[RZ67] beep, beep, beep

[KevinM]

Happy Thanksgiving!

So I'm out and about taking photos today. Just using the WL finder. The red LED blinks and I hear beeping. The manual says this means the battery is low. I don't know why that should be; I put a brand new one in a couple of days ago.



Anyway, I'm shooting black and white, everything seems normal except for this beeping. When I got back though, I was a little concerned. I took a couple of test shots at f/4, 1/6th. The shutter seemed awfully fast. (Should I be able to discern fractions of a second by sound?) this time though, I used the Polaroid back. Both slow-shutter shots came out pitch black. Now I'm wondering if I'm actually getting something besides he mechanical 1/400.

Any suggestions? Are my earlier B/W shots likely black, too?

 

[papagene]

Occasionally batteries right out of the pack can be DOA or extremely weak. There may be a chance that your B&W shots are blank.

 

[John Koehrer]

You should be able to tell the difference in speeds with observation.
The easiest method is to begin at either end of the speed dial and adjust it in steps, just watching the shutter.
You should be able to notice the progression of speeds as you change them.

Another one on the new bad battery too. It happens

 

[KevinM]

I am a bit concerned about my morning negatives now. I just took a couple shots in town, and I metered for 1/400 to be sure. [sigh]

I received a direct message with the suggestion to get a dry cell tester (as opposed to using a multimeter), and a lot of other good advice, too. I think I'll get a battery tester tomorrow. It's a shame we can't test batteries before we buy them.

Do they make 6V cylinder Eneloops? ;-)

Thanks for the replies.