M5 artifact?

Pieter12 · Mar 26, 2019

I am seeing this artifact every once in a while on film from my M5. Not on every roll, and when it's there, just on one or two frames. I don't think it is lens flare, what could it be?

Hatchetman · Mar 26, 2019

Some kind of light leak around the door. This has some ideas to check: https://www.photo.net/discuss/threads/another-leica-m5-light-leak-puzzle-sorry.432887/

Sirius Glass · Mar 26, 2019

Replace the seals perhaps time for a CLA.

Dali · Mar 26, 2019

Light coming from the rangefinder small window. Leitz gave the cure in a technical note in the 70s. I would recommend to send the camera for a check. Contact first the repairman to check if he/she works on M5 (somewhat different from M3-2-4).

Hatchetman · Mar 27, 2019

I've had great work done by DAG. Not sure if he's still around. Hopefully.

McFortner · Mar 27, 2019

Hatchetman said:
I've had great work done by DAG. Not sure if he's still around. Hopefully.

He is, I just got my CL back from him last week.

blockend · Mar 28, 2019

Someone recently suggested it was a light leak from the shutter button.

Trask · Mar 28, 2019

I had the same problem back in 2014, and started a thread titled
"Odd pattern of light on my photographs -- lens? camera?" If I knew how to include a link to that posting, I'd do so. My post there has examples from my M5 that are the same as what you're experiencing; I've attached one or two to this response. I had found that the leak would appear on a frame or two, then "go away" for a roll or two, then come back. Took me over a year to really see the pattern (I was using other cameras at the time in addition to the M5) as it seems the ambient light had be of a high enough level and striking the camera body as some specific angle to make it through to the film.

Due to the inversion of the image as it passes through the lens and strikes the film, a leak appearing in the lower left corner of the final printed image would have actually occurred on the upper right corner of the film plane, i.e., near the top of the take-up spool. As seen in the attached images, the leak could occur regardless of whether the camera was held horizontally or vertically. I wound up sending my camera to Sherry Krauter for repair; she had to work on it twice to track the leak to light coming down the film advance shaft. At least, that's my understanding based on what I heard from her -- she implied that some other repair person had been inside the camera and messed something up, but as I'd bought the camera used I had info in that regard.

MattKing · Mar 28, 2019

Trask said:
I had the same problem back in 2014, and started a thread titled
"Odd pattern of light on my photographs -- lens? camera?" If I knew how to include a link to that posting, I'd do so.

Hope this helps: https://www.photrio.com/forum/threads/odd-pattern-of-light-on-my-photographs-lens-camera.116028/

Trask · Mar 28, 2019

Thank you, Matt.

Pieter12 · Jul 11, 2019

I was just out shooting a bit with the M5 and it occurred to me that the light leak might be coming from the window that illuminates the shutter speed/meter display in the viewfinder. I am going to cover that with some tape and see if it makes any difference.

M5 artifact?

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