camera talk

 I had the chance to go to the bins recently and this is almost the first thing I saw:

 Inside, I find it looks good, and even has the manual!

So I hauled out the Nikkormat, found a battery for it (in another camera, the Minolta SRT), and realized I had also already loaded it with film!  Then I realized I hadn't posted it for you, months ago when I found it in a pile of decent SLR bodies at a Goodwill.  I had my pick of three FT's as well as a couple more Minolta SRT's and a Pentax K1000.  I mounted the only "eared" lens I have (with a fair bit of internal spotting - I'm waiting to see what that looks like on the film), and I am trying it out.

So here is spokescat Guido, making it look good

The FT was first in the line, made 1965-67 and updated several times for a decade.  It was the closest thing you could get to a Nikon F, and still the closest I'll get to one for a ten-spot.  I read somewhere today that it sold for $270 at the time, $70 less than a Nikon F.  That's a lot - online sources put it at about $2016 in current US money.

The controls take some getting used to.  It wasn't until the third place I looked that I found out that the film advance also activates the meter.  That's good news, as it isn't running down the battery all the time, and I have confirmed it does work.  Also note in the photo that the film speed is buried in that same multi-purpose ring.

No shoe on top at all (cold or hot), but luckily the Minolta came with a flash and the little cable that plugs in here.  Two different sync speeds, for electronic (X - for xenon, I think) and M (Medium) for slower-brightening bulbs.

So now I'm looking for washing soda.  I'll keep you posted.