Simplicity is the best!

Uncomplicated but effective.

My poor old KR10 Super needs new seals.

I used insulating tape around the four door edges for the last few years but seemed to miss an edge on the last film I shot (03/07-03/10).

Still, put a film in the MZ6 yesterday and took a few shots. Seemed a fairly pleasant experience, using DA 18-55 & 50-200.

The MZ6 has a 'Pentax' function which sets how the leader is left on rewinding a film. Was that a later development compared with SFX?

Regards

Are you enjoying the MZ6?

Have you tried the 18-55 on it. I think you will get usable images down to ~22mm focal length.

About to start using mine this weekend.

Regards

When I bought my KR10 Super in 1985, the mags talked about the "Big Five";

Canon, Nikon, Minolta, Pentax, Olympus and then Ricoh was just outside aspiring to join.

Me and a pal at uni both bought KR10 Supers on the same weekend. I got the camera plus 50mm prime, plus a Hanimex 135mm f2.8 and a Cobra Auto 210 flash gun and camera bag. He got the camera plus 35-70 standard zoom.

I was very impressed with the XRX when it came out in 1987/88 and nearly bought one of those. And later I took a long hard look at an SFX.

The Hanimex lens was VERY plasticky and came to grief when I tried close up photography by turning the 50mm back to front and sellotaping it to the front of the Hanimex. The front and rear of the lens came apart under the weight. When I tried the technique again as shown in gallery shot 'Macro Mystery', I was more careful.

Do you really want to sell the Samsung?

Lightweight, good bang for buck, complements the 18-55, your only lens to cover 55-70mm.

I was considering if the 55-300 would be worth upgrading to, but then last Saturday I shot with the 50-200 and it seemed 'sweet as a nut'.

Cliff and Andrew,

These 3 links go some way to clearing it up:

Whiston at Foxfield, Robert at The Railway Age, Crewe subject to web-site updates.

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/foxfield/steam_locomotives.htm

http://www.railmagazine.com/gallery/default.asp?album=7&image=62&pid=16

http://www.geoffspages.co.uk/raildiary/bnb/


I was a bit surprised to see mention of Smithywood Coking Plant as one of the four locations using steam in 1982 (second link).

This was about 4 miles from home when I was growing up in Sheffield. I was using a Kodak Instamatic in those days.

I was rather indifferent to steam then (and some might say photography too, but we all have to start somewhere).

Duke of Gloucester was the engine which kindled an interest in steam photography for me. I had gone to Bangor for a days cycling around Snowdonia with film camera (for it was 2004, August Bank Holiday).

A few older gents with cameras were standing around as I arrived and when I asked what they were waiting for, they replied it was a steam engine en-route to Holyhead. The Duke duly arrived and much excited snapping took place.

I could not fail to be impressed by the size (second only to a Duchess?), the smells and the noise as she (another masculine BR standard as a she!) simmered in the platform. The Brunswick green with red lining looked a treat, a classic livery.

Then came the moment...the signal cleared and the driver jerked the regulator open. She roared like a beast as the wheels spun, quickly corrected by the driver. The darkest cloud of exhaust billowed vertical and then the wheels spun again for a few moments before easing back to start the train moving. Then there was the orderly procession as the coaches followed engine into the West tunnel.

I watched in awe, standing there for a few minutes after the tail-light disappeared into the black. Tendrils of smoke curled out of the tunnel for all that time. And thats it, I was hooked.

Might be able to scan the negs, but they were shot on Ricoh, so not allowed?

Funny how that engine keeps cropping up!

Peter

Sorry Cliff, no personal recollections.

You might have read my last post before I edited it. I was just messing about, sorry.

A few weeks ago I stumbled on the clip referred to in the edited post, and thought it might answer the question.

I don't think I have seen any industrial steam, though I remember a big feature in 'Railway World' circa 1980 at Mountain Ash, South Wales as that system was being run down.

Peter

Hi Cliff,

It was Robert that featured in the cavalcade.

See the following clip at about 29 minutes:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/steamtrains/7305.shtml?all=2&id=7305

Peter

Thanks Cliff, these are fascinating.

I believe those 0-6-0s were popular with the NCB. Wasn't Bold Colliery somewhere near Rainhill, where they assembled the cavalcade in 1980?

Think I cycled to Collins Green some time in 2005/6 for photography purposes, a long straight west to St Helens? Have you used a filter on that one as the boiler seems light?

Fascinating to see Barry Yard, was it a Woodham's official tour?

Andrew, you must take another look!

She looks different without deflector plates and other embellishments.

Regards
Peter

Matt,

Have you tried looking for a film leader retriever.

Aren't they just a thin flat piece of metal with small hooks to catch on the film sprocket holes, that can be inserted between the brush/baffles on the film cassette?

Winding the film causes the hooks and sprockets to engage.

Apologies if you have tried this avenue already.