Count on the Contina

I have this little Zeiss Ikon Contina Matic IIa. Aside from the shutter not closing on the full second, 0.5, and 0.25 settings, it works beautifully. That includes the light meter, which also works and is still spot-on. This is very rare for cameras of this one's age. But I wasn't 100% certain the meter was functional, so I tested it last week. for a number of shots, I took one with my guess for the settings and another with its instructions. These first four photos show those results.


1/60th, f4. My estimate. Graffiti on a gate. This doesn't bother me like most graffit as it looks like someone wanted it there. It's a very well made piece. The next photo represents the camera's settings.


1/60th f8. There are, as the cliche goes, many ways to skin a cat. Of note, though, the same basic photo returned notably different results with the latter being cast in blue to a much greater extent where the first has a distinctive green feel. This results from two factors: the length of time the light hits the film and the aperture. Different apertures record light in different ways, though I don't fully understand why. I suspect it has to do with the way lenses bend light to direct it toward the film plane, and which wavelengths travel in different areas of the lens or in different ways. I have no idea, and it's something I need to figure out.


1/125th, f16. I just liked the perspective of this fire hydrant and the shadow.


1/300th, f8. Contrary to the above example, these shots look almost identical. There was more direct light at this location than above. The graffiti wall faced north. This had direct sunlight, which may be part of the cause. Also, the colors here are more muted.


1/30th, f2.8. This was a camera reading. Not my favorite shot on the roll, but not bad, especially considering it was hand-held.


Full second, f8. Hotel Vitale. Braced against a lamp post to prevent camera shake. I'd like to re-take this shot with a wide-angle lens to capture light trails from the cars driving past.


Four seconds, f8, hand-held braced against a parking meter. This is totally a viewable shot as a thumbnail. Enlarged, it's a bit too blurry and gives me a headache. However, I'd like to try this again in a better location.

Bridgespotting

The Asahi Pentax Spotmatic marked the Pentax's entry into amateur and professional photography. Asahi released eight Spotmatic versions from 1964 through 1976. One of the best -- I argue the best -- was the SP1000, two of which I'm luck enough to own (one is not yet working, though.) I'd never used this camera, I don't think, with a wide-angle lens. So I popped on a Focal 28mm lens, which is surprisingly crisp when focused well, and took it to San Francisco. I took that combination out along with some Imation 100 ISO film. Even though it was a 15-exposure roll, I managed to squeeze 16 frames from it. Also, I was able to take it out at mid-day and sunset for a nice variety of shots.


I forgot to note some of the shots exposures and apertures, and this was one of those shots. I don't agree with graffiti, but it can be interesting to photograph. There are more productive ways to express one's self than vandalizing someone else's property.


He is the 100%. I have no idea what that means. I do know this is blurry because ti was a 1/5th-second hand-held shot.


1/60th, f4. Standard bridge sunset picture. By the time I'd walked up the Embarcadero to shoot the next shot, the sun had fallen so much the exposure time increased substantially.


0.5 second, f11. This, the last shot on the roll, turned out decently well. To stabilize it, I set it on a cement fence post. For proper angle, slid a couple fingers under the lens. I am glad this shot turned out well as it was the best on the roll and one of my better shots so far this year. Thankfully the year is young so I'll hopefully have more, better shots in coming months.