Re: ATM 35MM- Camera

[scott.barrie@CIMtegration.COM (Scott Barrie)]

Chris wrote:

>Ihagee Exakta Varex IIa (version 1 thru' 4 - 1957-58). This model is heavy,
>being made out of nickel plated brass and steel..... <snip>...... real
>advantage of the good old Varex IIa is the built in cassette
>to cassette loading and film knife, which enables you to change films in mid
>stream. It was the ONLY 35mm SLR to have this useful device.

I totally agree that this is an excellent camera. My father had a couple of
them and gave one to me back in the late sixties. I used it for a few years
and then traded it in on a Nikon F2 (another excellent choice for
astrophotography). There are two points about the Exacta that Chris didn't
make that are worthy of consideration. One is that it has a cloth shutter
and I would want to check that out thoroughly given that any Exacta out
there is now 40 years of age. The mirror does not automatically return on
the Exacta, it drops back into place when the film is advanced, so the
shutter was open to light coming in through the lens. It may be an urban
legend but I've heard stories of sunlight burning pinholes in the shutter
curtain. The other point is a really cool feature worh mentioning. You can
wind the shutter independently of the film advance so double (or more)
exposures are a snap.

>Nikon (models from the original F1 to later - but make sure the viewfinder
>is interchagngeable - not all Nikon SLR's have interchangeable viewfinders).

While I use my Nikon F2 for astrophotography I also like to use a Nikkormat
FTN. It is a very basic, rugged, SLR that is totally manual and uses all
the same lenses. It, too, is an all brass camera that can operate
independent of the battery (except for the meter). It's readily available
on the used market and quite inexpensive.

A camera that hasn't been mentioned here is the Olympus OM1 series. I have
no personal experience with this camera but several fellow club members
swear by them and in some circles they are apparently the astro camera
against which all others are judged.

The bottom line is that there are a gazillion acceptable astrocameras out
there. The must-haves are: interchangeable lenses, ability to hold the
shutter open forever without the use of battery power, and....... well,
that's really it.  Other nice features that will make your life easier (and
probably improve your pictures) include: mirror lockup, interchangeable
viewfinders, and the ability to add a magnifier.

Cheers

Scott Barrie