COVID-19 updates

[Slobodan Blagojevic]

Slobodan, regardless of what you might think I'm not a communist or for that matter a socialist.

Never occurred to me to claim otherwise.

Just pointing out that, when we enter the realm of high numbers, they become statistics, rather than individual tragedy.

[Alan Klein]

It always surprises me that old people are so much more afraid of dying compared to young people that have so much more to loose.

When you're young you think you;re going to live forever. Then you get older, things start to break down, and you realize there really is an end.  But also I notice what happens, is that you become accepting of it and take it naturally especially if you can learn to live a day at a time. Another trick someone told be recently (I'm 75), is that no matter how old you are today, it's very possible to live another ten years.   So you think about it in those terms and figure well, I got another ten years.  God willing. So you keep plodding on.  Be happy.  All any of us have is today. 

[Alan Klein]

My DR cancelled a med check appointment for Weds.  I would have done it myself had she not.

I cancelled my blood test at Quest and my doctor's appt.  I;ve cancelled all personal appts.  They closed the clubhouse where I live in a 55+ community, so no poker.  Men's club breakfasts cancelled.  We have a cleaning girl but my wife refuses to cancel her.  No jokes please. 

[chez]

The most interesting I find about this is just looking around at the grocer to see what people are stocking up on, perishables.  What?

Yes, there was a lack of canned/dried goods as well, but nearly the entire meet department was emptied out.  If this really hits, utilities will shut down.  Refrigerators wont work and you're not going to be able to cook anything unless you have a wood burning stove. 

All that will go to waste, unless you're crazy like me and know how to cure meats and make your own cheese.

You've watched too much of the Walking Dead.

[JoeKitchen]

Yes, I just took up large format photography and got a new Chinese made Chamonix 4x5 camera, the 45H-1.  It came before the cirus outbreak so I didn;lt have to disinfect it.   The lens on order is a Nikkor 90mm f/4.5 with a CF from member of a different forum.  I also ordered a 75mm Fujinon f/5.6 from Japan but no CF was available at this time.

Speaking of Copal 0 shutters, the first LF lens I bought was a 150mm Schneider APO Symmar MC f/5.6  I tested the shutter (using my cellphone sound recording and Audacity app) and it's about 1/3 stop fast on speeds from 1 sec to 1/30.  People say I should live with it.  But I wonder if that can be corrected either with a new Copal or spring or escapement adjustment?  And whether it's worth it?

It's analog technology, and, as good as a Copel shutter is, living with the speeds being slightly off is part of the deal.  None of the shutters on my lenses are 100% consistent to each other.  My Rodenstock 55mm shoots at 1/45 when set to 1/30, 1/90 when at set to 1/60, and so on.  And there is no real way to fix this.  Plus having a new spring installed will cost about $225, and the spring is what really dictates the inaccuracies.  A slightly stronger spring will produce slightly faster speeds. 

The plus with your lens is that the shutter speeds are slightly faster.  When they are slightly slower is when you need to worry.  As the spring wears down, the speeds will start to get slower, which is a sure sign the spring is getting ready to snap.  Of course this takes like a 100,000+ actuations to get to this point, which is a little unlikely for a hobbyist but not hard to achieve as a professional. 

I've had the spring in my go to lens snap twice on shoots.  Fortunately I carry spare shutters and a spanner wrench with me. 

Two additional points.  First, never change speeds while the shutter is cocked!  This is especially the case when going from 1/30 to 1/60 when internally the timing mechanism switches timing rings.  Do this a few dozens times and you will destroy the timing rings.  That 75mm, if it is fully symmetrical (probably is), will need a CF more then the 90mm.  Light fall will probably be 3.5 to 4 stops.  Could look cool, or could be annoying. 

[JoeKitchen]

You've watched too much of the Walking Dead.

Clostridium botulinum is a real thing. 

Plus, meat rots a lot faster then people think.  Unlike in the walking dead, under the right conditions, your arms, legs and head will rot completely off your body in as little as 5 days. 

[KLaban]

Clostridium botulinum is a real thing. 

Plus, meat rots a lot faster then people think.  Unlike in the walking dead, under the right conditions, your arms, legs and head will rot completely off your body in as little as 5 days.

It frightens me that you know this stuff.

;-)

[Craig Lamson]

The most interesting I find about this is just looking around at the grocer to see what people are stocking up on, perishables.  What?

