Return from digital. Is my camera still good?

[Iodosan]

At the end of the day a camera body is just a shutter in a box. The body isnt going to make a scrap.of difference to photography (unless you need ultra fast shutter speeds, the best af, or a few other things).

Its the lens thats going to be the difference and imho you wont find anything better in any mount than pentax ltd glass and super takumars can easily stand their ground against zuikos, nikkor, rokkors etc. (And vice versa)

Rollei 35te have the tessar 40mm
Fed4 industar 50mm
Kiev jupiter 8 50mm
But me super have the smc 50 mm and soligor 28mm pk mount. The other lenses (pancolar, mir1b and tokina 17mm) sea m42 mount. When I bought In a market the me super In the box was an old m42-pk mount too. At this point Maybe is better sell some lenses for a super takumar 35mm?

 

[GRHazelton]

I own a Pentax ME Super, among many other Pentax cameras. It is a fine shooter. Depth of field preview would have been nice, but hardly essential for street shooting. Look for the winder for it, about 2 fps. To my hands it gives just enough extra heft, and I find shooting verticals more comfortable. The winders are cheap, often $30 or less.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

I have and use a K1000, ME, and ME Super. All three are capable cameras. They are all I use for 35mm.

 

[pbromaghin]

Welcome back and have fun!

The ME Super was my only camera for 20+ years. You are in fine shape.

 

[AgX]

Rollei 35te have the tessar 40mm
Fed4 industar 50mm
Kiev jupiter 8 50mm
But me super have the smc 50 mm and soligor 28mm pk mount. The other lenses (pancolar, mir1b and tokina 17mm) sea m42 mount. When I bought In a market the me super In the box was an old m42-pk mount too. At this point Maybe is better sell some lenses for a super takumar 35mm?

If I would make my mind up on lenses for streetphotography at all, I would not look at brand names,but at designs. Most lenses fall into only very few groups and thus act similar.
The max.aperture is something to look at, but more importamt are things as is there an automatic diaphragm (at SLRs)? Where is the focusing ring located? Where is the Aperture ring? How do they handle? What about the minimun focusing distances? Here you may find image scale differences of up to factor of 2.

 

[MattKing]

For street you may prefer the 28mm lens - that is a question of preference for a field of view.
A 50mm and 28mm pair is an excellent combination.
The 17mm is a special purpose lens, so I wouldn't expect to use it much if at all.
Otherwise, the ME Super and a couple of K mount lenses seems to be an excellent choice.

 

[Craig75]

Rollei 35te have the tessar 40mm
Fed4 industar 50mm
Kiev jupiter 8 50mm
But me super have the smc 50 mm and soligor 28mm pk mount. The other lenses (pancolar, mir1b and tokina 17mm) sea m42 mount. When I bought In a market the me super In the box was an old m42-pk mount too. At this point Maybe is better sell some lenses for a super takumar 35mm?

thats a nice set of cameras and lenses. You will be proper man / woman about town sporting a zeiss jena. It's well worth, in my opinion, reading up on the history of zeiss jena, as you will be shooting with a real piece of history - and if it was good enough for the great soviet photographers it will definitely be good enough for you and I.

price is no indication of quality especially with slrs these days. You see high quality gear being sold for buttons because everyone is chasing whatever instagram or some blog is telling them to do. Meanwhile you have a cool set of gear that the fashionistas of cameras have totally slept on.

 

[Iodosan]

thats a nice set of cameras and lenses. You will be proper man / woman about town sporting a zeiss jena. It's well worth, in my opinion, reading up on the history of zeiss jena, as you will be shooting with a real piece of history - and if it was good enough for the great soviet photographers it will definitely be good enough for you and I.

price is no indication of quality especially with slrs these days. You see high quality gear being sold for buttons because everyone is chasing whatever instagram or some blog is telling them to do. Meanwhile you have a cool set of gear that the fashionistas of cameras have totally slept on.

Thanks a lot for replies. I will try the zeiss and the other lenses with hp5 just loaded now on the me super and I'll try another with rollei. I bought the pancolar zebra years a go from a old repair man. A story in a story. Hope to find my way to shot with film and maybe go to one camera one lens challenge!

 

[film_man]

If

If I start by giving my rolls to a professional lab that sends me both the negatives and the scanned images, the passage could be less traumatic for the quality, right? In other forums I had read discussions where they said that for a quality of both colors and final result you had to spend and buy a high-priced camera like a leica m, bessa or similar. I want to debunk this thing.

Yes, using a good lab will take away a lot of that pain. As for what people say well people say a lot of things. My dad's 1970s Praktica with an ancient Takumar 55/2 (total cost of kit £30) gives me great results. For sure my FM2n and Leica are infinitely smoother and nicer to use but I have no problem with the results of the cheap camera.

