Is it Contrast? What is wrong with my old uncoated lenses?

This is your posted Positive with its corresponding curves graph next to it. The numbers in blue are where the tone in the jpeg correspond with the curves graph.

Ok, so the dark grass is to the right, and the roof is to the left, where the highlights are - i need to get used to reading a histogram, and which image you are looking at positive or negative. But - i think if high values cease to show up below the 1.5 square response curve above, indicates blocking up in the negative is why it cut off, due to overexposure. I think you were correct initially, and the negative is rather dark not thin. Still trying to understand if the lens is the main culprit of a poor negative or if the exposure is to blame and had i more of the highlights it might print ok. I am going to make more films with the lens to try to get the feel of it, and do the shutter test as soon as i can dig out of the blizzard and make it to radio shack! Thanks again for hanging in here with me.

didn't see your last until if posted my last. Cool, i need to figure out how to get my corel to do this.

I had to open the image and the curves box, capture it with a screen capture program, open that jpeg and the downloaded one then toggle between the two opening and closing the curves box on the downloaded photo to switch back to the composite photo, a pain. Stay warm and enjoy the snow once it quits coming down. Out here on the west coast its dull gray and raining. The sun may peek out for a minute or two tomorrow afternoon.
Yes, over exposed, how else would deep shadows be at pure black.

A Betax #3 shutter opened with all the covers off.


Set any shutter to 1 second. Position it so that you can see the shutter blades and the sweep second hand of a clock at the same time. Trip the shutter just as the second hand crosses a second mark and observe when the blades become closed. A second hand width either side of the next second mark is in tolerance. Next set the shutter to 1/2 second and repeat. In tolerance is half the second hand width either side of the mid point to the next second mark. 1 second is a stop slower than 1/2 second, 2 seconds is a stop slower than 1 second.

ClocX http://download.cnet.com/ClocX/3000-2350_4-10714893.html is a freeware analog clock for Windows with many clock faces and a sweep second hand.