What do you miss most about your first SLR.

_aravena wrote in post #5448029
Nothing, i still have it!

I still have my first two SLRs, too. But when was the last time I had film in the cameras, now that dSLRs make life so less expensive (no film and film processing cost) and easy (high ISO, low noise). And when was the last time YOU had film in the cameras, now that dSLRs make life so less expensive (no film and film processing cost) and easy (high ISO, low noise).?!

00silvergt wrote in post #5442525
LOL, I was thinking about the film advance...sorry, my mistake.

Nope, not film advance. Cock the shutter. I found a pic of one on the net. The red arrow is pointing at the cocking lever, which you would have to pull down (yellow) to put tension on the spring. If not, pushing the release button causes nothing to happen!

Rad

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I still have film in it. I need to go get it developed

_aravena wrote in post #5448115
I still have film in it. I need to go get it developed

How long? Probably color shifted and/or fogged from cosmic radiation accumulation!

I should have asked how long since you actively USED it for more than a frame or three?!

Oh...well then. That's different. Only a year actually when I was between switching DSLR's.

Radtech1 wrote in post #5448101
Nope, not film advance. Cock the shutter. I found a pic of one on the net. The red arrow is pointing at the cocking lever, which you would have to pull down (yellow) to put tension on the spring. If not, pushing the release button causes nothing to happen!

Rad

Sorry, this sorts of predates me! LOL

A year is not that bad( I guess it depends on how you stored it, quality of the stock, etc), I remember having roll sit for 3 years and when we developed it, it was like a time machine! LOL Pictures were still ok.

mattograph wrote in post #5435801
The only thing I miss is that moment where you that feeling you got when you KNEW you had a great shot, but had to wait to develop it to see. I will never forget in High School how it felt to race to the darkroom with a roll of tri-x, wondering what would pop out of the can. You had to wait -- go through the process. And when you nailed a shot, it was a jump up and down moment.

Now, that thunder is gone, lost in a blizzard of shooting and chimping, then shooting again.

You nailed it for me. That and the fact that my father gave it (a Voightlander Vito II) to me and it was destroyed by flood water years later. I'v thought about it for many years and finally last winter picked one up in mint condition on Ebay. Along with a Weston light meter to complete the trip down Nostalgia Lane. I have a couple rolls of Tri-X and I'll burn 'em up when the weather is better. Hopefully I'll remember to cock the shutter.

My first camera was my dad's Voigtlander 35mm rangefinder. Broken meter, no less. I had to learn (quickly) to eyeball exposures... It's weird looking around and thinking to yourself, "gee that looks like 1/60s at f/5.6!"

Double Negative wrote in post #5457520
My first camera was my dad's Voigtlander 35mm rangefinder. Broken meter, no less. I had to learn (quickly) to eyeball exposures... It's weird looking around and thinking to yourself, "gee that looks like 1/60s at f/5.6!"

Great skill, I yet, need to develop. That and the DOF field thing, I hate the fact our VF are so flippin' small and dim on the 30D and 350D. The DOF preview is almost worthless on both cameras!

BTW, the Voigtlander is a nice camera and all, it is as you said a rangefinder...so it does quite fit the Single Lens Reflex thingy...LOL:p

My first SLR was a Practica LTL 3.
I miss the FF. I miss the ability to manually focus.

I do not miss the quality of the lenses though

DAMphyne wrote in post #5437220
That's 3 stops?
I can't imagine a focusing screen making that drastic of difference in exposure.
I can't say I noticed a difference on my XK when I changed the screen, which I did frequently.

I need to look into this, I was thinking of getting a split-prism.

Nowadays, in Canon DSLRs the light meter is in the prism housing.
There used to be camera's with the light meter in the body (below the focussing screen). I those cases changing the focussing screen didn't matter.

Also off course, back in those days, not a lot of camera's offered anything apart from some sort of CWA type metering pattern, so it didn't matter much.

I really liked lollipop meters...

My first SLR was a Minolta SR-7 and the meter was on the outside. I do miss the microprism focus screen too. My first rangefinder was a Yashica Lynz 500e and it had the yellow box focus screen, with match needle metering.

00silvergt wrote in post #5462716
Great skill, I yet, need to develop. That and the DOF thing, I hate the fact our VF are so flippin' small and dim on the 30D and 350D. The DOF preview is almost worthless on both cameras!

Not really a "what I miss" statement, as I've never had one, but I'd love to have a DOF-preview button on my cable release. Or, at least on a more easily accessible place on the camera itself. I find it's location on my Canon cameras very awkward.

^ See, I find it in the right place... When you rest your lens in your left hand, your finger can just depress it (though not exactly in the right position or large enough, I agree).

Better than the old style on the A-cameras, though! You had to pop up the little flap and then push it in. When you were done, you'd have to depress the multi-exposure lever and re-cock the shutter/aperture mechanism...

My first SLR was a Mamiya MSX500,,I don't miss it at all..I still have a Nikon film system which my niece inherited..What I do miss is the sound of motor driven older Nikon like an F2 or F4 going off at full tilt..Believe me there is no sound like it in photography

Double Negative wrote in post #5463918
^ See, I find it in the right place... When you rest your lens in your left hand, your finger can just depress it (though not exactly in the right position or large enough, I agree).

I don't know why, but even though my hand is right there I still can't find it half the time. Then I end up taking my head away and looking for it. I need to practice, eh?