Pentax Spotmatic F Video Manual 1 of 2

[@juliocesarpereira4325]

I've just rescued a Pentax Spotmatic F very much like the one on your video. Cosmetically is also like yours and it came with a Takumar 50mm f/1.4 and original case. Unfortunately, the mirror is stuck. I explained it to the seller and he brought down its value to a reasonable price so I can have it restored. Thanks a lot for postin this video. I'll watch it in the future when my Spotmatic F is restored.

[@DavidHancock]

Thank you and nice find!

[@terryjacob8169]

I've just bought my first Spotmatic, a F model, after fifty years of photography with everything from medium format film to full-frame digital. An old school friend made a very good living from 'glamour photography' for 'mens magazines' in the early 1970's using a pair of Spotmatics. I'm not surprised at his choice; my Spotmatic F with 55mm f1.8 Super Takumar is proving an absolute brilliant camera/lens combination.

[@DavidHancock]

Very nice! These will definitely give a run for the money to very many larger or 'better' cameras. :D

[@joeydz1593]

Does the open aperture reading works with super takumar lenses or only with SMC takumar lenses?

[@vincentdelmas2792]

Wanted to take photos of my artwork, painting and sculptures, i looked a lot of camera, like the Canon 80d, Fuji Xt 2 or X100f etc... Finally i decided to give a try to my father's old asahi pentax spotmatic to be economic and in a learn process instead of spending money on a fancy expensive new gear. Your video and others encourage me to try and retry with the old argentic. Thx for that

[@DavidHancock]

Thank you! Learning to photograph your work with film is going to be hard. From a lighting and technical perspective, paintings are the hardest type of photography to master. Sculpture less so because you can use the light to accentuate the piece. With paintings, the light has to be even and result in no glare at all. Also, film choice will affect your outcomes a LOT. Are you planning to do color or black and white photography?

[@vincentdelmas2792]

Hi i saw some dusty problèms and bring thé camera to thé doctor and hé says it will cost about 200 euros. I decide to keep up with my smartphone now as à caméra. Il enjoying it a lot even i dream sometimes about à réal caméra. I like thé fact to be using what i have. Learning photography more about à human point Of view rather than technical question. Speeking to people in the streets for exemple. For now i consider to pay à pro for taking picture Of my paintings in order to put on my website ( wich i dont have yet ) and others specialyze website. And also to have a sweet paper portofolio's. It seems so expensive that its make me thinking compromise like asking someone more advanced photographier even if hé is not pro. Just to build à deeper connection, helping each other and paying lil less than it cost to hire a réal paintings pro shooter..

[@DavidHancock]

That sounds like a good plan. Paintings are a really huge technical challenge for photographers.

[@vincentdelmas2792]

Well i guess i could try again to make my own art photo but thé thing is i already spent à lot Of time paintings them so maybe it is more efficient and productive tu hire someone to step up ( portofolio online and paper version ) and continue to learn how to shoot better slowly but surely.

[@JimSollows]

Your price estimate is right on! I have an actual ad from 47th Street Photo from 1976 that shows the spotmatic price as $213.50 for body plus 50mm f1.8. Or $199.50 with a 50 f2.

[@DavidHancock]

Thank you!

[@buenaventuralife]

Mid-late 1960's and early 1970's I worked in photographic retails stores. This was one of the best sellers because it is a well balanced camera. It fit most peoples hands and was easy to use. I just bought one and am testing it with film.

[@DavidHancock]

Nice! These are still awesome cameras.

[@northstar1950]

It was, I believe, the first Spotmatic to feature full aperture metering. I have a spotmatic II bought by me new in about 74 and an earlier spotmatic. The super-multi- coating (SMC) lenses were not introduced with the 'F' they already existed. It is also well worth occasionally giving the shutter some exercise by operating it with or without film as the mirror can sometimes stick in the up position. I had this happen on mine and there is a you-tube upload that shows how to cure the problem but the best regime is just to occasionally fire the shutter say ten or so times every few months.....nice review of a camera that is part of an excellent range.

