Visoflex III and M8 - exposure metering?

[carstenw]

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I lucked out hugely today, and mentioned that I would be interested in a Visoflex III just as an employee walked by who had just taken one in, and my dealer gave me a fantastic price on it, so I picked it up. It is in nearly as-new condition, and works perfectly. I just need to find a non-harmful way of cleaning the side of the mirror.

 

Anyway, taking pictures of it on A I get terribly over-exposed images. I can judge it manually, and get it right that way by trial-and-error, but I am really curious why the automatic exposure does not work?

 

I am always wondering what the best way to adjust the mirror flip-up is. If I don't adjust it just right, it seems to flip up too late, resulting in dark exposures, or too early, meaning I don't see what I am doing any more.

 

Can anyone give me a super-quick tutorial on how to get the most out of this great little device?

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[robsteve]

Auto exposure does not work because there is a mirror in the way of the light meter cell and the light. You need to take meter readings with the meter up and shoot on manual.

[jaapv]

The best thing to do, Carsten, is to put it to quick-return and adjust it that the mirror flies up a fraction of a second before the shutter button is touched.Then it will be fine on AE. If you get overexposed it means that you press the shutter release to " measure exposure" before the mirror lifts. The main thing is to remember this is a machine from more unhurried times. It is not built for high-speed shooting. Using it on soft-release is easier, but even more leasurely.