Help!
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Please confine yourself to only one question per letter. Both postal letters
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communication. Send your e-mail queries to editorial@shutterbug.com
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include the month and page of the original question.
All postal letters to HELP! must be accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed
envelope to be considered for reply. We will respond to e-mail queries with
an e-mail.
Color Temperature Meter
Q. I have come by an ancient-looking Eastman Color Temperature Meter, and am
looking for any possible reference that might have a hint on how to use it.
It is about 31¼2" in diameter with a small viewing lens, split
vertically, with colors showing on both sides. The colors vary as the dial with
color temps on it is rotated. No model number, pat. pend., and a serial of 1102.
Any ideas on how to get some use out of this thing will be greatly appreciated.
Thomas E. Chipp
Crane, TX
A. I've been searching off and on for months to try to find a
reference book mentioning the Eastman Color Temperature Meter, but have been
unable to find any reference to it. Several 50 plus-year-old books (Photography
Its Materials and Processes by C. B. Neblette, A Half Century of Color by Louis
Walton Sipley, and other books) did not provide anything. If any alert readers
can offer some ideas on how to use this old meter and write us, we will pass
the information to you. I wonder if it might have been used for motion picture
illumination metering rather than for still photography?
Speed Graphic Provenance?
Q. I have a miniature Speed Graphic Graflex camera (serial #287868). Can you
tell me when this unit was manufactured?
Ted H. Welch Sr., Pastor
via Internet
A. My copy of The All-American Cameras: A Review of Graflex by Richard
P. Paine shows the miniature (2¼x3¼) Speed Graphic was produced
from 1938-'43, but does not give any breakdown by serial number for the
exact year. McKeown's Price Guide to Antique and Classic Cameras, 2001-2002
gives the inclusive dates of 1938-'47. The indicated price is $125-$250
today. You might glean additional data about your camera on the web at: www.graflex.org
or www.cameraquest.com.
Mystery Lens
Q. I have a huge magnifying-type lens from an estate sale marked "Charles
Beseler Company, East Orange, NJ USA, 18" E.F., Series 3." What
is this and how old is it? It weighs a ton.
Daniele
via Internet
A. Sorry, I have no idea what the lens is, or what it was used for.
Beseler is one of several U.S.A. firms that makes enlargers and I believe some
accessories used for copying documents. It might have been used in either an
enlarger or for copying. You didn't supply measurements of the lens. The
18" E.F. probably refers to the "effective focal length" of
the lens. If any of our readers can identify this lens, and get back to me,
we will forward the information to you.
4x5 Darkroom Supplies
Q. Is this a pretty dead issue, or are there still people out there shooting
and processing their own 4x5 film? Are there still suppliers with processing
equipment? I am searching for some products. Can you direct me to reliable sources
of darkroom supplies for 4x5, or am I looking for a dinosaur?
John Gilbert
via Internet
A. There are several retail firms who should be able to assist you
on your quest to get back into processing and printing your 4x5 images. Several
dealers who quickly come to mind are Freestyle Photographic Supplies (www.freestylephoto.biz),
Porter's Camera Store (www.porters.com), and Calumet Photographic (www.calumetphoto
graphic.com), all of whom list darkroom accessories. In addition, B&H Photo
(www.bhphotovideo.com) and Adorama (www.adorama.com) both show darkroom supplies
in their ads in each issue of Shutterbug. Manufacturers such as OmegaSatter
(www.omegasatter.com) for Omega enlargers and accessories and Tiffen (www.tiffen.com)
for Saunders easels still list darkroom items. I don't know what specific
items you need, but one or more of these firms will have everything you need.
Six-16 Kodak
Q. My wife recently inherited an old Eastman Kodak camera from her father. The
tag says it's a Six-16 Kodak. The lens and the viewfinder pull out from
the body of the camera like an accordion. The label on the inside says to use
Verichrome V616 or 616 film. Does this type of film still exist and, if so,
where would we find it?
John Rainwater
via Internet
A. There is one firm I know of who respools film for use in several
old and long discontinued film sizes, including 616 and 620. You can obtain
more information by contacting Dick Haviland at Film for Classics (PO Box 486,
Honeoye Falls, NY 11472; (585) 624-4945; www.filmforclassics.com). I believe
they also offer processing and printing for some, if not all, of the older size
films they handle.
Dual-Purpose Flash?
Q. I own a Minolta Maxxum 70 and also a Nikon N4004s and I need a flash that
I can use for both. Is this possible?
Ernest Erie
via Internet
A. Your Maxxum 70 SLR has the typical Minolta split-shoe hot shoe on
top of the camera body, but no PC cord contact. There was a flash shoe adapter,
the FS 1100, that evidently slides into the Minolta split-shoe so you could
use other flash units with the Maxxum body. I could not find out if this adapter
has just a PC contact or a regular shoe on the top to accept a conventional
flash unit with a center contact and no split-rails.
I would think you could purchase a flash unit having a built-in auto sensor
for adjusting the flash that could be used with both your Maxxum (with this
adapter, if you can obtain one) and your Nikon N4004s. You would have to use
both cameras set manually to the f/stop indicated on the flash unit for the
ISO film loaded into the cameras, and probably set the shutter speed to the
suggested sync speed as well. This would bypass the simpler dedicated TTL flash
metering both cameras offer, and would be a bit slower to use. But you could
use one auto sensor flash unit with both cameras in this manner. I have no idea
where you could locate the FS 1100 adapter, though. Try one of our full-line
advertisers.
Mailers Found
Q. While rummaging about in the basement I found 20 old prepaid Kodak processing
and printing mailers for 24 and 36 exposure 35mm film. Are these still good?
Where can I send them today?
Betty Pugh
Lancaster, OH
A. I called Kodak's lab hotline (800-345-6973) and found that
there is a Kodak lab in Texas that still honors them. They process both color
transparency film, which is mounted and returned as slides, and color negative
film, which of course will be printed. So both types of prepaid Kodak mailers
can be used. You can mail your 35mm film in one of these mailers to: Kodak Film
Processing, 6300 Cedar Springs Rd., Dallas, TX 75235. I would take the first
one to the post office for weighing and you will then know what the proper postage
will be today.
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