[@DavidHancock]

Thank you. These old Spotmatic F bodies are well worth keeping in good shape. Yes, the F was the first open-aperture Spotmatic. It was joined by the S-M-C lenses, which replaced the earlier SMC lenses. The difference being that the hyphenated lenses included the maximum aperture pin that the F needed in order to properly meter when the lens was wide open.

[@charlesdavidson4815]

Your description is very thorough. Very informative.

[@DavidHancock]

Thank you!

[@charlesdavidson4815]

David Hancock , "it ain't braggin if it's true"

[@benporteous2334]

Just bought one in Japan. Thanks for the video! helped heaps.

[@DavidHancock]

Ben Porteous You're very welcome. Take great photos!

[@WesMoran]

I know this is an older video, and you may not respond, or may have already answered the following questions...but I figured I'd ask anyway as you seem to be rather knowledgeable. I'm an avid golfer as of the last couple of years, but I work on a very tight budget, which means I often play sets of clubs a decade or so old. I do a lot of buying, selling, and trading to fund more expensive purchases. Recently when in my local thrift store, I was able to pickup a OM-1, a MX, and a Minolta Auto Bellows III, for what seemed to be a reasonable price. After doing a bit of research on current 2nd hand values, I decide to buy the items, because it appeared there was a fair amount of room to make profit on my investment... Long story short, now that I have these legacy cameras, I'm beginning to grow a bit fond of them and I am beginning to consider keeping them. They both appear to be working just fine, with their mirrors, shutters, advance levers, and timers appearing to be fully functioning. I have noticed however that both need new light seals, and that the OM's mirror seems to have some of its mirror damper material deposited on it. With all of that being said, and with my tight budget and frugality explained, would you say it would be better to have a CLA done, or to just do a light seal replacement myself? What is an average cost for a CLA? And who would you trust to do them? (Many of the sites I visit that advertise OM and Pentax CLA services seem to appear rather amateur, and the prices quite frequently are enough on average to make me reconsider taking film photography on as an additional hobby, even though it is something I've been intrigued by since I was young. (I also know that film photography and the cameras I've purchased, may be a much more affordable route to photography, rather than the Sony Alpha DSLRs I was ogling some months back.)

[@WesMoran]

David Hancock thanks for the advice. I appreciate it.

[@GarethDanks]

Loved this video very helpful just picked up this camera looking forward to using it very soon thanks again

[@DavidHancock]

Thank you!

[@hugoalvarado8697]

Such a great camera, i got one pretty beat up for next to nothing and it still fires; The shutter button is a bit soft/sensitive as soon as I barely touch it it fires, not sure if that's the way it should be or not but that's the only thing i dont "like" about it otherwise it is a great camera! thanks for the video i learned two new things about my camera i didnt know!

[@DavidHancock]

Thank you! There may be a way for a repairman to adjust the shutter sensitivity.

[@hugoalvarado8697]

Thanks!

[@staceylam8857]

I just bought this camera at a thrift store a few weeks ago but it didn't come with a lens. I'm very new to using film cameras but it's a medium that I've always wanted to use. I'm in the process of buying a 55mm super takumar lens but i was wondering, is it only possible to use screw mount lenses for this camera and are there lenses that are bigger than a 55mm lens that will work?

[@DavidHancock]

+stacey lam There are tons of lenses that will work. The M42 mount system is huge. Super Takumar lenses are the only ones that will let you meter with the lens wide open, however. So good call getting the 55mm. www.pentaxforums.com/lensreviews/ If you scroll down that page a bit, you'll find a list of M42 Pentax lenses. Most of the Takumar lenses had a Super version as well as the older versions. Some of the old Takumars are simply amazing lenses (I think that the 50mm f/1.4 when the glass has turned yellow renders black and white images more beautifully than any other 50mm lens.) There are also user reviews for most of the M42 lenses and you'll be able to see how yours rates (spoiler alert: they're all pretty good.) So let's say that six months down the road you're enjoying this and really want to get a couple more lenses to see what you can do. A good three-lens kit would be a 50 or 55mm, a 28mm wide-angle (for a lot of types of photos,) and a 135mm for portraits. With those three focal lengths, you can photograph about 95% of subjects well.

