I have recently bought a 35mm Pentax camera, help?

[JhoZ]

I got this camera, I used a 35mm 200 film that I found in my mums cupboard, it has been there a while...will the pictures be ok? I also set the shutter speed to 60 (as I was told to use this setting without the flash) I then made sure the needle in the viewer was in the middle (30 looked like the middle to me) I then focused and shoot...are these the right settings in order for the pictures to not be over or under exposed? Any help with this camera will be great as I am new to film photography! I have used the film, pressed the button and the bottom and twisted it back into it's casing using the button on the top...no film is hanging out, should there be? The camera didn't come with a manual as I bought it from a second hand shop! I am using a 50mm lens.

Thanks so much

 

[vintagesnaps]

Not sure which Pentax you have but most mechanical cameras from the same era seem to work about the same way. It sounds like you have a working meter if you were able to see the needle moving, and the middle in between + and - is where you'd want it to be.

The sync speed on older mechanical cameras is often either 1/60 or 1/125 and may be marked in red. If not using a flash you'd be adjusting the aperture and shutter speed according to the meter reading. For me 1/60 is a little slower than I like to use, my starting point is usually 1/125 or faster if I'm out shooting in fairly bright light.

If you pushed the button on the bottom and the film rewound back into the cartridge then no, there wouldn't be a tail sticking out. The lab where you get film developed will open the end of the cartridge to remove the film. If the film was old/expired you might get some interesting results! lol Usually B&W holds up pretty well, sometimes color may not, but usually when you get the film developed most places include a CD so you could always do some adjusting to the scanned images (or you might get some fun & funky colors!).

Mike Butkus' site has camera manuals, here's the Pentax page (he doesn't charge but a contribution can be made). Pentax camera instruction manuals, Pentax professional instruction manuals

You might want to take a look at Film Photography Project | An Internet Radio Show & On-Line Resource for Film Shooters Worldwide or their Flickr discussion group.


If a moderator would want to move this post to the Film section there might be other suggestions.

 

[limr]

It looks like you tried to attach a photo of the camera but it's not showing up. If you could let us know the model, it would be helpful. There should be something written on the camera.

The Mike Butkus site that Sharon posted to is really helpful and you should go find the manual for your camera. It seems like you have a very basic understanding of a few things but it also sounds like you need to learn a lot more.