Canon LTM Meter on Canon 7

[mani]

So today I bought a Canon 7 with an 0.95, and you'll have to excuse my embarrassing ignorance, but when I looked the camera over I couldn't for the life of me work out how the meter works.
If someone can point me to where/how I can find out I'd really appreciate it - I'd love to run some film through this combo.

Thanks!

Mani

 

[sevo]

On a 7, it either does or does not. Essentially you are supposed to set the sensitivity on the dial above the eyepiece, set the time, and the needle will tell you what aperture to set on the lens. These days, it will more often do nothing, as its selenium cell is dead. You can have it replaced - but neither the selenium cell nor the 7s CdS cell were anywhere near sensitive enough to be useful with the 0.95, so you gain little useability and might destroy some collectors value by patching it up with a non-original part.

sevo

 

[lmd91343]

The speed is set in the window of the shutter speed dial. Hold in the button on the vertical panel underneath the dial and then turn the dial until the desired film speed is shown. Release the button. The fastest speed is 400asa. The meter sensitivity is set by the knob on the back of the camera, near the viewfinder.

To use the meter, set the shutter speed to the desired value and read the suggested lens opening in the window on the top plate. There are orange white scales in the window. Use the scale that matches the sensitivity knob on the back. If the knob is set to orange (pointing up), use the orange scale. If the knob is set to black, use the white scale.

I don't remember which scale is normal and which is low light.

Enjoy the camera. It is very rugged and has a great viewfinder!

Like Sevo said the meter is not sensitive enough for low light.

 

[gdi]

Here is the manual - it will tell you how to use it. If you set the sensitivity to orange, you should see some movement in reasonable light - if the cell is active at all.

http://www.cameramanuals.org/canon_pdf/canon_7_bell_&_howell.pdf

 

[Sonnar Brian]

The Meter Cells on my three Canon 7 cameras are all fairly accurate. I had a fourth, sold it here,that was also good. I checked them against a Nikon F2AS.On the Sensitive setting, they go to EV6. Much less sensitive than my Polaroid CDS meter, but good enough for most situations.

Read the manual. Note the two sensitivity scales, and do not get them crossed-up.

 

[tennis-joe]

I only have one Canon 7 and the photos come out very accurate. It is one of my best RF
Joe

 

[lmd91343]

My B&H 7 has an accurate meter too. I 've checked mine against my Sekonic 308, Luna Pro, and my VCII.

I just don't like the wide angle of acceptance of selenium meters.

GDI, Thanks for the link!

 

[mani]

Thanks all! I'll give it a try - probably with some b&w in there to give some latitude for user error! 😉

Mani

 

[mani]

Just had a look through the manual - but it's not clear to me if the camera can be shot with aperture-priority: the main point of the 0.95, really.

Is this possible? Sorry about this - simply never seen a meter quite like this on a camera before... 😱

 

[sevo]

The 7 is not automatic, so it is up to you what you prioritize. I find it easier to use manual equivalent of aperture priority on cameras with time-coupled, aperture readout-and-transfer meters - that is, I set the aperture to the desired value on the lens, and change the time until the needle points to the previously set aperture.

It pretty much operates like a Leica M with Leicameter, so you can read up on that as well. The only major stumbling block is the cryptic meter sensitivity range switch on the rear by the finder (not on top, that would be the finder frame selector - it has been a while since I owned one).

Sevo

 

[mani]

Ah thanks - no I didn't mean automatic, I meant set an aperture value first and get the speed needed for correct exposure, rather than the other way around. I'll have to take a closer look when I have the camera in my hand.

Thanks again to all contributors - sorry I'm such a noob with the 7 system. 😱

 

[Sonnar Brian]

Set the lens to F0.95, Move the Shutter Dial until F0.95 on the meter scale moves under the needle. You are ready to shoot, no need to transfer the F-Stop to the lens, and the shutter-speed is correct for shooting.

 

[mani]

Thanks Brian - I think I'm good to go now! 🙂