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Caption: Looking back, fully manual 35mm cameras were fun because you never knew for sure just how your shot would turn out. Balancing shutter speed, aperture (depth of field), focus, lense filters, and film speed could be a real challenge… particularly in unusual lighting situations.
Case in point... this image was captured with a Pentax Spotmatic 1000 camera – without a doubt the most honest camera I’ve ever owned. I’m sure that my goal wasn’t a soft-focus shot… but sometimes mistakes make for interesting pictures. I think this is one of the reasons why photography can be so addictive.
The engineer in this picture was kind enough to invite a couple of young teenagers to jump aboard and ride with him as he shuffled his train along the Scarborough Industrial Spur. No signed legal Indemnity Release Form was required… circa ’75.
Here’s the outside view…
http://www.railpictures.ca/?attachment_id=18762
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The fortunes of Pentax, like Kodak, seem to have gone astray. I was a Pentax junkie too, once I shed myself of some horrible Mirandas. In my mind, the Pentax K-1000 was the best one out there. I shattered quite a few of them
) My personal opinion is photography is nowhere near the fun it used to be. But then, neither are the trains.
Yes, it was tough to beat a K-1000 (the upgraded model of the Spotmatic 1000) for reliability. My worst camera was the Canon AE1 (Automatic Exposure). A lot of people loved that camera, so perhaps I just got a lemon. The only good fortune I had with that thing was when somebody stole it. I can only hope that the thief experienced the same terrible photographic results – Karma Rules!
Mr. Mooney, I understand your comment about shattering a Pentax. The worst combination in my life was a K-1000, a tripod, and concrete. The worst feeling in the world is to see a camera on the ground surrounded by a ¼ pound of glass (especially when the camera belongs to your older brother or the school’s camera club). Thank goodness for cheap polarizing filters… those saved me a few times!
Arnold, I think that the trains and photography are still fun. I must confess that I’m a bit embarrassed by how fantastic the camera is on my iPhone 6! For those new to photography (carrying those super-fancy digital cameras) I’d encourage you to turn off the magic and try shooting in manual mode. You might be surprised that with time you’ll actually get better results than the computer… now that’s fun!