Re: Camera Problems. Please Help!
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or you could borrow a flash meter and run some of the tests without burning film ... Careful! If the metering is done by measuring the light reflected off the film, and there is no film in the camera you will get an erroneous reading. The pressure plate is less reflective/lighter than film. True, but since the experiment described was to compare the performance of an assumed-good flash with his flash, the reflectance of the back plate won't matter -- assuming both units can provide enough light to yield a flash-OK signal, they should both provide the same amount of light regardless of their guide number or the reflectance of the black plate. later, patbob ([EMAIL PROTECTED]) - 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 .
Re: Camera Problems. Please Help!
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or you could borrow a flash meter and run some of the tests without burning film ... Careful! If the metering is done by measuring the light reflected off the film, and there is no film in the camera you will get an erroneous reading. The pressure plate is less reflective/lighter than film. - 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 .
Re: Camera Problems. Please Help!
Thanks for all of the suggestions. Here is my reply (or replies) to the comments thus far. Maybe this will help spark some other ideas. Otherwise, it sounds like Pentax will be borrowing my equipment for a while (once again!). Paul: You mentioned insufficient current (from rechargeables) as well as trigger mechanism for the f stop. Well, I dont use rechargeables (yet!), but the second part sounds reasonable. Since the flash apparently IS going off (I can see it, plus the reflection shows in the animals' eyes), perhaps the camera is choosing the wrong aperture for some reason (?!). In which case, not much I can do but send it for repair. Lawrence, See my inserted comments below: Did you get any flash confirmation signal after you took the picture? Yes, before (to let me know the flash was charged) and after (I actually saw the flash but) nothing out of the ordinary was displayed. This does bring up another point (perhaps related). The other day, I was shooting in Tv mode with flash the other day and noticed something strange. I set the speed to 1/60 and the lens to A. The camera indicated that the flash was ready to go, so I fired away. But after each shot, the aperture setting flashed (5.6) in the viewfinder. To me, that means that the picture was under or over exposed (likely under since it could have chosen a smaller aperture setting, but not a larger one)... So I guess I expect those to come back dark too (???). But why would this happen??? I'm OUTSIDE, and that much flash should not have been necessary. Moreover, the camera was content (no flashing signals) before the shot, and also when shooting at 1/100 just a second ago with flash. The flash shouldve been able to make the adjustment of me going to 1/60, especially since metering without flash showed about 1/15 or so was sufficient. Perplexing! (BTW, the subject was 6 feet away). fired, bad batteries, poor contacts... etc. You bring up a good point about the contacts. I'm guessing that since I get a flash is ready type of signal (plus the camera goes up to the flash sync speed), the contacts are fine... but maybe there's more to it (??) Maybe I should figure out how th best clean the flash contacts and try that before I use my test roll. Could you see the flash firing Yes. Plus, in the examples I posted, the animals eyes are proof that there was a flash. Was the sync speed set correctly when the flash is charged up? I'm in Aperture Priority mode, so the speed changes automatically (and it does display 100, the max sync speed, once the flash is charged). Have you made sure no exposure compensation has been set? Yes. Besides, wouldnt this affect all pictures (and not just the ones with flash). I found that sometimes body/flash contacts may not be good, and I need to remove/insert again to get good contacts (no automatic sync speed setting or no flash confirmation signal are the clues). These clues are never present, so I'm guessing its not the contacts sigh, but that is a good guess that I didnt even consider. GrayWolf, you wrote: From this I would guess that you are taking pics beyond the range of the flash. I do not know the guide number for that flash, but with the slow zoom I would guess that it is only good out to 12-15ft I checked that after your email. The sleeping hog photo was done from about 6 or 7 feet away, with both the 80-320mm and the 105mm Sigma Macro (max aperture = 2.8). The Gray Wolf photo (no, not you, the one with the four lit up eyes) was taken from about 8 feet away. The table in the manual says that I should have an effective range of 3-18ft (~1-6 meters) wide open or one stop down, which is where I pretty much stay. Plus... even if it was, say, 15 feet away, I couldnt imagine the drop-off being THAT dramatic from in range to out of range given the ambient lighting wasnt so bad in all of the shots [as Bruce pointed out, in many shots, I was only using the flash for fill]. But thanks. Based on your email, I suppose I'll run the test roll after all. Mark, most of your points were the same as Graywolfs. I will add, however, that I have indeed taken many shots in Full Program mode as well... same results unfortunately. Bruce, your last comment was about the flash settings. There's leading shutter, trailing shutter, contrast control and spot beam. I tend to keep it in the first one... but this still leads me to the next comment... With all of that said, someone sent me an email off-list suggesting that the flash and shutter simply may not be in sync. I guess this makes sense since I DO see the flash go off, and its shown in the eyes of the animals in the pics... but I havent a clue if its in sync or not (nor can I distinguish with my eyes if the shutter is open when the flash goes off... too many fractions of a second). Perhaps this is the problem (??) It sounds like its either that or the camera selecting an incorrect aperture for some reason. Either way, it appears to be beyond the
RE: Camera Problems. Please Help!
