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Re: Wanted - Manual Camera
Tesla List wrote:
>
> Original Poster: "Justin Hennigan" <justinh-at-interlaced-dot-net>
>
> Question for the list members:
>
> What would be a good fully manual camera for taking tesla coil pictures? I
> took some pictures a couple of years ago, and fried an Olympus IS-3DLX from
> 30 feet. I now have a Nikon N70 and I'd like to keep it.
>
> Sparcz
> ICQ UIN 2417959
> Justin Hennigan
Justin,
Any old manual camera from the major manufacturers would be fine--I say
old because old cameras are generally built with metal bodies, which
forms a faraday cage of sorts around your electronics. The more basic,
the better. Your N70, and your former olympus, have pretty sophisticated
electronics on board (chips), and are both plastic, if I recall
correctly. This allows a heavy E-field to play havoc.
I am a photog's assistant, and I shoot with an old Russian medium format
that is all mechanical. I have done shots where a streamer was hitting
the filter ring, and the strobe sync, which is the only electric circuit
on the camera, still works.
I would recommend you go to a local camera store (not one of those
cheezy electronics places, but a place that deals in used and
professional equipment) and buy a basic manual camera from any major
brand. Look for all-metal construction and all-mechanical operation.
Used camera equipment is usually reliable, in good shape, and a much
better deal than the current new models. Make sure the place has a good
return policy, and test with film the day you buy it. A lot of the pro
photogs I work for buy their equip. used for half the new value,
sometimes from wanna-bees who buy a bunch of fancy new stuff and go
belly up a few months later.
Any questions about this or any tesla photography questions, feel
free...
Wells.