View Full Version : Pentax Spotmatic
stokecity_m
03-09-2009, 20:38
Hi guys.
New to the camera lark but i've been given an old pentax spotmatic with a couple of lenses - seeing as new lenses cost loads, i was wondering if any newish cameras would take these old ones?
If the lenses have a thread mount, its m42.
This is a list of m42 mount cameras (http://anusf.anu.edu.au/~aab900/photography/cameras/cameras.htm), you'll have to wade through them to find the newest, there are no new ones.
Failing that, you can buy adapters to fit other mounts like m42 to Nikon F...or Canon or whatever, assume there will be no metering, or af of course
stokecity_m
03-09-2009, 20:58
Cheers - i think i'll just buy a nice D40 etc and then maybe pick up an adapter one day :)
There are 2 types of adapter, one is just a ring that doesn't allow focus to infinity, the other has a correction lens in it to allow infinity focus, this is peculiar to Nikon only I think.
Why don't you shoot the lenses on the camera they're meant to be on...the Spotmatic..:)
Steve Smith
03-09-2009, 21:06
Why don't you shoot the lenses on the camera they're meant to be on...the Spotmatic..:)
Or failing that, send it to me!
Steve.
Great Camera, my first experience with an SLR was at college was with a Pentax Spotmatic, took great pictures (oh no, that was me!), actually they were crap, but I thought they were good!
stokecity_m
03-09-2009, 21:10
not sure if the spotmatix works to be honest - might just need a new battery but who knows :(
not sure if the spotmatix works to be honest - might just need a new battery but who knows :(
I'm pretty sure that the battery only worked the metering, I seem to remember the camera being fully mechanical, I may be wrong though, it was 30 years ago!
stokecity_m
03-09-2009, 21:16
the metering? is that the little + and - thing inside the viewfinder thingy mabob?
as when taken to a shop many many years ago - this was why it wouldn't work properly.
the metering? is that the little + and - thing inside the viewfinder thingy mabob?
as when taken to a shop many many years ago - this was why it wouldn't work properly.
Yes, you used to adjust the aperture aor shutter speed until the needle was in between the + and the - to give you an exposure based on an 18% grey reading. This assumed that you were pointing it at a subject with 18% reflectance.
stokecity_m
03-09-2009, 21:22
oh right.
i'll see if i can source a cheapish battery then.
even if i don't end up using it - i can always sell it on
Cheers :)
Battery - http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/GP394-Watch-Battery-aka-V394-D394 (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/GP394-Watch-Battery-aka-V394-D394-SR936SW-394-1239_W0QQitemZ190292074157QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Co nsumerElectronics_Batteries_SM?hash=item2c4e4a9ead&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14)
If the meter doesn't work use another camera to meter or Sunny 16 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunny_16_rule), or just forget the battery altogether and use the force..
Film - http://www.jessops.com/online.store/products (http://www.jessops.com/online.store/products/keywordsearch.html?keyword=ilford+xp2&pageIndex=1&sortProperty=Relevance&sortDirection=Ascending)
This film is processed in c41 chemicals at any high street lab like Boots or snappy snaps for a few quid, they'll even scan to disk for a few quid more.
It has good latitude meaning you have to be miles off to get no shot at all.
:)
This forum goes the extra mile by default..:lol:
stokecity_m
03-09-2009, 22:32
cheers guys :)
There were quite a few different Spotmatics over many years. All of them, in good fettle, will be worth money, some quite a bit - I'm no collector, but one of the originals from the 60s, stop-down metering an' all, would look very nice on my desk :)
The Pentax K-m, K2000, K20D and new K-7 will all happily take the lenses with an adapter and unlike most other cameras you will be able to meter correctly with those as well.
Holden Caulfield
04-09-2009, 06:08
A word to the wise, later Takumar lenses were slighly different to other M42 lenses, in that they had a 'second' pin which protruded from the shoulder of the lens which butted up against the camera body.
This pin was used to ( I think) with Pentax ES and ESII electronic cameras. What it is importent is that the adaptor you use is completely smooth on the surface which butts up to the shoulder of the lens , if there are any screw holes it is likley that the aformentioned 'pin' will drop in to the hole and the lens will jam on.