[@staceylam8857]

thank you so much, this is a lot of help! once i play around with the 55mm lens and get used to it, i'll buy the other two you recommended. thanks again!

[@angusadams6764]

i used a film in the pentax camera which is not a digital camera if this is of any help to David. I admire the beauty of the black and white photos displayed in the tutorial as well David.

[@DavidHancock]

Hmm. I'm not following. Do you have the photo scans online? I might be able to give you an idea of what's wrong if I can see the scans.

[@locadeva]

It's so good-looking! I'm considering this Pentax spomatic (is spomatic same as spomatic F?), but I'm also interested in Nikon EM... How do they compare? Which one would you recommend? Thanks in advance. :D

[@DavidHancock]

Concur. These are gorgeous. For the Sptomatic and Sprmtaic F, they're different. The F has open-aperture metering and the Spotmatic does not. As for the Nikon EM, I have a similar video pairing to this for the Nikon EM. That may give you the information you need.

[@locadeva]

@@DavidHancock open-aperture metering is a plus, eh?! Thank you for the tip! And I will watch your vid on Nikon EM, big thanks !!! :D You vids are really helpful :D

[@ram27zeen]

Hey David, great video! Do you have an idea about the type of battery this camera uses, and what are the available alternatives in the market?

[@DavidHancock]

Thank you! Video 2 should cover the battery, but any modern battery of the right size will work.

[@ram27zeen]

@@DavidHancock thanks

[@ghw7192]

I have a still "in use" collection of Asahi Pentax cameras dating back to my SS # 156xxx Pentax S and I love them all. My F is not always happy with other manufacturer's 42mm lenses, especially Mamiya Sekors, unlike my other Spotmatics. My favorite of the SMC Takumar's is the 200mm/f4.0 and it just blows my Nikkor and Canon 200's away..I use mine with a Sekonic L-488 spot meter or an old Luna Pro with Gossen's battery adapter kit. I remember having to wear a glove when using my Honeywell 770 and 880 Strobonar's when shooting weddings because they got too darned hot! I still have my 880, but the capacitor is probably dead and I'm not sure about finding replacement batteries, so I use my Vivitar 283's instead.Excellent video on a fantastic and much underrated camera \! Thanks!

[@DavidHancock]

Thank you! That's quite a nice collection. I just picked up an S, finally, a few months ago. It's a really nice camera.

[@oldradiosnphonographs]

Yup I got ANOTHER camera David Hancock has covered and this one I got for FREE! I assume the “4” being the first digit of the serial number means it was made in 1974?

[@DavidHancock]

Nice! I don't recall if the SNs have any encoded information. I don't think that Asahi did that.

[@oldradiosnphonographs]

@@DavidHancock ok just a theory because Yashica did that with their serial numbers

[@oldradiosnphonographs]

@@DavidHancock what if I cannot see though the viewfinder before I take a shot? Is this a mechanical issue?

[@DavidHancock]

@@oldradiosnphonographs yup. That's the mirror sticking up and it requires a repair.

[@oldradiosnphonographs]

@@DavidHancock it was a free camera so I knew there was a catch! It would go down until it finally stopped going down…

[@StuartPatonChannel]

I've been given all these cameras and one of them in the spotmatic F with loads of lenses. But honestly I haven't a clue what I'm doing yet. Any help would be amazing. I've also been given a Pentax Super A. But the winder doesn't work.

[@DavidHancock]

I think this video series will get you started on the F. Part 2 shows how to use it.

[@joeydz1593]

Does the open aperture reading works with super takumar lenses or only with SMC takumar lenses?

[@DavidHancock]

I think that I cover that in Video 2. It's been a LONG time since I sold this camera and I don't recall off the top of my head.