Jerome Daryl Coombs-Reyes wrote: I let a full day pass, and am finally composed enough to write this email I recently received 4 rolls of slide film back from Kodak (Fair Lawn), and the results were atrocious (and its no longer just because of bad technique!). Specifically, more than 1/2 of the frames are almost totally blacked out. I've posted examples here: http://www.isye.gatech.edu/~jerome/temp/help.htm [Snip] Hi, I think Tom (Graywolf) has about nailed your problem. Looks like you may simply be shooting beyond the range of your flash. Your AF-330FTZ is a dedicated TTL-only unit, with a guide number of 92. If you're shooting 100-speed film, make sure that the product of your subject distance (in feet) times your f/stop does not exceed 92. For instance, if you're shooting with your zoom at the long end with the aperture wide open (f/5.6), and you need flash to fully illuminate your subject, don't shoot anything further away than about 16 feet. (How many subjects do you shoot from that distance using the 320mm focal length? I'd guess you're trying to catch things further away from you.) Shooting at f/8? Then keep the distance to your subject no greater than 10 or 12 feet (again assuming that you'll rely on flash to fully illuminate your subject, and that you're using 100-speed film). If your problem is basically one of technique, faster film will help quite a bit. If you go with a film that's N times higher ASA rating, you'll multiply your guide number by the square root of N. For example, GN 92 at ASA 100, but GN 184 at ASA 400. As someone else mentioned, make sure you don't have negative exposure compensation set on your camera. Make sure also that you don't manually override the film speed to a higher setting (e.g., 100-speed film loaded, but ASA override manually set to 400). From your pictures, it's apparent that the flash is synching correctly with the shutter. If the sync speed was off, part of your image (either the upper part or the lower part) would be completely black, almost as if you held a black card over part of the picture. I suppose it's possible that the flash output on your AF-330FTZ is weak for some reason. Perhaps you can go down to your local camera store and try out a different TTL flash? Load up your camera with some 100-speed slide film, mount the 80-320, then take a few shots inside the store with your present flash. Try taking the kinds of shots you've had problems with, using comparable ambient lighting, f-stop, and subject distance. Now take the same shots with one of the TTL flashes the store carries. (Of course, you'll also want to take a few flash shots using optimum subject distance and optimum f-stop. Try it with both your flash and the store's flash. This will allow you to determine if the problem is your flash or your technique.) I suppose it's possible that your camera's TTL sensor is not functioning properly and is causing the flash to quench too soon. Thus, it might be useful to try a flash with auto settings while you're there. When set to auto, the flash is signaled to quench when the sensor in the flash foot says quench, not when the TTL sensor in the camera says quench. I don't think your camera body is the problem, but this would allow you to rule that out with certainty. Good luck with the testing! Bill Peifer Rochester, NY - 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 .
RE: Camera Problems. Please Help!
How about the operation of the RTF (internal pop-up) flash? Do you get the same results? If it's only a 6-7ft shot then the RTF should work for a test. Mark -Original Message- From: Jerome Daryl Coombs-Reyes [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Thursday, May 16, 2002 1:45 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: Camera Problems. Please Help! Thanks for all of the suggestions. Here is my reply (or replies) to the comments thus far. Maybe this will help spark some other ideas. Otherwise, it sounds like Pentax will be borrowing my equipment for a while (once again!). - 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 .
RE: Camera Problems. Please Help!
On Thu, 16 May 2002, MANGUM,MARK (HP-USA,ex1) wrote: How about the operation of the RTF (internal pop-up) flash? Do you get the same results? If it's only a 6-7ft shot then the RTF should work for a test. Blasted! I shouldve read this 5 minutes ago... I just finished running my test roll thru, and never took a shot with the RTF... Great advice. If my test roll comes back ugly, I guess I'll try that too. Thanks. On my way to get it developed, jerome - 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 .
