WojtekS Posted September 10, 2022 Share #1  Posted September 10, 2022 Advertisement (gone after registration) Hello Leica forum, a new member here 😉 I took some pics using my M7 during the summer and I am really dissatisfied and angry with the results. The photos are generally underexposed and grainy. They show heavy vignetting. On some of them you see vertical artifacts, like patches of darker exposure than run vertically through the pic. This usually happens with photos from hot countries/areas, taken during the summer. Some other films, shot throughout the year, come out fine, in my opinion. I have tried to attach some samples but they exceed the size limit for pictures... My guess now is some malfunctions with how the shutter works in hot conditions... Have you had similar experiences? Would be grateful for any advice... Wojtek 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted September 10, 2022 Posted September 10, 2022 Hi WojtekS, Take a look here Dissatisfied with my summer pics taken using my M7, underexposed, vignetting, and artifacts. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
andybarton Posted September 10, 2022 Share #2  Posted September 10, 2022 Reduce the size of the jpgs to about 2000 pixels on the longest side and you will be able to upload them here. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
colint544 Posted September 10, 2022 Share #3  Posted September 10, 2022 (edited) Hello, and welcome to the forum. It would be useful if we could see your images. You have to massively compress them to get them to attach here. Don't give up hope. Underexposure is pretty much the worst thing for image quality, if you're shooting colour or mono negative film. Generally you want to overexpose, and you can be fairly bold with this, and not degrade image quality. The other thing you might want to consider is that we're all very accustomed to seeing digitally generated images. These tend to be super saturated with colour, and very sharp and detailed. Looking at 35mm film images compared with these can seem disappointing. 35mm film, however, has a look all to itself. Edited September 10, 2022 by colint544 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jankap Posted September 10, 2022 Share #4 Â Posted September 10, 2022 Also somewhat more info would be useful. Vignetting, what lens(es) do you use? Do you develop the films yourself and what film do you use? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fotoklaus Posted September 10, 2022 Share #5 Â Posted September 10, 2022 Good tool for batch converting with good quality: http://www.faststone.org/FSViewerDetail.htm 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
WojtekS Posted September 10, 2022 Author Share #6  Posted September 10, 2022 Hi guys, thanks for all the replies! I am using a Voigtlaender 35mm 1.4 lens. Here are some samples of underexposed and vignetting:   Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/336465-dissatisfied-with-my-summer-pics-taken-using-my-m7-underexposed-vignetting-and-artifacts/?do=findComment&comment=4506643'>More sharing options...
WojtekS Posted September 10, 2022 Author Share #7  Posted September 10, 2022 Advertisement (gone after registration) Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! 1 Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/336465-dissatisfied-with-my-summer-pics-taken-using-my-m7-underexposed-vignetting-and-artifacts/?do=findComment&comment=4506644'>More sharing options...
WojtekS Posted September 10, 2022 Author Share #8  Posted September 10, 2022 Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/336465-dissatisfied-with-my-summer-pics-taken-using-my-m7-underexposed-vignetting-and-artifacts/?do=findComment&comment=4506645'>More sharing options...
WojtekS Posted September 10, 2022 Author Share #9  Posted September 10, 2022 Here there are some vertical lines or darker exposure running through the pic: Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/336465-dissatisfied-with-my-summer-pics-taken-using-my-m7-underexposed-vignetting-and-artifacts/?do=findComment&comment=4506646'>More sharing options...
WojtekS Posted September 10, 2022 Author Share #10  Posted September 10, 2022 Here we have some heavy vignetting to the left: Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/336465-dissatisfied-with-my-summer-pics-taken-using-my-m7-underexposed-vignetting-and-artifacts/?do=findComment&comment=4506647'>More sharing options...
WojtekS Posted September 10, 2022 Author Share #11  Posted September 10, 2022 Here some vertical lines/bands: Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/336465-dissatisfied-with-my-summer-pics-taken-using-my-m7-underexposed-vignetting-and-artifacts/?do=findComment&comment=4506649'>More sharing options...
WojtekS Posted September 10, 2022 Author Share #12  Posted September 10, 2022 Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! 2 Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/336465-dissatisfied-with-my-summer-pics-taken-using-my-m7-underexposed-vignetting-and-artifacts/?do=findComment&comment=4506650'>More sharing options...
