Hey XA lovers

[Juan Valdenebro]

Hello,


Some time ago, a great comment by Tom Abrahamsson about trying to make things as simple as possible, made me start some tests on shooting bright sun and dull light scenes on the same roll, instead of carrying two cameras for different contrast scenes and development... Then, I found using box speed was a nice compromise between both more precise situations. That was close to pathetic, but I really haven't exposed or developed differently for different kinds of light since... And it's been a lot of time, and shots are OK...


Later I went on shooting 400 at 1600 including direct sun and weak light scenes on the same roll, and yet I felt it was more than OK for sunny scenes with a healthy bit of overexposure... The simple advantage is -later- being ready for low light, always...


Then I decided to save time, and looked for a new development time after I decided to shoot at 1600 only. I'm set a month ago: I call it 7 - 14 - 28, to remember it easily. 7ml Rodinal, 14 minutes at 28ºC. Three very gentle inversions at the beginning and every next minute. No presoaking.


So I started to work like that with all my cameras... On my most used ones, the Bessas and the FE2, I control direct sun (in case of no filtering) with 1/2000 f/11 if I want to shoot with great depth of field... As I'm giving film lots of light when light is strong and generates deep shadows (to fill them), I know when a cloud comes it doesn't mean I should open three stops, because I was overexposing for high contrast scenes, so I found it's enough going from 1/2000 to 1/1000: with a simple dial movement I go from the sunny side of the street to the one in shades... It meant things were simpler to me than ever...!


Well, it's been a lot of fun... I carry my 40 1.4 now as my only lens. I carry with it (in my pocket) two filters, screwed always and used together always... I have the same set for 43mm and for 52mm (these ones for the Nikkor 50 1.4) so I screw them if I want to shoot at 1.4 (half my shots), and I haven't used anything but 11 and 1.4 for months! What a pleasure! With my orange+ND64 filters I do direct sun at 1/1000 f/1.4, so in the shades I just open to 1/500...


Now the reason for this post:


I love the Olympus XA. But it couldn't fit in the push to 1600 always story... I use it daily, even when I carry other cameras, but I always felt its 800 top ISO was its only weak point (lots of us know how impossible it's been to find a way to fool the camera and change that), and (at least in my XA) we're talking about an 800 that's more a 400 setting because it gives film twice the light other cameras give at 800, so my XA (stopped down and prefocused always) was a bright light camera only. But... not anymore...


A few weeks ago I read somewhere that it was possible to change some cameras' metering systems by changing the amount of power we give our camera: in some cases higher voltage can damage a camera, but in other cases, it doesn't, and produces underexposure or overexposure...


There were ruomurs about the XA underexposing with higher voltage (my dream, to be able to push to 1600...), and even too sweet rumours about Maitani&Friends leaving that future option for photographers, with circuits and a meter (or has it 2 meters?) that were designed to hold higher voltage... Mmmmm...


I decided to risk my beloved XA, and after setting its ISO to the middle, with wires I installed one more 1.55 and then two more 1.55 SR44 cells (externally) to see if the meter was fooled or the camera circuits dead... So I gave it a little more than 4.5 and a little more than 6v... It didn't die. It was metering, the needle was moving, everything seemed normal, and it was firing! Yes, it was underexposing, and the difference was about three stops !!!


So I started testing, looking for batteries and options, and trying to imagine, as there are two screws around the battery holder, how to use those screws to hold a new yet to be built external holder (how big?) for the extra battery... To make it short:

I'm shooting my XA at a real 1600 ! Two stops faster than ever !!! It was true it could be done !!!


How do I feel shooting street with the tiny black thing, at f/8 on dull days with very fast shutter speeds?





Technical details later...

[dave lackey]

Hey, Juan...good to see you back!

[oftheherd]

Yes, good to see you posting again. And an interesting topic as well. Looking forward to more details from you. I also have an XA, and I sometimes do use it. My only problem with it was how to hold it. Once I figure out to hold it so I could use my left thumb to focus, I was alright. Nice little camera. Sounds nicer your way. Are you sure that even though it is working now, you aren't slowly damaging your inner electronics, causing a failure in the not too distant future?

[btgc]

As always...enthusiastic! obsessed! shooting with XA

how about making something like little pot allowing to accomodate 3rd battery and find a way to fasten it to body? And wire or foil inside to make a contact.

Your idea about screws is good. How about using tripod socket to fasten some wide spring which could keep that pot close to body?

[hamradio]

any chance one could stack a bunch of 365 size batteries in the XA holder? a 365 is 1.55v, same diameter as an SR44 (11.6mm), but 1.65mm tall, vs 5.2mm of an sr44. Perhaps the correct voltage could be had with a combination three 365s and one sr44?

[ath]

Are you sure the negatives are underexposed or are you judging by the moving metering needle? The XA has two seperate meters - one for the needle and one for the exposure.

[Trius]

But both meters are powered by the same set of batteries, and I would think their circuits are the same.

[Juan Valdenebro]

Thanks everyone! I have already developed four rolls, with the same results showing precise exposure, so it's real, and the camera seems fine after two weeks...

After testing a few others, the battery (the extra one) I'm using, is a Maxell SR1116SW: it's called 366 too... It's 1.55v just like the SR44s (same shape) but very very flat... After a minute of trying, I managed to close the battery holder (the cap) with the third battery inside, without being necessary any external holder, but the extra battery must be placed first, because there's no contact if it's placed next to the cap... A great thing about this, is that the extra battery is silver oxide too, so it's the perfect kind of power for the XA, because it won't give low voltage during half its life as the LR44s do...

