The bad old days

Roger Hicks · 12-13-2010

Pictures of, and instruction books for, an exposure meter from 1931 (though introduced in the 1890s) and an enlarging exposure meter from 1951.

http://www.rogerandfrances.com/subsc...n/w%20bee.html (exposure meter)

http://www.rogerandfrances.com/subsc...lumimeter.html (enlarging)

Cheers,

R.

flip · 12-13-2010

yikes. dedication comes to mind.

Film dino · 12-13-2010

I like the classic black bakelite art deco look of the Corfield meter

oftheherd · 12-13-2010

As inconvenient as either on may seem by today's standards, they must both have been considered useful inovations in their day. I hope soon to use a meter attachment for my Gossen Luna Pro SBC to see how that works. I used to like to use a Kodak exposure projection pie scale. I don't know when those started being used. Anybody know?

Roger Hicks · 12-13-2010

Quote:

Originally Posted by oftheherd

As inconvenient as either on may seem by today's standards, they must both have been considered useful inovations in their day. I hope soon to use a meter attachment for my Gossen Luna Pro SBC to see how that works. I used to like to use a Kodak exposure projection pie scale. I don't know when those started being used. Anybody know?

Exactly. We get spoiled. Which SBC attachment have you? (I have several). And yes, the pie scale is surprisingly good too, isn't it? I think I bought mine in Bermuda in the mid-to-late 60s.

Cheers,

R.

Brian Sweeney · 12-13-2010

Nice reading, thankyou for posting these.

I still use a Weston Master 715- found it when an Optics Lab was being cleaned out about 10 years ago, it was still in the box. Probably had been there since 1940.

charjohncarter · 12-13-2010

But things got better fast after WWII, I have a Shield (Japanese) that is a Haminex-Sekonic copy with low light capability: circa 1959. I finally figured out how to use it and it is accurate (fairly).

Keith · 12-13-2010

That meter makes sunny sixteen seem rather more user friendly by comparison!

dave lackey · 12-13-2010

Right on, Keith...

Ya know, I am a sucker for vintage things but I gotta tell ya, this is too much like turning the crank manually to start a Model T. At least I owned nothing earlier than a 51 MGTD that had a real starter (crank handle was for emergencies and car shows)....A man has got to know his limits!

Think I will stick with my Soligor Auto.

pvdhaar · 12-14-2010

Hi Roger,

thanks for sharing.. That Watkins meter is a fascinating piece of equipment, and makes you think about what photography was like then..

Quote:

Originally Posted by Keith

That meter makes sunny sixteen seem rather more user friendly by comparison!

Keith, remember it was intended for times when if you said to your children to sit down and be quiet, they actually would..

Jamie123 · 12-14-2010

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roger Hicks

Pictures of, and instruction books for, an exposure meter from 1931 (though introduced in the 1890s) and an enlarging exposure meter from 1951.

http://www.rogerandfrances.com/subsc...n/w%20bee.html (exposure meter)

http://www.rogerandfrances.com/subsc...lumimeter.html (enlarging)

Cheers,

R.

Did the people back then just use the stop watch in their mobile phones to count the seconds or did they use a proper digital watch? And why did they use a handheld meter anyway instead of just looking at the histogram??

oftheherd · 12-14-2010

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roger Hicks

Exactly. We get spoiled. Which SBC attachment have you? (I have several). And yes, the pie scale is surprisingly good too, isn't it? I think I bought mine in Bermuda in the mid-to-late 60s.

Cheers,

R.

Mr. Hicks,

I didn't know there was more than one for enlarging, if that is what you meant. I will have to look when I get home. I have yet to use it. Over time, I have slowly been building what I need for a darkroom again. I now have just about all I need, having the enlarger attachment, Omega 4x5 color enlarger, lenses, trays and chemicals, etc. Now I just need to clean up the laundry room shelves.

Other attachments I have are the microscope adapter (in place of a fiber optic probe for GG, or so I'm told), flash adapter, 7/15 degree adapter, and the 1/5/10 degree spot attachment. The later adds weight, but sure works well and in surprisingly low light.