I lost count of the times people with M42 Zenith cameras screwed pentax lenses on only to find out they were a perminent fixture :bonk:
CLICK HERE (http://www.srb-griturn.com/camera-body-to-lens-adaptors-eg-nikon-lens-onto-a-canon-body-324-c.asp) then follow the links to see what adaptors to use M42 lenses on modern cameras are available - pretty much all of the well known makes. Beware of internal reflections causing ghosting on DSLRs - this can be a real problem when using older lenses with less effective coatings.
stokecity_m
06-09-2009, 14:16
i believe its a pentax spotmatic 1000 i have.
also got the standard lense it comes with and two other larger lense.
will stick a few pictures up later so you guys can have alook and give me more info :)
i believe its a pentax spotmatic 1000 i have.
also got the standard lense it comes with and two other larger lense.
will stick a few pictures up later so you guys can have alook and give me more info :)
That will be an early-ish one. The other lenses will probably be a 35 or 28, and a 135 - f/2.8 if you're lucky. If they are original Pentax Takumars, that makes a lovely classic outfit, worth a bit in good nick. Ever-ready (flip-front) case?
I always wanted a black one, which cost about £7 extra I think LOL. The stop-down metering is a bit slow, but a heck of a nice camera in its day. Loads of info on google.
Gorgeous camera - and the lenses were State-of-The-Art at the time...
Just use it all together and have some fun...
Gorgeous camera - and the lenses were State-of-The-Art at the time...
Takumars still are :wave:
shimbo
stokecity_m
06-09-2009, 18:39
Cheers for the the info so far guys :)
It's a real shame that i was only young when my granddad passed away as he was really into his cameras etc.
The parts i was given where just a small selection he had.
Pictures anyway :)
http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r71/Stokecity_m/S8000012-1.jpg
When i had Pentax ,i had several old pentax manual lenses they were peaches tack sharp and great fun to use,have some cracking photos of the kids ,kinda miss em :'(:D
stokecity_m
06-09-2009, 20:33
Any other comments / info?
:)
Holden Caulfield
06-09-2009, 21:45
Dont be tempted to use the flash on a modern digital slr , the trigger voltage is huge, I have had a few belts of these in the past .
I have a Spotmatic, I'm in the middle of shooting a roll with this Tair 135.
I'm finding shooting 36 frames a bit tough though.
But I like the camera, its very.....slick...:shrug:
The wind-on is really precise, its difficult to describe, I guess its just very well made.
I dunno about the lenses you have, I think they're probably run of the mill but pretty decent, the primes are where things get really tidy.
Have a look at the light seals, especially around the door and the mirror damper, if the door shuts with no pressure maybe the seals need replacing.
http://i27.tinypic.com/71r23n.jpg
http://i31.tinypic.com/iw7t6t.jpg
stokecity_m
06-09-2009, 21:59
Cheers :)
Any other comments / info?
:)
Camera and standard lens look really nice. Lenses and flash are, frankly, not in the same league at all :(
Shutter in those early SLRs was a horizontal-running design with rubberised cloth curtains. They can perish and crack, easy enough to check, but the mechanism always struggled at high speeds - a bit inconsistent and sometimes with uneven exposure across the frame. This can be easily adjusted though, by a qualified technician.
Often not a problem in practise as with slow films you hardly ever got above 1/250sec anyway ;)
I wouldn't think the Hanimex and Soligor zooms were up to much. The standard lens f/1.4 or f/1.8 should be a cracker and if it's the f/1.8 it makes a good macro lens when reversed. Also better than the f/1.4 for copying flat objects due to a flatter field of curvature.
Don't sell the camera and lens together. The standard lens alone could be worth £30 to £70 depending on it's specification.
The Hanimex flash could be OK as a manual flashgun.
Hanimex and Vivitar eventually became the one company.
shimbo
stokecity_m
07-09-2009, 13:23
Again cheers for all the info and advice - if i do sell them i will have to stick them on ebay as i can't sell on here yet.
:(
vBulletin® v3.8.4, Copyright ©2000-2012, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.