Using Canolite D

[aleqx]

Hello!

I recently bought a Canonet 28. After replacing the light seals and using a hearing aid zinc air battery it is working like a charm. Since I like it so much, I decided to buy a Canolite D flash to have the whole setup.

I received it yesterday and so far I’m not sure I understand the correct use. Without a flash the camera works fine, including the locked shutter while being over- or underexposed. From reading the manual, I understood that I have to attach the flash, if the exposure needle is in the lower red part showing that it’s too dark. The camera should detect the flash and switch from EE photography to automatic flash. It would adjust the f-stop according to focus distance.

In my case the shutter will remain locked if it is too dark, even with the flash attached. It will only fire if there is at least a bit light to get to the 1/30 sec exposure. In that case the flash will fire if the camera is set to A. If I manually choose an aperture setting the flash will fire.

So I know at least that the flash is working, but I’m not sure if the automatic settings are working. I thought that I should be able to shoot in total darkness with the Canolite D, but I think I misunderstood something.

Any help is greatly appreciated. Cheers!

 

[skucera]

You can download the manual for that flash at http://www.cameramanuals.org/flashes_meters/canon_canonlite_d.pdf to read about how to use it. I have one of these flashes for my New Canonet QL 17-L (think of it as a "GII" instead of a "GIII"). The flash works surprisingly well.

So, yes, as long as your meter is indicating any reading at all and the flash's lamp is glowing, your exposure will be set according to your focus distance. I think flash power may be controlled by distance too, but I'm not sure. The exposure meter seems to waiver when the flash is charging, but the manual says you can take a picture any time the flash's lamp is glowing and the meter reads any value... odd, but that's what they wrote. What I am sure of is that flash photos come out very well in the end, and that is what we're really after anyway.


Good luck,
Scott

 

[Bob Michaels]

...... your exposure will be set according to your focus distance. I think flash power may be controlled by distance too, but I'm not sure. ......

It has been almost 50 years since I used a Canonet and the Canolite F flash but as I remember, the camera uses the focus distance to set the aperture for proper exposure as the flash fires at full power all the time. That is a crudely automated version of using the flash's Guide Number, a very reliable technique that is seldom understood by anyone under 60 years of age.

 

[aleqx]

Thanks for the replies! I checked the manual, but I’m still a bit unsure.

If I attach the flash the exposure doesn’t change at all, even if I focus. Note that my Canonet 28 shows the exposure time, unlike the ql17 which shows the aperture.

I think that the contact responsible for firing the flash is working ok, but the one for the automatic settings might be broken. I will see if I can open the top to see the cables and check them.

 

[Mackinaw]

Not sure if this will help, but when I put my Canolite D flash on my old QL17 (not the GIII version), the aperture needle moves up and down in the viewfinder as I focus. It picks a small aperture at close distances, opens up as you focus farther away.

Jim B.

 

[aleqx]

Not sure if this will help, but when I put my Canolite D flash on my old QL17 (not the GIII version), the aperture needle moves up and down in the viewfinder as I focus. It picks a small aperture at close distances, opens up as you focus farther away.

Jim B.

I think my Canonet 28 should kinda do the same thing - which it doesn't... I'll try and see if I can get the top off and check the wires. If someone with a Canonet 28 could confirm this behavior I would know what the poblem is. Thanks a lot!

 

[skucera]

The manual says the Canonet 28 is supported, so it should work. Double-check the flash’s ready lamp is glowing, and then check that the exposure needle changes with focus distance.

Good luck,
Scott

 

[aleqx]

The manual says the Canonet 28 is supported, so it should work. Double-check the flash’s ready lamp is glowing, and then check that the exposure needle changes with focus distance.

Good luck,
Scott

Bummer, it doesn't move when focusing.


Now the last hope is, that the Canonet 28 displays exposure times, not the aperture, so it might not even adjust the exposure time to capture ambient light, and only change the aperture. I will get some cheap film and shoot a few test shots with the flash in different conditions to see how it behaves.


Worst case is, that I might have to pop open the top and try to identify any broken cables etc. :bang:

 

[Mackinaw]

......Worst case is, that I might have to pop open the top and try to identify any broken cables etc.

Or it could be toast. We are talking about 1970's electronics. Age may have done its thing too.

Jim B.

 

[skucera]

If you’re handy with a soldering iron you can replace the older electrolytic capacitors with tantalum caps, or with newer solid electrolytic caps. If you’re not familiar with electronics you would be safer not to open the flash at all, because good capacitor can zap with enough energy to stop your heart.

Scott