LightSpeed Posted February 23 Share #1 Posted February 23 (edited) Advertisement (gone after registration) I recently bought a Leica R3 MOT with Summicron 50mm lens. My first two rolls were developed and I'm sadly frustrated. Some pictures exploded: 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! These two were taken in daytime with a 400 ISO roll. Admittedly, I am a noob and I didn't pay attention to the exposure (-2, -1, 0, +1, +2) feature of my camera until the second roll. However, I still think this is not the only problem here. Can someone guide me to what were my potential mistakes here? Thanks! Edited February 23 by LightSpeed Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! These two were taken in daytime with a 400 ISO roll. Admittedly, I am a noob and I didn't pay attention to the exposure (-2, -1, 0, +1, +2) feature of my camera until the second roll. However, I still think this is not the only problem here. Can someone guide me to what were my potential mistakes here? Thanks! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/419448-what-did-i-do-wrong-poor-results-with-the-leica-r3/?do=findComment&comment=5762076'>More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted February 23 Posted February 23 Hi LightSpeed, Take a look here What did I do wrong? (Poor results with the Leica R3). I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
erl Posted February 23 Share #2 Posted February 23 Shoot another TEST roll. Maybe a 12 exp for economy. Carefully note ALL settings you use. Have the film processed and scanned. Compare with the original. This may determine if the issue is with the camera or the processing/scanning. 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pieter12 Posted February 23 Share #3 Posted February 23 The second shot looks to have motion blur caused by a slow shutter speed in addition to overexposure. Which exposure mode were you using? 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
250swb Posted February 23 Share #4 Posted February 23 (edited) Massive overexposure, did you set the correct ISO/ASA for the film so the camera can meter correctly? You can get a .pdf copy of the owners manual from here, it's free but you can make a donation, https://butkus.org/chinon/leica/leica_r3/leica_r3.htm Edited February 23 by 250swb 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Essummi Posted February 23 Share #5 Posted February 23 I would use a separate lightmeter (eg smartphone app) to check the camera's internal lightmeter with the same settings (Film ISO) 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhotoCruiser Posted February 23 Share #6 Posted February 23 vor 9 Stunden schrieb LightSpeed: Admittedly, I am a noob and I didn't pay attention to the exposure (-2, -1, 0, +1, +2) feature of my camera until the second roll. However, I still think this is not the only problem here. I suggest you to repeat using the camera and this time paying attention to ISO/ASA is set correctly according the film you use EV correction is set tot zero write down exposure values you used for every photo to remember later when the film is developed think again why some photos are exposed correctly and others not, there is a reason for that as erl already written, use a 12 photo roll and ask for contact copies to keep expenses low, or shoot diapositives. Keep in mind that everyone using a new camera will mess up the first photos and need some time to get used to her Chris 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart Richardson Posted February 23 Share #7 Posted February 23 Advertisement (gone after registration) Can you confirm that the shutter speed is roughly what it is supposed to be? That looks like a sticky shutter or something like that to me. If you choose 1s, does it open and close for a real 1s? Does the shutter look like it is closing very rapidly at higher speeds? You can use a camera that you know is fine to compare...hold the camera back open and take the lens off and put it in front of a light source. If the speeds are roughly correct, the interval should seem similar to another known-good camera. Otherwise I suspect something like the shutter dial moved off of "A" and onto 1s or something like that. 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
earleygallery Posted February 23 Share #8 Posted February 23 I can’t really tell anything from those examples but looks like a processing issue more than anything! However the R3 is prone to problems with shutter and metering (due to ageing electronics). The camera meter can be set to centre weighted or ‘spot’ - use centre weighted for testing. Check the correct batteries are fitted. Do a quick check without film, firing the shutter on manual mode and see if it appears to be working correctly. Then check exposure against another camera or download a metering app on your phone. Put it into AE mode and check again - does the shutter speed change in you try it lens wide open and stopped right down? Finally test with another roll of film. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
LightSpeed Posted February 23 Author Share #9 Posted February 23 Thanks a lot, everyone. I will try all the suggestions. One thing that I notice is that selector for light measurement seems to have no effect. This small line on the right is always static, going down like a hammer only when I click to take a picture: 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! (In the manual, it's in 125; in my case, it's always either above 1,000 or below 4s, no matter what settings I use. Maybe the sensor is defective? I may have written a lot of non-sense, so I apologize in advance. Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! (In the manual, it's in 125; in my case, it's always either above 1,000 or below 4s, no matter what settings I use. Maybe the sensor is defective? I may have written a lot of non-sense, so I apologize in advance. ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/419448-what-did-i-do-wrong-poor-results-with-the-leica-r3/?do=findComment&comment=5762667'>More sharing options...
