# Confused



## zackk17 (May 22, 2017)

So, a few months back I picked up a Vivitar v3800N camera from a yard sale for a few bucks. The lady didn't know if it worked or not, so I decided to test it; however once I shot the roll of film and got it developed, the pictures didn't turn out, and I'm sure not if I did something wrong, if it's the camera, etc.




The picture above is of the photos I had developed.

If anyone could help, or has any ideas, I'd greatly appreciate it.
Thank you.


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## dxqcanada (May 22, 2017)

You got a ghost stuck in your camera ... seriously, looks like an ugly light leak.


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## zackk17 (May 22, 2017)

dxqcanada said:


> You got a ghost stuck in your camera ... seriously, looks like an ugly light leak.


Hm, alright thank you


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## qmr55 (May 22, 2017)

Looks like you might need a light seal kit...


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## zackk17 (May 22, 2017)

qmr55 said:


> Looks like you might need a light seal kit...


Not sure if it's completely true, but I read somewhere that the foam will become gooey if it's bad? The foam in mine seems to be in pretty good condition


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## compur (May 22, 2017)

Did you open the back while the film was mid-roll or before re-winding the film?


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## zackk17 (May 22, 2017)

compur said:


> Did you open the back while the film was mid-roll or before re-winding the film?


Not that I recall


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## Dave Colangelo (May 23, 2017)

Depending on the leak this may be more than a foam issue. Some foam becomes sticky but this depends on the era of the camera and the glue used to adhere the foam. In many cases felt is also used which generally does not become gunky. Some foam becomes brittle and will flake out like dust of chunky little black pin head sized balls. You may have a shutter issue, either the shutter is damaged or is not actuating properly as such you are over exposing the film. However if you take a picture and advance right away you move the film out of the way and mitigate the problem. The camera may also simply have shutter that is getting stuck open for too long. Try the manual speeds and see what you get. Slow shutters should visibly open and close while the faster speeds should look like a blink. If you are so inclined you can see if you can find a local camera shop with a shutter tester. 

Dave


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## john.margetts (May 23, 2017)

If the light seal foam is starting to deteriorate, it can get on a focal plane shutter and stop it moving as it should. If a cloth shutter, one curtain will move too slowly and if a metal shutter, the blades will not locate properly and cause a permanent light leak.

Edit: definitely has a metal shutter and definitely has foam light seals.


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## Dave442 (May 23, 2017)

I would try a controlled test to see if it is light leaks around the back of the camera. You have a few shots that came out, but show some issues similar to the others just not as extensive. Some images look like they may have come out completely under-exposed if the extra light had not hit the film. 

While digital might let you take only three out of twenty-four correctly exposed images, with film you want to reverse that.  Anyway, it looks like that camera that cost a few bucks is getting kind of expensive.


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## zackk17 (May 23, 2017)

Dave Colangelo said:


> Depending on the leak this may be more than a foam issue. Some foam becomes sticky but this depends on the era of the camera and the glue used to adhere the foam. In many cases felt is also used which generally does not become gunky. Some foam becomes brittle and will flake out like dust of chunky little black pin head sized balls. You may have a shutter issue, either the shutter is damaged or is not actuating properly as such you are over exposing the film. However if you take a picture and advance right away you move the film out of the way and mitigate the problem. The camera may also simply have shutter that is getting stuck open for too long. Try the manual speeds and see what you get. Slow shutters should visibly open and close while the faster speeds should look like a blink. If you are so inclined you can see if you can find a local camera shop with a shutter tester.
> 
> Dave


The foam doesn't seem to be coming off at all, and the shutter seems to be working properly as far as I can tell. What do you mean by manual speeds? Sorry, I'm new to all of this.



john.margetts said:


> If the light seal foam is starting to deteriorate, it can get on a focal plane shutter and stop it moving as it should. If a cloth shutter, one curtain will move too slowly and if a metal shutter, the blades will not locate properly and cause a permanent light leak.
> 
> Edit: definitely has a metal shutter and definitely has foam light seals.


The foam isn't brittle or coming off, and the shutter looks like it's working fine


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## zackk17 (May 23, 2017)

Dave442 said:


> I would try a controlled test to see if it is light leaks around the back of the camera. You have a few shots that came out, but show some issues similar to the others just not as extensive. Some images look like they may have come out completely under-exposed if the extra light had not hit the film.
> 
> While digital might let you take only three out of twenty-four correctly exposed images, with film you want to reverse that.  Anyway, it looks like that camera that cost a few bucks is getting kind of expensive.


