and still had loads of noise etc.. due to high ISO setting - many small venues dont like the use of flash photography so fast prime like this 50mm is great.
the 50s have the advantage that they are a really simple design so its almost difficult to make a bad one. Plus, back then it was standard practice to provide a lens with the camera which would show off its capabilities, whereas now standard practice seems to be to try and get the add on sale by making the kit lens as rubbish as they can get away with.
As for the usefulness of long primes, I took this with my 300mm f/2.8 manual focus prime on my DSLR
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v68/thatguypinchedmyname/IMGP4027-1.jpg)
hand held too, damn I love shake reduction!
Quote from: Mongoose.
a lot of film SLRs from that era have a focusing aid in the middle of the field of view. This is either a split prism, a microprism array or (if youre lucky) both. These work thusly:
When the image is in focus, the microprism array will appear totally transparent, a really good one should disapear entirely. A 30 year old one which was entry level at the time probably wont, but it will be as close as it gets.
The split prism is easier in good light, it will split the image in two, all you have to do is adjust the focus until the two images line up.
The metering is a match needle system, all you have to do is adjust the aperture and shutter speed until the needle is just above the middle.
full manual is easier than most people think. With the Canon youll fire off a lot of frames without learning much, and frankly for the amount youll spend on film you may as well buy a DSLR. The Fujica has a better lens on it (those cosina short zooms are nasty IIRC) and if you keep track of what youre doing with it youll learn more.
QuoteSpecial features of this camera are: the new Fujica X bayonet mount which permits quick interchanging of the lenses, a full aperture metering system. and three-way focusing with split image, microprism and ground glass It is also provided with a shutter speed indicator scale in the viewfinder to enable you to set the shutter speed while looking through the viewfinder