RE: Camera Problems. Please Help!
Opps Sorry I didn't remember to mention it in my first reply. I have a SF1n and I forget the silly thing is even there. Mark -Original Message- From: Jerome Daryl Coombs-Reyes [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Thursday, May 16, 2002 2:19 PM To: '[EMAIL PROTECTED]' Subject: RE: Camera Problems. Please Help! On Thu, 16 May 2002, MANGUM,MARK (HP-USA,ex1) wrote: How about the operation of the RTF (internal pop-up) flash? Do you get the same results? If it's only a 6-7ft shot then the RTF should work for a test. Blasted! I shouldve read this 5 minutes ago... I just finished running my test roll thru, and never took a shot with the RTF... Great advice. If my test roll comes back ugly, I guess I'll try that too. Thanks. On my way to get it developed, jerome - 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 . - 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 .
RE: Camera Problems. Please Help!
Well, the test results are back and not a trace of misbehavior on the part of either the flash or body; which is almost worse than otherwise [systematic errors are much easier to identify]. So I havent a clue still. I tried to vary things up as much as possible, and even shot in dim conditions WELL outside of the predescribed range of my flash... but nothing close to the aforementioned bad results. Thanks all for your replies nonetheless. At least now I better understand what it definitely isn't [e.g., based on your emails I understand now that its not a sync problem], and what it still might be. Ultimately I think I will leave it to Pentax to decide (I'm still under warranty). In the meantime, I'll just have to decide if I send the camera before or after a wedding I'm going to on June 23. If I send it before, I likely wont get it back soon enough, and since I'm using 400 speed print film (the camera and flash are now 1 for 1 on print film), I'm thinking of taking my chances. Thanks again, you all have been very insightful, as always. jerome - 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 .
Re: Camera Problems. Please Help!
Jerome, I just looked at the pictures, the subject matter, and the equipment list. I think you have operator error, a problem with the 'wet-ware'. g Try seeing how far out (distance) you can use that AF330FTZ flash. Try some test shots. Look for flash confirmation signals in the viewfinder or on the flash. My AF500FTZ with an onboard zoom feature doesn't work with the kind of subjects you are taking. You look to be far away or the animals would be frightened. Your film is slow. Your flash is weak. You've got to get a tripod and an available light exposure with these kind of conditions. That flash is only gonna help you indoors! (well, mainly...) Regards, Bob S. Jerome wrote: The equipment is a follows: ZX-5n (bought about 6 months ago) Pentax SMCP-FA 80-320mm f/4.5-5.6 (4 months old) Pentax AF-330FTZ Electronic Zoom Flash (over a year old) Film: usually Elite Chrome 100, sometimes E100s. - 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 .
Re: Camera Problems. Please Help!
Try seeing how far out (distance) you can use that AF330FTZ flash. Try some test shots. As allused to earlier, I try to stay pretty conscious of the effective shooting range of my weak flash (usually with 6 to 15 feet, wide open). Look for flash confirmation signals in the viewfinder or on the flash. I've got 'em. My AF500FTZ with an onboard zoom feature doesn't work with the kind of subjects you are taking. You look to be far away or the animals would be frightened. Actually, because of the locations, these animals are pretty used to people. The hogs were no more than 8 feet away, the duck about the same. The eagle was a bit further (maybe 15 feet), but there was much more ambient light available there. Nonetheless, I understand the basic trend here of the advice I'm being given and will definitely take it into consideration. I will run the test as you and others have suggested, and see what I come up with. I have to admit though, given the typical proximity (usually within 10 to 15 feet), and aperture setting (wide open or a stop off) I'm skeptical. I just got off the phone with pentax support, and he seems to think that my flash is bugging out, perhaps fooling the camera and not really providing sufficient light. It's been to repair before, so that wouldnt be TOO surprising. You've got to get a tripod Got one! A cheap one, but it works :o) which is why (as shown in the samples) the flash is used often just for fill... and it still messes things up. Thanks Bob. jerome - 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 .
Re: Camera Problems. Please Help!
From the pictures, you may simply be caught in the ambient vs. flash auto camera syndrome, since the non-flash shots are ok. I do not have modern equipment and do fill flash manually, so I am speculating. Check your camera and flash manuals to see if you have things set up properly for fill flash.. Ciao, Graywolf http://pages.prodigy.net/graywolfphoto - 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 .