Okay thanks. And haha, not too bad. If I can fix it for a fair amount I intend to, but if not I'll just get rid of it


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## Dave Colangelo (May 23, 2017)

zackk17 said:


> What do you mean by manual speeds? Sorry, I'm new to all of this.



Some cameras have an auto mode, generally on this era of stuff that auto mode is really aperture priority it will fire the shutter at the appropriate speed for the set aperture. By selecting the shutter speed manually you will lock the camera into using a given shutter speed. This allows you to manually select a slow or fast shutter speed and observe what is happening. Low shutter speeds on this camera would be like setting the wheel on the top to 1 or 2 (remember they are all reciprocal so that is really 1/1 and 1/2 seconds) fast would be on the end of the 2000 which is really 1/2000 of a second shutter speed. 

Out of curiosity, did you use new film or just stuff that was lying around?    

its also possible that the internal meter (if it has one) is broken or wrong. You should confirm it against a known good meter or camera and make sure you are using the proper aperture/shutter speed settings for your chosen film speed. You should also set the film speed to the loaded film in the camera. 

Dave


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## compur (May 23, 2017)

If those prints in the OP were caused by a light leak then it has to be the worst leak in history.

Most of the prints look like there wasn't even a lens on the camera and all of them look light struck to me.

Are you sure that film wasn't exposed to room light before or after you shot the roll? Did you rewind the film completely after shooting and before opening the camera? Did you open the camera after you shot some frames to make sure the film was advancing? Was it a new roll of film that had never been in a camera before? Was it an old roll of film that you bought from the yard sale along with the camera?


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## zackk17 (May 23, 2017)

Dave Colangelo said:


> zackk17 said:
> 
> 
> > What do you mean by manual speeds? Sorry, I'm new to all of this.
> ...


I appreciate all the help. The film I used was brand new


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## zackk17 (May 23, 2017)

compur said:


> If those prints in the OP were caused by a light leak then it has to be the worst leak in history.
> 
> Most of the prints look like there wasn't even a lens on the camera and all of them look light struck to me.
> 
> Are you sure that film wasn't exposed to room light before or after you shot the roll? Did you rewind the film completely after shooting and before opening the camera? Did you open the camera after you shot some frames to make sure the film was advancing? Was it a new roll of film that had never been in a camera before?


I believe I did check to see if it was advancing, yes


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## compur (May 23, 2017)

zackk17 said:


> I believe I did check to see if it was advancing, yes



Well, if you opened the back with the film mid-roll then that is the cause.

Film is light sensitive. It must always be kept in total darkness except for the actual intended exposure for the photo you intend to take. Opening the back with the film mid-roll exposes the film to light and ruins it (or at least a part of the roll).

To check if the film is advancing on your camera you only need look to see if the rewind knob turns when you advance the film. If it turns as you move the lever then the film is advancing.


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## vintagesnaps (May 23, 2017)

I've gotten something like this when I've accidently popped open a camera. I slam it back shut right away and usually only lose a few frames (due to the film being exposed to the light). What's still in the canister might be OK to continue shooting.


I have to say when I first saw the photo the top part of it looked like some sort of abstract art... you could maybe do something interesting with these - seriously! If you felt inclined to make some sort of collage or something. 

Actually a couple of them don't look like a total loss, there's one of some flowers that almost looks sepia tone. You could always crop to salvage at least part of what's in the frame.


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## zackk17 (May 23, 2017)

compur said:


> zackk17 said:
> 
> 
> > I believe I did check to see if it was advancing, yes
> ...


Okay, thank you! I thought that the rest of the roll would've been safe, but I guess not haha.



vintagesnaps said:


> I've gotten something like this when I've accidently popped open a camera. I slam it back shut right away and usually only lose a few frames (due to the film being exposed to the light). What's still in the canister might be OK to continue shooting.
> 
> 
> I have to say when I first saw the photo the top part of it looked like some sort of abstract art... you could maybe do something interesting with these - seriously! If you felt inclined to make some sort of collage or something.
> ...


Yeah I actually thought about that!


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