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Stephen
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, June 30, 2005 - 06:17 am: | 
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I decided to run a test film through a Praktica MTL 5B I'd not long ago acquired.
Many of the prints (6" by 4") showed a black strip at the top of the image. The strip is no more than about 5mm thick, the problem is slightly worse on the first part of the film, getting less noticeable by the end.
I initially thought it might be be vertical run shutter failing to clear the frame, but this does not make sense as that would surely affect the top of the negative/bottom of the print.
Inspecting the film it is apparent that the film was not sitting "straight" as some of the exposed image has gone across the tracking holes.
Did I just load the film poorly (never before in 25 years of Prakticas), has this one got a fault or did I havea poor film (not a major brand but sold as an own label by a major UK pharmacy/drugstore.
Any thoughts would be appreciated
Stephen |
Jan Dvorak
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, June 30, 2005 - 01:29 pm: |
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Stephen,
Did you check the negatives? Is the strip on the negative's part that would not be exposed by the camera (would be transparent), or is it just on the exposed area?
I believe your Praktica has a vertically running metal shutter and a black strip along the longer side of the image might indicate that the shutter is not opening completely.
If the strip is also on the unexposed part of the film, than you would have either a film or developing problem.
All the best,
Jan |
Glenn Middleton
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, June 30, 2005 - 03:37 pm: |
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Stephen,
Ones immediate thought is that the film was loaded incorrectly and had slipped of the sprockets.Now as you say after 25 years loading is second nature,so now to faults.
It is obvious that as the film was exposed,the film started to 'ride' back into the correct position in the gate.So do sprockets/take up spool have excessive vertical play? But in that case why would film ride back into more normal position? I take a guess that your film may be Boots,if so this comes from major coating line and should not be to blame.
I use this dodge to check tracking/feed.Take cassette of unexposed film and pull film out.You could use a good length of old exposed film and an empty cassette.With a permanent marker draw a line down the middle of the film, on the emulsion.Rewind into cassette and load the film in camera as normal.Remove lens,set shutter to B and then operate shutter for a good number of frames.By watching the position of line in the gate, you will see if the film feeds properly in the vertical plane.My film has numbers marked on the line also, so I can check feed if rewind and counter not fitted.
Unless you find excessive play in the spool etc,I would check the feed as above.It just may be that the loading was at fault and your acquisition is OK.
Good luck Glenn |
Stephen
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, July 04, 2005 - 01:18 am: |
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Jan & Glenn
thank you for you various pieces of advice.
Jan: the nageative looks properly exposed and given that the black strip is at the top of the print this would be at the bottom of the negative, the shutter in the MTL5 runs upwards and thus it would be the top of the negative that might not expose.
Glenn: I'll certainly look into the "play" of the sprockets and take up mechanism - I like the dodge of using a film as described.
I don't understand you comments regarding Boots (yes correctly guessed) film - is there a fault with these films that I ought to know about as I have just bought 5 36 exposure films for £7?
thanks for your help
Stephen |
Glenn Middleton
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, July 04, 2005 - 09:41 am: |
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Stephen,
No nothing wrong with Boots film. As I said it comes from a major coating producer and as such, will be very unlikely to be cause of problem.
As with any product problems can and do occur in production, but in this instance I would not even consider the film until I had checked everything else.
Glenn |
Stephen
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, July 05, 2005 - 08:03 am: |
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Glenn
thanks for the reassurance about Boots film!
The problem is one of mechanical alignment, and I suspect just a case of me not putting in the film correctly. At the moment it'll just have to wait as I have too many other "fish to fry", I'll just stick to one of the other Prakticas in the stable.
regards
Stephen |
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