 

[Iodosan]

For street you may prefer the 28mm lens - that is a question of preference for a field of view.
A 50mm and 28mm pair is an excellent combination.
The 17mm is a special purpose lens, so I wouldn't expect to use it much if at all.
Otherwise, the ME Super and a couple of K mount lenses seems to be an excellent choice.

I think i will try the soligor 28mm for street and smc 50 or pancolar 50 for street architecture. The tokina 17mm lens have a lot of good reviews but I think is too wide. Hard to use!

 

[Craig75]

You can use the 17mm for
1. Architecture interiors
2. Architecture exteriors. With a narrower lens you might have to tilt the camera up to get the shot and in doing so create converging verticals. An ultrawide lens might get the building in shot without tilting the camera.
3. Street photography. An ultrawide in subway, tight spaces, or crowds can be very useful. Also good for shooting from the hip and cropping later.
4. To create grainy prints. Frame your shot in the centre of the frame, then crop everything around it, and enlarge that small piece of film to the size you print at normally and now you have big grainy enlargement.

Using ultrawides isnt for everyone - but id say definitely play with it and see what you can think to do with it. If you want to do one camera one lens challenge then using the 17mm is definitely a challenge!

 

[Iodosan]

You can use the 17mm for
1. Architecture interiors
2. Architecture exteriors. With a narrower lens you might have to tilt the camera up to get the shot and in doing so create converging verticals. An ultrawide lens might get the building in shot without tilting the camera.
3. Street photography. An ultrawide in subway, tight spaces, or crowds can be very useful. Also good for shooting from the hip and cropping later.
4. To create grainy prints. Frame your shot in the centre of the frame, then crop everything around it, and enlarge that small piece of film to the size you print at normally and now you have big grainy enlargement.

Using ultrawides isnt for everyone - but id say definitely play with it and see what you can think to do with it. If you want to do one camera one lens challenge then using the 17mm is definitely a challenge!

These are four ideas I hadn't thought of. In fact, a project that I will want to do is to photograph old closed shops or characteristic buildings and in this the 17th could perhaps be something different. I live in a region without big cities but with large spaces. I don't know if it can be called Street photography anyway I like the idea. Thirds is a my shot I took with my digital. For this colors I must use a portra 400 film or which type?

 

[Alan Gales]

When I first started shooting 35mm some one gave me the great advice to keep a photo album with my best 15 to 20 photos in. Review it every month, taking out the weaker images and replacing them with better new images and finally reducing them down to my best 10 images.

I did this and I discovered that my best images were usually made on a tripod. They weren't sharper than the hand held images, just better. I came to realize that I had spent more time making this images. The tripod had slowed me down.

It's too easy when shooting digital to not slow down enough. I have to remind myself this when shooting a digital camera. If you really want to slow down try large format film.

 

[AgX]

Alan, I imagine you standing on streets, watching people, wet-plates in your hand...

 

[Craig75]

These are four ideas I hadn't thought of. In fact, a project that I will want to do is to photograph old closed shops or characteristic buildings and in this the 17th could perhaps be something different. I live in a region without big cities but with large spaces. I don't know if it can be called Street photography anyway I like the idea. Thirds is a my shot I took with my digital. For this colors I must use a portra 400 film or which type?

Old shops with vintage cameras and vintage lenses - the equipment you have already could be perfect. That industar or jupiter might give just the vintage look and colours to capture it.

I only shoot black and white. Ask in the colour forum and people will know what to do.

 

[Alan Gales]

Alan, I imagine you standing on streets, watching people, wet-plates in your hand...

That's why I put a behind it! You're right, it would be a comical thing to see!

Besides my 8x10 I also have a Mamiya C220f. TLR's are nice for street shooting unless you are shooting a tall building and need front rise.

 

[radiant]

When I first started shooting 35mm some one gave me the great advice to keep a photo album with my best 15 to 20 photos in. Review it every month, taking out the weaker images and replacing them with better new images and finally reducing them down to my best 10 images.

This is a good tip. I have albums for 5x7" darkroom prints. Easy to store, fun to browse through. Same ideology here; maintaining the best prints in the albums. When I get to add new photo, I know physically that I have learned something.

I did this and I discovered that my best images were usually made on a tripod. They weren't sharper than the hand held images, just better. I came to realize that I had spent more time making this images. The tripod had slowed me down.

The opposite here. Seems that my best photos are taken carelessly, very often on a point-and-shoot. Tripod makes me stiff and my photos taken on tripod are boring.

It's too easy when shooting digital to not slow down enough. I have to remind myself this when shooting a digital camera. If you really want to slow down try large format film.