Pieter12 Posted February 24 Share #10 Posted February 24 Whatever the problem is, take the camera to a technician or just write it off. It could not have cost much. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart Richardson Posted February 24 Share #11 Posted February 24 Is there sign of power in the camera otherwise? I am not as familiar with an R3, but a lot of older cameras will still fire without batteries, but the timing of the shutter will be set to one speed. The behavior of the meter sounds to me like the behavior of a needle meter without battery power. Have you confirmed that the batteries are new and good and properly in place? 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
LightSpeed Posted February 24 Author Share #12 Posted February 24 1 hour ago, Stuart Richardson said: Is there sign of power in the camera otherwise? I am not as familiar with an R3, but a lot of older cameras will still fire without batteries, but the timing of the shutter will be set to one speed. The behavior of the meter sounds to me like the behavior of a needle meter without battery power. Have you confirmed that the batteries are new and good and properly in place? Yes, that red light on the left turns on when I press the button. I changed the batteries as soon as I got the camera to make sure it was OK. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart Richardson Posted February 24 Share #13 Posted February 24 Ok, the only reason I mentioned is that my Hexar AF has a bad habit of turning on even when it does not have enough battery power. I brought it to service at Nippon Camera Clinic because it would turn on and focus but would not take pictures or advance the film. The kind Japanese technician calmly went behind the counter and changed the battery and charged me the 5 bucks or whatever for the battery. I was a bit humiliated, haha. But I only say this because some cameras can appear to operate partially when the batteries are too low. But since you just put them in it sounds like that is unlikely to be the case here. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helge Posted February 24 Share #14 Posted February 24 (edited) vor 3 Stunden schrieb LightSpeed: Yes, that red light on the left turns on when I press the button. I changed the batteries as soon as I got the camera to make sure it was OK. Could you tell us, which type of battery you use? Is it also possible to tell us the lens you did use? Edited February 24 by Helge 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
earleygallery Posted February 24 Share #15 Posted February 24 Unfortunately it sounds like the meter is not working. If the camera was sold to you as working you should return it for a refund. If you can’t return it then it’s a case of checking if the shutter is working correctly and if so you can use it in manual mode with a handheld meter. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eclectic Man Posted February 24 Share #16 Posted February 24 (edited) Check the metering and exposure with the 'Sunny 16 rule' This states that the correct exposure of a subject in direct sunlight is f16 at 1/(the ISO rating of the film). So with, say, Ilford FP4+ (ISO 125), a sunny scene would be correctly exposed at f16, 1/125 s. So meter off the clear blue sky or a grey card on a sunny day and check the meter is reading correctly. Set the mode to Manual exposure and try each of the shutter speeds sounds ok. Open the back and fire the shutter at each speed to check that both curtains are operating correctly. The R3 also has two purely mechanical shutter speeds, B (bulb) and X (1/90s). If you set X, check that it sounds like a short speed. Good luck. Edited February 24 by Eclectic Man Another idea. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
leica dream Posted February 24 Share #17 Posted February 24 The fact that the light sensor needle drops when you press the shutter button indicates that you have the camera set to selective metering - see pages 17/18 of the instructions. That way one can check the setting without removing the camera from the eye during shooting because at the inteegrated setting the needle is un affected. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
LightSpeed Posted March 4 Author Share #18 Posted March 4 Thank you so much for every comment here. I took all into account and shot another two rolls. I will post the results here in a couple of days - hopefully I'll be able to share some cool photos! Wish you all the best. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helge Posted March 4 Share #19 Posted March 4 (edited) @LightSpeed Am 24.2.2025 um 14:09 schrieb Helge: Could you tell us, which type of battery you use? Is it also possible to tell us the lens you did use? Edited March 4 by Helge Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
LightSpeed Posted March 5 Author Share #20 Posted March 5 20 hours ago, Helge said: @LightSpeed Sorry, forgot to reply that one. I used two LR44 batteries. As for the lens, Summicron-R 50mm f2. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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