First pics with my SP1000

A few weeks ago I bought an SP1000 and these are from the first roll (Kentmere 100).

As posted on a thread in the 'film camera' forum, there is a problem with the meter switch, which sometimes stops the mirror rising fully and the shutter firing. Moving the switch back down before the exposure may work-around this problem.

Having shot Ilford FP4+ & HP5+ almost exclusively in the past, I've switched to Kentmere 100 for test shots on the first rolls. I have several recently acquired cameras still queued up (another S1a, SPII, MX & MEF). More first rolls on Flickr.

The film was processed and scanned by the Ilford lab in Mobberley.



Tower by John Halliwell, on Flickr
SP1000, Super-Tak 28mm f/3.5:





Keep out by John Halliwell, on Flickr
SP1000, SMC-Tak 50mm f/1.4:





Rusty rolling stock by John Halliwell, on Flickr
SP1000, SMC-Tak 50mm f/1.4:





Dredger Bucket #1 by John Halliwell, on Flickr
SP1000, SMC-Tak 50mm f/1.4:





Not to be loose or hump shunted! by John Halliwell, on Flickr
SP1000, SMC-Tak 50mm f/1.4:





Locked by John Halliwell, on Flickr
SP1000, SMC-Tak 50mm f/1.4:

Looks good. I recently bought an SP1000 and will be picking it up from a service this afternoon.

When you switch on the meter on yours, does it go up and then slowly drop down? I assume the initial reading will be the correct one for the exposure.

Yes, the meter did move a bit (usually starts in the middle and drops down slightly) when switching it on. I based my exposures on where it settled (assuming it is slower to respond than modern meters) but always metered off a suitable mid-tone before composing the final shot. The shots were all using this approach, the negs look fine density wise.

The battery check is to set 'B' and switch the meter on. The needle starts off just under horizontal and should drop quickly to the bottom when switched on.

The problem with the switch up during exposure manifested itself as a dull thud on release rather than a clean shutter sound. The mirror hadn't been raised fully and the shutter hadn't fired. To resolve this, push the switch back down (which completes raising the mirror) and press the release again (the shutter should fire) once I'd worked this out these exposures were fine (although you can't see what you've shot). I'm hoping that moving the switch down before exposure will prevent this from happening.