Canon Canonet 28 question... please help :)

[Photofidelity]

Hello All...

I had just shot my first roll through my new Canon Canonet 28 yesterday and when I developed the film the results appeared to have very specific looking light leaks?! I have never experienced light leaks with a camera so I'm not quite sure what to look for so I'll post a scan of one of the shots to see what you all think...the whole roll has the same leak with varying degrees of overexposure but all cut the frame in half like the example below?

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I am trying to figure out how to fix this issue...so i tried to seal the camera with gaffers tape as well as electrical tape...and I shot another roll today with the door sealed with tape with slightly better results... but still the same looking light leak on almost all the frames here are two more examples of the new roll below...the two shot were taken within seconds of each other but one came out fine and the other looks like crud? I am really confused by this issue what changed in those few seconds to make that happen?

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My theories:

1) Bad ass light leak.... or

2) shutter issue....I noticed when I open the back of the camera and set the aperture to its fastest 2.8 and depress the shutter its a perfect circle as it should be so I proceed to do the same little test though the rest of the apertures and noticed that the shutter morphs its shape into a diamond like shape...Is this normal for this type of shutter or could this be an issue which is messing with my exposures... (i know this sounds kinda crazy right)


Any help would rock my socks cause I love this little guy and don't want to retire it to the display self just yet!

Thanks all!!

 

[phaedrus]

I tend to theory #1, sorry to say. Never could fix a real light leak with gaffer's tape either.

 

[BobD]

I am really confused by this issue what changed in those few seconds to make that happen?

Light leak effects are cumulative. The leak is usually quite faint
and may take a while before its effects show up on the
developed film. How much light is actually striking the outside
of the camera also figures into it. The longer the film remains
stationary under the leak, the more it will be affected by it. If
the film is not advanced for a long time then that portion of
the film will be more subject to light leaks. But, if you shoot a
rapid succession of shots then that portion of the film will not
be as subject to the effects of the leak.

Also, the image on the film is upside down and reversed left
to right. So, to find the leak look at the final print and take
that into account in finding the leak.

 

[LowriderS10]

I just looked at my Canonet 28 and the aperture looks like PacMan (or a pie where a slice has been cut out and fitted back)...could that be the cause of your problems? Perhaps it's not aligning back properly every time? Might be worth a shot...

 

[ntenny]

Weird kind of light leak, with that sharp vertical edge. Perhaps it isn't happening at the film gate, but off to one side of it.

If I were you, I'd go into the dark, mount an unexposed strip of film in position inside the camera, close it up, and leave it in bright light for a while. Then develop the strip of film to see where the leak is. I've found this works pretty well (actually, come to think of it, I've got a camera I need to do this with).

-NT