S3 2000 Questions???

jonmanjiro said:
Thanks for clarifying, Robert. It was the following two statements that confused me. I'm not sure if I've got the teminology correct, but I took the "rangefinder window" in the first statement below to be the small window that provides the light for the focus patch. Although its clear now that you meant the larger viewfinder window.





Since the modification is very straightforward, I'd be seriously tempted to perform it anyway regardless of the camera being new, just to see if it makes a middling finder any better. Which also got me thinking about the colour of the gel filter used. I guess it could be any colour - whatever worked best for your eyes. Is there a specific reason why you settled on blue?
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Yes and do let us know when you do that Jon. I might do it also if the RF is not that contrasty for me. Just curious, how will the filter afect the VF brightness?
 
jonmanjiro said:
Which also got me thinking about the colour of the gel filter used. I guess it could be any colour - whatever worked best for your eyes. Is there a specific reason why you settled on blue?
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My guess is that nothing prevents you from using other filter colours, but it should work best with a blue one. I think the trick is this: the viewfinder patch is slightly yellowish, at least to my eyes. Blue is the complementary colour of yellow. If you apply a blue cast to all the image except to the patch (whose image comes from the small viewfinder window) then you are increasing contrast between the two images, at the costs of reducing brightness of the main viewfinder (the blue filter should reduce it).

If you use a colour that is not complementary of yellow (i.e. not blue) you do not maximise the contrast you get in return for the brightness lost.

Perhaps someone else can confirm that.

Arturo
 
Arturo,
Exactly right. It's a trade-off. You get an increase in contrast at the cost of a little loss of brightness. And of course, blue being complimentary to yellow means that a blue filter gives the greatest contrast.
That is the reason I suggest "sampling" different shades of blue filter gels until you get the particular one that suits your needs.
I find the loss of light in my camera to be little enough not to be troublesome or even noticeable, and I have no trouble using it as a shooter.

Jon,
I've never handled one of the new S3s or SPs, so I don't have any idea what the brightness/contrast differences are between the vintage and new cameras. Even the worst of my three bodies (the $565.00 S3) has a decent patch and contrast, even more so, now that I added the gel.
 
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I wonder if the trick with the Lee filter would work with the rangefinder patch too. I have used it on occasion with M3's with low contrast patches - adding a light red piece of Lee. Leica used to supply an orange push on filter for the window on the older LTM cameras. It does work as an emergency contrast push.
I have a couple of Nikon Rf's with weak patches, a SP were the patch is visible, but only useable in bright sunlight! Also a black dial S2 with a virtually invisible patch - that one is probably beyound salvage though. It does serve a purpose though -my 12mm/15mm VC lenses go on it and also my 28f8 Tessar from 1937.
Once i am back from LHSA in Kentucky, I might try an orange or blue patch on the SP and see if it works.
 
To me, that was the double edge of the S3. Very bright viewfinder, but that also decreased patch contrast. I kept my S2 since to me it has the right balance between viewfinder brightness and patch contrast. I placed a piece of cleared film over the S3 viewfinder window and it definitely helped.
 
It's here now and loaded an XP2 last night some minor glitches in the operation but got it all fixed now. I was trying to change the ISO and find it very difficult to move and my thumb got very sore only to realize later that this is a meterless camera, what the heck.......I tried to look at the RF patch and simulated some focusing on lowlight, it's difficult but can be done. Btw, the grade of my eyes is -1400 using contact lenses for a long long time and to make it more complicated a left eye dominant. I was able to live with that all this years cause I love manual focus cameras. The screens of my Nikons were changed to bright ones like my FM2n with the FM3a screen. Well the F3HP is bright enough, but it is very important that I have a diagonal split image which I find easiest to use. With the R3a, the patch is contrasty enough but not to the level of the Ms but very manageable. I prolly will try a blue gel later on the S3 and see if the effect is good for me. In the meantime, I'm excited to finish off the roll and check the results.
 
gilpen123 said:
It's here now and loaded an XP2 last night some minor glitches in the operation but got it all fixed now.
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Congrats for your new camera and lens! While you are waiting your first roll to finish, here are some of my recent shots with Mill. Nikkor-S 50/1.4 and Nikon S2. Film was Ilford FP4+ developed in Ilfosol 3.

@ f/1.4



@ f/2



@ f/2.8

 
" Oh btw, Jon help me out on my teething problems with the S3."

Gil,
Try to keep from biting the camera on the viewfinder as tooth marks on the glass will make it difficult to focus.
 
Hi Jon, ,my 1st roll is almost finished. I was not able to shoot because of pressing office matters. I used XP2 as my 1st test roll but this weekend I'll load HP5 and see what it can do. I'll post as soon as I have them processed but I'm loving it. The shutter is real quiet, not like the R3a. I was a little bit awkward the 1st time I used the S3 but I'm getting the feel now. I'm not used to the shutter release too far back but I mounted an AR-1 and it's more comfortable now. Btw, I think I'll put a light blue gel soon. I still find the RF contrast too light. I need more contrast but it's ,manageable.
 
Can you please let me know if I can use in between stops. I adjusted my lightmeter to one stop but sometimes I need at least a 1/2 stop compensation. There is no click detent in between the aperture. I know I can do this with my slr though.
 
gilpen123 said:
Can you please let me know if I can use in between stops. I adjusted my lightmeter to one stop but sometimes I need at least a 1/2 stop compensation. There is no click detent in between the aperture. I know I can do this with my slr though.
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Gil, yep it works just like an SLR lens in that respect. It's also possible to set in-between shutter speeds on the shutter speed dial (says so in the S3 2000 manual).

S3 2000 manual pages below courtesy of VinceC.

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Hi,

first sorry for my bad english. I am andreas from germany.

Some years ago i had a leica m. Now i consider to buy a S3-2000. I read this informative thread, but i have still questions:

- is it thrue, that the only way to focus is the little wheel beside the release button? I would prefer to turn a ring at the lens

- if you could evulate brightness and contrast of fiewfinder and overlapping image of focus-meter in a range from 1-10 and a leica mp would have 10 points. how much points would your give the S3-2000?

Thanks
Andrea
 
tridente said:
Hi,

first sorry for my bad english. I am andreas from germany.

Some years ago i had a leica m. Now i consider to buy a S3-2000. I read this informative thread, but i have still questions:

- is it thrue, that the only way to focus is the little wheel beside the release button? I would prefer to turn a ring at the lens

- if you could evulate brightness and contrast of fiewfinder and overlapping image of focus-meter in a range from 1-10 and a leica mp would have 10 points. how much points would your give the S3-2000?

Thanks
Andrea
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You can focus by turning a ring at the lens and I would rate the RF of the S3-2000 at a 6 -7 compared to Leica`s - actual - MP.
 
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