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Light leaks? (M6TTL)


sia

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Hello,

 

I notice a trend on my negatives from my M6TTL (0.58 - Serial 25...) that have a slightly over exposed on the bottom of some of the frames taken under vivid sun.

 

Is this a light leak? If so, where does that comes from? Is it expensive to fix?

I read here and there that cameras have been sent many times for service to different places for getting eventually the problem fixed.

 

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/14638514/AgfaVista200-4.jpg

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/14638514/AgfaVista200-5.jpg

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/14638514/AgfaVista200-6.jpg

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/14638514/Portra400.M6-3.jpg

 

 

Can someone help me with this please?

 

Thanks.

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A light leak of some kind - very likely. Where it is coming from takes a bit of analysis.

 

First, remember that your lens projects the world upside down on the film, so a light leak on the bottom of your pictures, means a light leak on the edge of the film that is at the top when in the camera.

 

The edges of the moving shutter curtains are sealed by baffles, once soft felt, but in the M6 and later cameras, soft sheet plastic on either side of the shutter (lens and film sides). Those can wear out with time, and begin to allow light to leak through.

 

http://static.photo.net/attachments/bboard/009/009rJ4-20121184.jpg

 

However, the thick metal of the film gate casts a protective shadow on the edgemost part of the picture area, of a mm or so, if there is a baffle leak. I.E. working in from the edge, there is no fogging for about 1mm, and then a hard line where the fogging begins, fading away as it intrudes further into the picture. I do no see that hard edge near the edge of your pictures.

 

However (again) if what you are showing us are prints or scans with a bit of cropping (normal in many labs), that signature hard outer edge of the fogging may have been cropped out. You'd have to look at your actual negatives with a magnifier to see if it is present, viewing the entire image area or piece of film.

 

If there is no hard edge anywhere, then check the unexposed edge or rebate of the film, where the sprocket holes and frae numbers are. If the fogging comes all the way from the film edge. then the leak is more likely unrelated to the camera, and either leaky film cassettes, or possibly a leak or poor handling at the film lab.

 

While anything is possible, it is unlikely that the leak is through the back of the film, since the brown coloring of unprocessed film usually makes such leaks orangish, and these are neutral white/grayish. It is also unlikely that the leak comes from the base plate, since that is at the bottom of the camera, and this fogging is at the top of the film as it sits in the camera.

Edited by adan
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Thanks Adan!

 

I processed the film myself and scanned it myself without cropping. The film was handled in total darkness, it was not a hand loaded film.

 

Will have a look on the edge of the film (where the numbers are) to see how it is there.

At rangefinder forum, someone said the shutter light seals needed to be replaced. Can you confirm this?

 

Will get back here soon after checking the edges of the film.

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  • 1 month later...

I  am not  sure  if  I  can  be  of much  help ,  but   I was interested  in  the  problem.  I  seldom  use  an  M6  ,  mostly  reflex  .  However I got   my  M6  out  to  look at  it . 

 

My  first  guess  was  a  film  problem  , perhaps a  sticky  cassette  ,  though  unlikely  as  it has  happened   on  different  films. 

 

My  next  bet  is  some  sort of  shutter   problem   or  light   leak of  some   type   with the    shutter.  Is  the   shutter  fabric   in  good  order  ?  It  looks a  bit  as if  light is  getting  through  the  shutter  fabric  . Has  the  shutter fabric   worn  a  bit  thin ?  Not   sure  how  to  check. 

 

You  mention   you  had   the problems  on  a   sunny  day , was it  also  warm ?  I  have  an  R6  ,  different  shutter  which  had  a  lubrication  problem  . In  hot  weather  , 26C  or more   ( approx. )  the  lubrication   would      go  a bit   runny  and  make  one  of  the   shutter  blades  stick . Thus  when the     shutter    fired part of the  negative    was  not exposed .  That   fault  was   soon  reared.  Could  the M6    shutter  be  sticking  in  the  warm   weather ? 

 

Sorry  I  can not  be of  more  help ,  though  perhaps  the  ideas  may help .

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It's worth considering your scanner, too.  My Nikon Coolscan IV produces some banding on the edges of scanned negatives, which usually becomes visible when contrast is added.  See an example below (at the top of the frame, what appears as shadowy streaks appearing from the top - disregard the dot on the upper left, which is a piece of dust in the shutter, showing on the negative).  Reflections from the negative holder inside the scanner are likely the cause of the banding.

 

You need to have a good look at your negatives, not your scans or your camera, to get to the bottom of your issue.

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Edited by M9reno
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