martyr
Member
Hey all. Perhaps someone here might be able to give me some pointers regarding what I think might be a dead meter in the Electro GT I just bought on eBay.
I was doing some tests to see if the light meter was working - the only tests I know how to do are to change lighting conditions around a subject and see if the camera reacts to them by changing the shutter speed. That's the tried and true living room method, right?
For the first test I used the camera's timer with the camera on a tripod and me standing in front of the thing with the room black and only a candle lighting my face.
The lens was wide open and the resulting click at the end of the timer cycle sounded a lot like 1/500.
I tried with a cable release attached to the shutter button and got the same thing.
Then, with the camera off the tripod, held at arm's length with the lens facing me, f/1.7, I stood just outside my office doorway with only the soft glow of my computer monitor spilling out onto me. About a 0 to -1 EV if I understand that scale correctly. I clicked the shutter release (with my finger this time), got the yellow under exp light, then the blades snapped open but they stayed there. I waited. Waited some more. A little more and then I slowly faded up the dimmer switch on the lamp in my office. As the room filled with light, the blades clicked shut.
I tried again, this time with the lens set to f/8 and the same EV, I clicked the button and the blades snapped open to form a small circle in the middle of the lens but they just stayed there, again, frozen. I did the waiting thing for a really long time (figuring I had cut the amount of light coming in by quite a bit). I slowly started to release my finger from the shutter button and that's when the blades finally snapped shut. I've tested this scenario several more times and I get the same results no matter what f/stop I set the lens to.
Am I missing something? When the blades snap back closed, that means the shutter is also done firing, right? Is it safe to assume the blades don't stay at their designated aperture after the shutter is done firing, returning to their closed position only when you lift your finger?
It's probably worth noting that I'm using a strong 28L battery with an adapter I got on eBay from someone who calls himself the Old Yashica Guy in Wellton, AZ...I believe that's where he is. Battery test light works fine and, as I mentioned, the over/under exp lights work both on top and inside the VF.
Hope this made sense. Oh, and I'm doing all this with film in it. I don't know why I didn't test all this stuff with before I put a roll in the thing.
Thanks for any help you can send my way.
Marty
I was doing some tests to see if the light meter was working - the only tests I know how to do are to change lighting conditions around a subject and see if the camera reacts to them by changing the shutter speed. That's the tried and true living room method, right?
For the first test I used the camera's timer with the camera on a tripod and me standing in front of the thing with the room black and only a candle lighting my face.
The lens was wide open and the resulting click at the end of the timer cycle sounded a lot like 1/500.
I tried with a cable release attached to the shutter button and got the same thing.
Then, with the camera off the tripod, held at arm's length with the lens facing me, f/1.7, I stood just outside my office doorway with only the soft glow of my computer monitor spilling out onto me. About a 0 to -1 EV if I understand that scale correctly. I clicked the shutter release (with my finger this time), got the yellow under exp light, then the blades snapped open but they stayed there. I waited. Waited some more. A little more and then I slowly faded up the dimmer switch on the lamp in my office. As the room filled with light, the blades clicked shut.
I tried again, this time with the lens set to f/8 and the same EV, I clicked the button and the blades snapped open to form a small circle in the middle of the lens but they just stayed there, again, frozen. I did the waiting thing for a really long time (figuring I had cut the amount of light coming in by quite a bit). I slowly started to release my finger from the shutter button and that's when the blades finally snapped shut. I've tested this scenario several more times and I get the same results no matter what f/stop I set the lens to.
Am I missing something? When the blades snap back closed, that means the shutter is also done firing, right? Is it safe to assume the blades don't stay at their designated aperture after the shutter is done firing, returning to their closed position only when you lift your finger?
It's probably worth noting that I'm using a strong 28L battery with an adapter I got on eBay from someone who calls himself the Old Yashica Guy in Wellton, AZ...I believe that's where he is. Battery test light works fine and, as I mentioned, the over/under exp lights work both on top and inside the VF.
Hope this made sense. Oh, and I'm doing all this with film in it. I don't know why I didn't test all this stuff with before I put a roll in the thing.
Thanks for any help you can send my way.
Marty