Yes, there was a lack of canned/dried goods as well, but nearly the entire meet department was emptied out.  If this really hits, utilities will shut down.  Refrigerators wont work and you're not going to be able to cook anything unless you have a wood burning stove. 

All that will go to waste, unless you're crazy like me and know how to cure meats and make your own cheese.

I doubt services like electricity and gas will be gone at least for the short  term. However if it gets to that point we have much bigger problems.  If that’s the case you might be better served to have stockpiled lead 😁

Part of getting ready for this saw me filling the propane on the gas grill and buying a free extra bags of wood pellets for the Traeger.  Our freezer is full and the pantry is stocked.  We will be eating as much fresh as we can until it either outdated or it is gone.  Then it’s the canned and items that need no perishables to prepare. 

Again I feel lucky to have the resources to do this.  I worry about those who either lack the resources or failed to prepare. 

[Alan Klein]

It's analog technology, and, as good as a Copel shutter is, living with the speeds being slightly off is part of the deal.  None of the shutters on my lenses are 100% consistent to each other.  My Rodenstock 55mm shoots at 1/45 when set to 1/30, 1/90 when at set to 1/60, and so on.  And there is no real way to fix this.  Plus having a new spring installed will cost about $225, and the spring is what really dictates the inaccuracies.  A slightly stronger spring will produce slightly faster speeds. 

The plus with your lens is that the shutter speeds are slightly faster.  When they are slightly slower is when you need to worry.  As the spring wears down, the speeds will start to get slower, which is a sure sign the spring is getting ready to snap.  Of course this takes like a 100,000+ actuations to get to this point, which is a little unlikely for a hobbyist but not hard to achieve as a professional. 

I've had the spring in my go to lens snap twice on shoots.  Fortunately I carry spare shutters and a spanner wrench with me. 

Two additional points.  First, never change speeds while the shutter is cocked!  This is especially the case when going from 1/30 to 1/60 when internally the timing mechanism switches timing rings.  Do this a few dozens times and you will destroy the timing rings.  That 75mm, if it is fully symmetrical (probably is), will need a CF more then the 90mm.  Light fall will probably be 3.5 to 4 stops.  Could look cool, or could be annoying. 

Thanks for the info.  Interestingly, I checked my Mamiya RB67 medium format lenses: 50mm, 90mm, 180mm, and 360mm.  These use Seiko shutters. After thirty years, all were extremely accurate.  If course, not being a pro, I didn't click that often.  But on the other hand, I left the shutter cocked in sme cases for 15+ years while the camera was not being used.  So the Seiko shutters seem to be a lot better than the Copals.  My Nikon N6006 35mm shutter was right on exactly on all speed up to about 1/125.  Faster than that I couldn't really tell what the speed was due to the inaccuracy of the test methods at those speeds.  It's an old camera but I think its shutter is electronically timed.

Regarding CF's, people say it's more of a problem with color than BW.  I've just started so we'll see how it goes and what else I have to do.  With Covid, this is a good time to get out to shoot as you can be safely by yourself breathing fresh uninfected air. 

[Slobodan Blagojevic]

Easily corrected. Really.

Is it?

I currently have a Walgreens digital thermometer that I brought with me from the States. No two readings are ever the same, and the difference can be several points apart.

So, a question: what is currently the most precise thermometer on the market, within a reasonable price range?

[JoeKitchen]

It frightens me that you know this stuff.

;-)

Forensic Files is easy background noise when working on photos.  I wont go into case details, but I've learned hot humid weather accelerates things rather quickly. 

Like I alluded to before, I make my own cheese and doing a fair bit of canning.  Although I would like to experiment with canning meat, botulism is not something I want to deal with.  It is, by orders of magnitude, the deadliest substance ever discovered.  Nothing even comes close; a grain of sand worth can kill 10,000 adults. 

[Alan Klein]

...

Two additional points.  First, never change speeds while the shutter is cocked!  This is especially the case when going from 1/30 to 1/60 when internally the timing mechanism switches timing rings.  Do this a few dozens times and you will destroy the timing rings.  That 75mm, if it is fully symmetrical (probably is), will need a CF more then the 90mm.  Light fall will probably be 3.5 to 4 stops.  Could look cool, or could be annoying. 

That's interesting because the spec sheet for the Copal says you can change speed f stops etc.  I'll have to keep what you said in mind.  The whole process with LF is complicated.  I didn't realize it before I bought the camera.  Why do people say to snap the shutter before using it again to actually expose the film?

