Konica Auto S Battery necessary?

[joehumanity]

Hi everyone, I'm a complete camera newbie but recently found a Konica Auto S in a junk shop and thought, "I will bring you back to life!".

Fortunately it seems to be in good condition. The shutter and winding action seem to be fine, but the battery contacts were completely corroded and the corrosion had spread to the connecting wire.

I read somewhere that the battery is for the light meter and so isn't necessary for the camera to take photos. Is this correct? Is it enough to just use a separate light meter? Or is the battery essential for using the camera properly?

Apologies in advance for any mind-numbingly stupid questions I may ask.

Thanks
Joe

 

[Greyscale]

As long as the shutter and aperture are working correctly, use a hand-held or accessory meter or "Sunny 16", and enjoy that superb Konica Hexanon lens.

 

[joehumanity]

Fantastic! I'll go out and buy a roll of film tomorrow! Now to work out how to use the Leningrad 8 light meter I have...

 

[mwoenv]

The only thing you need the light meter for is Auto operation. You can use the camera in manual mode (you set the shutter speed and aperture) without the meter. It's a nice aspect of the old mechanical cameras.