canon f1 question

[Wulfthari]

Are you sure about this? The Canon EF has a bridge circuit, but I don't believe it's true for any of the F-1's.

Jim B.

I used standard batteries and everything works fine.

Never missed an exposure.

Actually all my exposures are spot on with all the cameras that supposedly had problems from 1.5 to 1.3 Volts, so I came to the conclusion it's a myth created on internet by apprehensive owners...who still have to provide a single shot under or overexposed because of the use of a modern battery.

These are few shots taken with my FTBn and F1n (I use the same battery)...never had an exposure error.

These are my old Canon FDs:

This my my F1n and my F1N:

 

[Mackinaw]

The original F-1, or F-1n, do not use a bridge circuit. If you use any batteries other than a 1.3V mercury, your meter readings won’t be accurate. This comes from Ken Oikawa, who is probably the premier Canon FD repair tech in the U.S. I found some old correspondence between the two of us when he worked on my old F-1. He offered to modify the camera’s meter to take newer batteries, and I declined.

As for why your pictures look OK, you’re using print film, right? Try taking pics with some E-6 transparency film, and the results may look very different.

Jim B.

 

[wakarimasen]

Just bought an F1-n, including motor drive and 50mm F/1.8 lens. Now I can put it up against my Nikon F2, and see which I prefer!

 

[raid]

I never bothered to get the batteries for my F1n. I used a handheld spotmeter at all times with transparency film.

 

[ray*j*gun]

The original F-1, or F-1n, do not use a bridge circuit. If you use any batteries other than a 1.3V mercury, your meter readings won’t be accurate. This comes from Ken Oikawa, who is probably the premier Canon FD repair tech in the U.S. I found some old correspondence between the two of us when he worked on my old F-1. He offered to modify the camera’s meter to take newer batteries, and I declined.

As for why your pictures look OK, you’re using print film, right? Try taking pics with some E-6 transparency film, and the results may look very different.

Jim B.

Chromes are much more demanding of your exposures and will show a difference between a 1.3 and 1.5 battery. However, If I were shooting with E6 I would not rely on a built-in camera meter anyway.

 

[back alley]

decided to go solo today and only carried the f1/24...forgot how slow i had become at focussing...and adjusting stiff dials and setting shutter/aperture combinations...

 

[Wulfthari]

The original F-1, or F-1n, do not use a bridge circuit. If you use any batteries other than a 1.3V mercury, your meter readings won’t be accurate. This comes from Ken Oikawa, who is probably the premier Canon FD repair tech in the U.S. I found some old correspondence between the two of us when he worked on my old F-1. He offered to modify the camera’s meter to take newer batteries, and I declined.

As for why your pictures look OK, you’re using print film, right? Try taking pics with some E-6 transparency film, and the results may look very different.

Jim B.

Sorry, but that's bullocks, and I repeat my challenge: post one pic with a wrong exposure caused by the usage of a 1.5 V battery instead of a 1.3 V one, I still have to see it.

Unfortunately I don't shoot E6 very often (even if I like it) because it's expensive and very few labs develop it today, but I did shoot a roll of Agfa 100 with my F-1n, here there's an example:

This is a shot with the same film taken with a SPF:

This is taken with a Nikon F2A:

This is with a Fujica ST705W:

Praktica BX20S:

None of these cameras had the lightmeter recalibrated for modern batteries...personally I shoot E6 with all my cameras with no fear.

I never bothered to get the batteries for my F1n. I used a handheld spotmeter at all times with transparency film.

Chromes are much more demanding of your exposures and will show a difference between a 1.3 and 1.5 battery. However, If I were shooting with E6 I would not rely on a built-in camera meter anyway.

You guys are overthinking it, just relax and shoot....I'm pretty sure that back in the day most professionals were shooting Kodakchrome with F-1 and F2s without problems and relying on their internal lightmeters.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Sorry, but that's bullocks, and I repeat my challenge: post one pic with a wrong exposure caused by the usage of a 1.5 V battery instead of a 1.3 V one, I still have to see it.

Unfortunately I don't shoot E6 very often (even if I like it) because it's expensive and very few labs develop it today, but I did shoot a roll of Agfa 100 with my F-1n, here there's an example:

This is a shot with the same film taken with a SPF:

This is taken with a Nikon F2A:

This is with a Fujica ST705W:

Praktica BX20S:

None of these cameras had the lightmeter recalibrated for modern batteries...personally I shoot E6 with all my cameras with no fear.





