----- Original Message -----
From: "K.Takeshita"
Subject: Re: APS Stuff, WAS: Film rewind with memory
> Ken (who is still longing for the APS application to 35mm, and
possibly the
> MedF systems)
I happened to be in the loop (sort of) when APS was first
being thought of. In the mid 1980s, I was production manager at
one of the high volume commercial photo labs in Canada. At that
time, Kodak was doing some market surveys relating to consumer
problems with the 35mm format. While we didn't know it at the
time, this survey was the birthplace of the Advanced Photo
System.
The survey asked consumers and lab people what the common
were with operating cameras in the amateur marketplace.
The common answers relating to film were forgetting to set
film speed and having difficulty with film loading. Getting
correct exposure, and focus, along with camera size were the
common complaints with the cameras.
As time went by, I think almost all of these problems have
been addressed with 35mm in one way or another. DX encoding,
autofocus, auto loading and improved miniaturization technology
have all greatly simplified 35mm camera operation.
The best auto loading system I have seen was put into two
different Minolta cameras, the Freedom III, and the Freedom DL,
circa 1989. What one did was to load the film in the normal way,
but instead of closing the back right away, one first closed a
small clear plastic window over the film take up. When it was
closed, the film would advance slightly, giving visual
confirmation of correct film loading and transport. It surprised
me at the time that this feature never was seen again,
especially in the Maxxum SLR's. I suspect that by this time, in
the very late 1980's, much of the APS concept had been firmed
up, and Minolta didn't want to use a concept with 35mm that
might take an obvious consumer advantage away from the new
format.
Here is one of the things I like about the Pentax MZ bodies.
The film tongue has to be put under a roller that holds it in
place while the back is being closed. Great idea, as it adds to
the confidence level that the film is, in fact, correctly
loaded. Bad idea, in that I have seen that roller become lost,
or the bracket that holds it become bent, which can cause
scratches on the back of the film.
Gads, I should just write a book.
William Robb
-
This message is from the Pentax-Discuss Mail List. To unsubscribe,
go to http://www.pdml.net and follow the directions. Don't forget to
visit the Pentax Users' Gallery at http://pug.komkon.org .