[chez]

Clostridium botulinum is a real thing. 

Plus, meat rots a lot faster then people think.  Unlike in the walking dead, under the right conditions, your arms, legs and head will rot completely off your body in as little as 5 days.

Your fear of the electrical grid system going down and your freezer full of stocked up meat will rot is a bit extremist IMHO. It's that type of thinking and talk which is causing these shortages...even on toilet paper.

[JoeKitchen]

Your fear of the electrical grid system going down and your freezer full of stocked up meat will rot is a bit extremist IMHO. It's that type of thinking and talk which is causing these shortages...even on toilet paper.

What?  I am just saying is if you think a SHTF scenario is around the corner, you have to assume the utilities will shut down as well.  They are manned by people, and without people will not work.  So why buy something that will eventually spoil without proper storage?  Not that I am thinking this way now, but if I went into panic mode, I would be giving it a little more thought than just buying everything I see.

And just so people here don't think I'm a crazy (or at least a certain type of crazy  ), I'm not one of those preppers you see on TV.  I do a fair bit of gardening and ended up with about 200 lb. of tomatoes last year plus a litany of other vegetables.  Turns out when your garden gets no shade at all, your plants go totally crazy.  My tomato plants ended up being 5 feet tall.  So I made around 3 gallons of sauce and canned them, fermented the peppers and pickled the cucumbers.  I make cheese just for the fun of it, and Rochefort is a lot cheaper to make then buy. 

[Manoli]

Is it?
So, a question: what is currently the most precise thermometer on the market, within a reasonable price range?

I don't know but would ask your doctor for advice. Here, in the EU, I see a ton of forehead thermometers being used for sample testing. Hospitals, still using digital readout, oral or under arm, mercury thermometers.

Good luck
M

[chez]

What?  I am just saying is if you think a SHTF scenario is around the corner, you have to assume the utilities will shut down as well.  They are manned by people, and without people will not work.  So why buy something that will eventually spoil without proper storage?  Not that I am thinking this way now, but if I went into panic mode, I would be giving it a little more thought than just buying everything I see.

And just so people here don't think I'm a crazy (or at least a certain type of crazy  ), I'm not one of those preppers you see on TV.  I do a fair bit of gardening and ended up with about 200 lb. of tomatoes last year plus a litany of other vegetables.  Turns out when your garden gets no shade at all, your plants go totally crazy.  My tomato plants ended up being 5 feet tall.  So I made around 3 gallons of sauce and canned them, fermented the peppers and pickled the cucumbers.  I make cheese just for the fun of it, and Rochefort is a lot cheaper to make then buy.

Well let's not forget that 80% of the people who get the virus have very mild reactions to it...so I would think there would still be people around to man those power grids...don't you think? Your scenario is totally unrealistic and like I said...fueling the hysteria around toilet paper stocking up.

[JoeKitchen]

Well let's not forget that 80% of the people who get the virus have very mild reactions to it...so I would think there would still be people around to man those power grids...don't you think? Your scenario is totally unrealistic and like I said...fueling the hysteria around toilet paper stocking up.

Yes, I completely agree that it is totally unlikely this will shut down society.  I am not one of those crazy people out there right now buying stuff up like toilet paper.  But there are obviously a lot of people buying into just that.  My wife just got off a business call and there were people on it who think this is going to last for months. 

All I am saying is that if you are in a panic and actually think the world is shutting down, hoarding meat is a bad idea!  Unless you know how to salt and cure it, you're screwed when the power grid shuts off, which I dont think is going to happen here.  Although in CA, it's starting to become common practice. 

If we were really in a society shutting down scenario (which we are not), may advice is stop, think and dont buy stuff that can go bad without refrigeration or proper alternate food storage knowledge. 

[Robert Roaldi]

Besides all the real problems, now there are hoax information releases too, https://www.theverge.com/2020/3/12/21177262/coronavirus-tip-fake-list-stanford-hoax-covid-19. Good thing there is enough real media left to police this nonsense.

[Chris Kern]

It's analog technology, and, as good as a Copel shutter is, living with the speeds being slightly off is part of the deal. . . .

This kind of knowledgeable discussion related to photography is completely out-of-place in this thread.  Can we please just confine ourselves to rampant speculation and unsupported opinions?

[kers]

As I posted, I do seem to have it.

Sorry to hear that; I overlooked some of the postings- this one!
Wish you a quick recovery; eat healthy and sleep well!