You guys are overthinking it, just relax and shoot....I'm pretty sure that back in the day most professionals were shooting Kodakchrome with F-1 and F2s without problems and relying on their internal lightmeters.

The Nikon F2, the Praktica BX20S, and the Fujica ST705W don't need recalibrated because they were DESIGNED for moderned batteries. They never used mercury cells. I can't comment on the SPF, I don't know what it is, it may have been made for modern batteries too. The Canon F1n is the only camera you have that definitely uses mercury batteries. Why does it give good exposures with modern batteries? Maybe it does have a bridge circuit maybe the meter in it is out of adjustment and the higher voltage corrects it by good fortune.

I do know that the Olympus OM-1 I had ten yrs ago underexposed a couple stops compared to my later OM cameras when I used a 1.5 volt cell in it. Later OM cameras all used modern silver-oxide batteries, but the OM-1 used mercury.

 

[goamules]

What's so hard about compensating for any meter offset? That's what I do, I compare any meter (even old Weston and selenium Leicameters) to my good Sekonic when I get it, then just adjust the exposures. That's for manual cameras. If a higher voltage batter is used, the offset is linear. For auto exposure, can't you just change the film speed on the camera to compensate?

Of the 4.7 Million 35mm cameras with meters made for 1.3V, I don't think many still using them since 1996 have worried too much about the new batteries. And we didn't hear stories of everyone suddenly getting black rolls of film back from development.

 

[flavio81]

The Canon F-1 (and F-1n) can use modern batteries with no problem... as long as you use the 675 hearing aid battery which outputs the correct 1.35V for the meter.

Seriously, just put the 675 cell and a makeshift spacer to keep it centered, close the battery cover and be happy. No need to mess with camera recalibration for PX625A (which you shouldn't do because alkaline batteries don't hold a stable voltage over their lifetime).

675 batteries are cheaper than both PX625A and the SR44 silver-oxide batteries used by cameras like the Nikon FE, so this is a god-send.

The way the F-1 meter is implemented, compared to the implementation on the Nikon F, F2 and Nikkormats, is more linear and accurate because it does not rely on a potentiometer to compensate for different shutter speeds or aperture values. Thus no "dirty (or worn) resistor ring" problems like in many 70s Nikon cameras. The F-1 meter is incredibly accurate, I wouldn't never allow any technician to mess with its calibration!

What's so hard about compensating for any meter offset? That's what I do, I compare any meter (even old Weston and selenium Leicameters) to my good Sekonic when I get it, then just adjust the exposures.

Because compensation is not linear. That is, if you find out your camera needs 2 stops of compensation, and you found this by testing outdoors, then when you try metering on low light you will find that compensation required is different (say, -1 stop instead of +2).

AND if you are using alkaline batteries then months later you'll have to recheck your compensation.

 

[wakarimasen]

Anyone know a repairer in the UK, that could tackle a CLA on an F1n which needs a new shutter button on the motor drive and a base plate? I just bought one from eBay, and the seller was - again - liberal with the facts. Just checking my options, as I think it's a great camera.

As an aside: why do people list things incorrectly on eBay? :bang::bang:

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Anyone know a repairer in the UK, that could tackle a CLA on an F1n which needs a new shutter button on the motor drive and a base plate? I just bought one from eBay, and the seller was - again - liberal with the facts. Just checking my options, as I think it's a great camera.

As an aside: why do people list things incorrectly on eBay? :bang::bang:

They list it dishonestly because they know that no one will buy something needing a repair that costs more than the camera is worth. I'd return it if I were you.

 

[Wulfthari]

Anyone know a repairer in the UK, that could tackle a CLA on an F1n which needs a new shutter button on the motor drive and a base plate? I just bought one from eBay, and the seller was - again - liberal with the facts. Just checking my options, as I think it's a great camera.

As an aside: why do people list things incorrectly on eBay? :bang::bang:

Try Harrow technical:

http://harrowtechnical.co.uk/

They do Pentax but perhaps they can also work on the motordrive.

Regarding the baseplate it's detachable on F-1 and F-1n, you remove it to attach the motordrive, so you need to find the spare part.

 

[wakarimasen]

In the end I kept it, got rid of the power winder and bought a new base plate. Testing commences.