LTM - entire roll of film out of focus ???

[Luddite Frank]

Just picked-up the latest sets of prints from Wal-Mart over the weekend, and was disappointed to find that one entire roll was out of focus... every blasted shot :bang:, most of which were landscapes focused at "Inf".

All four rolls were shot with the same body, my "beater" III, the out-of-focus roll was shot with a Canon LTM f 1.8 / 35mm lens, which I have used before with good results.

Most of the shots were between f 4.5 thru f 16, and shutter speed not below 1/60 sec.

I believe this was some sort of focus gremlin, not cmaera shake or subject movement.

What might cause shots to be out of focus, even with a WA lens, set on "Inf", stopped hlaf-way down ?

Could a bit of "floccus" between the mounting flanges throw-off the register enough to cause this ?

( Sorry I can't post pics, this was the one roll I forgot to mark for a CD/ROM.)

Any ideas ?

Luddite Frank

 

[januaryman]

Hard to tell without any samples -- the lens was clean, no fingermarks by little fingers or angry wives/girlfriends? The conditions you explained leave little chance for a mis aligned rangefinder being at fault. Maybe the threads were not aligned - what you cal flocus, I guess, but only if it caused a very bad mount, which I'm guessing anyone would notice. I'll wait for an example and maybe something will come to mind.

 

[tennis-joe]

I just purchased a Canon 35f1.8 LTM and it has not had problems with either my Leica M or Leica 111f camera. Are you sure it was screwed in properly. I have forgotten at times and left my f stop too large and the focusing area was very short. Or, maybe your light meter is off at what you should be shooting.
Joe

 

[brachal]

Sorry if this is a silly question, but is the Canon lens a collapsible?

 

[Rogrund]

Sorry if this is a silly question, but is the Canon lens a collapsible?

This was my first thought too, but I don't believe there was a collapsible version of this lens.

If only one of four rolls was out of focus, maybe something went wrong in the printing. Are the negatives OK?

 

[Livesteamer]

I don't know if this would apply to you but I have found that at the age of 53, I have to stay at 125 or faster to get reliable results. I recently shot some with my old 35 Summilux set at f16 and 1/60 shutter speed. The results were not good. Also, never spend an hour with your chainsaw and then pick up your Leica. The leftover vibrations will not help your photos. Joe

 

[Livesteamer]

Was there any portion of the photos that was in focus? Joe

 

[sanmich]

ok, so it's not the lens, and definitely the camera...
first: is this the first time the camera gives you that?
if so, you could check focus at infinity for starters...

if it's a new camera to you and the focus at infinity seems ok, I would say that there are good chances that the shimming under the lens mount flange could have been messed up.

 

[JohnTF]

Are they still making 12 ex rolls. ;-) Got a few variables here, I would start cutting them down, find that brick building, and just pay for processing, maybe a CD.

Regards, John

 

[Luddite Frank]

Thanks for the replies...

Camera body has been mine for two years now, and has been reliably pretty-good to excellent.

The other three rolls in this batch, this body produced excellent photos (at least technically speaking), with collapsible Summicron, Elmar 90, and Hektor 135.

Lens is "rigid", believe it is from c. 1960... s/n 101xx , 35mm f:1.8. Not marked "Serenar".

This body and aforementioned lenses are my LTM user kit, and this is the first time an entire roll has been out-of-focus...

Will get out the Loupe and have a close look a the negs.

LF

 

[rbiemer]

If you have used the lens before with good results and the body is reliable and use tested, I would tend to think the processing is at fault. Or, at least, the printing. I can't see any way a mistake in processing the negatives would have this effect, but something in the printing of the processed negs doesn't seem right. With landscapes it might be tough to tell but are the prints reversed left to right? Maybe they were run through the printing machine the wring way round--emulsion facing the wrong direction? Which might in turn cause mis-focus? Not really sure how those machines work but it sounds like operator error here. At the mini-lab.
Got another LTM camera you could try this lens on?
Rob

 

[LeicaTom]

Frank,

Hmmm sounds like a prob I had with a IIIC K/IIIFBD I once owned, do a focus check, take the lens on one camera, you KNOW works perfect and focus on the same fixed subject with the camera body in question........see if there`s a difference?

At one time that old camera I owned was over TWO FEET OFF!!!!!!!! On it`s focus and EVERYTHING I shot was OOF/Blurry, Youxin Ye, set it straight, but I sold the camera to buy another Grey IIIC K Body.

Hope you figure out what the prob is....I used a Canon f1.8/35 with much success on my Leica M6, that too I sold, while I don`t use 35mm lenses very often.

Tom

 

[JohnTF]

Well, there was that one lens I picked up that was missing an element. ;-)

Something could have come loose in the processor, but I would think they would look at the prints before they go out?

John

 

[payasam]

Coffee is the secret, Joe. Yesterday I got the prints of a roll which had some shots taken at 1/8 sec. with a 50mm lens. No shake seen at 6" x 4", and I'm close to 59. Chicory helps, I think, but it's optional.

 

[John Shriver]

You haven't had the optical block out of the focusing mount for any reason recently, have you? If so, you could have forgotten to put back the infinity shim.

A small error in lens position is a large error on focusing a wide angle. Note how little distance the lens travels from infinity to 1 meter.