Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1997/03/14
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Dear Leica users, I have a rather technical question, but I hope that some other M6 owners could check if their camera behaves as mine. Recently, the exposure meter of my M6 stopped working properly, so I sent it to the official Italian Leica representative, who changed the part (for about $300) with the latest type. With the previous exposure meter, with the lens cap on, the leds were off, whereas with the new one the leds blink. I know that this is the normal behaviour with the new circuit. What I find strange is that with the blinking leds the meter continue working, some more f-stops down. In particular, assuming 100 ASA film sensitivity, I can choose a scene such that both leds blink at 1/4 sec, f/2 and only one blinks at 1/8 sec, f/2; this implies that the correct exposure is 1/4 sec, f/2, i.e., IE +4. Giving that I am working at f/2, and that the exposure meter (as it is on the M6) does not know the effective aperture, this implies that I would obtain an identical behaviour with 1/4 sec, f/1 aperture at IE +2. Since the declared exposure range of the M6 is IE 0 to +20 with a f/1 lens, it seems that leds start blinking two stops before the exposure meter becomes (theoretically) unusable. This is a minor remark, but I find the blinking rather annoying, so I would have expected to be present only outside the metering range. Tell me if you need any further detail. Roberto Giaccio