[@marcosffguimaraes]

Great video though, I would ask you to enable captions.

[@DavidHancock]

Thank you! I don't think that I have captions disabled. They may not be available on my older videos.

[@marcosffguimaraes]

Probably in older videos, there isn't this option.

[@vladimirbosak7668]

1970 sold new in the box for 7 500 Kcs in Praha. At that time the house was for 50 000 Kcs

[@DavidHancock]

That would be like a camera costing USD $97,400 today, comparing housing prices near me to the ratio there. The world was much different back then.

[@loufasullo880]

Do you where to order a corrective eyepiece? Thx

[@DavidHancock]

You might find them on eBay. There's no one who will make them that I know of any more. I asked two optometrists over the years, and both said their labs wouldn't make those. So I kept an old eyeglasses lens, had my optometrist mark the center, and then made my own but hand-sawing the acrylic lens to the size of an eyecup hole. Then I just put it in with a dot of clear Gorilla Glue. Worked great, but I could only use it in landscape orientation.

[@justynsiah2816]

I'm so excited I just bought mine, can't wait!

[@DavidHancock]

Nice! These are a lot of fun to use and they're great cameras.

[@justynsiah2816]

David Hancock I have a question, what batteries would u recommend? because I can't seem to find the copper adapter u have, some people say the Energizer E387S are a direct fitment but I'm not sure

[@DavidHancock]

So the good news is that these don't need an adapter. The batteries are discussed in video 2 in this series. I forget off the top of my head whether they use 387 or A76 batteries.

[@edmundsmierins5565]

What kind photo film you use for your spotmatic?

[@DavidHancock]

Edmunds Mierins Lots of kinds! I've shot black and white, color, and reversal film in these. It's worth trying out a lot of different films and see what kinds match the subject you're working with.

[@zijunwang8473]

this is really useful, thanks David~

[@DavidHancock]

zijun wang You're welcome, Zijun. Thank you and take great photos!

[@joeydz1593]

Which do you think is better? Spotmatic F or ES II?

[@DavidHancock]

F

[@francesulit6042]

what kind of battery this film camera needs? thank you. planning to buy this stuff

[@DavidHancock]

+joyfrances ulit This camera has a voltage regulator, so it can use modern PX625 batteries.

[@francesulit6042]

+David Hancock thank you sir

[@felixrise2602]

+David Hancock I have a huneywell auto\ strobonar I'm trying to find what this flash girls too

[@felixrise2602]

+Felix Rise goes too

[@grincadorna4753]

I have mamiya dsx1000 + m42 lens my question is this gonna fits on this pentax body?

[@DavidHancock]

I forget if the DSX has the M42 mount with the longer register distance or not. That's one to check into on the Camerapedia page, I think.

[@DavidHancock]

72Disco1998 There's no difference between Honeywell and Asahi models. The Honeywell were made by Asahi and badged by the company that imported them to the U.S.

[@angusadams6764]

How do you know whether or not a camera shop is honest as i have taken a few photographs yet was told that the photos were "spoilt" due to a "faulty" camera?

[@DavidHancock]

Here's an in-depth article I wrote detailing how to evaluate a camera for functionality: www.pentaxforums.com/articles/photo-articles/film-camera-buying-guide.html There's also a video at the end that demonstrates everything. Do you have scans on the photos?

[@Zionfarm]

For some reason the video was not in sync with the audio?

[@edinburghtumuran916]

That is a very informative discussion there. Buddy! Thanks for that one! I have an ES ii, but the metering doesn't work in manual mode. Is that really the design or something is wrong with the TTL? Thanks in advance!

[@DavidHancock]

Thank you! I don't recall the ESII well enough to know for certain, but I do think the meter is off in manual mode.

[@julioc4718]

Hey David I found this camera the other day at a thrift store and was wondering why the view finder is so blurry? I cleaned the lens and the mirror inside but nothing is this normal? I didn't see a diopter button on this either. Is there anything I'm missing if you can please help I would really appreciate it. Thanks.