Last comment: I "feel" I am using my XA at some kind of electric border: perhaps because of the higher voltage, times come when the needle shows an unusual bump in shutter speed (up beyond 1/500) so I guess that means "you should meter at a lower ISO, or close aperture one stop so the camera can meter well"...

In practice, I'm shooting like this:

For most shooting I keep my XA at ISO400 (I guess it's close to 1600 now) and at f/11, prefocused at 6 feet: DOF around camera for street... I get 1/500, 1/250 and 1/125 constantly, all around... Only if light is low, I need to go to f/8 or f/5.6...

But when there's direct sun, I quickly use the +1.5 compensation, to fill shadows a bit, knowing that with that light my shutter goes to 1/500 and having no faster speeds, it overexposes high contrast scenes as I like... When I shoot direct sun and use +1.5, I
change the ISO dial from 400 to 200, because when theres as much light as direct sun means, the meter goes crazy: I imagine it can't work with that high voltage if the ISO setting is faster than 200 or if the aperture is faster than f/16...

So, for anyone interested in starting tests and sharing comments, what I am doing right now is f/11 ISO400 for all soft light, and f/11 +1.5 ISO200 if there's direct sun.

Good luck!

[raytoei@gmail.com]

Juan,

blah blah blah....where's the pix ?

(great work on the XA, BTW)

raytoei

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

The XA cameras use CdS cells, and almost all CdS meters use a simple system that depends on the battery to be the correct voltage, so using the 'wrong' voltage will give you the underexposure you got from too much power. Because there are no complex electronics (like computer chips) that are found in cameras with more advanced Silicon PhotoDiode meters, there's little likelihood of damaging anything.

[Juan Valdenebro]

This is the only frame I've scanned by now... An unusual one because it was not at f/11, but wide open at f/2.8, guessing focus...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/4089423...n/photostream/

Cheers,

Juan

[jmilkins]

great thread - watching with much interest! both for the xa and the thinking on exposure.

[coelacanth]

Thank very much for the info and experiments, Juan. My only issue with the mighty XA was exactly that I couldn't do 1600 push. I shall try this when I receive the XA from RFF member...

[btgc]

Juan, you made me to remember why I haven't sold Yashica 35 FC - mine has unique fault which makes it underexposing 2 stops at daylight (3 at dusk). Pretty same idea, just larger body and top speed is 1/1000.

[ath]

Originally Posted by Chriscrawfordphoto

The XA cameras use CdS cells, and almost all CdS meters use a simple system that depends on the battery to be the correct voltage, so using the 'wrong' voltage will give you the underexposure you got from too much power. Because there are no complex electronics (like computer chips) that are found in cameras with more advanced Silicon PhotoDiode meters, there's little likelihood of damaging anything.

This is true for many meters. But the XA has a meter AND an automatic exposure unit (2 CDS cells) which is in fact quite complex using an IC. They are not the same (in that case there would be no need to use two independent circuits) and there is no reason why a 1980 camera should have the same drawbacks as a 1970 meter.
The metering needle is battery voltage dependend but I would expect the exposure system to be not. Juans experience seems to show the opposite. Unless something else is going on in the electronics.

P.S. after perusing the XA repair manual I'm quite sure (the manual shows not the last details of the schematic) that the exposure is run from a stabilized voltage. This would mean the effect Juan sees comes from the circuit not working as specified due to the high battery voltage, i.e. overload.

[Trius]

I think it's time for Mr. Hermanson to correct my musings ... and set us all straight!

[jaimiepeeters]

I have the XA2 .. is there the same amount of love for it?

[David Hughes]

Originally Posted by jaimiepeeters

I have the XA2 .. is there the same amount of love for it?

Hi,

Yes, of course, and the XA3 too...

And the XA3 can be set at 1600 ASA manually or via the DX contacts. There are 6 DX contacts which is rare in a small camera. FWI, I think that zone focussing is easier in poor light than using a CRF.

Regards, David

[spaceman spif]

Mr. Hughes is correct. The XA3 is already set up for 1600; no oddness with batteries required.

[mackigator]

Thank you, Juan, for the excellent idea for this voltage trick. Can't wait to try it out.

The other trick that I'd love to see: hollowing out an A11 flash to make a mount for a cowboy studio flash trigger. Somewhere I remember reading online a post from someone trying to create a hotshoe via the wires in the flash unit but can't find it; anyone have a link to something like that?

[David Hughes]

Hi,

Been thinking about the XA etc's flash.

What you want is a camera handle of the old fashioned sort with a bar to go under the camera and a bolt to hold it to the tripod bush. At the top of these brackets you usually get a cold shoe for a flash (because they were mostly made before hot shoes).

Luckily there's lots of high quality flash guns about from the time of hot shoes and 3mm flash sockets. So I suggest you get one and mount it on the camera handle. The sort you need has a detachable lead for the 3mm socket. (The Vivitar 2500 is a good example but there were many of them. Usually the 3mm lead plugs into the flash near the shoe and disconnects the hot shoe.)

From the lead, cut off the 3mm socket that would fit any other camera but the Xa's and make up a XA connector. Looking at an XA it's pretty obvious that the contacts on the camera just need a small tube to fit over them. So find some, solder a couple of bits to the cut off bit of lead and wrap insulation round it and stick each one on each of the XA's contacts.

What could be easier?

Regards, David

PS The point of this is that all that's altered is the little bit of lead. Many of the old flash guns were designed so that when the lead wasn't in use the hot shoe worked, so the flash need not be made inoperable. And nothing else need be touched.