WojtekS Posted September 10, 2022 Author Share #13  Posted September 10, 2022 To wrap up, the colours are bland, not saturated. There is heavy vignetting, and some strange underexposed vertical areas. Any thoughts? My first conclusion is some problem with the shutter in hot conditions... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomB_tx Posted September 10, 2022 Share #14 Â Posted September 10, 2022 (edited) The exposure on the indoor shot is affected by the bright windows in the background. In such a case point the camera more towards the indoor area avoiding the windows, lock the exposure and then reframe to take the shot. (or do manual exposure). I have the VC 35 1.4 and it does have vignetting like that, especially wide open. Is this the version 1 or 2? The exposure bands looks like the shutter may be dragging a bit and need service - but first try using it a lot to exercise it - without film - and see if it improves with use. This issue is usually worse with faster shutter speeds - so also try stopping the lens down more to use a slower shutter speed. The vignetting should also decrease as the lens is stopped more. Depending on the film used, the colors don't look bad to me. Edited September 10, 2022 by TomB_tx 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
WojtekS Posted September 10, 2022 Author Share #15  Posted September 10, 2022 Here is what I would consider a normal/standard/correct picture form an M7. No visible vignetting, both the shadows and the lights seem to be exposed correctly, the colours seem to be saturated. It seems that the malfunction illustrated in the photos above usually happens when I am in a hot, summer destination. In colder places/seasons, the camera seems to be working OK...  Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/336465-dissatisfied-with-my-summer-pics-taken-using-my-m7-underexposed-vignetting-and-artifacts/?do=findComment&comment=4506658'>More sharing options...
WojtekS Posted September 10, 2022 Author Share #16 Â Posted September 10, 2022 2 minutes ago, TomB_tx said: The exposure on the indoor shot is affected by the bright windows in the background. In such a case point the camera more towards the indoor area avoiding the windows, lock the exposure and then reframe to take the shot. (or do manual exposure). I have the VC 35 1.4 and it does have vignetting like that, especially wide open. Is this the version 1 or 2? The exposure bands looks like the shutter may be dragging a bit and need service - but first try using it a lot to exercise it - without film - and see if it improves with use. This issue is usually worse with faster shutter speeds - so also try stopping the lens down more to use a slower shutter speed. The vignetting should also decrease as the lens is stopped more. Depending on the film used, the colors don't look bad to me. Thanks for your quick reply! I have a version 2 VC lens, in the summer the lens is stopped down to f1:16... In my opinion, the pictures are really grainy... and the colours usually look a lot better... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
WojtekS Posted September 10, 2022 Author Share #17  Posted September 10, 2022 Here is another pic with what I think is proper colour rendition and sharpness, no grain. Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! 1 Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/336465-dissatisfied-with-my-summer-pics-taken-using-my-m7-underexposed-vignetting-and-artifacts/?do=findComment&comment=4506666'>More sharing options...
andrew01 Posted September 10, 2022 Share #18 Â Posted September 10, 2022 It is unusual to expect vignetting when stopped down to f16. Â Did you use a polariser filter or a lens hood? Â It looks like the vignetting is not symmetrical (more vignetting on left side of the frame). Â This could indicate that there is misalignment of one of the elements in the lens. Difficult to comment about exposure without seeing the negatives. Â If underexposed the negs will look thin and the scanned image will be grainy with flat colours. Â The first image is perhaps underexposed but the others look ok to me. You can adjust the tonal mapping to taste during scanning and post-processing. The Leica M camera meter is a semi spot meter, so it is important to think about where you point the spot when taking a meter reading. Â Avoid pointing it toward the sky or the brightest part of the image as this will cause underexposure. Â I normally point my meter to the darker tones in the scene which will give a bias towards overexposure. Â If using auto mode be sure to lock in the exposure with a half press of the shutter button. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephan54 Posted September 10, 2022 Share #19 Â Posted September 10, 2022 Did the films go through some airport scanner? Not all scanners treat film kindly. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
WojtekS Posted September 10, 2022 Author Share #20 Â Posted September 10, 2022 2 minutes ago, stephan54 said: Did the films go through some airport scanner? Not all scanners treat film kindly. Yes, they did. Is there a way to avoid potential damage in case of travelling? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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