When shooting digital I don't want to slow down. It doesn't help at all, I just get less photographs. Using digital helps one to practice and learn faster what works and what doesn't. It is "eye-hand" practice at it's best. And best part is; you probably get some nice photographs while doing that! I don't care about frame count on digital. It is way more easier to delete a file than a create a good file

I shot on streets with 5x7". It also makes one more fit and social A guaranteed way to get people come by and start conversation - even in Finland! I spent more time talking and showing the camera to people than actually photographing. Will do that again next summer for sure!

 

[Iodosan]

This is a good tip. I have albums for 5x7" darkroom prints. Easy to store, fun to browse through. Same ideology here; maintaining the best prints in the albums. When I get to add new photo, I know physically that I have learned something.




The opposite here. Seems that my best photos are taken carelessly, very often on a point-and-shoot. Tripod makes me stiff and my photos taken on tripod are boring.



When shooting digital I don't want to slow down. It doesn't help at all, I just get less photographs. Using digital helps one to practice and learn faster what works and what doesn't. It is "eye-hand" practice at it's best. And best part is; you probably get some nice photographs while doing that! I don't care about frame count on digital. It is way more easier to delete a file than a create a good file

I shot on streets with 5x7". It also makes one more fit and social A guaranteed way to get people come by and start conversation - even in Finland! I spent more time talking and showing the camera to people than actually photographing. Will do that again next summer for sure!

Today I tried to make an outing by going to a city. I brought the rollei 35te with an hp5 film and the digital fuji. While with the rollei I looked at the focus zone, waited for the right light and took only five shots with the digital camera it was all a point and shoot even without aiming and out of about thirty photos a good couple came out. But with the thought I am in those five shots with the curiosity to know how they came!

 

[Iodosan]

This is a good tip. I have albums for 5x7" darkroom prints. Easy to store, fun to browse through. Same ideology here; maintaining the best prints in the albums. When I get to add new photo, I know physically that I have learned something.




The opposite here. Seems that my best photos are taken carelessly, very often on a point-and-shoot. Tripod makes me stiff and my photos taken on tripod are boring.



When shooting digital I don't want to slow down. It doesn't help at all, I just get less photographs. Using digital helps one to practice and learn faster what works and what doesn't. It is "eye-hand" practice at it's best. And best part is; you probably get some nice photographs while doing that! I don't care about frame count on digital. It is way more easier to delete a file than a create a good file

I shot on streets with 5x7". It also makes one more fit and social A guaranteed way to get people come by and start conversation - even in Finland! I spent more time talking and showing the camera to people than actually photographing. Will do that again next summer for sure!

That's why I put a behind it! You're right, it would be a comical thing to see!

Besides my 8x10 I also have a Mamiya C220f. TLR's are nice for street shooting unless you are shooting a tall building and need front rise.

Last week i tried using the fed 4b for street photography and more than one person stopped to ask about the camera. I still have to develop that roll but sii can say it certainly doesn't go unnoticed

 

[George Mann]

The opposite here. Seems that my best photos are taken carelessly

Interesting. Do you have any examples you can show us?

 

[radiant]

Today I tried to make an outing by going to a city. I brought the rollei 35te with an hp5 film and the digital fuji. While with the rollei I looked at the focus zone, waited for the right light and took only five shots with the digital camera it was all a point and shoot even without aiming and out of about thirty photos a good couple came out. But with the thought I am in those five shots with the curiosity to know how they came!

I think 2 shots out of 30 is totally good ratio. And hey you got good photos!

Interesting. Do you have any examples you can show us?

I would say over 80% of these photos here are examples: http://kuvau.tuu.fi/ - the only tripod shot is the moon shot (ofcourse). Most of my latest instagram posts are like that too.

Of course film shooting is a bit slower because of need to focus but in general same "style" applies there. I don't want to lay on the scene. Good scenes and subjects just clearly appear and I feel I can notice those instantly. When I spend time on some scene it usually turns out average or worthless shot.

Edit: above is what I need to remind me of. I really would like to expose frames but I've already started to feel that something isn't worth capturing. I still shoot average or worthless shots of course because the urge of taking photographs. I even might expose a frame knowing that I'm not going to print it just to keep myself in the flow on photographing

 

[Alan Gales]

I shot on streets with 5x7". It also makes one more fit and social A guaranteed way to get people come by and start conversation - even in Finland! I spent more time talking and showing the camera to people than actually photographing. Will do that again next summer for sure!

I used to own a Tachihara 4x5 which I bought brand new. It was made from 200 year old Cherry wood and was really pretty to look at with it's bright faux brass fittings. People would stop me and ask if I refinished the beautiful antique camera myself. They couldn't believe it when I told them it was a new camera.

 

[Alan Gales]

Last week i tried using the fed 4b for street photography and more than one person stopped to ask about the camera. I still have to develop that roll but sii can say it certainly doesn't go unnoticed

Cover up the fed 4b name with a piece of tape that has Fujifilm written on it. People will just think it's a Fuji x100 series.