Roger Hicks · 12-14-2010

Quote:

Originally Posted by oftheherd

Mr. Hicks,

I didn't know there was more than one for enlarging, if that is what you meant. I will have to look when I get home. I have yet to use it. Over time, I have slowly been building what I need for a darkroom again. I now have just about all I need, having the enlarger attachment, Omega 4x5 color enlarger, lenses, trays and chemicals, etc. Now I just need to clean up the laundry room shelves.

Other attachments I have are the microscope adapter (in place of a fiber optic probe for GG, or so I'm told), flash adapter, 7/15 degree adapter, and the 1/5/10 degree spot attachment. The later adds weight, but sure works well and in surprisingly low light.

Sorry -- misunderstood you! Yes, there is only one attachment for enlarging, LABOR.

The true spot attachment is a monster, isn't it?

Cheers,

R.

telemetre · 12-14-2010

Must show the manual for the Watkins meter to people who find f-stops confusing. By the way does anyone know what US stops are?

oftheherd · 12-14-2010

Quote:

Originally Posted by telemetre

Must show the manual for the Watkins meter to people who find f-stops confusing. By the way does anyone know what US stops are?

The two below URLs should answer your question.
http://randcollins.wordpress.com/201...f-stop-system/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F-number

telemetre · 12-14-2010

Quote:

Originally Posted by oftheherd

The two below URLs should answer your question.
http://randcollins.wordpress.com/201...f-stop-system/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F-number

Thanks, seems like my searching skills are really rusty. Luckily, as Roger reminds us with this thread, human beings are highly adaptable.

newspaperguy · 12-23-2010

Not as old as yours, Roger,

but some pretty fair whiskers on this pair.

Att: a PICOSKOP and an ancient WESTON.

The back of the WESTON has space for noting
what kind of film or PLATE you were using.

The PICO has no i.d. marks or clue to origin.
It is a beautiful piece of workmanship though.

newspaperguy · 12-23-2010

Whoa, according to a post on flickr:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/anssipu...=1&src=comment

This is pre WWII made in Germany

And for $20 you can buy the IB from Camerabooks:

Good Condition; has been folded. Excelsior-Werk/Rudolf Liesewetter, Leipzig. "Electric Exposure Meter "Picoskop" for For Photo and Cinema Directions."

According to to Lester A Pfeffer of Only Meters of New Jersey, the WESTON appears to be a late 1935 model 650.

Edward C. Zimmermann · 12-24-2010

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roger Hicks

Pictures of, and instruction books for, an exposure

What's wrong with these? I have a Zeiss Diaphot.

These work and provide results in general outdoor situations hardly different from my other meters.

Another old meter I like to use is the Betram Chronos:

Again. Good results--- and no batteries.

I compared it to my other light meters including my Spectra Combi-II (from the late 1970s)

and Spectra Professional (a bakelite meter from the 1960s)

and they all showed more or less the same results.

Another meter I have from the 1950s is the MINOX (made by Gossen):

No batteries and I think in many ways better suited to a MINOX than any of the modern electronic thingees I can think of..

In the darkroom.. I do admit.. there I use Lici Colorstar timers.. But I do also have a mechanical Hirsch timer (bakelite from the 1950s) wired up.. an old mechanical Junghans darkroom wall clock.. and.. if we're talking about meters.. even a Gossen Majosix..

http://www.myphotoweb.com/Gossen/pag...ix/majosix.htm

Tinribs · 01-02-2011

Sorry, but I am late to this party. Just a bit of useless information to add to the thread.

I'm surprised that no-one has mentioned that the inventor of the Watkins Bee Meter was also the author of "The Old Straight Track", which virtually started the interest in ley lines. Come to think of it, that's an odd title for a book written by a brewery rep.

Tinribs

Roger Hicks · 01-02-2011

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tinribs

Sorry, but I am late to this party. Just a bit of useless information to add to the thread.

I'm surprised that no-one has mentioned that the inventor of the Watkins Bee Meter was also the author of "The Old Straight Track", which virtually started the interest in ley lines. Come to think of it, that's an odd title for a book written by a brewery rep.

Tinribs

I though everyone knew that.

Serriously, it's an interesting aside, isn't it?

Cheers,

R.