Thanks Craig. Something else I wanted to ask. Is MLU necessary for a sharp pic? Is mirror slap bad with the 6x7?
MLU is available on both the early Honeywell/Asahi Pentax and later Pentax bodies. In some rare examples, a factory-fitted (not DIY!) multi-exposure facility is available (which I have) which can add an extra fun dimension with multiple exposures and juxtapositions. The prime use of MLU is to reduce the risk of vibration from the mirror with Pentax's humungous telephoto lenses. However, MLU is exceptionally useful with all lenses when tripod shooting as it will virtually guarantee the best lens performance and thus show this through on the lightbox. Mirror slap together with shutter whack can ruin handheld pictures; there are many who will tell you a tripod isn't necessary and that a 67 can be hand-held to 1/60 with no evidence of vibration. Fine, then show me the print at 10x and we'll prove them wrong!
Handheld or tripod, a refined technique will bring out the very, very best this quite large image size is capable of delivering.
Finders are freely interchangeable. However, be aware of an idiosyncracy of design that dictates how you mount a finder and a lens in order to avoid breakage of the aperture coupling chain (which is used for the TTL metered prism. The standard TTL metered prism is a 90% field of view so you need to train yourself to watch for the extra 10% around the edges (not hard with experience). A chimney finder and waist-level finder are available, both presenting their own minor challenges of use.
On the TTL meter, the midline is the exact point between a 5-stop exposure range, thus a needle in the middle upper area will be over-exposed and conversely, in the lower middle area, under-exposed. Up top or down the bottom will be 2.5 stops under- or over-exposed. First roll of exposures should be done using transparency film, hand-held metered along with TTL metered, and the results critically examined. Shutter speeds are electronically controlled and can lose their accuracy if the shutter remained cocked for an extended period of time.
A shift lens is best left to the geeks. It is of no real use unless shift is combined with tilt (tilt or swing, a la large format) or in the smaller 35mm where advanced control of perspective (not just position) contribute a lot more than a shift function alone. The shift lens is also a borderline slow lens at f4.5. Invest in wide and tele lenses — there are an excellent variety available, some much better than others, with the 45mm and 55mm lenses sitting at the top tier, closely followed by the squat telephotos of 104 and 90mm, some at f2.8. A little below that is one of Pentax's jewels: a 75mm f2.8 AL lens that still commands a very steep price new. Leaf shutter lenses (the 165mm LS and 75mm f2.8 AL are still made by Pentax) are heavier than the non-LS equivalents, and require careful observation of correct use and out-of-use (springs-relaxed) storage. The 90mm LS lens can be used with mirror lock-up, but not the 165LS — which incidentally begs for MLU to get the best results it is capable of. LS is only really of use for flash exposures, which present a somewhat old-fashioned throwback compared to the bells and whistles TTL flash metering of the smaller 35mm brethren. If studio work is your forté and you have a light set up for portraiture, the 165 would be a beaut choice.
Many older 6x7 bodies are well getting on now. I would skip over these often battered, bruised and wonky examples unless you have the facility to accurately get to the bottom of any problems that develop which are age-related. Excellent to mint condition newer 67 bodies are the bombs, but you will need your wits about you: examine the film advance, shutter curtain and battery compartment (often corroded out on very old bodies — can be replaced from scavanged parts). The wind-on mechanism is a potential trouble spot on bodies that have been roughly handled: it has an arcane internal mechanism that can be stripped with rough winding technique (which is one firm continuous swing and not several). Try and have a through touchy-feely of any body you are interested in, or at least ask many pointed questions of it if you cannot get to see it in person.
