Yashica Minister III

[Celebring]

Hi,

I found a Yashica Minister III at my parents' place earlier this week and would like to give it a try. My only experience with film cameras so far is a Pentax PnS about 6-8 years ago, have since used a Canon Powershot S30 and now a Nikon D50. I've looked at the viewfinder, focusing, shutter, lens and meter. Far as I can tell, everything is working except the meter. No clue about light leaks as I haven't shot a roll yet.

Have a bunch of questions:

1) Anybody used this before and have anything to say about its quirks?

2) Anything else should I check or have someone check before using?

3) Is modern film compatible with this camera?

4) Since the meter is not working, I suppose I need to either use an external meter (hand-held or from the DSLR) or guess. Is there any other way?

Thanks in advance!

Regards,
Ben

[alternatve]

Check the light seaks around the film door and whether the lens has scratches or fungus. I've used modern film on 50 year old cameras, your camera should be able to take it.


I hope you enjoy using your Yashica!

[Celebring]

Update:

I had my Yashica fixed up at the Camera Hospital and shot a roll of Kodak BW400CN, printed at the nearby Kodak shop. Here are some of the better results. I notice the photos tend to have a colour cast. Is this characteristic of the film?


At a friend's wedding



Seen from my office


Open 24 Hours

[Terrence]

great shots there! they made me itching to put my minister III to use!

[Ansel]

Originally Posted by Celebring Update: I had my Yashica fixed up at the Camera Hospital and shot a roll of Kodak BW400CN, printed at the nearby Kodak shop. Here are some of the better results. I notice the photos tend to have a colour cast. Is this characteristic of the film?

Well, yes, and no.

Yes, because the lab printed it on colour paper and the paper shows the colour cast of the negative.

No, if you print it on regular b/w paper in the darkroom. This was the original intention of the film.

[Celebring]

Originally Posted by Ansel Well, yes, and no. Yes, because the lab printed it on colour paper and the paper shows the colour cast of the negative. No, if you print it on regular b/w paper in the darkroom. This was the original intention of the film.

Thanks for the reply. I'm not keen on trying to do my own developing and printing. Is there any other way to get "proper" black and white prints using chromogenic film (e.g. BW400CN, XP2 Super)?

[Ansel]

Originally Posted by Celebring Thanks for the reply. I'm not keen on trying to do my own developing and printing. Is there any other way to get "proper" black and white prints using chromogenic film (e.g. BW400CN, XP2 Super)?

Not with lab prints cos they only use colour paper. You can get pretty good results with a good pro inkjet printer that has provisions for multiple grey density inks. The Epson 2400 and above series using K3 ink come to mind.

[moos blues]

regarding the colour cast.

When i shoot with XP2 i tell the guy i want it digitally black and white, that should give you no cast issues. anyway the digital BW makes for great contrast too.

cheers

[Celebring]

Thanks Ansel and moos blues for your suggestions.

Originally Posted by moos blues regarding the colour cast. When i shoot with XP2 i tell the guy i want it digitally black and white, that should give you no cast issues. anyway the digital BW makes for great contrast too.

Digitally black and white meaning that they adjust the colour to "proper" black and white on their computer before printing? Just want to make sure I can explain it properly if the shop people don't understand.

Btw, where can you get XP2 and how much does it cost?

[moos blues]

yep... they will desaturate it in the computer before printing. i think most digital labs can do it.

illford XP 2... i'm not sure hovers around 5$ plus? 6? sorry been a while since a bought a box, (2 yrs +? ) haha i'm not sure, anyway always end up at ruby when i need some... which reminds me i'm out of it. haha...

[Ansel]

Originally Posted by moos blues yep... they will desaturate it in the computer before printing. i think most digital labs can do it. ...

Even when the image is pure b/w, the printing paper is still a colour paper, that makes for pure b/w kind of difficult. I am not sure how good they are nowadays, but there's always a slight cast. It just depends on your tolerance level, I guess. Well, worth a try.

[Celebring]

Thanks again guys. I'll probably shoot another roll of 400CN and one of XP2, have them printed them out using moos blues' suggested technique, and see which I prefer. Give me a few weeks and there should be more photos to show. Thanks again!