[@DavidHancock]

Hmm. That's curious. So I'll assume here that you're focusing the lens correctly and have it mounted on the camera correctly. If this is your first manual focus lens, just make sure that you're turning the focus ring. All that said, let's troubleshoot and assume it's a camera issue and here are some things to try: I can give you a few easy things to try to rule out major issues. To test the focus, if you have a tripod, set the camera up and focus on a point (like the edge of a table or a mailbox flag, whatever) about five or six feet away. Then with some FROSTED Scotch tape and the shutter held open on bulb (preferably with a locking cable release) tape the tape over the open shutter and you should see that the same thing is in focus. That test will verify that what you see in focus in the viewfinder is also what is in focus on the film. If that's not your issue, keep reading. Now, if there is nothing in focus in the viewfinder at all the problem could be in the camera or in the lens. So let's narrow it down. To rule out the lens, remove it from the camera and set it at infinity focus. With the aperture open, hold the lens about two inches away from a wall (the rear facing the wall) and toward an open window. It helps if the room is somewhat darker than outside. Move the lens in and out (like a centimeter or two, we're dealing with small focus distances on these) until the lens projects a focused image onto the wall. It will be faint but you should be able to make out details like your blinds, or noticeable features outside. Also, try a second lens if you have one (if not, the old M42 lenses are inexpensive.) If the second lens focuses in the camera we know the issue is in the lens. If not, then we know it's in the camera. So if the issue is in the camera, there are two likely culprits, the mirror and the viewfinder. The mirror should flop all thew way down when not in use, so check that it's down with the lens off. If it is, check that the viewfinder has glass near the back. If the viewfinder glass has been lost then nothing will be in focus either. This listing (no affiliation with me) has some okay photos of the eyepiece. If you eyepiece does not have glass that sits slightly recessed from the back of the eyepiece but flush against the metal, if that makes sense, it's possible the rear part of the eyepiece fell out. I only suggest that because I came across a different model of camera the other week with that issue. If it's the lens, easy fix, buy a new one. If it's camera, it will need a professional repair to focus properly.

[@julioc4718]

@@DavidHancock Thanks for the help.The lens seems to e working fine I believe what I noticed is that the camera is only focusing at about 6-8 inches away. The lens just helps with making it clearer.

[@amandaarreguin]

Hi David, I just bought this camera and was wondering how to store it. In your video you say not to keep it in a box or plastic bag. My room gets very dusty, I am wondering where/ how you would recommend storing the camera? Thanks!

[@DavidHancock]

So moisture is the enemy. The best way to get rid of that is with dessicant. What I do is store my cameras in plastic Pelican cases and in each case I have a rechargeable Pelican dessicant pack. That's a good way to do it to protect them from dust and moisture. But you need to charge the dessicant packs in the oven a few times a year or so.

[@StevenBrener]

Do you know if the meter is off when the lens cap is off if the lever is up (or down)? Or, is it always on if the cap is off and it is 2EV or greater?

[@DavidHancock]

With this, flipping the lever next to the lens mount UP activates the meter. If the cap is on or the lever is down, the meter is off.

[@ningw4670]

I have one SP-F with m42（Care Ziss tessar 50 2.8）

[@DavidHancock]

Nice kit!

[@kafkaian]

I was given one of these "Asahi" variant rather than "Honeywell" here in the UK. However, the lens has been half eaten by someone trying a DIY repair and I don't think it's a Super Takumar but I can't see markings as the front bezel is missing. What do you recommend as a standard lens replacement? Are there any f1.4's out there? Cheers, Ian, UK

[@DavidHancock]

Hey, Ian, There's an amazing SMC Takumar 50mm 1.4 that allows open-aperture metering with the F. Great lens.

[@kafkaian]

David Hancock Great, thank you David

[@72Disco1998]

What is the difference between the Honeywell and the Asahi?

[@MichaelRusso]

+72Disco1998 Labeling.

[@georgehuman7253]

Which m42 camera would you recommend?

[@DavidHancock]

Personally I like ones without light meters because there's less to go wrong. I also often shoot without a light meter, however. If you need a light meter the Spotty F is hard to beat.

[@georgehuman7253]

@@DavidHancock I'm considering Fujica st705, Spotmatic F and Mamiya DSX 1000 atm. Don't know which one is more durable. Where I live it's hard to find good service for old cameras.

[@Fat-totoro-cat]

Do you have any tips for fixing the metering? I have two F's, and the meters are broken in both.

[@DavidHancock]

If you're comfortable disassembling them and performing the repairs yourself, there are exploded views on the Internet. Otherwise, I would send them to Eric Hendrickson at www.pentaxs.com. He repairs all my Pentax bodies and is exceptional.

[@PerChristensen]

Timothy O'Connor A bright fellow report somwhere on the web he made a broken meter work by "shock" treatment.He taped leads to a AA battery and dipped the minus lead deep into the bay while scratching the cameras bottom plate with the plus lead.The AA batterys stronger amperage could be the reason.

[@DavidHancock]

PerChristensen So he hooked a A up to the camera's meter circuit? Does that restore the meter to normal function, or does the meter then only work with a AA battery?

[@PerChristensen]

He removed the px625 1,5v 170miliampere tablet battery from the battery bay and applied shortly a stronger 1500 miliampere current via leads from a 1,5v AA battery. He says his light meter no longer was stuck after reinserting the tablet battery.

[@DavidHancock]

Interesting. I wish I knew enough about electrical engineering to understand why that worked. Maybe the needle was just stuck and the added charge gave it enough jolt to unstick it. Or maybe the charge gave some life back to the metering cells. Who knows. It's interesting that it worked, though.

[@Zimited]

Probably sounds stupid, but how would I get my photos from this camera to my mac? Any easy method, like an SD card? Haven't looked into it yet.

[@DavidHancock]

Not stupid at all. When you send the film to be developed, just make sure that they scan it. The scanned files can be uploaded to your computer.

[@NaviRetlav]

Hey. I have a lot of m42 lenses here. Is this camera still the best to buy for m42 users ?

[@DavidHancock]

It's one of them, yes. Any of the Spotmatics would be good for M42 lenses. The F benefits most from the Takumar SMC lenses that communicate aperture to the camera,. not all M42 lenses do that.

[@ТарасенкоСергй]

What is the weight of this camera wit this lens?

[@DavidHancock]

Heavy. I don't know the exact weight.

[@rockartistet]

Never rotate the rewind lever anti clockwise of there is a film inside. You are likely to to unscrew the lever etc

[@DavidHancock]

Correct and good point. Rotating past minimal resistance will do that.

[@devrajchaliha1]

Any idea what battery it uses ?

[@DavidHancock]

The LI625 will work.

[@devrajchaliha1]

@@DavidHancock can't really seem to find the battery

[@chelsiejolene3032]

What kind of film does this camera take?

[@DavidHancock]

+Chelsie Krauth Any 35mm film will work.

[@xanderyashnikov]

Which film have you used for these sample images?

[@DavidHancock]

I don't recall, but it was a mix of different stocks.

[@xanderyashnikov]

David Hancock thank you

[@Lucas_Reartes]

Hi man, how u doin? Do you know how to turn of this camera? Thanks

[@DavidHancock]

Just put the lens cap on and the meter will turn off.

[@Lucas_Reartes]

@@DavidHancock Hi David, thank you so much! Love your content! Have a good day

[@grahamryan1239]

I have a receipt from 1974 for this camera and it was £140.95

[@DavidHancock]

Thank you!

[@MichaelRusso]

I was never a fan of the F or even the KM,K1000 for the reason as I don't like a light meter that turns on when you remove the cap. I will take a Spotmaitc, SPII or a KX over this model. Why do I hate this? Because I like having a metal hood on the lens with no cap for long periods of time.

[@DavidHancock]

+Michael Russo I adgree. The always-on meter is a bit of a pain and has killed a number of my batteries.